A mum was left crying and shaking after being "held hostage" inside a petrol station for an hour.

Odette Browning says she felt she had no choice but to call the police after being locked inside the Esso garage in Watling Street, Gillingham, after a problem with her phone payment going through.

The 40-year-old, of St Andrews Road in the town, was "imprisoned" by a male member of staff on Monday, February 13.

She said: "I still can't believe it, I'm still trying to piece together what was he thinking.

"I was out running errands and saw my petrol was low. So when I saw the Esso garage by The Star pub I decided to stop there."

Odette put £50 of fuel in her car, knowing that she had £98 in the account which was connected to her phone.

She explained: "After I'd filled up I walked into the petrol station and went to pay with my phone, because I didn't have my card on me, and it declined.

"I tried it a few more times before saying to the man at the till that it was weird and that I was sorry because I didn't have anything else on me."

After saying this, the mum-of-three told the clerk she was more than happy to leave her ID at the petrol station and quickly do the 10-minute drive to her home to grab another payment method.

However, the man behind the till refused.

Accountant Odette said: "He told me that I had two choices – that I either leave my phone or I leave my car and walk to my house to get the payment.

"I didn't want to leave my mobile as it was the brand new Samsung flip phone and I didn't know if I'd get it back.

"I also said that it was getting dark and would take me about 40 minutes to walk to my house.

"So I asked if we could come to some sort of arrangement as I'd offered my driving licence and he had me on CCTV cameras as well as my number plate."

After suggesting this the Esso worker replied to Odette saying his boss would not allow him to authorise either of those things.

She explained: "After he said that I told him that I was going to have to leave to sort out the payment but then he said 'no, you're not' and locked the doors at 6.30pm."

Odette said while she was detained in the garage the man behind the till continued to serve people through the window but wasn't letting anyone into the shop or letting her leave.

She said: "As more time went on, the more I started to feel agitated and intimidated.

"My legs started shaking and I started crying. So I called the police.

"The police then spoke to him over the phone and said, 'you do realise you will be arrested if you don't let her out for false imprisonment'.

"But then he just laughed at them and said 'good, that sounds good because there'll be free food'."

While Odette was on the phone speaking to the emergency services she'd also messaged her 40-year-old husband, Ryan Wallace.

She said: "He was on his way home from work in London.

"Ryan kept trying to call the garage to speak to the man while I was on the phone with the police but the guy would answer and ignore my husband."

Odette's partner and the police arrived at the petrol station at around 7.30pm – it was only then Odette was let out of the premises.

She said: "The man that kept me inside then went out onto the forecourt and started taking pictures of me and my BMW.

"That alone has made me really worried because he's got a picture of me as well as my number plate and my address from my ID. He's got all my details.

"I'm so scared that he has my address, I can't sleep because I just keep thinking that he may turn up at my home."

While Odette stayed in her car, Ryan went into the Esso garage and paid the petrol bill.

She added: "After we'd left, the police stayed there because they said they were going to arrest him.

"I wasn't rude and I wasn't causing him any aggro whatsoever so I just don't understand why he did this."

"I phoned a customer service officer the day after and I went through absolutely everything that had gone on.

"But at the end of it all she turned around and said 'so what seems to be the problem here'? I thought she was joking.

"I would like to know whether this is going to happen again and to make sure he hasn't done it before and just got away with it.

"I wasn't rude and I wasn't causing him any aggro whatsoever so I just don't understand why he did this."

When contacted the garage's manager, who did not wish to be named, said: "It is all sorted. It wasn't a big police incident and there is no comment at all."

A police spokesman said: "We were called to a dispute between a customer and an employee at a petrol station.

"Officers attended and the investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident are ongoing."

An Esso spokesman said the station is managed by a separate company, which failed to respond when contacted by KentOnline.