Former Sunderland Chief Executive Received £750k Pay Off After Quitting Club Over Adam Johnson Saga

Sunderland owner Ellis Short is understood to have made a £750k payment to former chief executive, ?Margaret Byrne, when she quit the club last March after admitting she ‘mishandled’ the situation regarding convicted paedophile Adam Johnson. 

The former winger was found guilty of sexual activity with a minor last year and sentenced to six years in prison. 

At the time the player was charged by police, Johnson continued to feature in the Sunderland lineup and received his salary up until the first day of his trial where, having pleaded guilty to grooming and kissing an underage girl, he had his contract with the Black Cats terminated with immediate effect. 

The Mail suggest that Johnson earned close to £2m in wages despite Sunderland receiving documents showing that the 29-year-old would plead guilty to two of the charges brought against him.

The Mail also report that the club’s former chief executive, who is thought to have had knowledge of Johnson’s admission of guilt, received a whopping £750k payment from owner Ellis Short, when she stepped down from her role 13 months ago. 

At the time, Ms Byrne, who had an £700k annual salary, was thought to have been told to resign for her role in the Black Cats’ handling of Johnson, or else face the threat of being sacked. 

Details of the large pay-off handed to the former chief executive will be published along with the club’s accounts that will be released in the near future. 

The news comes just days after current manager David Moyes came under-fire for making an inappropriate comment to a female reporter after watching his side lose 1-0 at Watford. 

With Tuesday’s 2-0 defeat to Leicester leaving the Black Cats some eight points from safety, it seems that the club’s wretched season is showing no signs of ending, both on and off the pitch.