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McCheater Bosses Won't Meet Italian Prosecutor

Discussion in 'Other Racing' started by PhilNotHill, Feb 15, 2008.

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  1. PhilNotHill

    PhilNotHill Two Time F1 World Champ
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    #1 PhilNotHill, Feb 15, 2008
    McLaren's Italian audience put back

    Friday, February 15th 2008, 14:25 GMT


    A meeting between McLaren bosses and an Italian prosecutor investigating Formula One's spying scandal will not take place on Monday as reported and no new date has been set, his office said on Friday.

    As reported by autosport.com last week, Modena prosecutor Giuseppe Tibis was likely to question leading McLaren figures, including team boss Ron Dennis, on Monday as part of a legal probe into last year's controversy over leaked Ferrari data.

    However, Tibis's secretary told Reuters: "They are not coming," adding that no date has been arranged for the meeting.

    McLaren said last week their lawyers "had received some papers from the Modena authorities which are currently being reviewed".

    McLaren suspended chief designer Mike Coughlan in July after Ferrari technical information was found at his home in England. Champions Ferrari accuse former engineer Nigel Stepney, who has been sacked by the team, of sending him the material.

    McLaren were stripped of their constructors' points and fined $100 million in September by the International Automobile Federation (FIA) but legal probes continue.

    Tibis has already interviewed McLaren's former driver Fernando Alonso and Spanish test driver Pedro de la Rosa
     
  2. tifosi12

    tifosi12 Four Time F1 World Champ
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    #2 tifosi12, Feb 16, 2008
    In a way I can actually understand the McLaren guys: Italy has some really strange/antiquated laws that might threaten them with an immediate arrest.

    As we have seen in replicar cases, the Italian authorities make no bones about confiscating and destroying cars and even arresting their owners (imagine they'd start doing this in the US, we'd have to build new prisons). Also IIRC in the Peterson case against Patrese and the Senna case against Williams and Head there was a real risk that the accused might get arrested. For a while it was unclear whether the Williams team would show up for the Monza GP because of that thread.

    I'd suggest to the Italian prosecutor to meet on neutral terrain: Have a meeting in a conference room at the Geneva airport.
     
  3. IanMac

    IanMac Formula 3

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    #3 IanMac, Feb 16, 2008
    I agree. In some types of case in Italy (I don't know if this would be one of them, hopefully not) accused people can be held in prison for a long time before the authorities are required to bring them to court for a case to be heard.
     
  4. tifosi12

    tifosi12 Four Time F1 World Champ
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    #4 tifosi12, Feb 16, 2008
    As currently seen with the US student who is in prison for her involvement in a murder case. She can be held there up to one year as some outraged US media recently reported.
     
  5. PhilNotHill

    PhilNotHill Two Time F1 World Champ
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    #5 PhilNotHill, Feb 16, 2008
    If this is not resolved, will Dennis the Menace et al attend the Italian GP? ;
     
  6. tifosi12

    tifosi12 Four Time F1 World Champ
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    #6 tifosi12, Feb 16, 2008
    Good question. Worst case I could imagine the race team shows up but none of the accused. Wouldn't matter much since they're almost all engineers back at Woking. Haugg could replace Dennis (which he'll probably do anytime soon anyway) and somebody has to stand in for Whitemarsh.

    The matter might actually get more urgent before that: GP of San Marino is coming up and that is also on Italian soil.
     

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