Ex-Co-op Bank chief Paul Flowers ordered to repay £184,862 or face more prison time

MANCHESTER, England — A judge at Manchester Crown Court has ordered former Co-op Bank chairman Paul Flowers to repay £184,862 within three months, with the warning that nonpayment will add two and a half years to his prison term.

Flowers, 75, a former Methodist minister and long‑time political figure, was jailed for three years last year after pleading guilty to 18 counts of fraud tied to money he siphoned from a close friend, Margaret Jarvis. He acted as her power of attorney and, after her death, as executor of her will. Prosecutors allege that, rather than leaving funds to South African orphans, abandoned donkeys, guide dogs for the blind and Alzheimer’s research, Flowers diverted the money for himself to fund wine, luxury holidays abroad and theatre trips. He admitted stealing just under £100,000 as part of a basis of plea that the Crown prosecutors accepted, though the overall fraud tally was reported to be more than £180,000.

At a Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) hearing held at the same court, Flowers was ordered to repay £184,862 within three months. Judge [Name], presiding, told him that failure to comply would result in another two and a half years added to his sentence. Detective Constable Kate Riley, a fraud investigations officer with Greater Manchester Police, said the order represents another step in ensuring that funds are returned to those intended by the victim and to support justice outcomes.

"Getting Flowers’ ill-gotten money back and into the right hands is a further layer of justice that I am pleased has happened," Riley said. Charles Clayton, a specialist prosecutor with the Crown Prosecution Service’s Proceeds of Crime Division, added: "Paul Flowers abused the trust his friend placed in him, preying on her vulnerability. He stole a large amount of money from her, depriving charities and her niece of gifts bequeathed to them. We are pleased to have secured a compensation order that will right that wrong. Today his victim’s final wishes for her estate will finally be fulfilled."

Miss Jarvis, a devout Methodist who never married, trusted Flowers to manage her funds as she developed progressive dementia. He continued to siphon money after she moved into a care home in Amersham, Buckinghamshire, and even after her death in October 2016 at age 82. Bank records flagged a single suspicious transaction which prompted police to investigate; investigators uncovered years of withdrawals and transfers that Flowers used for personal expenses, including £1,500 on wine, £1,300 on cruises, £1,800 on holidays, £1,275 on carpets for his Salford home and other expenditures such as theater tickets and hotel stays.

Jarvis had intended for gifts to go to her two nieces and several charities, such as the Donkey Sanctuary and Alzheimer’s Research UK. A relative at the time pointed out that while some might call it a victimless crime because the victim has passed away, the real victims were the charities and people who would have benefited from the bequests.

Flowers’ public profile in the 2010s included his role as chairman of Co-op Bank from April 2010 until his resignation in June 2013, following intense scrutiny from MPs and a contentious Treasury Committee appearance that led to him being described as financially illiterate. He later faced drug‑related penalties, including a fine in 2014 for possession of cocaine, crystal meth and ketamine linked to personal stress and family caregiving circumstances. His private life drew further attention after he was filmed by a Mail on Sunday team counting money reportedly linked to drugs, and he later acknowledged sins in a televised interview. He was also sacked as a Methodist minister in December 2016 and resigned from Bradford Council in 2011 when inappropriate—but not illegal—pornography was found on his laptop.

The POCA order against Flowers provides a concrete mechanism to ensure that funds diverted from Miss Jarvis’ estate—whether to charities or other bequests outlined in her will—are redistributed as intended by her final wishes. The case underscores ongoing efforts by law enforcement to recover ill‑gotten gains and by prosecutors to secure fair restitution for vulnerable individuals in cases of fiduciary abuse.