Crown Court date set for four charged by police investigatng Northampton Borough Council £10.25million football club loan

Four people have been remanded on unconditional bail over charges resulting from a police investigation into the missing £10.25million Borough Council loan to Northampton Town Football Club.

The three men and one woman — aged between 47 and 70 and from Buckinghamshire and Middlesex — all appeared at Northampton Magistrates Court on Friday (August 20) regarding offences relating to donations to Northampton South Conservative Association in 2014.

Leonard Western, aged 71, of Holmside Rise, South Oxley, Watford, pleaded not guilty while the solicitor for Gary Platt, aged 65, of West Drive, Harrow, indicated his client would also plead not guilty.

No plea was entered on behalf of 60-year-old Nutan Bhimjiyani and Sharad Bhimjiyani, aged 65, both of Headstone Lane, Harrow, did not enter a plea.

All four were remanded to appear at Northampton Crown Court on October 6.

A fifth defendant, Nirav Vinodray Sheth, aged 47, of Uppingham Avenue, Stanmore, is now due to appear at Northampton Magistrates' Court on September 6 also charged with “without reasonable cause, being the principal donor of a donation of more than £500 to a registered party, namely Northampton South Conservative Association, failed to ensure that, at the time when the donation was received by the party, the party was given all such details in respect of the person treated as making the recordable donation as were required by virtue of paragraph 2 or 2A of Schedule 6 to the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000.”