A MAN denied he tried to set his cross breed bull terrier on police officers who had attempted to arrest him and a friend.

Rafike Riaz said the dog, a cross between a labrador and a Staffordshire bull terrier, was friendly and playful and did not even bark at the police.

Riaz claimed that the police would not let his friend into the house to help him change his colostomy bag.

Yesterday Riaz, aged 30, of Canada Street, Halliwell, appeared at Bolton Crown on trial for affray. He denies the offence.

Giving evidence Riaz said he had been drinking in a bar in Bolton town centre when he realised his colostomy bag was full and needed to be changed immediately.

His friend Terence Finney agreed to drive him home and help change the bag but as they got out of the car they were approached by a male and a female police officer.

Riaz told the woman officer that he needed his friend to help him change the bag but she told him he did not need his help.

He got to the door and he and his friend walked inside. He denied that there was any struggle or that he tried to goad his dog, called Mike, into attacking the female officer.

Under cross-examination Riaz denied he suspected his friend had drunk too much and that he was trying to help him escape from the police.

He agreed that he refused to open the door because, he said, neither he nor Finney had done anything wrong.

The court heard earlier that the incident happened on July 21 last year when two police officers followed and then stopped a car driven by Finney.

As Finney was being spoken to by one officer Riaz allegedly became increasingly agitated and interrupted the officer talking to Finney.

He went to the front door of his house and then returned and dragged Finney back towards the house with the officers attempting to stop them. As they were all struggling in the doorway of the house Riaz's dog became excited and Riaz allegedly urged the dog to attack the female police officer.

A stand-off ensued and several officers later broke down the front door with a sledgehammer and after a struggle arrested Riaz and Finney.

Proceeding