A fishing boss arrested over the deaths of 19 Chinese cockle pickers in Morecambe Bay says he is being made "a scapegoat" for the tragedy.
David Eden, 33, director of the Liverpool Bay Fishing Company, admitted he had done a deal with a Chinese national but denied that he had been involved in exploitation.
He said: "I am very angry and upset. I cannot believe what we have been made to go through. Four weeks ago I was approached by a Chinese national who asked if I was interested in buying cockles from him.
"We negotiated a price, the price was £15 a bag. This was in excess of the price a British person was being paid for cockles. There is no question of exploitation. He told me he had worked in Southport and Barrow for two years."
Mr Eden, who is a father of one, claims that a day after he had made the deal, his family began to receive threats. The Chinese cocklers were also attacked.
He said: "They had daily racial attacks. The cocklers were subject to violence and myself and my family had threats to our lives if we carried on dealing with the Chinese."
Mr Eden said he had seen official permits issued to the cocklers and he did not believe the Chinese man he was dealing with was a gangmaster.
