'UK's 88th richest man' claims he's been bankrupted by infamous drug cartel
A builder who joined The Times' Rich List last year has been made bankrupt again - he says by an organised crime network with links to a notorious drug cartel.
Bob Bull was living the high life with a personal fortune of £1.9billion and - as the 88th wealthiest person in the UK - he joined the rich list in the spring. He had made his wealth through a firm specialising in the construction of bungalows, and it allowed the 46-year-old man to buy a collection of supercars, including five Rollers, three Lamborghinis and a 211mph Ferrari.
But these have been repossessed and his and wife Sara have had to put their house near Southampton, Hampshire, up for sale. Bob had been made bankrupt late last year - for the second time in his life - and on this occasion for a whopping £725million, following what Bob says has been a campaign of hate by the Kinahan drug cartel, a global organised crime gang founded in Ireland.
Bob, his family, and his staff say they have been the victims of beatings, kidnap threats and fraud. Bob and Sara - now his wife - were attacked and beaten up in a bar near Manchester. A thug knocked Sara unconscious before stealing the keys to Bob’s £450,000 Rolls-Royce, it is alleged.
And now dad-of-one Bob is determined to get, what he says, would be justice after the ordeal. He commissioned a team of former Scotland Yard detectives to compile a dossier on his nightmare. It is reported the detectives concluded "Mr Bull has been the victim of a conspiracy to defraud him, to destroy his £4billion caravan, bungalow and holiday parks business". The documents are said to allege the perpetrators have benefitted to the tune of £46million and that constant threats made to his family led to the death of Bob's father.
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Bob says he and Sara have been targeted by an organised crime network (Instagram)
Bob is desperately appealing his debts of £725 million (Instagram)Bob, who was also made bankrupt around eight years ago, said: "These people have taken me to the limits of my life and my wife says ‘I’m there for you’... If the judge who heard the bankruptcy knew I was the victim of criminality I think the bankruptcy would have been thrown out.
"If I don’t appeal the bankruptcy, I’m finished... I’d rather jump out that window than let that happen because that is dishonouring my dad’s grave, dishonouring all my beautiful family."
When he was bankrupt on the first occasion, Bob claimed he was "too poor to afford a KFC". Since then he has rebuilt his life and his successful business, Royal Life, enabled the man to afford a £10million mansion, complete with three-lane 10-pin bowling alley in Hampshire. Last year's ruling has rocked Bob, though, and the dad, originally from Manchester, said all his finance agreements instantly became dead. He even returned his £15,000 Hublot Ferrari Grand Prix watch, The Sun reports.
Bob had tried to refinance Royal Life, which was said to be worth £4billion. The £2.8 billion finance package – the biggest real estate deal in Europe - collapsed after the lender suddenly pulled out at the last minute. Bob says in desperation, and under duress after threats were made to hit the business with a winding up order, he borrowed £3million from a millionaire, who turned out to be a member of an organised crime group with rumoured links to Ireland’s Kinahan crime family.
The £3million was to be paid back within four weeks, plus a punishing interest rate of £3million interest a month. This quickly turned into a demand for an astonishing £42million – backed, Bob claims, with intimidation and kidnap threats.
The documents, seen by The Sun, says: "This group is feared because of its use of extreme violence, including murder, against rivals. In Mr Bull’s case they lost no time in using the menace of violence by the Irish cartel as a means of reinforcing unwarranted demands, as well as issuing their own threats of violence and kidnapping…"
Bob says he signed over security on millions of pounds worth of property in his four main businesses after heavies threatened to kidnap his eight-year-old son. As the threats continued, Bob employed permanent security at his home and offices in Hampshire.
The 90-page detectives’ dossier has been handed to Hampshire police who have interviewed Bob Bull for nearly ten hours over his allegations. Hampshire Police said: “Our inquiries are ongoing.”
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