A man drove a Rolls-Royce through the window of a Tesco supermarket yesterday after staff at the store refused to sell him alcohol.

Six woman were injured as the glass windows shattered and shelves came crashing down. Two check-out counters were demolished.

Witnesses said that the man had come into the store in Andover, Hampshire, at around 4.30pm to buy alcohol but had been turned away because he was already drunk.

Minutes later, he drove at the store front in his luxury silver saloon. Although he failed to break through on his first attempt, he reversed, revved and came back for a second try.

One Tesco worker described yesterday how the man had reversed a long way back to get a “good, clear run”. She said that she thought a bomb had gone off. “People were running for their lives, scattering in all directions,” she said. “Everyone was screaming. Check-out girls were shocked and crying. It was terrible.”

Patrick Ford, 49, a store customer, said that it was “like a tidal wave of shelving” coming towards him. “I heard a huge crash and shattering glass and the shelving started collapsing around me,” he added.

It is believed that the man, thought to run a chauffeur company, remained sitting in his car until police and paramedics arrived.

Last night, a 50-year-old man had been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and drink-driving.

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