Personal Life
Lennon has spoken about having suffered from depression since 2000.
In September 2008, Lennon was assaulted whilst in the West End of Glasgow. His attackers were subsequently charged, convicted and jailed for two years each on 16 January 2009.
In January 2011, Lennon reached an out of court settlement with the Bank of Ireland after a company of which he was a director defaulted on a 3.7 million Euro loan.
In January 2011, the Royal Mail intercepted packages containing bullets addressed to Lennon and Celtic and Northern Ireland players Niall McGinn and Paddy McCourt. In March 2011, a suspect package addressed to him was discovered in a mail depot in Saltcoats.
In March 2011, Lennon and two high-profile fans of Celtic were sent parcel bombs. The device sent to Lennon was intercepted by the Royal Mail at a depot in Kirkintilloch, Scotland whilst the two other devices were delivered, but treated as suspicious packages and were not opened. (See HM Advocate v Muirhead and McKenzie.)
In response to the death threats, First Minister Alex Salmond condemned those that "use football as a pretext for their pathetic and dangerous prejudices" and UEFA President Michel Platini said he would fight violence and sectarianism. Former Celtic Director Dr. Michael Kelly described the bombs and bullets as terrorism. After these threats, Lennon was subsequently put under 24-hour protection.
On 31 August 2011, a Hearts supporter was found guilty of a breach of the peace, after running into the technical area of the football pitch, and shouting and swearing at Lennon, during a match against Celtic in Edinburgh on 11 May 2011. A further charge of assault, aggravated by religious and racial prejudice, during the same incident, was found not proven. The media and many observers disapproved of the jury's verdict, mainly because of the admission of assault from the accused, as well as the evidence presented. The supporter was given an eight-month prison sentence.
Read more about this topic: Neil Lennon
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