A Spanish journalist claims he was attacked and his £700 camera broken after he tried to film a car fire in Oxford.

Freelance TV cameraman Rick Richards saw an Alfa Romeo, with the driver still in it, burning in the car park of PC World, Botley Road at 1.30pm yesterday. He began filming as the driver tackled the blaze with his own extinguisher.

Rick Richards at the scene of the incidentMr Richards, who has worked in war-zones across the world, claimed that as he filmed a man who appeared to be a security guard began shouting at him. He says the man used strong language to tell him to leave the car park and stop filming.

Mr Richards left and resumed filming from the Botley Road pavement, but the man followed him.

Witnesses saw Mr Richards being attacked and his camera being grabbed.

Mr Richards, who is staying with friends in Cowley while in Oxford on business, said: "I have worked in very dangerous places all over the world, but I have never seen anything like this.

"This is incredible. I have had soldiers in Paraguay and Brazil stop me with guns and tell me stop filming, but they never touched me.

"He kept saying he was going to hit me. He grabbed me and took my camera. It is broken now."

Denis Barton, of Boars Hill, had just stepped off a bus when he saw the incident. He said: "It was really quite nasty. I've never seen anything like it."

A PC World spokesman said it would investigating the incident.

It is believed the car blaze was started because of an electrical fault.