The Charity Commission has appointed an interim manager to Afghan Heroes, excluding its trustees from its operations with immediate effect.

The regulator has today appointed Brian Johnson from HW Fisher & Company as interim manager for Afghan Heroes, which has been the subject of a statutory inquiry into trustee mismanagement since November 2013.

The charity’s trustees were informed of the Commission’s action yesterday morning at a pre-arranged meeting.

Johnson will take over the management and administration of the charity and review its current activities and governance.

The Charity Commission opened a statutory inquiry into Afghan Heroes to look at whether there were unmanaged conflicts of interest, unauthorised trustee benefits and financial mismanagement.

The Commission has since used legal powers to restrict the charity’s and its trading subsidiaries’ bank accounts. Trustees cannot, therefore, make payments from the charity’s accounts or dispose of property without the Commission’s consent.

Former Defence Secretary Liam Fox stepped down from his role as patron of Afghan Heroes in December, citing a “breakdown in trust” after the charity failed to inform him it was being investigated by the Charity Commission.

A spokesperson at the charity said it was unable to comment on the matter at this time.