'I'm under siege' says Mullingar man, as the bailiffs arrive

A Mullingar man is battening down the hatches amid an apparent attempt to evict him from his home.Supporters are flocking to Andrew Bradshaw's home at 5 Beechlawns, Mullingar, after he returned home yesterday to find the locks changed on his front door.Mr Bradshaw, who is in his 30s, has been surrounded by friends and supporters of the Anti-Eviction Taskforce in a bid to keep him in his home."I hadn't expected to find myself locked out of my own home," said Mr Bradshaw, an out-of-work mobile panel beater who has lived at the Mullingar address for over ten years.Mr Bradshaw said that his dogs had also been removed, but he later retrieved them, before regaining access to his home.He spent most of yesterday evening securing locks and boarding up his windows with pallets.There was another knock at the door early this morning, which went unanswered. "We're under siege here," he said.A notice has been posted on the front door with contact details for a Dublin-based law firm, stating that access to the house can be gained by contacting Mullingar Garda Station.Word of Mr Bradshaw's situation has spread, with anti-eviction campaigners and common law activists calling on members of the public to join them at Beechlawns to stop any moves towards eviction.This morning, a local resident - who has been following Mr Bradshaw's situation on Facebook - dropped by with a bag of turf, and some words of support.A video featuring an interview with Mr Bradshaw - who is co-founder of TNSRadio.com - has been posted on the web, in which he gave some more details about his circumstances.He said that the death of a close family member, and a subsequent road accident, led him to a situation where he was forced to go to sub-prime lenders to keep up with his mortgage repayments.But his supporters are determined that he has rights."It's an asset grab," one supporter fumed. "This is just another example of tangible assets being arrogantly taken away from ordinary people by banks and financiers."