Maguire faces wait of 2 years to try to clear name
MANCHESTER United captain Harry Maguire may face a twoyear wait for a Greek court date after he appealed against his assault conviction.
A prosecutor in his case warned yesterday that Greek appeals involve a full retrial and it could take that long to get a hearing.
But he said the 27-year-old could have his conviction quashed if he apologised.
A panel of judges gave the England defender a 21-month suspended jail term on Tuesday after convicting him of abusing and attacking police during a drunken night out on the holiday isle of Mykonos.
Trouble flared after Maguire’s young sister Daisy was allegedly injected with a date-rape drug
The £190,000-a-week player and his brother Joe also tried to bribe their way out of trouble, the court ruled.
The defender has now been dropped by England but his club said they would stand by him pending his appeal. Manchester United maintains that because the appeal is now in the Greek legal system, his conviction is null and void. ‘The filing of an appeal extinguishes the initial court verdict and nullifies the conviction,’ it said in a statement.
‘This means that Harry has no criminal record and is once again presumed innocent until proven guilty. Accordingly, he is not subject to any international travel restrictions.’
This was disputed by Athens legal expert Stavroula Tomara, who said: ‘Until [the appeal], the conviction will hang over Maguire’s head.’
Greek prosecutor Dr Yoannis Paradissis said that if Maguire admitted the attack and apologised, his conviction might be quashed.
Dr Paradissis told the BBC yesterday: ‘Even if Maguire says he was not heavily involved in the incident, he needs to apologise.’