THE former driver of Sean Collidge, the Monaco-based businessman who founded the factory-outlet developer Freeport, committed suicide last year after a row over a severance package, the High Court was told last week.

Paul Bradshaw killed himself on May 26 following a dispute with the company over a redundancy payment.

Collidge had quit Freeport in March 2006 after being suspended by the company’s board. The board alleged Collidge used a company driver to decorate his private hotel and spent company funds on meals and hotel visits in France. Collidge denies the claims and is suing Freeport for £500,000 he says is owed.

Bradshaw said in an e-mail before he died that he had been involved in “gathering evidence against Sean Collidge” and had been “placed in hiding” by Freeport at the Holiday Inn in Lichfield, Staffordshire, for about a week. He said he had talked to lawyers and company officials and given a statement against Collidge.

However, Bob Yates, security adviser at Freeport, said in court last week that only he and a company secretary had been at the hotel and had been there for only one day, during which they took his statement. Bradshaw subsequently faxed a letter to Freeport withdrawing the statement.

Collidge claims Freeport offered Bradshaw £20,000 in return for the statement, but that was a lower figure than Bradshaw had hoped for.

Yates told the court there was no offer of a financial package to Bradshaw linked to the evidence or statement, and he did not know why Bradshaw thought a payment would be forthcoming.

The case continues.

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