A MAN has been cleared of blackmailing a taxi-firm boss after one of its drivers failed make a pick-up.
Robert Wright, 20, was said to have demanded £500 from the owner of the firm near Consett, County Durham, after a mini-bus driver took a group of men to Yarm, on Teesside, but refused to collect them again after trouble broke out on the bus.
Wright, of Holmeside Lane, Burnhope, County Durham, denied blackmail on August 13 last year and was cleared yesterday after just over an hour's deliberation by a jury at Newcastle Crown Court
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article