Tottenham Hotspur Football Club owner Joe Lewis leaves Manhattan federal court in New York City on July 26, 2023. Lewis pleaded not guilty to insider trading charges Wednesday in a US federal court. Lewis, 86, denied all counts and was released on bail following a hearing in Manhattan, an official with the Justice Department's Southern District of New York confirmed to AFP.

Trump pardons billionaire ex-Tottenham owner Joe Lewis

Agence France-Presse
ANGELA WEISS / AFP / Getty

US President Donald Trump pardoned billionaire former Tottenham Hotspur owner Joe Lewis on Thursday, a White House official said. 

The official said the 88-year-old British mogul requested the gesture in order to receive medical treatment and visit his grandchildren and great-grandchildren in the United States.

Lewis, whose family trust holds a majority stake in the Premier League's Tottenham Hotspur football team, pleaded guilty in 2024 to one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud. He was spared going to prison and now lives in the Bahamas.

In facing the white-collar crime charges, Lewis admitted guilt, did not fight US extradition in the case, and paid a $5 million fine, the White House official added.

Lewis has a fortune that as of Thursday stood at $6.8 billion, according to Forbes. He built his reputation as a currency speculator in the 1980s and early 1990s.

His holding company ENIC bought a controlling interest in Tottenham in 2001 from then-owner Alan Sugar, another prominent British tycoon, for $22 million. 

Lewis officially seeded control of the club in 2022, and his stake was formally handed to a family trust.

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