Financial adviser to stars ‘was a bullying sex abuser’
Alleged victim ‘left a wreck’
A CELEBRITY wealth adviser forced a woman to bathe with him as part of a campaign of ‘abusive behaviour’, a court heard yesterday.
Frank Cochran is accused of raping and sexually assaulting the victim and leaving her an ‘emotional wreck’ and ‘a shell of her former self’.
As managing director of FSC Investment Services, Cochran made his name by advising the rich and famous, including former Atomic Kitten star Kerry Katona, who once hired him to track down her missing millions.
Stafford Crown Court heard that the 60-year-old, who once represented Scotland in clay pigeon shooting, was ‘a successful businessman who thrived on being in control and being shown respect’.
But prosecutors claim he was also ‘capable of a rapid loss of temper and abusive behaviour’.
Cochran, of Church Eaton, Staffordshire, faces charges including five allegations of rape and one of sexual assault. He denies all charges.
Yesterday, his alleged victim told the court Cochran had injured her in 2016.
Jurors were shown images of bruises on her body.
She said: ‘There were some [pictures] taken by myself and some taken by the doctors.
‘The bruise on my arm was caused by me trying to resist Frank in the bathroom.
‘He had his hand on my arm, grabbing me.
‘I was assaulted in the bathroom, he insisted that we bathed together, I preferred to shower by myself.’
The woman also claimed Cochran had kicked her with his heels. She also said she had secretly recorded a conversation with Cochran, using her mobile phone ‘out of fear’.
Cross-examining her, Cochran’s defence solicitor Robert Gearing said: ‘On one occasion between yourself and Frank you recorded the conversation with your phone.
‘He did not know he was being recorded, in the recording it can be heard Frank saying to leave him alone. But you continued, you pursued him.’
She replied: ‘Frank’s attitude had changed, he became very aggressive. His body language had changed as well, that is the reason why I decided to record him, it was out of fear.
‘I wanted to show the way Frank would talk to me.
‘Although his words weren’t threatening, his body language and the tone of his voice were.’
A record shown to the court from October 2014 stated that the woman now suffers from hypersomnia – where victims struggle to stay awake in the day – as a result of her trauma.
Earlier in the trial, prosecutor Michelle Colborne described the defendant as ‘a bully’ who had ‘manipulated’ the woman.
She said: ‘The indictment is a reflection of the sexual, physical and emotional abuse alleged in this case.’
Jurors were told Cochran claims the allegations have been ‘invented’ and has branded the victim ‘a fantasist’.
As well as representing Scotland in clay pigeon shooting competitions, Cochran has shot in the British Olympic trench team.
He was married at Blairquhan Castle, near Straiton, Ayrshire, in 2011.
His company has its headquarters in Wolverhampton and caters to many wealthy clients, including footballers.
As well as FSC Investment Services, Cochran is also a director of Celebrity Financial Planning Limited and Floodlight Wealth Management Limited.
The trial continues.
‘He became very aggressive’