Former Barnsley FC co-chairman Chien Lee and Paul Conway have been handed fines while no further action will be taken against the club itself in relation to the EFL charges brought more than a year ago.
The Reds, Lee and Conway were charged with various rule breaches in July of last year.
Lee and Conway have been fined for ‘failing to disclose the full details of their proposed ownership structure when applying to acquire the club in 2017.’
The EFL statement goes on to say that the pair did not disclose ‘a private investment agreement they concluded shortly prior to their purchase of Barnsley’ until January 2022.
Conway and Lee have been fined £100,000 and £75,000 respectively and ‘warned as to their future conduct’.
The club accepted the charges against it and entered into an ‘approved decision’ with the league on July 4. They will contribute to the EFL's legal cost but face no further action. The statement adds: “It was acknowledged that the club co-operated throughout and promptly notified the league upon discover of the investment agreement in 2022.”
There was a hearing in front of the ‘independent Disciplinary Commission’ which found that it was Conway and Lee who ‘caused the club to breach its obligations to the league.’
The statement adds: “The sanctions demonstrate the critical importance of the league being provided with the information it needs to determine the suitability of owners and directors as well as those who seek to control and manage the affairs of the club and the financial viability of a proposed acquisition.”
Lee and Conway were removed from the board in 2022 but are thought to still be minority owners of the club.
