A COMMUNITY charity left in deep financial difficulties by a crooked accountant should soon be fully compensated by him.

Following lengthy proceeds of crime inquiries, and proceedings, a judge at Durham Crown Court has ruled that Paul Brown-King should be confiscated of £80,395.

The now 64-year-old defendant was jailed at the court in April, 2019, after admitting two fraud charges, abusing his position of trust overseeing the accounts of Bullion Hall Community Resource Centre, in Chester-le-Street, and Mental Health North-East, in nearby Birtley.

The court heard he transferred £53,655 of the hall’s funds into his own account between 2012 and 2017.

But he was caught out when he made out a cheque for £11,269 from the mental health charity to try to “buy time” and cover his tracks for some of the funds taken from Bullion Hall.

Belinda Lowis, Bullion Hall chief operating officer, said it came as, “a complete shock”, when police broke the news to her that the centre had received money from another charity by fraudulent means.

It only survived thanks to an emergency loan from Durham County Council, which it was still repaying some months later, while Neil Kelly, chairman of the trustee board at Mental Health North-East, said it would have been forced to close had the fraud not been picked up when it was by police.

Tony Davis, representing Brown-King, said he had been left in financial difficulties after being made redundant.

But Mr Davis told a previous hearing the defendant should be able to fully recompense the victims of his crime from the sale of his home in Sturdee Gardens, West Jesmond, Newcastle.

Yesterday’s settlement hearing was told Brown-King’s available assets are £187,281, which is the value of the home, and it was agreed he benefited from his crimes by £80,395.

Judge James Adkin ordered that the confiscation sum should be £80,395, of which £47,599 should be paid to Bullion Hall and £12,288 to the Co-operative Bank, which withstood the loss from Mental Health North-East.

Brown-King, who has completed his prison sentence, was given three months to make the payment or risk up to a further 20-months in prison, in default.

Should he be unable to meet the payment within three months, his lawyers can apply to the magistrates’ court for an extension of three more months.