Leicester helicopter crash: Soccer team owner’s fate unclear
LEICESTER, England — The Thai owner of English Premier League club Leicester was on a helicopter that crashed and burst into flames shortly after taking off from the soccer field, a person with knowledge of the situation said Sunday as investigators examined the wreckage and hundreds of fans brought tributes to the stadium.
Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, the team’s owner of eight years, was on board with four others, none of whom were his family members, the person said. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release details of the passengers. There was no official word on casualties from Saturday’s crash.
Aerial footage in daylight showed the charred remains of the helicopter with part of the wreckage covered by a tarpaulin
The 60-year-old Vichai, who owns Thai duty-free retail giant King Power, is known for arriving and leaving the stadium in central England in his helicopter and it became one of the defining scenes of the club’s improbable run to the Premier League title in 2016.