On Wednesday, Saif Rubie, a soccer agent, took the stand in a London court to deny allegations that he sent an email that threatened Marina Granovskaia, a senior director at Chelsea FC. Rubie claimed that trying to intimidate an associate of the former owner of Chelsea, Roman Abramovich would be a “suicide mission.”
The email in question, which was sent in May 2022, demanded a six-figure commission for the transfer of French defender Kurt Zouma from Chelsea to West Ham. Rubie allegedly wrote: “I’m sure you’ve heard the story about your other friend Kia… wouldn’t want you to be in the same situation just because you have a personal issue with me.”
Prosecutors allege that this was a reference to an incident involving soccer agent Kia Joorabchian, who was allegedly accosted and had his watch taken before being presented with demands for money. Granovskaia testified that the email made her feel threatened.
Rubie has pleaded not guilty to one charge under the Malicious Communications Act. He told jurors that the email was meant to convey that he would take legal action against Chelsea or Granovskaia, not threaten them. “All I’m guilty of is sending an angry email,” Rubie said.
Rubie emphasized that threatening someone with Abramovich’s influence would be foolish: “I’m only Saif Rubie… I don’t think I would be stupid enough to be threatening anybody, let alone somebody with the might of Roman Abramovich (behind them).” He concluded, “That would just be me on a suicide mission.”
The trial continues on Thursday.
