The chairman of a football club implicated in the Pakistan spot-fixing scandal has committed suicide.
David Le Cluse, chairman of Croydon Athletic, was close friends with the football club’s owner, Mazhar Majeed. He was said to be devastated when Majeed was arrested this August over claims that he had fixed no-balls in the Lord’s Test in August.
Father of two, Le Cluse, 44, was found at on Saturday after police after calls from passers-by.
The Croydon Athletic manager, who ran Merlin Pest Control in Beckenham, Kent, shot himself with a .22 rifle, found with him in the garage. No suicide note was recovered.
Majeed was arrested after being filmed taking £150,000 before correctly predicting when bowlers would overstep the mark. Customs investigators detained him for alleged money laundering.
Some of the laundered money is alleged to have been put through Majeed’s club, Croydon Athletic. Responding at the time, le Cluse said: “Hopefully, the allegations will prove to be untrue and we can carry on.”
In the wake of Le Cluse’s suicide, former manager Tim O’Shea told The Times: “He was very upset at the allegations and the club getting involved.
“It probably hit him harder than most because of his personal friendship with Majeed.
A statement posted on the club’s website said: “Croydon Athletic are deeply shocked and saddened by the sudden tragic death of their chairman, David Le Cluse, on Saturday 2 October.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with David’s wife and children, and we would ask everyone to respect their privacy at this devastating time for them.”
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