Former Duchy Catering directors bailed

Three former directors of Leeds-based catering company Duchy Catering, who were arrested under the Proceeds of Crime Act last week, have been bailed.

Andrew Haworth, 45, from Bingley; Mike Lee, 47, from Bingley and David Gooch, 39, from Liverpool were arrested on the 26 January by West Yorkshire police and their homes searched and documents and business papers taken away.

The trio have been subsequently bailed pending further enquiries.

Duchy Catering was acquired by Graysons Restaurants earlier this month and it has since emerged that the company had been placed into administration ahead of the deal after suffering cash flow problems.

In a statement issued after the arrest Philip Nash, chairman of Graysons, said: "The acquisition of the business by means of an auction conducted by the administrators KPMG, was a robust and well-managed process, during which Graysons management dealt direct with the appointed administrators and legal teams.

"The reports are unfortunate but they do not impact at all upon the acquisition or our plans for the future, we are delighted with the acquisition and in particular the response from our clients and staff which has been very positive.'

Graysons was set up in 2008 with backing form Ex Compass chairman Sir Francis Mackay. See our mini profile on Graysons for more about the company.

• Picture courtesy of The Yorkshire Evening Post.

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By Chris Druce

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