Former GVC CEO Kenny Alexander bribery case trial date set for 2028
London’s Southwark Crown Court set a February 2028 provisional trial date Monday for the criminal case against ex-Entain (formerly GVC Holdings) CEO Kenny Alexander and a number of his former Entain colleagues.
In August, the UK Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) charged Alexander and 10 others with offences that included conspiracy to defraud and fraudulent evasion of income tax.
The charges relate to the activities of GVC Holdings between 2011 and 2018 via a subsidiary it owned in Turkey.
In the plea and trial preparation hearing on Monday, His Honour Judge Baumgartner stated his preference was to delay arraignment, the process where defendants are informed of the charges against them. As such no pleas were given during the session.
The judge said the case would be split into three trials, with the first to include Alexander and former GVC chairman Lee Feldman, as well as five others, provided they didn’t plead guilty to all the charges.
The first hearing will commence on 14 February 2028, with a trial window of four months.
The second hearing, where Alexander MacAngus, Richard Raubitscheck-Smith and Raymond Smart will be tried, was set for October 2028.
MacAngus is facing charges of conspiracy to defraud, while Raubitscheck-Smith and Raymond Smart will be tried on conspiracy charges to defraud and bribe.
The final hearing will begin on 5 March 2029 and will centre on Robert Hoskin, Entain’s chief governance officer between 2020 and 2023, who was charged with perverting the course of justice.
Questions raised over evidence, trial location and Entain commercial interests
During Monday’s session, the defence team questioned the extensive evidence CPS is expected to provide during the trials. One lawyer described it as a “blizzard of material”.
The judge called for dialogue between the two sides to discuss the volume of evidence being presented.
Potential reporting restrictions were also highlighted relating to a commercial interest that Entain had in some of the materials, though no conclusion was made on this matter.
Also discussed was the location of the trials, with many expecting the case to be moved to Leeds Crown Court after comments made at a hearing last month at Westminster Magistrates’ Court.
On the potential move, the prosecution pointed to many of the alleged criminal activities occurring in the north of England.
However, Judge Baumgartner said the case would remain at Southwark Crown Court. He stated the disruption in moving the case could cause “great cost for the public purse”.
Entain’s historical operations in Turkey
The trials will cover the CPS’ uncovering of these allegations brought against the defendants.
The case dates back to July 2019 when GVC Holdings denied allegations it was continuing to benefit from the activities of Headlong Limited, a former Turkey-facing subsidiary it owned from 2011 to 2017.
The company insisted all connections had been cut when the business was sold to Ropso Malta Limited in November 2017, under a deal that included a performance-based earn-out of up to €150 million ($175 million).
However, the UK’s HMRC later requested further details on the deal from GVC and, in 2020, expanded its probe to include possible “corporate offending”.
After rebranding as Entain, the company acknowledged that historical misconduct may have occurred, involving a number of employees and former third-party suppliers.
As the investigation continued, Entain agreed to pay a £585 million financial penalty linked to its past operations in Turkey, relating to alleged breaches of Section 7 of the UK Bribery Act.
As part of the settlement, Entain also agreed to donate £20 million to charity and pay £10 million to cover the legal costs of the CPS and HMRC.
Alexander and the others were subsequently charged in August this year in relation to the investigation.