Beckham 'Kidnapper' Receives Apology In Court

A man accused by a British newspaper of planning to kidnap Victoria Beckham and her children on Wednesday (14FEB07) received a public apology from the publication in a London court.Alin Turcu - real name Bogdan Maris - previously lost a High Court claim he was defamed by a story in the News Of The World in 2002.The report, which ran on the front page, claimed he was part of an international terror gang determined to hold former SPICE GIRL Beckham and her two young sons hostage until husband David paid a $9.75 million (£5 million) ransom. Photographs of Turcu were included in the article and he was later arrested and detained on remand for eight months until his trial collapsed.However, the Court Of Appeal yesterday heard the News Of The World "now accepts that this plot did not include the defendant".The paper's owner News Group has agreed to make a "modest" donation to a charity of Turco's choosing and a contribution to his legal costs.Turco also no longer has to pay the News Of The World's legal costs of £400,000 ($780,000), previously imposed by the High Court.Turco says, "I am just very relieved that after almost five years the News OfThe World has finally accepted that I was not part of any plot to kidnap Victoria Beckham."

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