The man was arrested before being released with no further action
House of the man who was arrested after the robbery of a cash box on Monday(Image: Supplied)
A man says he can’t sleep and is losing money after being arrested and then released on suspicion of robbery. At around 9.10am on Monday November 20, Merseyside Police first received a report of two men approaching the security guard outside the Tesco Superstore on Overton Street in Wavertree.
A cash box was then stolen. The force said the men grabbed the cash box before getting into a silver car, driven by a third man, which was later found abandoned nearby.
Initially, police said a 40 year-old man from Liverpool had been arrested on suspicion of robbery. In an update yesterday, the force confirmed that this man had been released with no further action. They added that the force is still appealing for anyone with information to come forward.
The arrested man in question and his family have come forward to the ECHO to complain about his arrest. At the time of the robbery, he says he was in a different Tesco, on Park Road in Dingle.
He says he came rushing home when he heard police had smashed the front door of his house in and were searching the property. He was arrested a short time later.
Merseyside Police has said it was acting upon information provided by a third party but have apologised for any distress caused.
Explaining what he was doing on Monday morning, the local businessman, who asked not to be named, said: “It was just a normal Monday day.
“I left for work at the normal time, at about 7.50am. Just after 9am, I went over to Tesco (on Park Road).
The man says he has suffered damage to his reputation after the arrest(Image: Supplied)
“Then I went back to work and carried on as normal. Just after 10am, one of my neighbours over the road phoned me. I was only like four or five roads up from where I live.
“He said, the police are raiding your house, they’re going through the door.
“I’ve come running along there. I saw all the police at the corner. A few of my neighbours are shouting at me. Everything’s a blur to me because I’m in shock.
“I said to the police, what the f***’s going on? He turned around and said, calm down, don’t swear. I said, what do you mean calm down? You’ve taken my door off.”
The police officer then told the man about the robbery in Wavertree, which he says he wasn’t aware of. He was then told the police had received information that the cash box was inside his house.
The man said: “The officer was asking me where it was. I obviously said, I don’t know what you’re going on about, I’ve got no idea what you’re talking about.”
It was only later that the man realised he would have been in the Park Road Tesco at the time of the robbery by the Overton Street Tesco.
But despite his protests, the man was arrested and taken out of his house onto the street in handcuffs in front of his neighbours.
He said: “I was like, are you messing? I haven’t done anything. You’ve just seen me coming from work. As if I’m going to run to the house while I’m at work if I’ve done something.
“I said, what are you arresting me on? What grounds? He said, suspicion of robbery. I wasn’t at the scene of the crime and you haven’t found anything.”
The man was in the cell for five hours before being released. He claims to have suffered severe damage to his reputation because of the arrest and has lost out on potential work.
He said: “Mud sticks, making people put two and two together. There were all kinds of rumours, that there were drugs in the house, stuff like that.
“That’s the first thing that people would say when you see a door getting kicked in. I appreciate that, but when it happens to you personally, it really affects you.
“I’ve never done anything like that in my life. I’ve never been in trouble with the police before. I can’t even get half of my work done because I’m having to explain the situation (to everyone).
Merseyside Police cordoned off a Loomis van outside Tesco on Overton Street(Image: Liverpool Echo)
“I’m not doing any work because I’m spending most of my workday explaining my innocence.”
He says he has lost the trust of one long-standing client, adding: “They’re not even talking to me now. They don’t trust me. It’s affecting business.”
A police officer has apologised to him over a phone call.
In response to the man’s complaint, a spokesperson for Merseyside Police told the ECHO: “Fast-moving investigations often require prompt action to secure evidence and arrest suspects.
“On this occasion we were responding to information provided to us by a third party and acted in good faith.
“Once further enquiries were carried out we were able to quickly eliminate the man from our enquiries and he was released with no further action.
“We would like to apologise for any distress or inconvenience caused.
“As a complaint has been received it would be inappropriate for us to comment further at this time.”
An investigation into the robbery remains ongoing.
The ECHO put this statement to the man. He believes it doesn’t go far enough. He said: “I’d like them to actually go into a bit of dignified detail and clarify the situation in more precise words, that it was a mistake.
“I know that obviously I’m asking for a lot, but that’s what I want. That can help clean me up. I haven’t slept. It’s constantly on my mind. I’m thinking, what the hell has just happened to me? Why me? Why me?
“Every day I’m just getting looked at and stared at. People pointing their fingers, saying, there’s no smoke without fire.”
The ECHO put the man’s comments about the statement to Merseyside Police. A spokesperson said they had nothing further to add.