Bernie Ecclestone charged for bribery

Munich prosecutors could be set to formally charge Bernie Ecclestone for bribery, the Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper reports.

The German report said authorities have now completed an investigation into the 82-year-old F1 chief executive's payment of millions to jailed F1 banker Gerhard Gribkowsky, and could publish the outcome this month.

If the court accepts the indictment, the trial would reportedly begin later in 2013.

Munich prosecutors, and Ecclestone's lawyers, declined to comment to Suddeutsche Zeitung.

Bloomberg reported on Friday that Gribkowsky has dropped the appeal against his eight-year sentence, having been convicted of receiving $44 million from Ecclestone amid the sale of the sport to CVC some years ago.

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Leopold

Leopold Pleijsier founded F1-Fansite.com in 2001 and has followed Formula 1 since the early 1980s. He writes about daily F1 news, race weekends, drivers and the sport’s history.

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