Ex-Jericho churchwarden cleared of fraud says three year ordeal 'never shook' his faith

Henry Gibbon told the Oxford Mail after he was cleared of any wrongdoing that he was ‘very grateful to all the people who offered private support’ in the three years since he was first arrested by the police.

Asked whether the ordeal had affected his faith, the 59-year-old said: “It has certainly never shaken it and in some way it may have strengthened it.”

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Henry Gibbon photographed by the Oxford Mail outside St Barnabas in 2014 Picture: OM

Mr Gibbon, of Bracknell Gardens, London, had been charged with two counts of fraud, accused of taking almost £10,000 in 2018 from St Barnabas and Jericho Wharf Trust, a charity set up with the aim of redeveloping the Castlemill Boatyard site for the benefit of the community.

Prosecutors alleged he had abused his position as a churchwarden at St Barnabas to take £9,334.90 between February and November 2018. It was also alleged he defrauded the Jericho Wharf Trust, for which he was treasurer, out of almost £450 between January and March 2018.

But on the day his trial was supposed to begin at Oxford Crown Court on Monday, barrister Adam Williams said the Crown would be offering no evidence to support its prosecution.

In a ‘nutshell’, the prosecutor explained, the case involved sums that according to some witnesses were supposed to have been banked by the defendant on behalf of the church and the charity. Those sums had ‘never made their way to the bank’, it had been alleged.

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However, fresh bank statements served by the defence and evidence showing the origin of money that went into Mr Gibbon’s account meant the Crown felt ‘there is no longer a realistic prospect of conviction’, Mr Williams said.

Judge Nigel Daly formally entered not guilty verdicts on the Crown Prosecution Service offering no evidence.

Henry Gibbon outside Oxford Crown Court in 2021 Picture: OM

He told Mr Gibbon’s barrister, Nick Murphy, that he would consider any application from his instructing solicitors for the defendant’s travel costs to be paid out of the public purse through a defendant’s cost order.

Speaking to the Oxford Mail after the hearing on Monday afternoon, Mr Gibbon said: “I think it is significant that the prosecution withdrew the case as soon as they received pretty much conclusive proof the allegations were false.”

He had referred to the documents later provided to the prosecution during his first interview with the police in May 2019, he added.

Although sure of his innocence, the former churchwarden faced two years of uncertainty before he was charged last summer then spent a further year with the 'Sword of Damocles' hanging over his head as he awaited his trial.

Mr Gibbon, who also worked with the local deanery, Oxford diocese and bishops' council, said: “Of course, I am conscious it takes a very long time for cases to actually come to trial; that is perhaps understandable because there is a backlog and Covid no doubt played a part.

“I don’t think it has had too dramatic an effect on me, but I would worry about other people – anyone, really – being put through such a long ordeal.” 

He added that he had 'nothing but affection' for St Barnabas, which he described as an 'excellent example of a liberal catholic Church of England' institution. 

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This story was written by Tom Seaward. He joined the team in 2021 as Oxfordshire's court and crime reporter.  

To get in touch with him email: Tom.Seaward@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @t_seaward