Bayern ex-boss Hoeness to leave prison early

Former Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness on Monday won early release from prison, with a German court ruling that he would be freed in February after serving around half of his sentence for tax evasion.

"Uli Hoeness will be released on February 29," said Herbert Veh, chief judge of the court in Augsburg, adding that the release date was mid-way through the football baron's 3.5-year sentence.

Hoeness would be required to communicate any changes in address, and would have to ensure that he does not reoffend during a probation period of three years, added the judge.

Hoeness, 63, was given a prison sentence in March 2014 for cheating German authorities out of approximately 28.5 million euros ($31.3 million) in unpaid taxes.

German media had reported that Hoeness' application for early release would be helped by the fact that he has secured employment with Bayern Munich after working with one of their youth teams.

He has served his sentence in Landsberg prison, where Adolf Hitler wrote 'Mein Kampf', and has been on day release since the start of the year under a parole system which means he must return to jail every evening.

Hoeness, 62, the former boss of Bayern Munich, spent four decades at the Bundesliga champions, initially as a player, and also ran a successful sausage business.

During his four-day trial in 2014, he admitted to stashing his wealth in Swiss bank accounts while obsessively "gambling" on stock and currency markets.

Source: AFP