I didn't make £1,000 an hour - clamper

The boss of a car clamping company on trial for blackmail has denied making more than £1,000 an hour out of motorists.

But Rebecca Meakin, who also denies blackmailing drivers, admitted she did have a financial interest in clamping or towing away as many cars as possible. The prosecution alleges that car clamping company Rowencroft Immobilisers, run by Meakin, was "a scam".

The court was told that motorists using private car parks in Rugeley, Cannock and Worcester were "blackmailed" into handing over up to £295 to get their cars released.

The jury has heard that if drivers didn't pay, their vehicles were towed away and often dumped at derelict industrial units.

Meakin, aged 27, of Millers Vale, Heath Hayes, denies a charge of conspiracy to blackmail.

Cross-examining Meakin, Anthony Potter, prosecuting, said: "It stands to reason, if you didn't clamp anyone, you didn't get any money. You had a financial interest in clamping people," and Meakin agreed.

He asked her why, when she was operating the car park at the Red Lion pub in Rugeley, she hadn't gone to the Post Office sorting office nearby and told workers that if they didn't move their cars in five minutes, they would be clamped. "It was my job, I was clamping to earn money," she replied. "It was a business - people don't like it but it's a business."

But Mr Potter fired back: "It must have been like shooting fish in a barrel, you must have been rubbing your hands with glee. Can you remember how much money you made that morning?" She answered: "I can't remember."

Mr Potter referred Meakin to her car clamping log book and an entry which read "two tows per hour, five clamps an hour" and asked her if it was a target.

She said: "I haven't the faintest idea."

Mr Potter said two tows and five clamps totalled £1,095 an hour. Meakin denied that was a target. The trial continues.