A Polish man was snatched from his Blackburn home, bundled into the boot of a car and taken to Cheshire by a gang of kidnappers, a court has heard.

Lukasz Radzikowski was later seen by motorists making a bid for freedom in his underwear after the vehicle was caught in a traffic jam.

He was seen shouting for help, trying to get into other cars before being recaptured.

One of those involved was so cool that the kidnap looked like a military operation, Preston Crown Court was told.

Four men from Crewe have admitted a charge of conspiracy to kidnap Mr Radzikowski.

They are: Tomasz Czubek, 28, Kizysztof Gryszkiewicz, 33, Lukasz Romanski, 22, and Rafal Lipinski, 23.

Two other Crewe men who deny the charge have gone on trial at Preston Crown Court.

They are: Przemek Kustasz, 23, and Filip Nowak, 21.

The charge alleges that Kustasz, Nowak, the four defendants who have pleaded guilty and others unknown, all conspired to kidnap Mr Radzikowski on March 14 last year.

At the start of the trial, Mr Jeremy Lasker, prosecuting, said that the two defendants were also Polish.

At around 7.30am on March 14 last year, Mr Radzikowski was taken by force from his bed at his home on Palm Street, Blackburn, bundled into the boot of a car and driven away, the court was told.

According to eyewitnesses, it was thought that as many as between 12 and 21 people were involved in what happened and many have not been identified, said the prosecution.

Around 9.30am motorists on the A534 bypass near Crewe witnessed Mr Radzikowski making an unsuccessful bid for freedom in his underwear, said Mr Lasker.

He was chased along the roadway, recaptured and taken back to the car, which drove off. Many of the motorists who witnessed it informed the police.

Police patrols were warned to be on the alert for a blue Ford Sierra.

Then, just after 10am, police near Nantwich blocked in a car. The vehicle contained five people.

The defendant Kustasz was said to have been sat in the middle of the rear of the car.

The whereabouts of Mr Radzikowski were not known until about 40 minutes later when he was found walking alone and injured along a road.

Mr Lasker told the court "The motives for what took place that morning remain unclear.

"Only the defendant Nowak has ever volunteered any sort of explanatiion.

"He was later to tell the police it may have been something to do with a debt or with name calling."

The prosecution say that the group who had gone to the Blackburn house had weapons including baseball bats and pieces of wood.

The intruders went from room to room and were said to have been threatening and violent.

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