Bodyguard’s £10,000 pay-out

AN Oldham solicitor has helped a celebrity bodyguard win a £10,000 High Court payout after bungling cops kicked his door down and accused him of stealing his own car.

Paul David John Hughes (43) bought the £2,600 Vauxhall Corsa, a former Military Police vehicle, for use in his business providing security protection to footballers and other A-list stars.

In April, 2008, it was parked on his driveway in Littlebrook Road, Sale, awaiting registration, when it was spotted and reported to police.

Thinking it stolen, and despite his claim otherwise, Greater Manchester Police kicked his door through and caused around £6,000 worth of damage in a two-hour search.

Officers also impounded his vehicle, which was returned four months later.

Mr Hughes, who has previously guarded Robbie Williams, Jude Law and the Beckhams, launched a High Court bid to win damages and yesterday, two years after it began. GMP agreed to hand over £10,000.

But it will cost the taxpayer far more than that, as the force also agreed to meet an estimated £40,000 in legal costs.

Mr Hughes’s Oldham-based solicitor, Paul Mulderrig, said: “This application was to quash that warrant, go back in time and say the issue of the warrant was wrong and what the police did was illegal.

“The worrying thing is that this has caused Mr Hughes two years of dreadful distress, put him at risk of massive legal expense and will end up costing the public purse £50,000.”