FIVE men and a teenage boy have been arrested oven an incident in which £100,000 of damage was caused at the Thwaites brewery site in Blackburn brewery.

Police arrested the men during a dawn raid today in connection with the incident which happened on May 26.

A 43-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of burglary and blackmail, while the other four have been arrested on suspicion of burglary. They are all currently in custody. A 16-year-old boy from Leigh has also been arrested on suspicion of burglary.

As reported by the Lancashire Telegraph, 100 travellers moved onto the land over the Bank Holiday weekend.

The group arrived at Blackburn’s Penny Street site in 25 vehicles at around 8pm on the Saturday before police intervened and persuaded them to leave late on Monday afternoon.

In the aftermath of the incident the site was left without power, the brewery’s electrical copper cables were stolen, vending machines were smashed and the offices were ransacked. Doors were also ripped off their hinges and the site was left in a ‘disgusting squalid mess’.

A total of 1,700 pints had been put down the drain because of contamination fears and the travellers have caused tens of thousands of pounds-worth of damage to the site.

Earlier this month Thwaites confirmed 211 years of brewing in the town had come to an end following the destruction.

In the aftermath of the 'large-scale disturbance' police had been criticised for their initial response, with retired detective superintendent Mick Gradwell saying he believed no one would be brought to justice.


Speaking after this morning's arrests Assistant Chief Constable Jo Edwards said: “The incidents at Thwaites over the Bank Holiday weekend understandably caused a huge amount of upset and anger in the local community and we recognise that.

“We have had a dedicated team of officers working hard behind the scenes to identify those responsible for causing these unacceptable criminal acts and this morning’s activity is just the latest stage in our on-going investigation.

“We continue to work closely with Thwaites Brewery and we have updated them with this morning’s activity.”

“I would like to remind people that we generally have good relationships with the travelling community and the level of destruction and damage caused to the Thwaites site is not reflective of the behaviour of the majority of travellers."

Police and crime commissioner Clive Grunshaw, said: "There have understandably been many concerns raised by the public following the acts of criminality that took place at the site and today's arrests will hopefully reassure the public that the investigation is continuing and that the Constabulary is committed to finding those responsible."