A CORONER told a trial that he feared for the safety of his family after a group of people accused of a plot to kidnap him turned up at his court looking for him.

Lincoln Brookes, senior coroner for Essex, said he received a series of “very bizarre” letters in 2022 before receiving emails in April 2023 stating that “corporal punishment may be administered”.

He described the emails, which claimed to be warrants “for seizure of goods and persons”, as “troubling” and “upsetting”.

Mark Christopher, 58, Matthew Martin, 47, Shiza Harper, 45, and Sean Harper, 38, are all on trial and all deny conspiracy to kidnap and conspiracy to commit false imprisonment.

Mr Brookes told Chelmsford Crown Court on Wednesday that in an attachment to an email he was accused of “detrimental necromancy”, adding: “I thought, this person’s making no sense.

“I was thinking this person, already in my mind, can’t be rational,” he said.

He said the attachment said that “corporal punishment may be administered on the spot”.

The coroner said he “felt this was a security threat to my safety” and later contacted police, but said he was told the “risk was low”.

He said there was a further “ominous” email on April 19 last year, before people turned up looking for him the following day – on April 20.

He said he had not been at the coroner’s court in Chelmsford that morning, having accompanied a family member to a hospital appointment, but was due to attend the court to preside over an inquest that afternoon.

Mr Brookes said he was warned not to come to the building and was told “these are the people from the letter – they’re coming to get you”.

“I turned around and started driving home as fast as I could as I was fearful for the safety of my family,” he said.

The coroner said he “pulled over as I was upset”.

He said he had sent the details of the email to management at Essex County Council, and planned to send it to Essex Police.

He said he saw that the email had also been sent to the Chief Constable of Essex Police, and had been “assured I didn’t need to take this too seriously” so “felt it could wait until the next day”.

The trial for the defendants, all of east London and South Benfleet, continues.