Cypriot tycoon Asil Nadir found guilty of theft

Turkish Cypriot tycoon Asil Nadir was found guilty of theft Monday in relation to the collapse of his Polly Peck business empire, one of a series of debacles that focused public attention on the corporate greed of 1980s Britain.

Polly Peck was an low-profile British textile firm until Nadir took over in 1980, turning the modest business into a vehicle for a wave of acquisitions, including Del Monte's fresh fruit operations and Japan's Sansui Electric Co. The stock went through the roof and Nadir became one of Britain's richest men. (AP)