A FINANCIAL advisor accused of stealing vast sums of money from North-East pensioners appeared in court on Saturday morning.

Kole Lulgjuraj faced six charges of theft and one of fraud totalling almost £1m when he appeared before magistrates at Peterlee, County Durham.

The 50-year-old spoke only to confirm his name, age and that he is of no fixed abode. He did not enter a plea.

Mr Lulgjuraj, who is originally from Montenegro, but used to live in Darlington, was arrested by the FBI in Indianapolis, America, and extradited to the UK on Friday (May 27) to face the charges.

Prosecutor Jonathan Moore said the offences were allegedly committed between 1999 and 2010 when Mr Lulgjuraj had his own finance business and the alleged victims were clients.

Magistrates declined jurisdiction of the case and David Caplin, representing Mr Lulgjuraj, made no application for bail.

He was remanded into custody to appear at Teesside Crown Court on Friday, June 24.