Boris Becker has been released from Oxfordshire prison and is now to be deported to Germany. This was reported by the British news agency PA.
The former tennis star faces no further punishment in Germany. One cannot be punished more than once for the same crime, a public prosecutor told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur.
British media had previously reported that Becker could be released before Christmas. It was not immediately clear whether he would travel to Germany on a scheduled flight, as is usual for deportations, or on his private jet.
Boris Becker has been freed from prison after serving just eight months of his sentence and now faces deportation from the UK
✍️: @FloraThompsonPAhttps://t.co/QOwDAsKIp9
– PA Media (@PA) December 15, 2022
The three-time Wimbledon winner had been sentenced to two and a half years in prison at the end of April. He had concealed assets worth millions from his insolvency administrators.
Under British law, Becker actually has to serve at least half of the sentence before he can be released on parole. That would be the case at the end of July 2023. But because the 55-year-old is not a British citizen, he could benefit from a fast-track system designed to deport foreign prisoners more quickly to ease pressure on Britain’s overcrowded prisons.
After his deportation, Becker will most likely not be allowed to enter the UK for a long time, even though his partner lives there.