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Greenalls man, 55, on arson charge

From the archive, first published Tuesday 4th Jul 2006.

A-55-YEAR-old Greenalls worker has been charged over the £40 million distillery blaze.

The man, from Walton, was arrested on Thursday accused of causing the brewery inferno.

He faces charges of arson with recklessness to endanger life and will appear at Warrington Magistrates' Court on Friday.

Police say the incident in October, was the biggest arson attack to have happened in the UK in recent years and was the largest in Cheshire for two decades.

A spokesman for Greenalls con-

-firmed that the man accused is anemployee.

According to sources, the staff member was handcuffed and led away in front of colleagues on his arrest in November.

Residents living near the Loushers Lane site were forced to flee their homes as more than 100 fire-fighters battled the blaze.

Some took shelter at Broomfields Leisure Centre while others stayed at the Daresbury Park Hotel, paid for by Greenalls.

A 500-metre cordon was set up because of the scale of the fire, and a 2,000ft air exclusion zone was established.

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