A MAN claiming to be armed with a machete in Clitheroe town centre has been arrested on suspicion of criminal damage.

The 27-year-old called for an ambulance from a phone box in Market Street and told the operator he was carrying a weapon.

Moments before the call a brick was thrown through a shop window.

Paramedics alerted police who closed off the road and approached the man shortly after 9am on Saturday.

It was quickly established the man was not carrying a weapon and medical help was drafted in.

A police spokesman said: “When we arrived the man presented himself to us and it was clear he was not carrying a weapon.

“He was taken to Royal Blackburn Hospital for a mental health assessment.”

Results of the assessment showed the man to be fit and healthy and he was arrested on suspicion of criminal damage.