Former football 'super-agent' Willie McKay today denied splashing out on a £54,000 Jaguar and a £9,000 Rolex for his wife while he was bankrupt.
McKay, 60, from Glasgow, who denied two charges under the Insolvency Act at Leeds Crown Court, is said to have bought the items before Christmas 2014, when prosecutors allege he owed £902,000 to HMRC in unpaid tax and interest.
They claim he had been notified of this in June 2014 and of bankruptcy in April that following year but the purchases were made before the money became part of the bankruptcy.
McKay, 60, from Glasgow , who denied two charges under the Insolvency Act at Leeds Crown Court, is said to have bought the items before Christmas 2014, when prosecutors allege he owed £902,000 to HMRC in unpaid tax and interest
McKay, who brokered Emiliano Sala's transfer to Cardiff City before he died in a plane crash, appeared in the dock wearing a navy suit and spoke only to enter his not guilty pleas and to confirm his name, date of birth and nationality as Scottish.
The charges are that as a bankrupt he made a gift of property by spending £9,100 to buy a Rolex Datejust II watch for his wife in Leeds on December 14 2014; and that a day later he spent £54,000 on a Jaguar XK5 car for his wife in Doncaster.
Addressing the defendant, Judge Andrew Stubbs QC said: 'I understand your defence is a straightforward one, that you accept what the prosecution say you did but you were not doing anything wrong.'
Kerrie Ann Rowan, defending McKay, said the defence had made an application to have the case transferred from Leeds to a London court.
Judge Stubbs said he was unable to deal with the application and another judge would decide if a transfer was appropriate.
The defendant has represented a number of high-profile football stars as an agent, including Emiliano Sala, who died on a flight to join his new club Cardiff. Pictured is a memorial to him in Nantes, France
He said: 'This is the only hearing there will be before your trial, which, at the moment, is listed here on September 14.
'I know there is an application to move that case, that's not a decision I can make today.'
McKay was given conditional bail until his trial, which is expected to last around three days.