Turkish-Cypriot tycoon guilty of stealing millions

LONDON: Turkish-Cypriot tycoon Asil Nadir, once one of Britain's most notorious fugitives, faces jail after he was found guilty of a total of ten charges of theft by a London court.
The 71-year-old former head of the now-defunct Polly Peck International conglomerate was convicted of seven charges yesterday following three guilty verdicts earlier in the week.
Nadir has now been convicted of thefts totalling £28.6 million (36 million euros, $45 million) from Polly Peck.
The judge at the Old Bailey court will sentence him today.
Nadir was one of the most prominent businessmen in Britain in the 1980s and early 1990s after building up Polly Peck from a small textile firm into a sprawling company with interests ranging from fruit to electronics.
Most of Polly Peck's business was based in Turkey and the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), recognized only by Ankara.
By 1990, it was one of the strongest performers on the FTSE 100 index but its share price collapsed after investigators raided the company's offices.
The flamboyant Nadir was arrested after Polly Peck collapsed with debts of £550 million and he was charged with 13 counts of theft.
He was due to stand trial, but fled in 1993 to the TRNC, which does not have an extradition treaty with Britain.
He returned to Britain in 2010 in a dramatic bid to clear his name after 17 years as a fugitive.
Nadir insisted he was simply moving money between his companies.
The trial heard Nadir, who is a British citizen, was a highly-respected business figure in Turkey and a major employer in Turkey and the TRNC.