Mike Tyson scraps UK promotional appearances

LONDON (AP) — Former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson has scrapped promotional appearances in London because previous convictions bar him from entering Britain.

Tyson, 47, was due in London this week as part of a promotional tour for his autobiography “Undisputed Truth.”

His publisher, HarperCollins U.K., said in a statement Tuesday that it had been “unaware” of recent changes to U.K. immigration law and for that reason Tyson had to reroute to Paris.

Under Britain’s immigration rules, anyone sentenced to more than four years in prison is barred from entering the country.

Tyson served three years of a six-year sentence in the 1990s for raping a teenage beauty-pageant contestant. He also has been convicted of assault and cocaine possession.

Britain’s Home Office declined to comment on Tyson.