Boxing legend Frank Bruno has revealed he was betrayed by someone ‘close to him’ when they plundered more than £300,000 from his bank account while he was fighting mental illness.
The former world heavyweight champion was the victim of the ‘ultimate betrayal’ while he was receiving treatment for bipolar disorder in a secure mental hospital.
In his new book Let Me Be Frank, serialised exclusively in the Mirror, Bruno revealed his heartache at falling victim to a cruel theft.
Boxing legend Frank Bruno has revealed he was betrayed by someone ‘close to him’ when they plundered more than £300,000 from his bank account while he was fighting mental illness
He had spent six weeks in a Romford hospital during autumn 2003 when his management started asking questions about his money after large sums had disappeared from his account.
But Bruno, 55, had not spent a penny while recuperating at home and urged his accountants to look into it.
It was then they found out Bruno had been the victim of a cruel theft at the hands of someone close to him.
More than £300,00 had been stolen from his bank account.
He said: ‘The fraud didn’t just break my heart, it left me fighting for my sanity and sent me into a downward spiral.
‘I started to withdraw into my own world. I didn’t feel as if I could trust anyone. I shut myself off.’
The former world heavyweight champion was the victim of the ‘ultimate betrayal’ while he was receiving treatment for bipolar disorder in a secure mental hospital
Bruno, who became heavyweight champion of the world in 1995, refuses to name and shame the person who took advantage of him and he is still in a legal battle to recoup some of the money.
But he did reveal they sent him a letter begging for forgiveness – which he refused.
Bruno – who was infamously labelled ‘Bonkers Bruno’ on the front page of a national newspaper – has spoken candidly about his battle with mental illness in the past.
The 6ft 3ins former orthodox fighter, who won 40 out of 45 professional fights during a 14-year career, now lives in Bedfordshire but last month it was reported he was selling his £1million mansion after a row with travellers.