Andrew Williams: Multi-millionaire ordered to pay ex-wife £12.5m in divorce

A multi-millionaire who threatened his ex-wife would ‘end up stacking shelves’ has been ordered to pay her £12.5million in their divorce.

A judge ruled shipping port boss Andrew Williams, 57, lied about his vast wealth during his split from his Abigail, 59, and branded him ‘completely dishonest’.

Mr Williams, who runs his business at Neath in South Wales, styled himself ‘Sir Andrew’ despite not having a knighthood, drove a blue Ferrari and claimed Prince Albert of Monaco was his best friend, the court heard.

But when his wife of 28 years filed for divorce, the tycoon stated he had lost more than £5.4million in a series of bad deals and frauds while insisting bank statements showing his millions were faked.

A year earlier, when the marriage was already in trouble, he had transferred £6million out of Britain to his account in Monaco.

Meanwhile, he posted a picture on Instagram of a new Rolls-Royce Cullinan, worth around £750,000, saying: ‘It’s about time I treated myself.’

A High Court judge ruled Mr Williams had attempted to hide assets from his ex-wife, including sending money to ‘third parties’. He then claimed he had been defrauded, but the judge said he did not believe the successful businessman had fallen victim to such a series of scams.

Mr Williams failed to turn up at divorce hearings, and Mrs Williams tried to have him sent to prison for breaking court orders.

Mr Justice Moor, in his ruling, said Mr Williams now accepted ‘that he had treated her badly and that he regretted it’. He said Mr Williams had praised his ex-wife as ‘fantastic’ and said he ‘loves her to bits’.

During his evidence, Mr Williams was asked about an episode when he had threatened Mrs Williams, saying she ‘would end up stacking shelves in The Range’, a chain of home furnishing stores.

He said he apologised to his ‘dear wife’ and added that it was ‘a bit of a wind-up’.

The judge said the incident was ‘disgraceful’ and said Mr Williams had told the court ‘a farrago of lies’. He added: ‘I have found the husband to be entirely dishonest, and there is no doubt that he has done his best to “pull the wool” over the court’s eyes.’

Before their separation in 2022, the couple, who have three grandchildren, were said to enjoy a ‘very high’ standard of living and never worried about money.

They lived in a large house on 120 acres of land near Cardiff, sent their children to private schools and had a luxury beachfront home in Marbella, Spain.

When they travelled to Monaco, they would take a helicopter from Nice airport in France.

Mr Williams, a former labourer, owned designer watches worth up to £2million, a Bentley convertible, and a 47-foot yacht.

He was said to be generous to his wife, whom he met when she was 24 and working in her father’s pub. He gave her more than £10,000 a month to spend.

She had a designer handbag collection worth around £25,000 and jewellery worth around £350,000.

Mr Justice Moor called the evidence of Mr Williams, who wore a £70,000 gold Rolex in court, ‘quite a performance’ and added: ‘I have, however, formed the very clear conclusion that I cannot rely on a word the husband says.’ Mrs Williams told the court she was completely dependent on her husband for money as she stopped working to raise their two children.

She claimed her jewellery was kept in a safe at the family’s home near Cardiff, but her husband refused to give her the key. She had to rely on loans to fund her legal case while her husband lived in Monaco as a tax exile.

The judge said it was ‘almost impossible’ to assess the extent of Mr Williams’ wealth because his evidence was ‘peppered with untruths’.

He ruled Mr Williams and his assets were worth around £50million, that £25million should be treated as matrimonial assets, and that Mrs Williams was entitled to half. He said: ‘I am entirely satisfied that the award of £12.5million will more than cover her reasonable needs.’

Mrs Williams’ solicitor, David Lister, from law firm Vardags, said the case had been ‘a crazy game of cat and mouse’.

He added: ‘The gloves had to come off, and virtually every weapon in our legal arsenal deployed to make him face his obligations to his family.’