A judge has issued an arrest warrant for Paul Flowers, the former Co-op Bank chairman after he failed to attend court to enter a plea on a charge of committing a £68,000 fraud by abusing his position. The 73-year-old, also a former Methodist minister and Labour councillor, faced Manchester Magistrates’ Court for the first time last month after previous hearings were disrupted due to his reported stroke.
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Prosecutor Brian Treadwell informed the court that Mr Flowers’ solicitor had lost contact with him. Judge Timothy Smith, in response to the non-appearance and lack of contact, issued a bench warrant not backed for bail. During his last court appearance, Flowers, aided by a wheeled Zimmer frame, did not indicate a plea and was granted unconditional bail until the recent hearing.
