Man tried to kidnap lover's husband, court told

Gary Leggate was leaving work at Reflex Labels in Swineshead when a "masked man" tried to kidnap him, jurors were told

A man was chased by a masked stowaway who hid in his car as part of a failed kidnap attempt, a court heard.

Daniel Algar, 41, was in a relationship with Gary Leggate's wife, Lucy Leggate, when the botched abduction took place.

Lincolnshire Police were called to the incident on the A52, near Boston, shortly after 22:00 BST on 22 September 2022.

Both Mr Algar, of Second Avenue, Spalding, and Mrs Leggate, 35, of Church Green Close, Fishtoft, deny a charge of attempted kidnap.

Jurors heard Mr Leggate set off in his car at about 22:00 after leaving work at the nearby Reflex Labels printers.

A witness described how the car stopped suddenly on the wrong side of the road before Mr Leggate and a man wearing a mask both got out of the vehicle.

The man "appeared to run after" Mr Leggate before changing direction.

In her statement, which was read out in court, she said she was "immediately concerned" for Mr Leggate and had asked him if he was ok, to which he replied "someone was in my car".

"He was in a right state," the court was told.

Mr Leggate told the witness he knew the man was having an affair with his wife, jurors heard.

When police arrived at the scene they confirmed Mr Leggate appeared "very shaken and upset".

'Boyfriend and girlfriend'

The jury was shown CCTV footage of a hooded figure walking near Mr Leggate's car minutes before he was due to finish work.

Police found no DNA evidence of Mr Algar being in the rear of the car but there were polyester fibres present, which were similar to his work trousers, the court heard.

Jurors were told mobile phone records showed Mr Algar had made two short calls to Mrs Leggate on the morning of the attempted abduction. A longer call of 42 minutes was also made by the mother-of-four to her lover about half an hour before the incident.

During police interviews following his arrest, Mr Algar described his relationship with Mrs Leggate as "boyfriend and girlfriend" but he denied being the man in her husband's car, the court heard.

The trial continues.

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