Jermain Defoe hires 'Mr Loophole'

Defoe, who recently moved to Spurs from Portsmouth for £15 million, is to be represented by Nick Freeman, who has helped Sir Alex Ferguson, David Beckham and Andrew Flintoff among others avoid driving convictions.Defoe, 26, is alleged to have been caught by speed cameras in Porstmouth three times last year, while he has also been charged with failing to identify the driver of a vehicle when requested to do so by Hampshire Police.Defoe, from Cuffley, Herts, is also to be represented by Mr Freeman for a second set of alleged offences before Southend Magistrates' Court in Essex.He initially pleaded guilty to three offences alleged to have occurred in Canvey, Essex, on April 17 last year but later changed his pleas to not guilty and a trial is to be held on March 23. He is charged with permitting the use of a vehicle without insurance, permitting use of a vehicle while in a dangerous condition because of heavily tinted windows, and aiding and abetting driving without a licence, according to the CPS. His friend Ryan Edgar, 23, of Plaistow, east London, is charged with driving Defoe's Land Rover without insurance, without a full licence and driving a vehicle in a dangerous condition. He has not entered pleas and is due to appear at Southend Magistrates' Court on February 10. A spokeswoman for Mr Freeman declined to comment on the case. Last month, Mr Freeman offered to help the Government remove the quirks of the law he utilises."There are so many things that could be done to remove the sort of defences that people run and succeed on that, from the point of view of a layman, shouldn't really make any difference," he said."I wouldn't say I know the law better than the Government but I would be very happy to offer whatever help I can to try to make our roads safer."He has used legal technicalities such a failure to prove who was driving and late prosecution notices to help clients such as Jeremy Clarkson and Wayne Rooney.

Source: Telegraph