Ex-Northampton Town chairman charged with fraud
Getty ImagesFive men have been charged with fraud related to multi-million pound loans to First Division football clubs.
Former Northampton Town Football Club chairman David Cardoza was charged along with his father Anthony, property developer Howard Grossman and his son Marcus and another man Simon Patnick.
It follows a nine-year police investigation into the apparent disappearance of more than £10 million lent to the club by the then Northampton City Council.
The five are due to appear at Northampton Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.
The men face a total of fifteen charges:
- Anthony Cardoza, 80, of Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, is charged with conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation and abuse of position to commit fraud.
- David Cardoza, 54, of Eastbourne, Sussex, is charged with conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation, abuse of position to commit fraud and transferring criminal property.
- Howard Grossman, 63, of Bushey, Hertfordshire, is charged with conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation and four counts of transferring criminal property and obtaining criminal property.
- Marcus Grossman, 37, from London, is charged with committing fraud by false representation and transferring criminal property.
- Simon Patnick, 54, of Stanmore, London, is also charged with conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation and obtain criminal property.
Each is accused of conspiring to make false representations to the council, claiming loan funds would be used to develop Northampton Town Football Club’s Thixfield Stadium and adjoining hotel.
They allegedly knew it was “untrue or misleading” and that the men “intended to benefit themselves,” the complaint states.
David Cardoza and Anthony Cardoza are also accused of abuse of power fraud involving an £8.75 million payment by the football club to 1st Land Limited, a company owned by Howard Grossman.
Operation Taxhir
It is more than nine years since Northamptonshire Police began Operation Tuckhill, an investigation into the apparent disappearance of loan funds that had been passed on to the club for the development of a new stand and a hotel.
The East Stand was only half built in 10 years and is only now being completed.
Police said the allegation of theft at Northampton City Council was just one element of a wider investigation and that over the past nine years “an expert panel set up following the incident has collected almost 1,000 witness statements and recorded 4,719 evidence”. In November 2015, police raided the football stadium for the first time.”
In a statement, Northampton Town Football Club acknowledged “the recent statement made by Northamptonshire Police regarding the club’s former owner in 2015”.
It continued: “The club has always been aware of the ongoing investigation and this is clearly of historic significance to the club now.”
