The billionaire owner of Leicester City who died in a helicopter crash outside the club’s King Power stadium had assets of just £50,000 in the UK, despite him being reportedly worth £4 billion, can reveal.
Khun Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, 60, was killed with four other people when his personal Leonardo AW169 helicopter span out of control and smashed into the ground in a fireball, just seconds after taking off.
An inquest into the deaths of all five victims of the crash started on Monday at Leicester City Hall and is due to last up to three weeks.
Probate for Khun Vichai’s estate in the UK was granted less than two weeks ago – more than six years after the tragedy on October 27, 2018, after Leicester City’s match against West Ham United.
Documents obtained by show that the gross and net value of his estate in England and Wales was only £50,000, suggesting that the vast majority of his wealth and assets was tied up in Thailand or elsewhere.
The paperwork showed that King Power boss Khun Vichai, 60, was domiciled in Thailand and died intestate without leaving a will in the UK. His address was given as Sukhumvit 64 Road, Bang Chak, Bangkok.
A High Court order granted administration of his estate to his widow Aimon Srivaddhanaprabha whose address was given as the King Power offices in Rangham Road, Khwaeng Tanon Phaya Thai, Khet Ratchathevi, Bangkok.
She is now the matriarch running the King Power duty free empire, where her two sons and two daughters are top executives
If the £50,000 value of the declared estate was dealt with under UK probate law, the entire amount would have been inherited by his widow. But it is not known what arrangements he might have made for his fortune in Thailand.
Khun Vichai opened his first duty free shop in Thailand in 1989, before taking over commercial areas in four of Thailand’s ten international airports, and expanding his portfolio into malls, hotels and the ownership of two football clubs including Leicester City.
Forbes magazine named him as the fifth richest man in the south east Asian country, worth an estimated US$4.9 billion.
The father-of-four took over Premier League team Leicester City along with his son Aiyawatt through the Asia Football Investments Consortium in 2010. He became chairman of the club in 2011, and his son became vice chairman.
The other victims of the crash were pilot Eric Swaffer, 53, his girlfriend and fellow pilot, Izabela Roza Lechowicz, 46, and two members of Khun Vichai’s staff – former beauty queen Nusara Suknamai, 32, and 33-year-old Kaveporn Punpare.
An Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) report, published in 2023, found the tragedy was caused by Mr Swaffer’s pedals becoming disconnected from the tail rotor after a worn metal bearing seized – and concluded he could have done ‘very little’ to save those on board.
The inquest heard the helicopter crash-landed on a brick and concrete step, rupturing a fuel tank and triggering a fire which quickly consumed the aircraft.
Jurors heard heart-rending accounts today from those who saw the helicopter plunge to the ground after it took off from the centre spot of the stadium and reach a height of around 430ft.
They included two police officers – Sergeant Mike Hooper and PC Steve Quartermain – who had been on duty at the game and were leaving the area when the incident took place at 8.37pm.
PC Quartermain told the second day of the inquest how the three passengers and Mr Swaffer – who cried out for help – appeared to still be alive when they arrived at the scene, on a patch of wasteland between two car parks just outside the ground.
He said he and Sergeant Hooper tried to reach them – but were beaten back by intense heat and flames as a huge fire took hold, leaving them unable to save anyone.
The pair had earlier seen the helicopter start to rotate and heard a ‘loud crunch’ as it hit the ground.
PC Quartermain said: ‘As soon as Mike stopped the car I got out. The aircraft was on fire. I got within two or three feet of it. The fire only took up a small portion at that time but seemed to be spreading quickly.
‘I could see there were three people in the back. There seemed to be three people moving their arms and legs around. The pilot was sat in his seat. He was looking at me but not reacting. Don’t know if he was unconscious.’
The inquest heard the helicopter landed on its left side, with its right-hand doors 2.5m in the air.
PC Quartermain added: ‘The only place I could have got in was through windscreen or something on bottom of aircraft facing me.’
He then wept as he said: ‘Flames started to take towards the rear of the aircraft and it was at that point I realised the people were going to die.
‘I looked towards the pilot, and he had started to come round. I left the scene to try and find Mike. He was at the rear of our car. I shouted, ‘Mike, the pilot’s still alive’.
‘He came running back with me towards craft and started to strike windscreen with baton.’
The officer said the fire was ‘stinging’ and ‘probably the hottest thing I have ever experienced’, before telling jurors Mr Swaffer appeared to reach down to his left.
He added: ‘I don’t know if he was trying to exit the aircraft. He seemed to gather himself and looked at Mike and I and shouted, ‘Help, get me out, help me’.
‘But it was too hot. The fire took hold of cockpit and Mike said he didn’t think there was anything else we could do, and we withdrew towards the gate. The helicopter was banging and popping, with small explosions.’
Sergeant Hooper also gave evidence, and described how the pilot appeared ‘dazed’ as he sat in the right-hand front seat.
‘I looked at the helicopter and the only route in I could see was through the windscreen’, he told the inquest jury.
‘I withdrew my baton from my body armour and struck windscreen three to five times to try to break it. Every time it hit, it bounced off, and it was repelling my baton every time.’
An Air Accident Investigation Branch investigator had previously told the court that the windscreen of the helicopter was ‘designed to withstand a 1kg bird strike at 180mph’ and could only be penetrated with specialist equipment.
Sergeant Hooper said he tried in vain to use the fire extinguisher on the flames, using it until it ran out.
He added: ‘The helicopter continued to pop and bang, and it was unbearably hot. There was nothing we could do. I shouted at everyone to get back, fearing it was about to explode.’
After completing their evidence, the officers were praised for their ‘incredible bravery’ by many of the lawyers representing interested parties in the inquest, including Khun Vichai’s family, and Leicester City FC.
Earlier Martin Wickes, who was part of the club’s maintenance team, told the hearing how he saw the helicopter hit the ground, and had to help console Leicester City goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, who was ‘on his knees’ in a car park watching the aftermath of the crash.
He said: ‘I approached to within less than ten feet of the helicopter. In our heads it was to try and help. I didn’t want to get too close because unfortunately I was covered in aviation fuel at the time, from where I had been.
‘Everything seemed in slow motion. It was a whirlwind of consciousness. The flame increased in height. They (the police) arrived and I saw the one who initially made contact remove his baton and engage with the front of the helicopter.
‘I made them aware it was catching fire. They were still trying to gain access until I made them aware it was igniting.’
He added: ‘Kasper Schmeichel was on his knees in car park. We made our way over to him to pick him up.’
Darren Pyke, a sound engineer for BT Sport, had been working at the game when he saw the helicopter spin out of control.
He said: ‘As it was approaching the ground I noticed the main rotor blades were not really spinning.
‘It came down, the nose hit, and it gently rolled over and came to a standstill on the ground.’
He ran to the helicopter and then noticed a flame at the tail section. Mr Pyke added: ‘I thought, ‘How long does this take before it goes bang?’ I could smell some aviation fuel.
‘I saw someone coming and I remember motioning up to them not to move. The flames had started. It was about 30 seconds to a minute after that the police car turned up.’
The inquest comes days after it was revealed Khun Vichai’s family had launched a £2.15 billion legal action against the aircraft’s manufacturer, Leonardo UK – described by lawyers as ‘the largest fatal accident claim in English history’.
The hearing continues.