Mark Thatcher admits coup plot charge

Sir Mark Thatcher today admitted bankrolling a coup plot in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea in a plea bargain deal which allows him to avoid jail. Margaret Thatcher's businessman son appeared in court in South Africa where he agreed to pay a 270,000 (3 million rand) fine in return for his freedom. Thatcher admits he paid for a military helicopter used by mercenaries in the alleged coup plot but claims he believed it was to be used as an air ambulance for humanitarian purposes, according to a source close to his family. He pleaded guilty today in the Cape High Court to breaching section two of South Africa's anti-mercenary Foreign Military Assistance Act. Judge Abe Motala said that if he failed to pay the fine, he would face a five-year prison sentence with a further four years suspended for five years. Thatcher, who has lived in South Africa since 1995, was said to be relieved at the outcome. Details of the plea bargain deal, which means Thatcher can join his family in the US, first emerged last night. [more]