Hoeneß Found Guilty of Tax Evasion, Faces 3 1/2 Years in Jail

Ulrich "Uli" Hoeneß, Bayern Munich's acting President, was sentenced to three and a half years in prison for tax evasion, the verdict coming from Munich Regional Courthouse II just after 14:00 CMT on Thursday. Hoeneß's lawyer, Hanns Feigen, announced that his defence will appeal the verdict to Germany's Federal Court of Justice, according to multiple reports out of Germany.

As part of his closing statement, prosecutor Achim von Engel called for a five and a half year jail sentence, citing discrepancies in Hoeneß's confession. [Abendzeitung]

While the initial indictment was for €3.55 million in back taxes, the final amount was nearly eight times more.

"The total sum of back taxes from Hoeneß amounts to €28.4 million," said Judge Rubert Heindl. [Sport Bild]

Feigen addressed the self-reporting, or amended return, in his closing statement, saying that the tax-evasion would have been overlooked if not for the report. Heindl alluded to the amended return in his verdict.

"They did not have all the documents together that they needed for the self-reporting, and risked it nevertheless," said Heind. "That is your mistake, Mr. Hoeneß, and not your negotiator.

"It is speculation, whether Hoeneß's act would not be discovered sometime. Perhaps a tax CD would have also emerged the Swiss Vontobel-Bank." [Focus]

The Bayern president was in attendance at the club's UEFA Champions League match on Tuesday, a 1-1 draw against Arsenal. Hoeneß will be able to walk as a free man while his lawyers have a week to submit a formal appeal.