Stanford in court on fraud charges

Flamboyant Texan billionaire Allen Stanford appeared in court on Thursday over fraud charges looking more like a Guantanamo Bay inmate than one of the world's richest men.

Wearing an orange jumpsuit and with manacles on his hands and feet, he was marched into the courthouse in Houston where he pleaded not guilty to 21 charges of fraud, mail fraud, conspiracy and obstruction.

The cricket-loving American businessman is accused of masterminding a $7bn fraud at his Stanford Financial group of companies - taking money from investors who thought they were buying high yielding savings products.

In court he cut a very different figure to the one who was seen cavorting with the wives of England cricket players at the special Twenty20 match he arranged at his private ground on the Caribbean island of Antigua last year.

His lawyer told the court that Stanford, listed as the 605th richest man in the world by Forbes with a personal fortune of £2.2bn, had not handled his fall from grace well and had turned to drink.

The change in circumstances could not be more stark: nine months ago he was boasting that "it is fun being a billionaire" and was shaking up the "old farts" of English cricket by throwing money at the game. He even landed his helicopter on the outfield at Lord's before signing a deal with the ECB, and organised a match in which every member of the winning team was given $1m.

The fraud allegations first surfaced in February after an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Stanford briefly went on the run before turning himself in. Earlier this month the FBI brought charges against him and he was taken into custody.

The billionaire's lawyer Dick DeGuerin revealed that since the scandal broke the bon viveur had turned to alcohol and was now taking an anti-anxiety medication to cope with the stress.

Stanford was granted bail after the hearing but will go on trial in August with four co-defendants. ·