The trial of ShelterBox founder Tom Henderson has started for a second time after it was stopped when two jurors were discharged.

The original trial began last Tuesday, but two jurors were discharged due to illness, meaning two new members had to be found.

The two replacements were sworn in with the existing panel, and prosecutor Walton Hornsby began his opening statement today (28/9) for a second time.

The court heard that Thomas Henderson, the former ShelterBox chief executive, had treated the charity as "his own personal fiefdom" by handing lucrative contracts for camping and survival equipment to companies run by his son John, also on trial, in a five-year fraud.

When trustees of the charity, which specialised in providing relief packages to victims of disasters, began to ask questions they brought in co-defendant Darren Gervis to set up sham companies to hide the fraud, the Old Bailey was told.

Mr Hornsby said: "The authorisation of these supply contracts became increasingly controversial. It is the prosecution's case that when these were questioned by the management team at Shelterbox, John Henderson then recruited Darren Gervis to create various front companies in order to conceal the fact it was the chief executive officer's son who was the beneficiary of these large supply contracts.

"John Henderson was always the supplier of goods and services to Shelterbox and everything possible was done to ensure that would happen."

He added: "John Henderson and Darren Gervis gained financially and ShelterBox was exposed to a risk of loss in a variety of different ways."

Thomas Henderson, 64, of Barbican Way, Helston, John Henderson, 35, of Copper Hill, Hayle, and Darren Gervis, 42, of Meadowside, Mosterton, Beaminster, Dorset, deny conspiracy to commit fraud between January 15, 2007, and December 31, 2012.

The trial continues.