Fraud case man appears as woman
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Your support makes all the difference.PETER YOUNG, the former star fund manager at the centre of one of the biggest City scandals in recent years, appeared in court yesterday dressed in open-toed high-heeled sandals, flesh-coloured tights, a beige patterned jumper and flowery skirt.
Mr Young, who also wore shoulder length hair, a black shoulder bag, bright red lipstick and glasses, was represented at the hearing by his barrister, Alex Cameron. The former fund manager with the City firm Morgan Grenfell was remanded with three others to appear for a transfer hearing on 15 March.
The four were charged last month on various counts of fraud, conspiracy to defraud and offences under the Financial Services Act 1986. The charges relate to a series of irregularities in various Morgan Grenfell unit trusts, which resulted in losses of pounds 220m two years ago.
Also at the City of London magistrates' court yesterday were Norwegians Jan Helge Johnsen and Erik Langaker, both former employees of stockbrokers Fiba Nordic. Mr Langaker resides in Portugal but is frequently in London on business. Mr Johnsen lives in London.
As a condition of bail, both were required to have sureties of pounds 100,000.
Mr Langaker was represented by Stephen Pollard, the solicitor who acted for Nick Leeson, the former Barings trader.
After the discovery of the alleged irregularities Mr Young left the firm, which had to be bailed out with pounds 180m by its parent company Deutsche Bank. Deutsche was also fined for City regulatory offences as a result of the affair.
Stewart Armer, who was also employed at the time by Morgan Grenfell, did not appear in court yesterday. Mr Armer, who was represented at the hearing by his lawyer, Maurice Martin, is in Chile but will appear for the hearing on 15 March. He has had to put up a pounds 10,000 guarantee.
Mr Young, whose address was not disclosed in court, and his alleged conspirators are accused of setting up a web of Luxembourg-based companies to conceal various investments in high-risk companies from the auditors, trustees and regulators of a number of funds that Mr Young managed.
According to the charges, Mr Young and Mr Armer used the elaborate structure of Luxembourg companies to get around restrictions on the nature and size of the investments that the funds, which were aimed at ordinary retail investors, were able to hold.
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