GLOUCESTERSHIRE coroner Alan Crickmore, who is under investigation for alleged fraud, theft and money laundering, has again had his bail extended.

Mr Crickmore, 56, was told this week that his bail was being extended for another three and a half months until March 11, 2013.

It is coming up to two years since Mr Crickmore, of Cheltenham, was arrested by police at about the same time as his law firm offices in High Street, Cheltenham, were closed down by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and he was suspended from practising.

He has not sat as county coroner since then and inquests are being conducted by his deputy, David Dooley, with the help of two assistants, Katy Skerrett and Tom Osborne.

A Gloucestershire police spokesman said on Tuesday that Mr Crickmore's bail had been extended because investigations are still ongoing.

Mr Crickmore's offices were closed by the SRA shortly before Christmas 2011 and all the files in his office were removed and handed to other law firms.

He was arrested in January 2011 and search warrants were executed at a number of addresses in Cheltenham and Gloucester.

Since the closure of his firm and his arrest Mr Crickmore, who drove a Jaguar with a personalised number plate and had a holiday cottage in Norfolk, has been declared bankrupt.