Real Madrid and French int’l player KARIM BENZEMA “professed his innocence” in an interview with French TV channel TF1. The footballer has been “engulfed in a sex-tape scandal” involving his French national teammate MATHIEU VALBUENA. In November, Benzema was placed under formal judicial investigation in “connection with an alleged attempt to blackmail” Valbuena. Benzema said, “I am not guilty. … It was a huge misunderstanding” (L’ÉQUIPE, 12/2). ... Former New Zealand cricketer CHRIS CAIRNS will be back in the High Court in London next spring to defend a £1.5M ($2.3M) civil claim for fraud brought by Indian Premier League Chair LALIT MODI. The case has reportedly been scheduled for the court’s spring session which starts on March 7 and lasts until the end of May, with BRENDON MCCULLUM and LOU VINCENT "once again possibly testifying against Cairns." Cairns will have to appear in person to defend the claim which has been lodged by Modi "in the light of new evidence emerging since their libel trial" in March '12 (London TELEGRAPH, 12/2).
PISTORIUS CONVICTION UPGRADED: A South African appeals court on Thursday ruled that OSCAR PISTORIUS "was guilty of murder, overturning a previous conviction of culpable homicide for shooting his model girlfriend." The decision means the double-amputee could now face a minimum of 15 years in jail. Justice ERIC LEACH was "highly critical of the original judgment for ignoring circumstantial evidence" and said that Pistorius ought to have been found "guilty of murder on the basis that he fired the shots with criminal intent" (FINANCIAL TIMES, 12/3).
