Ex-Aston Villa star and Prince William’s pal John Carew JAILED for 14 months after pleading guilty to fraud charges

Prosecutors argued that the former Premier League ace knowingly avoided paying tax.

But the court ruled that Carew did not act intentionally in committing the crime.

Instead he was ruled to have acted with gross negligence.

The former Prem ace has previously been pictured with Wills, an avid Villa fan, with the pair watching the Championship Play-off Final together in 2019.

They were pictured hugging in the box as they celebrated the first goal of Villa's 2-1 win over Derby which secured promotion back to the Premier League.

The future king met Carew on a visit to Norway, with the footballer telling Soccer AM: "We decided to go and support our team before the end of the season. He invited me to join and it was a great honour."

Oslo district court judge Ingvild Boe Hornburg said in her judgment today: "According to the evidence presented, the court cannot see that there is a cover for Carew's decision not to disclose his income and assets, even if the description of the offense was thereby fulfilled."

Hornburg added: "In the court's view, there is nothing in the evidence that supports such a hypothesis."

Prosecutors had reportedly wanted Carew to be jailed for two years, while his defendants had been seeking community punishment.

The ex-Villa, Stoke and West Ham man has been sentenced to just over a year behind bars.

It's claimed neither party have decided whether or not to appeal the judgement.

But the defence views the ruling as a victory.

Carew's lawyer Berit Reiss-Andersen said in a statement: "This shows that John Carew is believed on all counts.

"The court has concluded that he has acted grossly negligently, but not with intent.

"We have claimed this all along, and Carew has been clear that he has wanted to make amends."

Meanwhile First State Attorney, Marianne Bender, said: "This is a serious matter because it concerns tax evasion over many years of a significant amount. 

"Økokrim (the prosecutors) will now read the judgment thoroughly to assess whether there are grounds for appealing the judgment."

Carew's defence argued that his actions were the result of poor advice from his friend, lawyer and former agent Per A. Flod.

The ex-Prem star said Flod's advice led him to not disclose income and assets from outside of his home country.

As well as spells in the Prem, Carew also payed for the likes of Valencia, Roma, Lyon and Besiktas. 

He was capped 91 times by Norway, and won the country's player of the year award three times.