Thatcher’s Son to Plead Guilty, Pay Fine in Coup Plot Case
Mark Thatcher will plead guilty to unwittingly bankrolling an alleged coup plot in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea, a person close to the family said Wednesday.
Thatcher, son of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, will admit in court today that he paid for air ambulance services used by mercenaries but will maintain that he believed it was for humanitarian purposes, the source said.
Mark Thatcher will pay a $563,000 fine in a deal that lets him leave South Africa to rejoin his family in the United States. If he does not pay the fine, he faces a five-year prison sentence, the family source said.
Thatcher, who has lived in South Africa since 1995, was arrested Aug. 25 at his home and charged with violating anti-mercenary laws.
He also faces charges in Equatorial Guinea, which is seeking his extradition.
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