A crown court defendant recruited friends and family to hand out £20 notes to jurors in an attempt to derail his trial, a court heard.
Patrick Cleere, 66, allegedly hatched the plan to nobble the jury at Blackfriars crown court last July with the help of wife Rita, 66, niece Natalie, 45, and friends Rajiv Netto, 51, and Hajnalka Romvari, 37.
They are all accused of handing out £20 notes to people entering the court building, as well as distributing wooden business cards — later recovered from the jury room — for Cleere’s company Candleverse.
Harrow crown court heard Cleere’s criminal trial, which involved Candleverse, was halted as a result of the incident.
Prosecutor Robin Sellers said Cleere had insisted he was “not ready” for his trial and made repeated attempts to have it adjourned.
Mr Sellers added: “On the day of the trial Patrick and these defendants arrived together, some carrying clipboards and all wearing lanyards around their necks showing his business card.
“They approached individuals making their way in, explaining they were representing Candleverse Ltd and enticing people to look at the company website.
"Instead of discount vouchers they handed out £20 notes and the wooden Candleverse business cards.
"Most importantly and uppermost in Patrick Cleere’s mind was that these people were potentially to be selected to serve on the jury for his trial.”
Police seized £920 which had been distributed to people at the court, with £855 seized from Rita Cleere and £440 from Netto.
Patrick Cleere and his wife, from Ealing, Natalie Cleere, of Clacton, Netto, from Somerset, and Romvari, a Hungarian national, all deny trying to pervert justice.
The trial continues.
