The chief executive of Pride in London has been ordered to hand back his bank accounts amid an internal investigation over alleged bullying and misuse of company funds.
Christopher Joell-Deshields, 54, is currently on a “leave of absence” from the position he has held since 2021 while he is investigated for bullying and allegedly using vouchers worth £30,000 donated by a sponsor to buy luxury perfumes.
London LGBT Community Pride (LLCP), the community interest group behind the event, took the case to the High Court to seek an injunction against Mr Joell-Deshields to force him to revoke his access to company accounts and return company devices.
The suspended executive has been forced to hand over banking passwords, social media and email accounts used for Pride in London.
The LLCP claimed Mr Joell-Deshields’s conduct since being suspended from the position has risked “irreparable damage” to the prospect of future parades.
The legal documents said Mr Joell-Deshields “is known to have breached a number of contractual obligations owed by him in his capacity as an employee in relation to company property/confidential information and threatens to continue to do so unless restrained,” according to the Guardian.
Marc Brittain, who is representing Mr Joell-Deshields, said his client would consent to the order, but he denies having committed any wrong doing.
Mr Brittain said Mr Joell-Deshield’s cooperation was not an admission of misconduct.
The Standard previously reported other allegations against Mr Joell-Deshields stated in a directors’ letter include overseeing a “toxic” culture and making inappropriate comments on WhatsApp to a disabled volunteer who he described as “obnoxious”.
He is also said to have invited a former volunteer, who had been dismissed for bullying, to serve as his runner.
Mr Joell-Deshields reportedly says he’s the victim of a witch hunt and expressed “concern about the intentions of the people who had instigated the investigation”.
The allegations against Mr Joell-Deshield have come from volunteer directors and others at the organisation.
Current and former volunteers raised concerns to the BBC about the potential for the allegations to cause damage to one of the largest pride celebrations in Europe which attracted a crowd of up to 1.5 million people this year to celebrate lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender history.
Mr Joell-Deshields told the Guardian it would be "inappropriate" to discuss the matter in the press, but claimed he remained in his role.
Last week the board of directors for Pride in London contacted staff and other stakeholders to offer their support while the investigation is conducted.
A spokesperson for London LGBT Community Pride CIC told the Standard: “The Board of Directors is aware of a number of allegations and is taking action to investigate these claims.
“We are not in a position to comment further while these investigations are taking place, save to say that we take such allegations extremely seriously, and remain committed to upholding a safe, open and inclusive organisation that is compliant with its legal and governance obligations.”
