A former billionaire who was once one of the richest men in the country has been cleared by a jury after claiming ‘I didn’t mean it in a racist way’.
Simon Halabi – once the 12th richest man in Britain before being declared bankrupt in 2010 – was cleared of racially aggravated assault and one count of assault by jurors at Southwark Crown Court.
The court heard Halabi called Carl Thomas a “peasant” and a “monkey” as the binman stopped to collect bags near his Mayfair home.
Halabi claimed his Bentley was blocked by Mr Thomas’s white van and was recorded shouting: “I will show you f***ing black c*** I’ll show you who I am”.
The property developer told police the 47-year-old attacked him when he asked what he was doing outside the…
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