Man interviewed by council officials amid flag war

He's not the man they were looking for

A man has been interviewed by Devon officials amid efforts to recoup the costs of removing flags in Exeter that were reattached moments after being removed.

Scenes unfolded on Exeter’s Bridge Road last week of highways workers taking down flags that had been attached to lampposts, but then, just moments after, an individual scaling a ladder to reattach new ones.

The saga prompted warnings from Devon County Council about the dangers of putting flags on lampposts, and led it to remind residents that attaching items to them is technically an offence.

But it also raised questions from some members of the public about how much money the council had spent removing the flags.

The latest chapter in the ongoing to-and-fro comes as it has emerged the council has spoken to an individual it believes was “linked” to the putting up of the flags on Bridge Road.

It does not appear that any action was taken against the man, and according to testimony from someone who attended the meeting, it appears it was accepted the person being interviewed had not personally installed any flags, nor ever instructed others to do so.

The identity of the man came about due to links to a vehicle number plate, however, it emerged in the meeting that the vehicle in question is available to more than 20 people.

The interviewee told the council he had not driven the vehicle on the day when the flags were being removed and then re-erected, and suggested videos circulating on social media of an individual putting flags up was clearly not him.

A spokesperson for the council said: “We have spoken directly with an individual linked to the putting up of flags on Bridge Road.

“We will not repeat that conversation, but we are clear in saying that we will seek to recoup the cost of removing unauthorised flags from streetlights from those we identify as being responsible.”

Video: Footage of a man reattaching flags to lampposts in Exeter moments after they had been removed (Image courtesy: Anonymous/LDRS))