THREE men have been charged following a police investigation into the alleged removal of illegal fireworks from a fire station.
The men, all firefighters at Hebburn Fire Station, in South Tyneside, were charged when they answered bail at Sunderland's Gill Bridge Avenue police station yesterday.
Kenneth Blenkiron, 41, of New Row, Oakenshaw, near Crook, County Durham, faces two counts of burglary at a secure fireworks store at Hebburn Fire Station.
Ian Poppett, 43, of Glenmoor, Hebburn, is charged with two counts of handling stolen fireworks.
James Bowman, 43, of Burtons Yard, Broomhill, Northumberland, is charged with one count of handling stolen fireworks.
They have been bailed to appear before magistrates on South Tyneside later this month.
Two other men are due to answer bail next week in relation to the matter.
All five have been suspended from duty by Tyne and Wear Fire Brigade's Chief Fire Officer Richard Bull, pending the outcome of the case.
The allegation centres on fireworks seized by trading standards officers and the fire brigade, which were stored at the station
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