Gummer backs count's plea for bail in BAE case

An Austrian count accused of paying bribes for the arms giant BAE was granted bail today after he was given a character reference by a former Tory minister. John Gummer, MP for Suffolk Coastal, delivered a handwritten letter to the judge saying he had known Alfons Mensdorff-Pouilly, a one-time BAE secret agent, for some years and he believed he was unlikely to abscond. Mensdorff-Pouilly is accused of conspiring with BAE to pay bribes to obtain fighter jet deals in Austria, the Czech Republic and Hungary between 2002 and 2008. He had been on remand in Pentonville prison since last Friday, when he was charged by the Serious Fraud Office. It is the first prosecution brought by the SFO since it began investigating BAE more than five years ago. Judge Timothy Workman adjourned the hearing at Westminster magistrates court until Wednesday to consider further legal arguments. Patrick Gibbs, QC for Mensdorff-Pouilly, argued that the prosecution should be dropped as the attorney general, Lady Scotland, has yet to give her consent. When Gibbs applied for bail, he handed up the letter from Gummer to the judge saying that the author, whom he did not name, was willing to give evidence in support of the count. Gummer, who was in court, was not called to the stand. The judge said the letter had had no bearing on his decision to grant bail which was granted provided Mensdorff-Pouilly deposited £500,000 with the court and found a £500,000 surety. He is allowed to live in a flat in Belgravia subject to an electronic tag and a curfew between midnight and 6am. He is required to surrender his three passports.