A MARKET trader has landed himself in trouble over a tongue-in-cheek sign that advertised £2 balaclavas as "ideal for banks, post offices and building societies".

Alan Rutherford says police officers warned him to take down the sign from his stall on Stanley market, County Durham, after a complaint from the public.

Mr Rutherford, of Annfield Plain, near Stanley, said: "My brother used to have a post office and his son was held up with a shotgun pressed against his head and he can still see the funny side of the sign."

It is the third market where the sign has been banned, after similar complaints in Chester-le-Street and Barnard Castle.

Mr Rutherford, who has run his stall for 13 years, said: "This is my style. All I am trying to do is cheer people up.

"Even the police were fine about it, but they have got to act on a complaint.

"Most people who walk past have a right good laugh at it. I think if you asked them, the overwhelming majority of people would want me to keep it up."

He has replaced the sign with one that states: "These are NOT ideal for banks or post offices - but are ideal for fishing and poaching."

Mr Rutherford said: "I am already putting up the new sign on the other markets where there has been a problem.

"It still raises a few laughs, but not as many as the original."