Rhodri Philipps, 4th Viscount St Davids

Rhodri Colwyn Philipps, 4th Viscount St Davids (born 16 September 1966)

Philipps is married to interior decorator Sarah Louise Butcher, who holds the title Lady St Davids. and subsequently held directorships in several companies. In September 2008, having been denied bail as a flight risk, Philipps spent more than a year in prison in Nuremberg while the German authorities investigated claims of the improper use of company funds. In 2009 he appealed against the sentence.

In September 2010, Philipps' West Sussex property, Strange Place, in Northchapel, was repossessed by Barclays Bank. In March 2011, he was declared bankrupt for a second time, and in November 2011 his wife, Viscountess St Davids, was sued for unpaid debts.

In March 2012, Philipps unsuccessfully sued offshore legal advisors Corporate & Chancery Group for £110 million in the Supreme Court of Mauritius, alleging fraud and mismanagement. In February 2016, he was declared bankrupt for a third time.

Menacing communications Following a complaint made in November 2016, Philipps was arrested in January 2017 by Metropolitan Police officers investigating online abuse against a 51-year-old woman. In March 2017, he was charged with malicious communications with racially aggravated factors, over alleged threats against Gina Miller, who was behind a successful legal challenge against the UK government's intention to give notice to leave the European Union without an act of parliament. Among other communications, he posted on Facebook: "£5,000 for the first person to 'accidentally' run over this bloody troublesome first generation immigrant" and "If this is what we should expect from immigrants, send them back to their stinking jungles". He was found guilty of two charges at his trial on 11 July 2017, at which he defended himself. Philipps was also convicted for comments made in response to a news article about an immigrant, in which he had written: "I will open the bidding. £2,000 in cash for the first person to carve Arnold Sube into pieces. Piece of shit". Philipps, who described his own comments as "satire", was sentenced to 12 weeks in prison. He was released on bail, pending an appeal. The appeal was abandoned by Philipps on 25 August 2017 some fifteen minutes after Judge Deborah Taylor informed Southwark Crown Court that there was a risk his sentence could be increased. Philipps was then required to serve the remainder of his original sentence.

Arms

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