Taxman is sent packing as Harry Redknapp found NOT GUILTY of taking £189,000 in 'bungs'

• Co-defendant and former Portsmouth owner Milan Mandaric also acquitted
• The pair hugged as the jury cleared them both of all counts  
• Redknapp: 'This case should never have come to court'
• Marks end of £8m police investigation which failed to yield a single conviction
• Hopes of Redknapp leading the England team receive a major boost
• Football boss Harry Redknapp spoke of his 'nightmare' after being cleared today of taking 'bungs' in an offshore tax dodge.
  Speaking on the steps outside London's Southwark Crown Court, the Tottenham Hotspur manager said: 'It's been five years. This is a case that should never have come to court.
  'It was horrendous, but it was a unanimous decision'.
  Jurors accepted Redknapp's angry denials that he avoided tax on any payments over £189,000 found in a Monaco account.
  His acquittal alongside co-defendant former Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandaric blows the final whistle on an exhaustive £8 million City of London Police investigation which failed to yield a single conviction after five years.
  The pair hugged as the jury cleared them of all counts after deliberating for less than three hours.
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  Innocent: Harry Redknapp is swamped by reporters outside Southwark Crown Court as he walks free. He told the media the case should never have come to court and described the five-year ordeal as a 'nightmare' 

  Mandaric and former Portsmouth chief executive Peter Storrie were also cleared of £600,000 tax dodge claims at a previous trial, it can be reported for the first time.Redknapp was at times moved to the verge of tears as the Crown alleged that he told a pack of lies in an attempt to get off the hook.But jurors accepted Redknapp and Mandaric's evidence that the Monaco account in the name of Redknapp's dog, Rosie, was nothing to do with footballing matters.The two-week trial threatened to derail Redknapp's progress at the pinnacle of his 30-year managerial career.Having led Spurs through their most successful period in the Premier League era, the Londoner was tipped as the outstanding favourite to replace Fabio Capello as England manager this summer.
  

  Milan Mandaric , left, and former Portsmouth chief executive Peter Storrie were also cleared of £600,000 tax dodge claims at a previous trial, it can be reported for the first timeWith his name cleared in the courts, nothing would now appear to stand in the way for the Football Association to hire him.A recorded telephone conversation between News of the World reporter Rob Beasley and the pair in 2009 was a pivotal element in the Crown's case.
  Redknapp telling Mr Beasley it was money for transfer bonuses was 'the most compelling and important evidence', prosecutor John Black QC saidBut defence barrister John Kelsey-Fry QC said the Sunday tabloid's evidence was 'primarily despicable''I do not shrink from suggesting to you it is repugnant to all our basic instincts of fairness in the criminal justice process,' he said.
  
  Support: Harry Redknapp (right) arrives at Southwark Crown Court with his son Jamie ahead of the verdict
  The case served up high courtroom drama with Redknapp giving an impassioned display in the witness box.
  He told the jury he still struggled with literacy, wrote 'like a two-year-old' and claimed he was framed because his name was Harry and he was a Cockney.
  Pushed to the verge of tears in the witness box as he denied claims he had told a 'pack of lies', Redknapp then turned furiously to shout at a police inspector sitting in court.
  'Will you please stop staring at me,' he shouted at Detective Inspector Dave Manley. 'I know you are trying to cause me a problem, ok.'
  Redknapp had been accused of opening an account called Rosie 47, a combination of his dog's name and the year of his birth, when he was working for Mandaric at Portsmouth.
  The prosecution claimed he had hidden two 'off-the-record' payments in American dollars in the Mediterranean principality, an offshore tax haven.
  The cash was 'deliberately and dishonestly' concealed with the prime purpose of avoiding the payment of tax, the jury was told.
  
  A recorded telephone conversation between NOTW reporter Rob Beasley, pictured, and the pair in 2009 was a pivotal element in the Crown's case
  The allegations against Redknapp, who lives in Poole, Dorset, centred around a series of lucrative bonuses built into this Portsmouth contract when he was made director of football in 2001.
  These included ten per cent of any profit made from any players he bought and sold, bonuses which could total up to £500,000 depending on profits the club made from transfers.
  However, the court heard that in 2002 – when Redknapp went from being director of football to the club's team manager – the bonus for trading players was halved to five per cent.
  Eight days after Redknapp joined Portsmouth in June 2001, England striker Peter Crouch was bought from Queen's Park Rangers for £1.25million. Crouch stayed at Portsmouth for nine months before being sold to Aston Villa for more than £4million in 2002, the court heard.
  The net profit of the sale was £2.3million, but, because of the revised terms of Redknapp's new contract, he was due only 5 per cent of that, which was £115,473. This was paid to him via his wages.
  But the prosecution said Mandaric made an 'off-the-record' arrangement to compensate Redknapp for taking a smaller cut after the deal had gone through.
  The court heard Redknapp waited just four days after receiving the legal bonus from the Crouch sale before taking steps to ensure that he would receive 'what he regarded was his due'.
  He flew to Monaco to open the private Rosie 47 HSBC account, the jury was told. It was alleged that Mandaric, a Serbian billionaire, made two payments into the account.
  The first charge related to £93,000 allegedly paid by Mandaric to Redknapp's account between April 1, 2002, and November 28, 2007, without paying NI contributions or tax. The second related to £96,500 allegedly paid by Mandaric to Redknapp between May 1, 2004, and November 28, 2007, again into the Monaco account without paying NI contributions or tax.
  The jury were not told why the second payment was made.
  But the Monaco bank account eventually came to light during an inquiry into alleged illicit payments in football led by Lord Stevens, the former Metropolitan Police commissioner.
  
  The results of that investigation, known as the Quest inquiry, was handed to the Premier League chief executive, Richard Scudamore, in July 2007.
  Redknapp had been investigated by HM Revenue & Customs officials over his transfer dealings at one of his previous clubs, West Ham United, the court heard. But he made no mention of the Monaco account when interviewed in November 2006.
  Both Redknapp and Mandaric, of Oadby, Leicestershire, had denied two counts of cheating the public revenue.
  

  COLOURFUL COURT OUTBURSTS OF A TOP MANAGER

  In the dock: Harry Redknapp is questioned in court where his penchant for colourful outbursts transferred from post-match press conference to courtroom

  Harry Redknapp's penchant for colourful outbursts transferred from post-match press conference to courtroom. Here are some of his key quotes heard by jurors:
  'I am a fantastic football manager not a hard-headed businessman. I've got no business acumen whatsoever'. Redknapp denies dodging tax as he gives evidence.
  'You think I put my hand on the bible and told lies? That's an insult, Mr Black, that's an insult' The manager fights back tears as he responds to prosecutor John Black QC saying he told 'a pack of lies'.
  'Mr Manley, will you please stop staring at me. I know you are trying to cause me a problem, OK'  Redknapp interrupts his evidence to vent his anger at Detective Inspector Dave Manley
  'I don't have to tell Mr Beasley the truth. I have to tell police the truth, not Mr Beasley, he's a News of the World reporter.' The defendant is cross-examined about misleading journalist Rob Beasley.
  'A friend said to me, he said "Harry, I can't believe it's always you, I have dealt with you enough times. Your problem is your name, Harry, and you have got a Cockney accent". People don't know me and I am sick and tired of it. There ain't nobody who is more of a fan ... My son has been a top footballer ... I don't care who looks, your people can look. Nobody will ever find anything on me. I don't care who looks or how hard because there is nothing on me in this world.'  Interviews with City of London police.
  'I write like a two-year-old and I can't spell ... I can't work a computer, I don't know what an email is, I can't, I have never sent a fax and I've never even sent a text message. I have a big problem, I can't write so I don't keep anything. I am the most disorganised person, I am ashamed to say, in the world ... You talk to anybody at the football club. I don't write. I couldn't even fill a team sheet in.' Redknapp to police, June 1 2009.
  'You're going to write what you want to write and to f*** me up on Cup Final day - I know what's going to happen Rob and you're all barking up the wrong tree. If you say the tax hasn't been declared and it hasn't been paid, I will sue the b*****ks off yeah everybody at the News of the World, make no mistake, yeah.' Redknapp to News of the World reporter Rob Beasley as Tottenham Hotspur prepared to take on Manchester United in the 2009 League Cup final. 

  Redknapp, who underwent heart surgery last year to unblock his arteries, is the most successful English manager in the modern game. He led Portsmouth to FA Cup success and Spurs into last season's Uefa Champions' League.
  Unlike other managers, he had voluntarily disclosed details of the account at the centre of the investigation.
  Redknapp was first held in November 2007 by detectives investigating transfer deals at Portsmouth and at Birmingham City.
  The Redknapp case was part of a wider inquiry dubbed Operation Apprentice, into alleged football corruption.
  Other figures to come under the police spotlight were Birmingham City's former managing director Karren Brady, and former co-owner, David Sullivan. Both denied wrongdoing and were not charged.
  THE LIFE AND TIMES OF 'ARRY
  He was listed in court as Henry James Redknapp  - the rest of Britain know him better as 'Arry.
  From humble East End roots, Redknapp forged his way to the pinnacle of English football in a career spanning almost 50 years.
  And he is about to get a whole lot more famous if, as the tipsters suggest, he is England's manager-in-waiting.
  

  From humble East End roots, Harry Redknapp has forged his way to the pinnacle of English football in a career spanning almost 50 years

  The 64-year-old is one of few homegrown coaches to enjoy success in the modern Premier League.
  Despite characterising football's old school, he has risen to the top of an industry dominated by foreign talent.
  Redknapp, whose son Jamie is famous in his own right as a top former footballer and pundit, has seen his status soar during his time in charge at Tottenham Hotspur.
  

  HARRY FOR ENGLAND? ACQUITTAL TRIGGERS FLURRY OF BETS

  Harry Redknapp's acquittal has triggered a flurry of bets for him to be the next England manager according to Ladbrokes.
  Within seconds of being cleared of the charges punters sent the bookies' phones and website into meltdown with bets for the Spurs boss to take over from Fabio Capello, forcing his price from 2/1 into 1/3 before suspension in a matter of minutes.
  Patriotic punters have also piled into the 20/1 on offer that England win the 2018 World Cup under Redknapp.

  The Football Association - which will replace multimillion pound earning Fabio Capello next summer - has kept close tabs on the north London club's progress under Redknapp's leadership.
  Spurs were a club languishing near the foot of the table when he took over in 2008.
  Three years later they are regarded as one England's top teams in the wake of progress to the latter stages of last season's Champions League.
  Redknapp, a golf-playing grandfather who has been married for 44 years, has had several health scares while juggling his busy schedule of managerial duties and media punditry commitments.
  He was left fighting for life following a road crash in 1990 and in more recent years has suffered heart complaints.
  He successfully underwent a heart procedure to unblock coronary arteries last autumn.
  But any health concerns have been dismissed recently as he has juggled the stress of going on trial while simultaneously mounting a Premier League title challenge with Spurs.
  Career highlights include holding aloft the FA Cup with Portsmouth and steering various clubs to record finishes in the Premier League.
  Having grown up watching Arsenal from the Highbury terraces in the 1950s, sport became Redknapp's lifeblood.
  Born in Poplar, east London, in 1947, he became a professional footballer as a winger with West Ham United in 1964. He made 149 appearances and scored five goals.
  

  Old times: Mandaric gets to grips with Redknapp when the pair were chairman and manager of Portsmouth FC respectively

  In 1972 he signed for Bournemouth, playing in 101 games and scoring five times, before finishing at Brentford in 1976, where he played just one game.
  He began his managerial career back at his old club Bournemouth in 1983.
  The team were second from bottom in the old Division Three, but in 1987 he got them promoted by winning the league.
  In 1992 he joined West Ham United as assistant manager, and two years later was given the top job after Billy Bonds resigned.
  Redknapp won praise for nurturing the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Joe Cole and Frank Lampard from youth team to international success before he quit in 2001 after ensuring the club's Premier League survival for another season.
  He was appointed director of football at Portsmouth and became manager the following year when Graham Rix was sacked.
  In 2003 Redknapp led the team to promotion to the top flight after a 15-year wait, and they finished a respectable 13th place in the next season.
  By November 2004 Redknapp had resigned and joined arch-rivals Southampton, who were relegated from the Premiership on the final day of the season.
  In December 2005 he rejoined Portsmouth, claiming he made a "monumental mistake" in leaving them for Southampton.
  However, just months after winning the FA Cup in 2008, beating Cardiff 1-0 in the final at Wembley, he quit the club again to join top-flight rivals Tottenham.
  Hailed for his astuteness in the transfer market, he has since led Spurs from the lower reaches of the Premier League to a top-four finish.
  They qualified for the Champions League at the end of the 2009/10 season and, despite missing out last time around, are again on course for top-four finish.
  

  THE MULTI-MILLION POUND INVESTIGATION: A TIMELINE

  Police pursued a complex paper trail after Harry Redknapp told a corruption inquiry of his Monaco dealings with Milan Mandaric.
  2001
  June 25, 2001 - Redknapp joins Portsmouth as Director of Football. His contract includes commission on net transfer profits of 10%.
  July 3, 2001 - Redknapp signs Peter Crouch from Queens Park Rangers.
  
  2002
  March 18 - Redknapp agrees new deal to become manager at Portsmouth following the departure of Graham Rix, with reduced commission on transfer profits of 5%.
  March 27 - Peter Crouch, signed by Redknapp nine months earlier for £1.25m, joins Aston Villa for £4.5m, a profit of £3.25m, worth £115,473 at 5% or £230,946 at 10%.
  April 22 - Redknapp is paid a bonus through Portsmouth's payroll of £115,473. Tax and National Insurance are deducted at source via the PAYE system.
  April 26 - Redknapp flies to Monaco to open Rosie 47 bank account.
  May 27 - Redknapp and Milan Mandaric sign backdates contract to include the 5% clause dated to March 19.
  May 28 - Mandaric pays 145,000 US dollars into Rosie 47 account. Sum is credited on June 4.
  
  2003
  January 4 - Redknapp faxed David Cusdin, Monaco HSBC bank manager, requesting 100,000 US dollar transfer to Mandaric's US account with First Star.
  February - Details of a £300,000 bonus received by Redknapp from West Ham United upon the sale of Rio Ferdinand appear in newspaper reports.
  
  2004
  January 15 - HMRC tax authorities write to Redknapp and his accountants to announce a civil investigation into Redknapp's payment for Ferdinand transfer.
  April 29 - Rosie 47 account receives a payment of 150,000 dollars from the Milan Mandaric Revocable Trust
  
  2006
  October 19 - Tax authorities close probe into Redknapp's tax affairs by signing certificate of full disclosure.
  November 6 - Redknapp reveals details of the Rosie 47 account as he is quizzed by the Quest investigation into Premier League bungs.
  November 20 - Accountant Nigel Layton, of Quest, writes to Redknapp requesting voluntary disclosure of all offshore and onshore accounts between 2004 and 2006.
  November 24 - Mandaric signs letter to Mr Layton surrounding £100,000 investment in Monaco account.
  November 27 - Portsmouth chief executive Peter Storrie faxes Redknapp's solicitors the letter Mandaric sent to Quest.
  
  2007
  November 27 - Mandaric and Redknapp arrested by City of London Police.
  
  2008
  January 11 - Redknapp gives written instruction for the Rosie 47 account closure and for funds to be transferred to his London HSBC account.
  January 31 - Malcolm Webber, Redknapp's accountant, writes to HMRC declaring untaxed interest on Monaco account. He attaches £4,415 cheque from Redknapp.
  February 11 - Rosie 47 account closed. 207,000 US dollars credited to Redknapp's UK HSBC account.
  October 15 - Redknapp's accountants write to HMRC "indicating possibility" that tax was not accounted for in respect of two payments - 145,000 US dollars in June 2002 and 150,000 US dollars in May 2004.
  
  2009
  February 26 - News of the World reporter Rob Beasley calls Mandaric on phone after receiving a tip off about the police investigation.
  February 28 - Mr Beasley calls Redknapp on the eve of his new club, Tottenham Hotspur taking on Manchester United.
  May 6 - City of London police obtain production order to take tape recordings and notes made by Mr Beasley.
  June - Redknapp and Mandaric both interviewed by police.
  July 13 - Mandaric's solicitor emails Redknapp's lawyer to ask for repayment of 145,000 US dollars.
  October 4 - News of the World publishes revelations about the investigation.
  October 5 - Police interview Redknapp again.
  
  2010
  January - Redknapp and Mandaric are charged with tax evasion.
  
  2012
  January 23 - The pair go on trial at Southwark Crown Court accused of two counts of cheating the public revenue
  February 8 - Both are acquitted.
  Source:http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2097761/Harry-Redknapp-NOT-GUILTY-taking-189k-bungs-tax-evasion-trial.html