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By Anthony Nlebem.
Nigerian billionaire, Dozy Mmobuosi, proposed Sheffield United takeover bid has suffered a major setback over an outstanding County Court judgments against him in the UK for £30,109 for failure to pay his rent on a property in St Albans, Hertfordshire.
According to inside world football, Mmobuosi who is the founder of Tingo Inc. has been in talks to buy the club in a deal expected to reach €90m. However, there have been a few bottlenecks.
The 43-year-old entrepreneur incurred the debt between April and December 2020 despite repeated attempts to recover the money by the landlord’s agents and subsequently bailiffs once the court judgment was issued in April 2021.
Mmobuosi has said in the past that he will pay the debt but has yet to fulfil his promises but says he has enough personal wealth to complete a £90m takeover deal for Sheffield United.
The Nigerian technology entrepreneur is closing in on the takeover of the English Football League side and is currently undergoing the EFL’s owner’s and director’s tests.
It is understood that the review of Mmobuosi is ongoing by the EFL and that none of the approvals required for him to take ownership of the club has yet been granted.
Mmobuosi is confident is still confident about completing the €90m takeover of the Sheffield.
“It is my money. And I have actually made a deposit,” Mmobuosi revealed during the interview in London, Mmobuosi told CNN in an interview.
“I would expect myself and the club to issue a joint statement you know that would have details concerning how much, but I have made a deposit and that shows my seriousness for a start,” he said.
Mmobuosi did not give details of how much of a deposit he has put down for the club.
His unpaid debt for rent in St Albans meanwhile remains unpaid.
“If we suspend disbelief for the moment, Mr Mmobuosi may simply have let the County Court judgement slip from his mind,” said Paul Andrew, owner of the property in St Albans.
“That seems very difficult to comprehend given that he was distressed about the impact on his family of these persistent attempts to resolve the county court judgement.
“At the very least he needs to explain his amazing philanthropic principles against this background of what appears to have been lies and deception… I concluded long ago that he never intended to settle this debt.”