QUIET AREA: Philip McHugh's home in Milton Avenue, Clitheroe, where he lived with his wife and children

THE events of Tuesday night have sent shockwaves through the small cul-de-sac in Clitheroe where Philip McHugh has lived for the past three-and-a-half years.

Neighbours said police swooped on the terraced property at around 9pm and arrested the 51-year-old father-of-two shortly afterwards.

They described McHugh as somewhat of a recluse and an 'oddball' - but said that the arrest had come as a complete surprise.

Unemployed McHugh lives with his wife and two teenage children in a rented house in Milton Avenue, Clitheroe.

His neighbours said they did not know much about the former charity shop worker and said his A Class Mercedes car had been absent from the property for several weeks.

Neighbours said they knew little of the man himself but spoke highly of his wife, who impressed people living nearby with her friendliness.

Neighbour Dave Grooby, 37, always found McHugh to be "very quiet" and added: "I was in total shock when the police carted him away.

"All the road and (nearby) Waddington Road was closed off as I came back from work early on Wednesday morning. I saw two black police vans parked in the road.

The Shelter shop in Clitheroe

"I did not know what was going on and have never seen anything like this around here.

"I know he had a wife and two kids and they always seemed very nice but, as I say, he was always very quiet."

Vanessa Waterhouse, 64, has lived on Milton Avenue for 33 years and worked at the Tesco in Clitheroe, which was targeted as part of the alleged bomb hoax campaign, until 1994.

She said: "I did not really have much to do with him but his wife was always very nice.

"I would often see them in passing and speak to her but it took him quite a while for him to engage with me when I tried to start a conversation."

But she was surprised when she heard about his arrest and added: "His children were always very approachable and friendly and would always speak to me."

Rose Campion, 57, who lives in nearby Waddington Road, said she knew Mr McHugh's wife and always found her to be "very pleasant."

But she said that McHugh was always "very quiet and withdrawn."

She added: "It is a shame really that something like this has may have gone on in Clitheroe.

"She was a very nice person but we never saw him much."

Another resident, who lived nearby and refused to be named, said: "No-one knew him really and I would just see him going to and from his car every now and again.

"You do not expect things like this to happen around here."

Previously, McHugh he had worked for the Shelter charity shop in Moor Lane, Clitheroe, where his former boss Amelia Cross remembered him as a "very quiet man".

She said: "I am really surprised that he has been arrested.

"It is a few years since I have seen Phil - he worked for me for about six months as a collector.

"I always knew him as a very quiet and polite chap.

"He was here when I started at the shop almost two years ago.

"He really just kept himself to himself."

9:16am Friday 27th July 2007

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Clitheroe man accused of £1m Tesco ransom plot

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FLASHBACK: Police search the Tesco store in Bury St Edmunds after the bomb hoax claims first came to light

A CLITHEROE man has been accused of threatening to carry out bomb attacks on Tesco stores as part of a £1million ransom plot.

Philip McHugh, 51, of Milton Avenue, Clitheroe, appeared at Stevenage Magistrates' Court in Hertfordshire yesterday accused of attempting to blackmail the supermarket giant.

His appearance came 12 days after the closure of 14 stores across the country, including the branch in Clitheroe.

There was also an alleged threat to the Tesco in Centenary Way, Burnley.

A Tesco spokesman said that McHugh was arrested on Monday in Clitheroe with the help of Lancashire officers and was questioned at a police station in Hertfordshire.

Unemployed McHugh was charged on Wednesday with two specimen counts of blackmail and two of making bomb hoaxes by Hertfordshire Police.

At court yesterday McHugh spoke only to confirm his name and address.

Flanked by two prison officers and wearing a white T-shirt and black trousers, he then listened as the clerk to the court read out four specimen charges.

The Tesco store in Clitheroe

The blackmail charge alleges that on July 7 and July 13, with a view to gain for himself, he made unwarranted demands for £500,000 on each occasion.

The alleged offences of making bomb hoaxes concerned a Tesco store in Victoria Street, Grimsby and Cornmarket, Pontefract, West Yorkshire.

McHugh was not required to enter any pleas to the charges and there was no application for bail.

He will now appear at Luton Crown Court on August 8.

Stores in Clitheroe, Suffolk, Dyfed Powys, Fife, Strathclyde, Leicestershire, Humberside, West Mercia, West Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire and London areas were forced to close on July 14 after threats were received.

The branches were reopened after searches of the supermarkets themselves and surrounding car parks, shops and access roads were carried out.

Hertfordshire Police has been leading the investigation involving a number of forces as the company has its headquarters in the county.

Other bodies including the Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) and the Food Standards Agency were also involved.

Assistant Chief Constable Gary Kitching from Hampshire Police which lead the inquiry, said: "Throughout the investigation we had excellent co-operation with Tesco and a very good working relationship.

"We have at times received demands for money. At no point did Tesco pay any money.

"These cases are taken very seriously by the police.

"Throughout the whole inquiry public safety was of paramount importance to both ourselves and Tesco."

Jonathan Church, from Tesco, said: "We worked closely with police.

"These threats against our stores were serious and we are pleased an arrested has been made and charges brought.

"The safety of our customers and staff is our first priority."

A Tesco spokesman said that the they had worked closely with Hertfordshire Constabulary and other agencies, including the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) and the Food Standards Agency.

10:15pm Thursday 26th July 2007