Shock as Mayor is sensationally 'arrested' but it's all for a good cause

He was one of ten members of the Lisburn community who were escorted from their places of work and taken to a secret location.

But there was no need for panic as the 'snatches' were part of a fictional jail break to raise funds for his Mayoral Charity, TinyLife, the premature baby charity.

From 9am onwards the ten 'inmates' were taken away and have been on their laptops and mobile phones since trying to raise as much 'bail' money as possible to secure their release.

Mr Ewart, speaking before his 'arrest', said: "When I was approached by TinyLife to be part of the Jail Break initiative I was keen to become involved, if a little bit nervous! Like myself the other 'inmates' have volunteered for this novel challenge to raise money for the charity. None of us are currently aware of the 'charges being brought against us' so it will be interesting to see what TinyLife has in store for us.

"It will certainly be an out of the ordinary challenge to work to secure my 'bail money' and I hope we all raise lots of funds for my Mayoral Charity.

"I would like to appeal to everyone for their support if they should be contacted by one of the 'inmates' taking part. The work that TinyLife undertakes is important and of great benefit to thousands of families all across Northern Ireland. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Lisburn PSNI for its support and all those who have volunteered to take part in this event," he concluded.

Other Lisburn 'inmates' include Jackie Evans of Caf Vic Ryn and Andrew Dobbin of REACH Ltd.