Five Star directors remanded

Former Five Star Finance director Anthony Bowden Photo /Greg Bowker

The former Five Star Finance directors were remanded on bail until the end of October at the Auckland District Court this morning, after being charged with more than 100 criminal offences by the Serious Fraud Office last month.

The directors, Nicholas Kirk, Marcus MacDonald, Anthony Bowden and Neill Williams were remanded until October 28 when a pre-committal hearing will be held.

The directors have not yet entered a plea.

The SFO alleges they acted dishonestly and breached obligations
under the trust deed.

The directors were also on the boards of related companies, Five
Star Consumer Finance and Five Star Debenture Nominees. All the companies in the group collapsed in 2007.

More than $90 million of investors money is estimated to have been lost.

The Companies Office has also laid criminal charges against all four of the directors under the Securities Act and the Financial Reporting Act.

The directors have also not entered pleas for these charges.

The Companies Office case will go to trial on October 26.

The registrar at the Auckland District Court said the pre-committal
hearing for the SFO case, on October 28, would be a procedural appearance for the directors.