Nigel Stepney, the former Ferrari engineer accused of passing technical documents to the McLaren team in 2007, has been sentenced to 20 months in prison, Reuters reports.
He was also handed a €600 fine after his lawyers issued a plea bargain. The legal system in Italy however, means he is unlikely to ever spend time in jail, despite the sentence.
“We are satisfied, even if my client has always denied sabotage,” his lawyer was quoted as saying by the Gazzetta di Modena website.
“We have to thank the prosecutor for agreeing to a plea bargain. Initially the sentence was much higher.”
McLaren’s role in the scandal saw them handed the largest ever sporting fine, $100 million, whilst both men at the centre, Stepney and Mike Coughlan were sacked and discouraged from being hired by the FIA.
Stepney has always denied any allegation to sabotage Ferrari or their cars.
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