Police probe peer’s Army charity over ‘lost’ £400k
HIS grandfather, Sir Winston Churchill, helped shape the nation’s destiny as few others have done, while, for his own part, Sir Nicholas (now Lord) Soames served as Minister of State for the Armed Forces.
But it seems unlikely that the Tory peer can be relishing the latest chapter in the history of the Ogilby Trust, a military charity of which he is the preeminent grandee.
Six months after I disclosed that the Trust was reeling from the disappearance of funds totalling hundreds of thousands of pounds, I can reveal that it is now the subject of a police investigation.
Soames, as vice patron, is the Ogilby Trust’s senior figure. He was appointed in difficult circumstances, following the departure of Prince Andrew, the Trust’s longstanding patron, who relinquished his position — along with similar roles he held at numerous other charities — in the wake of his ‘car-crash’ interview with emily Maitlis.
Soames, 76, who was awarded a peerage when he retired as an MP in 2019, does not respond to my telephone call, while Wiltshire Police, who have been entrusted with the inquiry into the missing funds, say that they cannot comment, explaining their investigation is ‘ongoing’.
The Trust’s new governance and communications officer, rosie Harvey, who was appointed in December, echoes that sentiment, saying that the Trust cannot issue a statement until the investigation has been concluded.
However, I understand a member of staff has been interviewed ‘under caution’ by officers unravelling apparent discrepancies that suggest up to £400,000 of the charity’s money has gone AWOL.
The Charity Commission has been alerted to the unfolding crisis. ‘In line with our guidance, the trustees of Army Museums Ogilby Trust reported a serious incident to the Commission in relation to concerns about the charity’s financial management and potential misappropriation of funds,’ says the Commission’s Polly Kettenacker.
The Trust has also updated its website, which, as I previously noted, used to list Lord richards, a former Chief of the Defence Staff, as one of its vice patrons — a claim now deleted.
Lord Soames will surely hope that the Trust, founded by Colonel robert Ogilby, awarded the DSO for ‘fearlessness’, can soon concentrate once more on its objectives of ‘educating the public’ and ‘inspiring members of the Army’.