Former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich has been described as a 'close ally of Vladimir Putin’ by football agent Saif Rubie.
In court on Thursday, Rubie was cross examined by prosecution lawyer Mr Arizuna Asante in his trial for allegedly sending former Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia a threatening email.
And Rubie told jurors that Abramovich, who was sanctioned by the UK government as a result of the Ukrainian invasion, had close ties to Putin, the Russian president, in reference to the political issues that have arisen since the conflict erupted.
‘He is a close ally of Vladimir Putin, sanctioned by the UK government,’ Rubie told jurors.
Rubie’s remarks come after he denied intentionally threatening former Chelsea director Granovskaia, saying doing so would have been a ‘suicide mission’, given her links to Abramovich.
During a dramatic Thursday morning in court, during which Rubie was asked to stop being ‘so confrontational’ by Judge David Tomlinson, the intermediary also questioned why Granovskaia was allowed to remain in the UK when other Russian oligarchs, such as Abramovich, were unable to return to the UK.
‘By some chance, she [Granovskaia] is the only one who stayed,’ said Rubie.
Rubie has pleaded not guilty to threatening Granovskaia with the intention of causing distress or anxiety.
The agent called Granovskaia 'a liar’ on more than one occasion when answering Mr Asante’s questions.
Rubie, 45, believes he is owed £300,000 from the £29.1million transfer of Kurt Zouma from Chelsea to West Ham in 2021.
Non-payment from Chelsea is what caused Rubie to send what he describes as an ‘angry’ but not threatening email to Granovskaia.
Rubie told jurors that he worked on the deal with fellow agent Barry Silkman, who gave evidence on Thursday.
‘My understanding is that Saif Rubie is entitled to payment (from the Zouma deal),’ Silkman said.
On his relationship with West Ham vice-chairman Karren Brady, Silkman said: ‘I keep away from her to be honest.
During a conversation with Judge Tomlinson, Silkman referenced ticket prices at the London Stadium, saying: ‘The ones sitting at the back can’t even see the ground, you need binoculars to watch.’
Judge Tomlinson told the jury he expects to send them to consider their verdict by 1pm on Friday afternoon.