BNP official arrested during campaign

| Thursday, 6 September 2007 Source: Whitehaven News

WHITEHAVEN police arrested a BNP official in King Street on Saturday.

The Copeland organiser for the BNP, Clive Jefferson, had been giving out BNP literature to town shoppers as part of the by-election campaign for the Copeland Council Harbour ward poll later this month.

Mr Jefferson was arrested after a member of the public alleged he had been threatening or abusive.

Police press spokesman Ben Meller confirmed to The News that: "A 40-year-old man from Cockermouth was arrested for an alleged Section 4 public order offence. There had been reports the BNP had set up a stall in King Street. We saw copies of the literature and it was not regarded as being of a racist or hate crime nature. However there was a complaint from a member of the public that he had been threatened or abused by a person at the stall."

He said the arrested man was released without charge but will have to return to Workington police station to answer bail on September 21.

Mr Jefferson later said: "The complainant was not a passive member of the public, he was aggressive and accused us of being fascists."