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Gary Neville could be charged with contempt of court due to a comment he made during the trial of his former Manchester United teammate Ryan Giggs.
According to The Mail, Neville has been referred to the Attorney General after Judge Hilary Manley was made aware of the Sky Sports pundit's comment.
Gary Nevile posted a tweet at 4 am on the opening day of court proceedings. The report claims that the Englishman insists he was talking about the much-maligned owners of Manchester United, rather than Giggs' trial.
The former England defender strongly denies the allegations, as his agent told The Mail:
"Gary is absolutely adamant that this was not about the case, but was referring to the Glazers. Any suggestion otherwise is not true and he will take it very seriously."
Those found guilty of contempt of court in a fine can be punished by a fine or up to two years in prison. An incident or comment can be considered contempt of court if the publishing information creates a 'substantial risk' of serious prejudice to a trial.
Jury told that Gary Neville could have been involved in Ryan Giggs' trial
The report from the Mail adds that Neville, who is a long-term business associate and friend of the former Wales manager, could feature in the case.
Neville's message was raised in court in the absence of a jury as Giggs' ex-girlfriend and defendant Kate Greville was being cross-examined.
Prosecutor Peter Wright QC stated that comments:
"By a member of the public who has a direct connection with this case. This may be a matter that requires immediate action so far as that individual is concerned."
The trial was halted for 50 minutes while lawyers discussed the potential impact of the message. Judge Manley, who referred Neville to the Attorney General, later stated:
"No doubt certain steps will be taken."
Judge Manley ordered the trial to continue as she claimed there was no suggestion that the jury had seen the early morning comments. She also warned jury members not to be influenced by media reports and to guard against emotions and ensure their verdicts are only influenced by events in court.
Neville, who employed Ms. Greville in the hospitality business he ran with Giggs, was ultimately never used as a witness in the case.
