Residents' hoax package alert

Explosive experts were called to a residential area in Northampton on Thursday night to destroy a suspicious package.

The parcel - which police believe was a hoax - was discovered in Auctioneers Way at 2320 BST on Thursday.

Northamptonshire Police cleared residents from homes within a 100 metres of the package to a nearby pub.

Officers from the explosive disposal team were called in to destroy the unattended parcel.

Residents were back in their homes at 0230 BST on Friday.

A police spokeswoman said investigators were treating the incident as a hoax.

"Thankfully this incident was dealt with safely with no-one injured," she said.

"Homes were evacuated in the interests of public safety and we would like to thank people for their understanding."

Anyone with information about the package or who saw someone suspicious in the area can contact Northamptonshire Police on 01604 700700.