(Bloomberg) -- A British socialite at the center of one of the UK’s biggest money-laundering trials said he was a “functioning addict” at the time of his alleged involvement in a scheme to bank huge amounts of criminal cash via a gold dealer.

James Stunt, the former son-in-law of motor racing supremo Bernie Ecclestone, told a court in Leeds, northern England, the charges against him are slanderous and railed against an “oppressive” police investigation and prosecutors. “If they’re going to sling mud, I’m going to sling truth,” he said Wednesday.

He added that he took sedatives such as Valium and morphine regularly but that it had little impact upon him. “None of them have affected my state of mind,” he said. “I have a very addictive personality.”

Stunt, 40, was giving evidence for the first time in the months-long trial. Prosecutors have said previously that he took a very “hands on approach” when his company became involved in supplying gold bullion. Alongside seven other defendants, he’s charged with disguising criminal cash credited to a gold dealer and banked by NatWest Group Plc.

Prosecutors have described how some £266 million was transferred through the bank account of gold dealer Fowler Oldfield. Of that, £46.7 million was paid into the accounts of James Stunt and of Stunt & Co.

When he was questioned about the millions of pounds of cash that was counted at his luxurious central London office, and whether that was part of the money laundering scheme, Stunt replied “absolutely not.”

“I was building a brand around myself,”  Stunt said of his company, adding that he wanted to “restore the gold standard to our investors.”

“If you are doing money laundering, you call it Bulls--- Holdings, you do not use my name in my humble opinion,” he said.

Too Rich to Care

Stunt, who was formerly married to the daughter of Ecclestone, said he didn’t recognize his portrayal in the tabloid newspapers. “I fought not to be famous,” he said. “I’m not a Kardashian. I loved my wife. I didn’t love her bank account.” 

Stunt said his confidence partially masked his insecurity. “Everyone likes to be liked,” he said. “If you’ve got it flaunt it, if you haven’t you can always make more,” he said, referring to money.

“I’m not a glib arrogant man, that’s the humblest answer I can give you,” Stunt told the jury on Wednesday.

Stunt, who said he wasn’t a name dropper, spoke of his relationships with Gulf royalty, politicians and other prominent people, saying they were regularly visitors to his offices.

He said that during the 2008 crisis, he saw the financial impact on Joe Lewis, the owner of the Premier League football club Tottenham Hotspur.

“I was there on Joe Lewis’ yacht when he lost $800 million in a day,” he said. “He’s so rich he didn’t care.”

(Updates with Joe Lewis losing $800 million in one day in final paragraph.)

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