FORMER Darlington football club chairman George Reynolds has been granted bail ahead of a now scheduled trial for allegedly breaching a restraining order and intimidation of a potential witness, later this year.

The 83-year-old businessman has been in custody since his arrest in the relation to those matters, which stem from a planning dispute, on February 21.

But after a bail application was made on his behalf at Durham Crown Court last Friday, the hearing was put back a week by Judge Jonathan Carroll.

It was subsequently brought forward by a day as Judge Carroll will not be at court tomorrow.

The defendant’s counsel Richard Bloomfield made the bail application on the terms that Mr Reynolds has a fixed local address and would abide by any conditions imposed by the court.

Judge Carroll agreed but told Mr Reynolds he must not attempt to contact or communicate with any witness, but make no contact with Durham County Council, other than through his solicitor, or post any message or other communications over his opinion on the council, the planning matter or the court hearings.

The judge said he did not consider it necessary in this case to impose an overnight home curfew.

Mr Reynolds, of Neville’s Cross, Durham, denies two charges of breaching a restraining order, imposed by a judge after a hearing at Teesside Magistrates’ Court, last September, by referring to a county councillor on social media, in January, plus one count of intimidation of a potential witness, between February 6 and 20.

His trial, of up to five days’ in length, was to start on August 17, but he is, in the meantime, to appeal the imposition of the restraining order later this month.

If the appeal is successful the first two counts are likely to be dropped.