QPR ace Ilias Chair has been jailed for a year – after being found guilty of smashing a lorry driver’s skull with a rock.
The Moroccan midfielder has shone since joining the Championship club from Lierse in Belgium in 2017.
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Ilias Chair was sentenced to 12 months in prison Credit: Rex
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The chair represented Morocco at the World Cup in QatarCredit: Getty
But a court in his hometown of Antwerp sentenced him to a year in prison on Friday morning, with a further 12 months suspended.
Chair, 26, was also ordered to pay his victim £13,400 compensation for her injuries.
The news is a huge blow for QPR, who are fighting relegation to League One.
The trial heard that Chair, his brother Jaber and friends got into an argument with a lorry driver in Bazeilles, northern France, in the summer of 2020.
They and the driver, named Niels T, were waiting for the bus back to Belgium after kayaking.
Antwerp’s public prosecutor said at a hearing in January: “According to many people involved, Ilias Chair hit Niels T with a rock and knocked him unconscious.
“The consequences were dramatic for Niels T. He suffered a severe skull fracture, two centimeters long, and was transported to a hospital in Reims in a critical condition.
“Afterwards he had to recover for a long time in a Belgian hospital and was unable to do his job as a truck driver for a long time.
– The blow was almost fatal for him, and he still feels the consequences.
Chair hired a new lawyer, but the court denied their requests for a new trial on Friday.
The player’s brother Jaber was given a six-month suspended prison sentence and a £700 fine for his role in the incident.
Niels T’s lawyer said: “My client almost lost his life and had to be saved by surgeons.
“He was unable to work for a long time, and he still suffers every day from the side effects of being hit by a rock.”
QPR released a statement saying: “The club is, and has been, in regular contact with Ilias Chair’s legal team regarding the assault charge brought against him.
“The legal proceedings have yet to be completed. As such, the club will not be making any further comments at this stage.”
Chair made his last appearance for QPR on 17 February against Bristol City, scoring the only goal of the game in a 1–0 win.
He has played 33 times in the league this season for Rangers and has four goals and five assists for the Championship’s 22nd-placed team.
Chair has made a total of 223 appearances for QPR since joining the academy in 2017 from Belgian club Lierse SK.
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Chair was ordered to pay £13,400 to the victimCredit: Instagram @ilias_chair
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He was given a 12-month suspended sentence along with a year-long sentence Credit: Instagram @ilias_chair
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The star last played for QPR on February 17 Credit: Instagram @ilias_chair
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