A CAT owner has claimed supermarket bosses have barred his 'local celebrity' pet from roaming about outside the store.

But bosses at Asda Accrington say they have no knowledge of the ban - or Russell the cat - and have rubbished the claims.

The cat has come under fire for spending too much time hanging around outside a busy supermarket, his owner told the Lancashire Telegraph.

It's not known if Russell the cat lingers in the hope of some love and affection or if his motives are purely food-related.

But this six-year-old moggy loves nothing more than hanging around in the Asda car park in Accrington.

At least that was the case until recently, his owner Stuart Collinge said, as last week he was approached by management who politely asked him to keep a closer eye on his ‘elusive rascal’.

He said: “He is somewhat of a local celebrity around Asda and the lodges in Accrington, he loves to just hang around in that area.

“You know what cats are like, they come and go as they please and do what they like. Sometimes I’ll walk down to the supermarket and he’ll be there, sunbathing. I’ll then call his name and he follows me home while people watch in disbelief. But last week I was approached by management as I was leaving the store and I was asked to make sure he doesn’t come back to the supermarket - they barred him. I don’t know what he has been doing wrong, but I feel sad for him now, he loves it around there.”

Despite management insisting they have no idea who the cat is, one staff member told the Lancashire Telegraph: “He’s a lovely little cat, and he spends some time around here most days.

“He does have an owner who he will walk home with when he has finished doing his shopping. I haven’t heard about him being barred though, and can’t understand why he would have been.”

Stuart added: “Everybody loves Russell, and I feel as thought the supermarket have done my little cat a disservice.”

An Asda spokesman said: “As nice as he sounds we have to say we’re not fur-miliar with Russ the cat, so we’d have to question the paws-ability of this story.”

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