Joseph Coutts had been made to put up a £25,000 surety as a condition of bail in the Magistrate's Court after he was accused of dishonestly obtaining £103,370 from Protected Distribution Ltd by deception between May and June 2006. The 48-year-old admitted the bail breach when he appeared in the Magistrate's Court from custody yesterday.
After the hearing, Guernsey Police Superintendent Ruari Hardy said that, acting on information received, officers had travelled to England to bring back the defendant, for whom an arrest warrant had been issued.
'We would like to thank the officers and staff of Avon & Somerset Constabulary for their assistance in this case,' he said. 'Despite the busy festive period they were able to help Guernsey officers with the arrest and the return to the island of a man charged with serious offences in 2007, and had court bail conditions imposed.'
Advocate Sam Maindonald said her client believed the prosecution had acted unfairly.
He thought he had an understanding with police that he would not be brought back to the island but would be arrested if he came here voluntarily. Crown Advocate Graeme McKerrell said he had made it completely clear to the defendant that a warrant for his arrest was outstanding. In correspondence, Coutts had been inviting him to seek extradition, though he said he would contest it. At some time, Coutts had then gone to the UK.
