Man cleared of Vichai raid jailed over counterfeit £1m

A CRIMINAL cleared of planning a raid at the home of Leicester City FC’s former owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha has been caught with £1 million in fake notes.

A team of burglars got away with £26 million worth of jewellery, cash, gems and watches in three raids over just 13 days in December 2019.

The victims also included celebrity couple Frank and Christine Lampard and socialite Tamara Ecclestone.

The raids happened just over a year after Khun Vichai died in a helicopter crash at King Power Stadium.

Emil Bogdan Savastru, 31, was last year cleared of being part of the team despite being arrested at Heathrow wearing Khun Vichai’s watch and carrying a Louis Vuitton bag from Ms Ecclestone’s home.

He and three other Romanian defendants was cleared by a jury after a two-month trial, although three others have been jailed.

But Savastru has since been convicted of the offence of “attempting to conceal criminal property”.

In December, he was found guilty of one count of having custody or control of counterfeit notes following another trial at Isleworth Crown Court. This week he was sentenced to 11 months’ imprisonment, the Metropolitan Police said.

The police revealed a bag containing £1 million worth of counterfeit £50 and 200 euro notes was found when police raided an address in Bow, east London.

Detective Constable Andrew Payne said: “The seizure of this significant amount of counterfeit currency has ensured it cannot get into circulation.

“Counterfeit currency supports criminal activity, harms the UK economy and has a real and significant impact on businesses and individuals who take possession of worthless money.

“Without a doubt, these notes would have been used to commit further crimes across the UK.”