A PENSIONER accused of insulting his neighbour's Jewish roots by hanging in his window a foreign flag, which she thought was of German origin, was cleared of racism yesterday.

Ebenezer Melville, 65, was alleged to have caused distress to Christine Foster by putting up the Albanian flag at his home in Gardenstown, near Banff, Aberdeenshire, last May.

Mrs Foster claimed Mr Melville had earlier made references to owning a Nazi flag and said he was planning to put it up after other neighbours, including Mrs Foster, placed Saltires in their gardens.

She said she initially thought it was a German imperial flag and it "upset and annoyed" her, as Mr Melville knew of her Jewish ancestry.

Banff Sheriff Court was told Mr Melville had hung the flag as a "mark of respect" for his Albanian son-in-law, who was coming to Scotland on holiday with his wife.

The court heard claims that the Foster family had fabricated the allegations after a longrunning dispute over the Melville family's building an extension on their garden shed.

Sheriff Patrick Davies said he found no evidence to suggest the raising of the f lag was anything other than to welcome home Mr Melville's daughter and son-in-law.

Outside court, Mr Melville said: "It is not a Nazi flag and I am not a racist."

The court heard that Mr Melville and Mrs Foster, originally from Salford in Manchester, had been neighbours for about two years and that their families had even celebrated one Christmas together.

Mrs Foster, 51, told the court that on the morning of May 22 last year she and her husband, Kenneth, had a dispute with Mr Melville's son after he allegedly refused to move his car to let them out of a parking space.

She said when she returned home she saw the flag of a black eagle against a red background, which she believed to be a German imperial or a Nazi flag, hanging from Mr Melville's first-floor window.

Mrs Foster then called the police and reported Mr Melville for "racism". She told the court she had since found out that the flag was Albanian.

It was claimed in court Mr Melville had made references to Nazi flags and "numerous remarks" about Jewish people in the past. Mr Foster said one day Mr Melville told him he was planning to install gas in his new summer house, despite the fact there was no gas connection in the area. "He (Mr Melville) said:

'I'll get half-a-dozen Jewish people down', " said Mr Foster.

Mr Melville's wife, Diane, said that on May 23 the police had taken the f lag, had accused her husband of being a "racist" and said he was in possession of a Nazi f lag.

However, she said they had later sent the family a letter of apology, saying they accepted the flag was Albanian.

Mr Melville's son, Francis, said that the families had fallen out before May last year because the Fosters were not happy about the shed extension.

He added that on the morning of May 22 there was enough room for Mr and Mrs Foster to manoeuvre their car.

Mr Melville's daughter, Deborah Ramadani, who lives in Essen, Germany, said she had sent her parents two flags - one the German national flag and the other the Albanian flag - as presents a few years ago.

She said her husband had cancelled their planned holiday to Scotland after the incident on May 22 because he was so upset with his national flag being linked to a Nazi f lag.

The sheriff, acquitting Mr Melville, told him: "I am not prepared, given the prior history of the matter, to draw inference that in putting up the Albanian flag that you did so with the intention of causing distress to Mrs Foster."