Premier League ace Wilfried Zaha caught up in alleged rental scam

FOOTIE ace Wilfried Zaha is caught up in an alleged rental scam. The Crystal Palace star was involved in a business which appears to have illegally sub-let flats — leaving tenants to face eviction. Sources close to Zaha, 29, say he was unaware. His fellow ZO Properties director Obinna Ogbonna, who allegedly got him involved, […]

FOOTIE ace Wilfried Zaha is caught up in an alleged rental scam.

The Crystal Palace star was involved in a business which appears to have illegally sub-let flats — leaving tenants to face eviction.

Getty

Sources close to Zaha, 29, say he was unaware[/caption]

Sources close to Zaha, 29, say he was unaware.

His fellow ZO Properties director Obinna Ogbonna, who allegedly got him involved, has vanished.

The suspected scam involves at least seven flats leased by ZO in a block in Maida Vale, West London.

The business sub-let the properties without consent, collected rent but allegedly did not pass it on to the owners.

Sophie Howkins, 29, and flatmate Christie Stevens, 28, have been told to leave despite paying £20,000 to ZO since January.

Accounts manager Sophie said: “ZO have all of our money and I have been told by the people who actually own the flat that the money hasn’t been passed on to them. I can’t sleep. We have no idea who to turn to.”

Zaha, who played in the 1-0 defeat at Man United yesterday, resigned as a ZO director about 16 weeks ago.

His spokesman said the star was urgently investigating. A notice to dissolve ZO was issued in October.

Colombia Group, which manages the rentals for owner Luiz Properties, said: “We’d expect a group letting like this to be for a company to put up staff but that hasn’t been the case.

“They have been sub-let and we need to work on this.“