BakeMark UK, the company caught up in a malicious plot to show Tesco and Asda had been price-fixing, has said it will fully co-operate with police inquiries. The hoax was uncovered by a tabloid newspaper after it was approached by a mystery tipster claiming to have incriminating emails from two bakery department managers at Tesco and Asda. The emails were faked in an attempt to show that the stores were colluding to add 5p on to 800g of bread and 3p on to 400g. Police confirmed they had arrested Paul Evans, 41, an employee of Wirral-based bakery supplier BakeMark, in connection with the incident. He is on bail and due to appear in court on 3 October. The allegations could have hit both supermarkets hard as companies caught price fixing can be fined up to 10% of turnover. Last week British Airways was fined £270m for price fixing fuel surcharges. "Price fixing is a very serious issue," said a Tesco spokesman. "When we discovered how elaborate a hoax it was we were even more surprised." Meanwhile, as The Grocer went to press, Philip McHugh, the man accused of blackmailing and bomb hoaxing Tesco, was set to appear at Luton Crown Court. Tesco was forced to close 14 stores after receiving threats last month.

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