The Maitland mayoral election has turned nasty with police called in after one of the candidates received a threatening letter.
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Brian Burke walked in to his Church Street coffee shop on Monday at 4.30am to find the note - with the words “warning letter” on the envelope – slipped under the door.
He has taken the letter to the police.
The anonymous letter was not written or typed, but in true TV police drama style, was compiled of individual newspaper and magazine letters cut out and pasted.
The letter, like a previous anonymous letter that was slipped under the Mercury door a week earlier that accused Burke of illegal parking outside his shop, was openly supportive of rival candidate Philip Penfold.
It should be pointed out there is absolutely no link between Mr Penfold, who is also running as an independent, and the letters.
The most recent letter reads: "Warning letter. Leave Phillip alone. Penfolds our man (sic)."
Burke admits the letter has left him rattled.
"Twenty years ago you'd laugh at this sort of thing," he said. "But it's a different world these days.
"It could be that there is some nutter walking around out there who has it in for me.
"I don't know what I've done. I’m just running for mayor like the other candidates. But it's disconcerting when it could be the next person who walks into my shop."
Burke said the letter made him think whether to pull out of the race.
"It crossed my mind, but only for a second," he said.
“It’s not me to pull out of something I’ve started.”
When contacted, Mr Penfold not only denied any knowledge or link with the letter, but was openly critical of the person behind it.
"The placement of such a letter is clearly another political stunt by any one of a number of opponents, in the hope The Mercury are dumb enough to give it publicity," he said.
"I'd be pretty stupid to put my name on such wouldn't I?
"I can tell you I have absolutely no knowledge of the letter. I might be mentioned in the letter, but it's certainly not from my people.
“And if I did I would hardly put my own name in it.
"I can understand that this would be worrying for Brian Burke, but I just want to talk about the issues. This is a major distraction."
Mr Burke was also in the firing line last week when he admitted regularly parking illegally in front of his coffee shop.
EDITOR'S NOTE: While the Mercury agrees that this is hardly the issues we'd hoped to cover, when police become involved in a mayoral election it is newsworthy. We believe the public deserves to know.