Clampers in court on blackmail charge
Wednesday August 18 2010, 1.01am, The Times
On the day that the Government said it would ban clamping on private land, six people appeared in court charged with conspiracy to blackmail motorists.
The five men and one woman are accused of illegally clamping cars over a three-year period and forcing drivers to pay to be released.
The six allegedly worked for Midland Parking Contracts (MPC), which received 1,500 complaints in Worcestershire, Gloucestershire and Warwickshire between January 1, 2006 and May 1, 2009. The defendants Simon Barry, 36, Christopher Cartwright, 30, Lloyd Isherwood, 37, Andrew Minshull, 37, Faisal Qadeer, 33, and Debbie Worton, 41, who all live in Worcestershire, spoke only to confirm their names at Redditch Magistrates' Court.
No pleas were entered and they will appear at Worcester Crown Court on December