Middlesex have suffered a setback in their long-running legal battle with their former chief executive Richard Goatley, with the Metropolitan police confirming he will face no action over fraud allegations.
The club reported Goatley to the police last May after alleging he had falsely claimed about £70,000 in unauthorised expenses, which were allegedly paid into his personal bank account. The Met confirmed that after an eight-month investigation officers concluded last week that “no criminal offences could be identified”.
Middlesex claim to have discovered evidence of Goatley misappropriating club funds after he resigned due to ill health in 2021. In September 2023 Middlesex issued a statement saying “the club is pursuing its legal claims against former CEO Richard Goatley” and that “barristers have been instructed”, but the matter was not referred to the police until eight months later.
Middlesex’s decision to go to the police came after Goatley lodged a personal injury claim against the club in the high court. Goatley has always denied paying himself unauthorised expenses and claims Middlesex have pursued a harassment campaign against him. The club strongly deny any wrongdoing.
A Met police spokesperson said: “On 13 May 2024, police received a report of fraud allegations made by Middlesex County Cricket Club. The nature of the alleged offences were complex and required careful consideration. After a thorough and detailed assessment, officers decided on Wednesday 29 January that no criminal offences could be identified. The case will be reopened should further investigative opportunities become available.”
Goatley said: “I have now been informed that the police will be taking no further action following a complaint filed against me by Middlesex County Cricket Club. The police have confirmed no offence was made. This news is welcome and comes as no surprise to me. I have always maintained my innocence.
“Middlesex filed a police complaint against me three years after I had left the club, upon receiving notice of my high court claim against them. I now wish to focus on my civil claim against Middlesex.”
Middlesex have yet to formally lodge a legal claim against Goatley, and it is unclear whether they intend to do so. They declined to comment.
Goatley suffered a stroke while in a Middlesex committee meeting in April 2021, which led to the club announcing his resignation three months later. In September 2021 Middlesex wrote to Goatley claiming he owed them tens of thousands of pounds in illegitimate expenses claims, including thousands in parking fines and hotel bills.
A bitter legal battle has raged ever since, with Middlesex attempting to recoup about £70,000 and Goatley claiming that the club withheld a significant portion of his severance package. After two years of exchanging legal letters Middlesex made the matter public with a statement on their website in September 2023, which led to Goatley issuing a statement in his defence.
“I was forced to leave Middlesex, a job and club that I loved, due to serious ill health,” Goatley said. “I provided full cooperation with the handover and answered all questions put to me, which I agreed to as part of an amicable severance.
“Middlesex reneged on that deal and my family has suffered as a consequence ever since. I have always been open to supporting any fair and independent investigation into questions that I can assist with during my tenure, but the club’s process has dragged on for years and has not followed due process.
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“I completely deny any allegations of misappropriation of funds. Repeated legal threats and demands for unevidenced sums of money, that I neither owe nor know anything about, for almost three years has been tortuous, for me, my wife and our young children. Our repeated calls for a resolution remain unanswered.
“Two years ago, my wife was told in writing the case had reached agreement. Months later, more legal threats arrived. Public statements have been made by the club describing legal proceedings but no case has been filed. … We have been assumed guilty and have not been able to move on.”
The Goatley affair forms part of a chaotic period at Middlesex, which began with the discovery of a black hole in the club’s pension provisions while he was chief executive. Middlesex made an error in pension payments, which resulted in employees’ pensions being wrongly paid for 12 years, which eventually cost the club about £350,000.
Middlesex recorded a loss of £952,000 in 2021, reducing their net assets to £179,000, down from around £2m two years previously, but their finances have since stabilised. The club posted their first profit for seven years of £131,000 in 2023, although this was largely due to cost-cutting measures that have had a significant effect on the team’s performance.
Middlesex’s governance problems have continued, with several board members resigning in the last two years and the club given a suspended points deduction and £50,000 fine in 2023 by the England and Wales Cricket Board for financial irregularities. In addition there have been several fines paid to HMRC for the late filing of accounts relating to their recreational arm, Middlesex Cricket Board.
The ECB placed Middlesex in “special measures” after imposing the suspended points deduction, giving it the right to attend board meetings and approve the club’s accounts.
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