Derbyshire pub temporarily closed as man arrested on suspicion of multiple offences

A man has been arrested on suspicion of harassment, malicious communications and threats to damage property after threats were reportedly made to a landlord and other members of staff at a Derbyshire pub.
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The Plough Inn at Brackenfield was closed for just under a month as a result of the alleged offences.

A Derbyshire Constabulary spokesperson said: “The force was called to reports that a man had made threats to the landlord of the pub and other members of staff.

Police enquiries are continuing.Police enquiries are continuing.
Police enquiries are continuing.
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“A 27-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of harassment, malicious communications and threats to damage property.

“The man has been released on police bail and enquiries are ongoing.”

According to a statement on The Plough Inn’s website headlined ‘why we have been closed for the last few weeks’, a male employee ‘simply walked out of his own accord and without prior notice’ at around 11.50am on May 29.

He returned at around 8.20pm that evening in a ‘highly agitated state, making very serious threats to people working at the Plough’.

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The statement added: “Despite being repeatedly asked to leave the premises, he refused. The police were called.

“He screamed that the only way he would leave was in a body bag (if) armed police shot him.

“He then proceeded to appear to make a telephone call, summoning accomplices who he said were armed with guns, to come to the Plough.

“Fortunately, nobody else arrived.

“The police took around 95 minutes to attend.”

The man eventually left and and the pub opened the next day.

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The statement continued: “During the early morning of Bank Holiday Monday, May 31, the man began sending messages to Plough personnel, making very serious and sinister threats to their safety.

“In one particular message to a young female employee, he said it would not be safe for her to go to work.

“There were literally dozens of messages to various people, containing threats of shooting and stabbing.

“Management of The Plough took the view that this man was seriously mentally unstable and that as staff welfare took priority, we would close until such time as police apprehended him.

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“We have been unable to use social media up to this point to explain to our customers why we have been closed.

“The culprit initially hijacked our social media pages and changed passwords.

“Once we regained control of the social media, he began to use a variety of profiles to make disparaging and untrue remarks and allegations about Plough personnel.

“As soon as we blocked one profile, he would reappear with another.

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“We had no choice other than to unpublish our social media while he was at large.

“The police, unfortunately, did not manage to trace this man and he was in a position to send his vile messages for over three weeks.

“Having no choice other than to look for him ourselves, we traced him to a location in the morning of June 22.

“Police were called and alerted to his whereabouts.

“He continued to send threatening messages right up until around 1.15pm that day.

“He was arrested that afternoon.”

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The pub reopened on June 27 ‘after discussions with police about his bail conditions’.

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