Defendant said to be in coma wanted in court after being 'spotted in Tesco'

The 68-year-old stands accused of involvement in running PP Global Media Ltd whilst subject to an existing court order prohibiting him from acting as a company director,

The charge relates to alleged conduct between April 2019 and October 2022.

Etherington however did not appear at court when scheduled to.

Prosecutor Mrs Clegg, representing the Insolvency Service, told the court that Etherington's daughter had sent an email claiming he was in hospital in an induced coma.

She said the Insolvency Service had sent Etherington a reminder of the court hearing.

"On December 15 we emailed him to remind him of today's hearing," she said, the BBC reports.

"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."

Mrs Clegg added that there were updates to his Facebook page between December 21 and 22 and "also information to suggest he has been seen in Tesco".

Checks carried out with several hospitals in the region, including St James and Leeds General Infirmary, found Etherington had not been admitted as an in-patient recently, the court heard.

The prosecution requested an arrest warrant, highlighting that the offence carries a potential custodial sentence.

Magistrates concluded there was no corroborating evidence to support the induced coma claim.

The court agreed to issue a warrant for his arrest.