Threatening ally of Roman Abramovich would be ‘a suicide mission’, agent tells court

‘I don’t think I’d be stupid enough to threaten anyone – let alone someone [connected] with the might of Roman Abramovich,’ Saif Alrubie told a court. Photograph: Jordan Pettitt/PA

The football agent accused of sending an intimidating email to a Chelsea FC executive has said it would be “a suicide mission” to threaten anyone connected to the club’s former owner Roman Abramovich, a court has heard.

Saif Alrubie is charged with sending an “electronic communication with intent to cause distress or anxiety” to the former Chelsea director of football Marina Granovskaia – as he attempted to collect £300,000 in commissions he believed he was owed in 2022.