3 September 2010 Last updated at 11:07 ET

Polly Peck tycoon Asil Nadir remanded on bail

Asil Nadir posed for cameras as he arrived at the Old Bailey

Fugitive tycoon Asil Nadir has been remanded on bail at the Old Bailey at his first court appearance on fraud and theft charges.

The businessman, who has evaded trial since 1993, is due to appear at another hearing on 15 October.

It is alleged Mr Nadir, 69, secretly transferred £34m out of his Polly Peck company, leading to its collapse.

His trial is not expected to take place until 2012 because of the complexity of the allegations.

On Friday he was driven to court for the brief hearing in a Jaguar, smiling at waiting photographers before being ushered into the court building.

Analysis

Clive Coleman BBC News

---

Asil Nadir's barrister, William Clegg QC, made it clear that he would be bringing an 'abuse of process' argument on his client's behalf. If any accused person believes that the prosecution being brought against them is grossly unfair, they can apply to the judge to have the proceedings stopped because they are an abuse of the process of the court.

The court has an inherent power to halt proceedings that amount to an abuse of process - one judge has called it the court's 'inescapable duty to secure fair treatment'.

The courts have made use of this power in a number of categories of case. One covers 'an abuse of executive power', where the prosecuting authority have acted unlawfully. Mr Nadir has long claimed that the Serious Fraud Office acted unlawfully against him. His abuse of process argument is likely to focus intensely on these allegations.

Mr Nadir had returned to Britain from northern Cyprus last week after being given bail in his absence.

Mr Justice Bean said he hoped the hearing would end the "legal limbo" which existed since Mr Nadir fled Britain.

His appearance at court was among 10 conditions placed on his bail.

But it emerged that for technical reasons Mr Nadir has not been electronically tagged yet - another of the conditions.

Mr Justice Bean ordered the tagging and said there should be a curfew between midnight and 0600 BST.

The bail conditions also include surrendering his passport, reporting to a police station once a week, and being prohibited from going near any airport.

£34m fraud allegation

Earlier this year, Mr Nadir let it be known that he was prepared to return to the UK on condition that he was granted bail while his case was heard, rather than being held in custody.

The Serious Fraud Office had agreed not to oppose bail if the stringent conditions were imposed.

Mr Nadir had faced 66 counts of theft and £34m fraud allegations when he fled to the Mediterranean island.

The UK has no extradition arrangements with the Turkish Cypriot government in the breakaway republic of northern Cyprus.

Mr Nadir and his 26-year-old wife Nur are renting a £20,000-a-month house in Mayfair, central London.