This is the story of a North Yorkshire shopkeeper who has had a key piece of stock confiscated by North Yorkshire Police after it caused a string of complaints. But the imprisoned four feet sandstone penis from North Yorkshire has now attracted so much worldwide interest that a campaign to free it has stepped up a gear.

Jason Hadlow, the North Yorkshire shopkeeper who had the garden ornament confiscated by North Yorkshire Police after it caused a string of complaints last week, has received support from people in Canada, Spain, Portugal, India, Belgium, Holland and Ireland.

And now Jason, who owns quirky store Simply Dutch in Leeming Bar, has seen his ‘Free Willy’ campaign take off globally with around 2,000 members joining the Facebook group, a dedicated website set up in its honour and posters being emblazoned around North Yorkshire.

Jason has even ordered another consignment of the stone penises from Indonesia due to their popularity.

Jason was issued with a public order offence for displaying the stone phallus in his shop window and must pay an £80 fine by April 21st or face further penalties to reclaim his garden folly.

Following complaints from local people, North Yorkshire Police visited Simply Dutch, which calls itself “the most interesting store in the North”, removed the offending ornament- worth in the region of £200, and issued Jason with a public order offence for ‘displaying a sign or item liable to cause harassment, alarm or distress.’

Jason said: “I’ve never had so much interest in my penis- this is crazy! I have had so much support from all over the world- I’ve even been on Canada’s biggest radio station and the stone penis has featured in newspapers as far away as India. Everyone is outraged. But I’m not backing down and paying the fine- what am I guilty of, really?

“I’ve sold about ten of them so far and, in all honesty, they are incredibly popular in countries such as Indonesia where people touch them for luck and to encourage fertility.