A businessman who was allegedly in an induced coma is wanted in court after magistrates were told there was no evidence he was in hospital and had been seen shopping in Tesco.
Peter Etherington was due to appear at Bradford Magistrates’ Court on Friday over a charge brought by the Insolvency Service but did not appear after an email from his daughter claimed he was in hospital.
The 68-year-old, of Belle Vue, Ilkley, has been charged with being involved in the running of PP Global Media Ltd while being banned from acting as a company director by an existing court order.
Mrs Clegg, prosecuting on behalf of the Insolvency Service, said his absence was “not unexpected”.
According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, she told the court: “On December 15 we emailed him to remind him of today’s hearing.
“We received a response purporting to be from his daughter claiming he was in hospital in an induced coma.
“We asked for medical evidence, but no evidence has been provided.”
Clegg said Etherington had also recently posted online in relation to the legal affairs.
She said: “He signed papers the day we got the email. There were also updates on his Facebook page on December 21 and 22.
“There is also information to suggest he has been seen in Tesco.”
Friday’s hearing was the second listing of this case, which was originally set for 24 October but on that date Etherington claimed he was due to undergo surgery.
Clegg said: “Although there were some concerns about this letter and the form it took, we were prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt.”
She said the service made checks with numerous local hospitals, including St James and Leeds General Infirmary but found he had not been a recent in-patient.
She asked the court to issue a warrant for Etherington’s arrest, and pointed out the charge was one that could lead to a prison sentence.
Magistrates said there was nothing to corroborate the claim the defendant was in an induced coma and issued a warrant for his arrest.
The charge relates to a period between April 2019 and October 2022.