Father of X Factor's Ella Henderson convicted for fraud
The father of former X Factor contestant Ella Henderson has been convicted of two counts of fraud for his part in a €5.4 million (£4.7 million) get-rich-quick scam.
Sean Henderson, was involved in three trials, and previously convicted in two separate trials last year, where he denied the scheme and VAT fraud.
Yesterday, he was cleared at a third trial where he had denied fraud – and reporting restrictions were lifted which meant that the verdicts of the first two trials could be reported, as well as that he is Ella's father.
During the first trial, the court was told that the businessman took money from "wealthy individuals" through "lies, deceit and deception" (via Grimsby Telegraph). Sean, who denied the offence, was found guilty of fraud by a jury on May 4, 2016.
In the second trial, the jury was told that Sean failed to declare "sizeable amounts of commission" for VAT following difficulties in his business in the gas and power industry. He denied a charge of fraudulent evasion of VAT, but was found guilty of the offence by a jury at Sheffield Crown Court on October 6, 2016.
The third trial found Sean not guilty of theft yesterday (September 27) at Sheffield Crown Court after he was accused of falsely acquiring £40,000. He has been granted bail, and will be sentenced on a future date.
Sean was the owner of sales and marketing company Crystal Power with Stephen Keegan, though denied any involvement with a scam. Keegan pleaded guilty, and was sentenced to three years and nine months at a separate hearing earlier this year.
However, the news has only emerged now due to a reporting restriction just being lifted on the mention of Ella in the third trial. She was also named in court as the person who opened the door to police in 2013.
After shooting to fame on the 2012 series of The X Factor, finishing sixth, Ella achieved a Number One single with her debut 'Ghost'.
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