Editing Bernie Ecclestone (section)

=== Bribery accusation ===
In a 2012 trial against the former [[BayernLB]] chief risk officer Gerhard Gribkowsky, the public prosecutor accused Ecclestone of being a co-perpetrator in the case. Gribkowsky confessed to the charges of tax evasion, breach of trust and for accepting bribes. In closing arguments at a Munich trial the public prosecutor told the court Ecclestone "hasn't been blackmailed, he is a co-perpetrator in a bribery case". According to the prosecutor and defendant, Ecclestone paid about $44 million to the former banker to get rid of the lender's stake in Formula One. Ecclestone told prosecutors he paid Gribkowsky because he blackmailed him with telling UK tax authorities about a family trust controlled by Ecclestone's former wife.<ref>Oliver Suess [https://archive.today/20130118163348/http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-06-27/ecclestone-co-perpetrator-in-bribery-scheme-prosecutor-says "Ecclestone 'Co-Perpetrator' in Bribery, Prosecutor Says"], ''[[Bloomberg BusinessWeek]]'', 27 June 2012</ref>
In November 2012 private equity firm Bluewaters Communications Holdings filed a £409m lawsuit against the 2005 sale of Formula One, alleging it was the sport's rightful owner.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.pitpass.com/47983-Exclusive-409m-lawsuit-against-Ecclestone-and-CVC-revealed|title=£409m lawsuit against Ecclestone and CVC revealed|publisher=Pitpass.com|date=20 November 2012}}</ref>

In May 2013, ''[[Süddeutsche Zeitung]]'' reported that the Munich prosecutors' office had charged Ecclestone on two counts of bribery after a two-year investigation into his relationship with Gribkowsky.<ref name=BBCMay16>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/22544436|title=Bernie Ecclestone: Formula 1 boss reportedly facing charges|work=BBC News|access-date=2 May 2013}}</ref> In July 2013, German prosecutors indicted Ecclestone for alleged bribery. The charge relates to a $44 million (£29m) payment to Gribkowsky. It was linked to the sale of a stake in Formula 1.<ref>{{cite news|title=Formula 1 boss Ecclestone indicted|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-23344423#TWEET824508|publisher=BBC|access-date=17 July 2013|date=17 July 2013}}</ref> Gribkowsky, the BayernLB bank executive, was found guilty of taking $44m in [[bribes]] and failing to pay tax on the money.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2013/jul/17/bernie-ecclestone-german-court Bernie Ecclestone indicted by German court for alleged bribery] Guardian 17 July 2013</ref>

On 14 January 2014, a court in Munich ruled that Ecclestone would indeed be [[Judiciary of Germany|tried on bribery]] charges in Germany,<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-25756973 | work=BBC News | title=Formula 1: Ecclestone to face Germany bribery charges | date=16 January 2014}}</ref> and on 5 August 2014, the same court ruled that Ecclestone could pay a £60m settlement, without admitting guilt, to end the trial.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-28656050 | work=BBC News | title=F1 boss Ecclestone pays to end bribery trial | date=5 August 2014}}</ref>