ALARMED town centre store staff believe they are victims of a malicious campaign that falsely claims they are refusing to serve people wearing poppies.

For the second successive year, bogus accusations are being spread in the run up to Remembrance Sunday that staff at Church Street’s 99p store are barring poppy wearers.

The alleged hate campaign is believed to have involved a gang of yobs, some masked, banging on store windows and hurling abuse as frightened children looked on.

Some of the mob, which poured into the store on Thursday, October 25, targeted an Asian security guard, taking pictures of him on a mobile phone.

The false claims have left staff baffled, including trainee manager Lorraine Seabrook from Parr.

With her poppy pinned proudly to her uniform she explained: “It has never been our policy to bar anyone from wearing a poppy. We even have collection boxes on the tills. We ran out of poppies and had to borrow another collection box from another shop.

“When our area manager visited, he was wearing a poppy. I come into work wearing a poppy, we all wear them.

“The rumours started last year, then a friend asked this year if I saw anything on a Facebook page about them (the far right) holding a protest.

“Some of the comments said they were going to burn the shop down.

“Then on the Thursday, they were shouting and screaming and taking pictures of the security guard.

“We had customers in as well. The police came until they left. I spoke to the police and they had been watching the shop all day.

“The other day I was just outside the shop and a group of lads came past hurling abuse at me.

“I had a phone call from a lady last week, who said ‘I’ve been told you’ve been refusing people with poppies’. She was abusive on the phone and called me a liar, claiming she was going to the press.”

Lorraine admitted that last year the rumours did affect their sales figures in the town and they have heard suggestions that another protest is imminent.

The 99p store was founded by Nadir Lalani in January 2001 and the St Helens store opened last year, employing 13 people.

St Helens town centre chaplain Marjorie Conroy, who brought the resurfaced rumours to the Star’s attention, said: “As soon as I walked into the store, I knew the rumours weren’t true. There were girls serving with poppies on.

“I spoke to a manager and said a lot of people believed the rumours.

“So I got in touch with the Star to see if they could do something to quash them, because they are unfounded.”