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PORT-Y POWDER
Mayor of Dover filmed ‘snorting white powder in toilet cubicle’
Cllr Neil Rix claims he is the victim of a blackmail plot and that cops are investigating
THE Mayor of Dover is refusing to step down after he was filmed appearing to snort a line of white powder off a toilet cistern.
Shocking footage has emerged of Cllr Neil Rix - the Mayor of the Kent coastal town - hoovering up a suspicious substance while being egged on by an unknown pal.
Cllr Rix claims he was the victim of a blackmail plot and that police are investigating, adding 'it could have been sherbet'.
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Speaking after the footage was uploaded to YouTube on Tuesday night, he said: "The video forms part of a police investigation into the fact I am being blackmailed.
"It did not happen recently.
"I was set up, pushed into it and coerced.
"Someone had put drugs into my beer and I did not know I was being filmed."
Cllr Rix, who runs a scaffolding firm, has been a member of Dover Town Council for nine years.
He was elected mayor in April this year by a casting vote.
The 54-year-old has been backed by the local authority and says he won't be resigning as "it could have been sherbet, Vim or icing sugar".
He added: "I just feel I have let down my family but I will get over it.
"I have had a lot of support from friends and family, people that know me."
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The video, which lasts for one minute and seven seconds, was shot before Cllr Rix was appointed Mayor.
It shows him urging another man in the toilet to close the cubicle door before removing a package from his pocket.
He then appeared to lean over the toilet cistern and snort a substance through a bank note.
The footage has drawn comparisons with former Toronto mayor Rob Ford, who was filmed smoking crack in February 2013.
One Twitter posted a link to the video and wrote: "The British Rob Ford?"
The footage of Cllr Rix - which he says was shot before he became town mayor, shows the councillor, who also runs Rix Scaffolding, snorting a white substance through a banknote.
His male companion he can be heard encouraging him shortly after he opened a bag.
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He is heard saying: "Yeah, go on, you do the big one."
Cllr Rix then asked: "Are you sure?"
To which the other man replied: "Yeah, go on."
He then bent over the cistern and appeared to consume the substance for a full eight seconds.
The Mayor denied being a drug user and said he had never done anything similar.
He said: "I had never done this before in my life.
"I had been set up right from the start.
"This was from before I was mayor, and even deputy mayor.
"I hadn't long been a councillor.
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"I know I shouldn't have done it - I was drunk, and that was it.
"I can only apologise to my friends and family for putting them through it."
It is currently unclear where the video was shot.
In a statement on its website, Dover Town Council describes the position of Mayor as 'respected and held in high regard by the community because of its service to the community and the dignified behaviour of successive Mayors and Deputy Mayors.'
They added: "A Mayor, by virtue of the Office, can use their position to stimulate community pride, encourage business, promote the voluntary sector and mould social cohesion.
"The Mayoralty can also be a front line focus for the expression of community concerns."
A spokesman for Kent Police said: "Kent Police is aware of media coverage of a video circulating online reportedly relating to drug use. Officers will be making enquiries to establish the circumstances of the footage."
The spokesman said the force "would not be able to confirm or deny" whether it was investigating a complaint of blackmail.
In a statement, Dover Town Council said: "We are aware of a video being posted on YouTube of Neil Rix, town mayor of Dover.
"The video and the circumstances in which it has been posted are ambiguous.
"We will not allow the current speculation to stand in the way of the work of the mayor and Dover Town Council."
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