Nadir found guilty on theft of $42.2M

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LONDON, Aug. 22 (UPI) -- A jury in Britain has found former textile industry tycoon Asil Nadir, 71, guilty of 10 counts of theft from his former company, Polly Peck.

Nadir fled to northern Cyprus in 1993, when Polly Peck was revealed to be nearly $1 billion in debt. He returned to Britain in 2010, telling the court later that he originally fled because "I had zero hope of receiving a fair trial."

He was charged, originally, with 66 counts involving the theft of $570 million. His seven-month trial, however, focused on 13 counts connected to the theft of $53.8 million, The Guardian reported Wednesday.

The guilty verdicts add up to convictions that cover $45.2 million of that sum.

Nadir's wife, Nur Nadir, 28, insisted her husband was innocent. "A guilty man does not come back to face justice of his own accord. My husband came back voluntarily. Polly Peck was his life," she said.

"He wants justice for himself and for the tens of thousands of shareholders and employees. This unhappy affair is certainly not over yet."

She said her husband, who is scheduled to be sentenced Thursday, would file an appeal.