Operation Napkin case dropped

The first court case against a diner arrested by Gloucestershire police's undercover Operation Napkin anti-racism campaign has collapsed.

Stephen Nichols, 51, was due to appear for trial last week on charges of racial abuse to staff at Gloucester's Shahi Balti restaurant after being arrested by plain-clothed police who witnessed the incident.

But the Crown Prosecution Service has discontinued the case against Nichols, of Cinderford, Gloucestershire, who pleaded not guilty at an earlier hearing.

In a statement, Gloucestershire police said: "We are disappointed that the Crown Prosecution Service has decided not to proceed with this case, although at this stage we are not aware of the reason.

"Operation Napkin has been extremely successful, and its success should not be measured on arrests and prosecutions alone."

Nobody from the CPS was available for comment.

Operation Napkin was seen as a pioneering scheme to stop drunken and racial abuse of ethnic staff at Indian and Chinese restaurants.