Briatore guilty, court sides with Schu over privacy

Flavio Briatore

(GMM) An Italian criminal court in Genoa, Italy, has found Flavio Briatore guilty of tax evasion.

La Gazzetta dello Sport said the matter involved his luxury yacht Force Blue, which has been seized, with the former Renault chief sentenced to 1 year and 11 months of probation.

Briatore, 65, and fellow directors were found to have used the boat for recreational purposes whilst claiming tax benefits for charters, including fuel and mooring exemptions through the issuing of false invoices.

"This is an outcome we did not expect," Briatore's lawyer Massimo Pellicciotta was quoted as saying.

"We will appeal this and fight it to the end," he added.

Meanwhile, a judge in a Munich court has sided with Michael Schumacher's wife Corinna, over a breach of privacy action she took against gossip publications Bunte, Freizeit-Revue and Freizeit-Spass.

According to Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper, the publications had claimed the F1 legend "sometimes opens his eyes", received "special treatment" from carers, and had uttered his "first words" since a skiing crash.

Although the court's judgement is not yet final, the judge found that it amounted to "voyeurism", invading his privacy with "speculation".

"The court has forbidden such reporting," Suddeutsche added.