Arriving in court shuffling behind a wheeled-walking frame, with a full white beard and wearing a scarlet scarf, Paul Flowers at times bore more than a passing resemblance to Richard Attenborough as Kriss Kringle in Miracle on 34th Street. But the life of the former chairman of Co-op Bank has been an object lesson that appearances can be deceptive. Flowers โ a one-time Methodist minister โ is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to swindling a female friend and spending the money on wine, theatre tickets and luxury holidays.
Earlier this year, Flowers admitted 18 counts of abusing his position as a power of attorney for Margaret Jarvis and after her death, when acting as an executor of her will. The case was delayed last year after Flowers suffered a stroke.
The sentencing may well represent a fresh nadir for Flowers, but the downward trajectory began at least 10 years ago, and arguably well before that. There can have been few more precipitous falls from grace in British public life.
Born and raised in Portsmouth, Flowers worked as a teller at NatWest bank for four years before training for the ministry.
He studied theology at the University of Bristol in the s. He subsequently claimed to have been raped by a fellow student during this time, which resulted in suppressed trauma and a life-long difficulty in maintaining romantic relationships.
