'Racist' barrister calls villain as witness

A barrister told today how he enlisted the help of timeshare swindler and career criminal John "Goldfinger" Palmer to fight allegations that he racially abused a solicitor's clerk.

Gordon Pringle, 52, denies calling Eric Adusei a "coon" and a "wog" while the two worked together defending Palmer. He accepted calling Mr Adusei a "blackmoor" but insisted it was "a joshing form of affection".

Mr Adusei, 35, claims the racist abuse came during the Old Bailey trial of Palmer, who is now serving eight years for fraud. When Mr Adusei made a formal complaint to the Bar Council, Mr Pringle said he enlisted Palmer's help as a witness.

Mr Pringle told a Bar Council disciplinary tribunal today that he approached Palmer - who he admitted was a "notorious criminal" - while the jury was out in his first trial.

Mr Pringle said: "Mr Palmer had time on his hands so I showed him the complaint after he had spent eight months with Mr Adusei. Palmer has no interest in me whatsoever. He could afford any dozen QCs he wanted but he says in his statement that never did Mr Adusei say he was being bullied or being discriminated against by me - that is because I was not."

Mr Adusei, of Fulham, claims Mr Pringle repeatedly insulted and humiliated him in front of clients and lawyers. He accused Mr Pringle of trying to " ingratiate" himself with Palmer by suggesting his clerk was only good for serving drinks to the trial barristerson the crook's private jet. The barrister, with almost 30 years experience of the criminal law, claims he was perfectly open and friendly towards Mr Adusei.

Mr Adusei yesterday told the hearing how he had been shocked when he had told the barrister that his parents had come from Ghana and his response had been "you are a lot cleverer than those others".

Today Mr Pringle said that he had been merely asking whether Ghanaian businessmen were as talented as he had heard.

"I was speaking in inquisitive admiration of what I'd heard," he told the tribunal.

Mr Pringle went on to deny Mr Adusei's claims that he had referred to him as a "coon" during a client conference at the Old Bailey. "It is not a word I would ever use," he said.

Mr Pringle could be disbarred if found guilty of the five charges of race discrimination or, alternatively, bringing his profession into disrepute through his offensive behaviour, which he denies.

The hearing continues.