The Argus Uncensored

hmmm...

2007-12-20T19:36:00.000Z

...I'm bored of this now. I think I proved my point though.

New train timetable causes headache for commuters in Sussex

2007-12-20T16:39:00.002Z

By Katya Mira

New train timetables are causing a nightmare for commuters travelling to work.

The new service introduced by Southern Trains on December 9 follows the withdrawal of the South West Trains (SWT) Basingstoke to Brighton service.

It aims to streamline and improve services to Southampton and Portsmouth and only reduce those used by a small number of people.

But people travelling towards Brighton from smaller stations between Chichester and Worthing say they are suffering from reduced service at peak commuting times.

Many of those who use the train daily from villages such as Goring, Fishbourne, Bosham, Nutbourne and Amberley say the changes mean their trains are less frequent, they have to wait up to an hour-and-a-half for a connecting train on some services and some stations are being missed out altogether.

Angry train users said that the changes are making travelling to work by train almost impossible. Some have even said they are considering moving home to cope with the timetable changes.

Anne Hill, who lives in Bury, near Amberley, does not drive and says commuting to Brighton has been hell since the new timetables were introduced.

She said the journey used to take her an hour in the morning and in the evening but now she had nearly an extra half hour added onto her inward journey and to wait an hour and a half for the connecting service home.

She said she had been getting lifts home so far but would not be able to rely on them all the time so did not know how she was going to cope.

Ms Hill said: "They are trying to get people to Southampton quicker but not considering people in the Arun Valley.

"How many go all the way from Brighton to Southampton on a daily basis? They need to be looking after their commuters as well.

"We have less trains and the connection times are terrible and so many of us are having problems. One woman I spoke to the other day said the train no longer stopped where she lives at Fishbourne so she was going to have to move.

"It is putting people's jobs on the line.

"When I first saw the timetables it ruined my weekend thinking about how I was going to survive and I am still unsure how I am going to be able to continue doing my job."

Chris Burchell, managing director of Southern Trains, maintained the cuts only affect a small number of people.

He said: "Overall this is great news for Brighton.

ìCommuters and leisure travellers will see big improvements in journey time and frequency.î "A lot of time and thought has gone into re-designing our services and rail users in Brighton will clearly benefit.

"There have been some reductions but these are on services used by smaller numbers of passengers. We sympathise with passengers on these routes but have done our best to ensure an improved or equal service for the vast majority. We hope the changes will encourage people who may not previously have used the railway to give our trains a try."

Are you affected by the new timetables? Call Katya Mira on 01273 544545 or leave your comments below.

katya.mira@theargus.co.uk

Pedestrian hit by lorry in Worthing

2007-12-20T16:39:00.001Z

By Ruth Lumley

An elderly pedestrian has suffered serious injuries after being knocked over by a lorry.

The man was outside Swandean Hospital in Arundel Road on the A27 in Worthing, at 11.15am today, when he was knocked over by a light-coloured, medium-sized, curtain-sided goods vehicle, which failed to stop. The victim was taken to Worthing Hospital.

Anyone who witnessed the collision is asked to call Sussex Police on 0845 60 70 999, quoting Operation Malling.

Drugs gang jailed for 86 years

2007-12-20T16:38:00.000Z

By Nigel Freedman

Six members of a gang which plotted to flood bars and clubs in Sussex with millions of pounds of cocaine have today been jailed for a total of 86 years.

High-living mastermind Lubia Ram, 47, was given 20 years for his part in the conspiracy to smuggle cocaine worth £5million from South America.

Ram, of Delfont Close, Crawley, put up £70,000 and plotted with Oscar Salas-Weslke to buy the Class A drug in Peru.

Salas-weslke, 54, of East Park, Crawley, flew three times to his native Peru to set up the importation.

The unemployed chef hid bullets of almost 100 per cent pure cocaine in 35mm film canisters and posted them to to safe addresses in Crawley and Brighton.

He was jailed for 22 years today at the end of a four-month trial at Hove Crown Court.

Moves are underway to deport him to Peru to continue serving his sentence there.

His son Nathan Chapman-Salas, 28, acted as their "gopher".

He sent Ram's money to his father in Peru and collected the drugs when they arrived in Sussex.

Chapman-Sallas, 28, of Innes Road, Horsham, a father-of-three, was sent to prison for 15 years.

Bouncer and former judo champion Richard Casella, described as Ram's "muscle", provided safe addresses for the drugs to be sent to.

They included those of his brother and a former girlfriend.

Casella,43, of Hophurst Drive, Crawley, was jailed for 12 years.

Self-confessed crack-cocaine addict Trevor Bodwen also provided a safe address for the drugs to be sent to.

Bowden, 38, of Clive Way, Crawley, was given ten years behind bars yesterday.

Julian Fernandez, 25, accepted packages drugs at his home in Railey Road, Crawley.

The student and part-time waiter was the only one who admitted his role in the conspiracy.

He offered to give evidence against Salas-Weslke in the hope of receiving a lighter sentence but prosecutors refused the deal.

Fernandez is today starting a seven-year sentence for his part in the conspiracy.

The plot failed after German customs officers intercepted three consignments of drugs posted from Peru between July and October last year.

They tipped off Sussex Police and the near 100 per cent pure cocaine was removed.

Detective Constable Peter Stapleton posed as a postman to see who accepted the dummy packages at addresses in Crawley.

The court heard Ram put up £70,000 to buy the cocaine which sells at £2,000 a kilo in Peru.

It is estimated that the 35kg his money would have bought would have sold on the streets of Sussex for £5million.

Judge Guy Anthony told them: "You Salas-Weselke and Ram were the two central brains. Neither has expressed the slightest remorse.

"Chapman-Salas you played a very significant role, acting as middle-man.

"You were more than happy to assist in this enterprise in the expectation of significant profits.

"It was you who put Fabio de Palma in peril of being convicted and you who involved Bowden.

"Richard Casella, you embarked on the scheme with greater enthusiasm than some of the others.

"You provided the addresses of your own brother and your then girlfriend for Ram to use.

"On the jury's verdict you got your brother into serious trouble through no fault of his own."

Detective Sergeant Tony Pike, who led the investigation, said he was pleased with the sentences.

He said: "They are deterent sentences and will be seen as such.

"This is a clear warning to people not to deal drugs in Susex."

Detective Constable Stuart Black added: "We have taken out Oscar Salas-Weslke who was the head of purchasing in Peru.

"We have taken out Ram, the head in this country of financing the operation.

"We have taken out Nathan Chapman-Salas, the head in this country of distribution.

"We have taken out Richard Casella who, in our belief, was the main muscle behind those three.

"We have managed to convict four major people within this organised crime group.

"Although three importations were stopped we are convinced others got through."

Three other men who also stood trial were found not guilty.

They were businessman Russell Lawrence, 49, of Maidenbower Place, Crawley, Richard Casella's brother Paul, 44, of Capricorn Close, Crawley, and Fabio de Palma,30, of Albany Road, Crawley.

Ram, who wore expensive jewellery including a £6,000 Rolex watch and a £1,200 diamond ring now faces a financial investigation.

He drove flash cars which included a £90,000 Mercedes AMG sports saloon with a personalised RAM number plate.

The jury heard how he boasted he was a millionaire, wore designer clothes and drank £80-a-bottle champagne in Crawley night clubs.

All his property could now be confiscated under the Proceeds of Crime Act at a hearing to be fixed next year.

Brighton man went on £38,000 spree with stolen credit card

2007-12-20T16:37:00.000Z

By Ali Cridland

A con artist who went on a spending spree with a stolen credit card has been jailed.

Paul Manning, 29, spent thousands of pounds on luxury hotels, fine restaurants and champagne.

Within weeks he spent more than £38,000.

At Lewes Crown Court Manning, who has a long history of dishonest behaviour, was sent to prison for 30 months.

He was convicted by a jury at a trial last month of stealing a credit card from his friend Jonathan Day.

He admitted 17 offences of obtaining three other credit cards dishonestly and using credit cards by deception.

He asked for 104 similar offences to be taken into consideration.

The court heard as well as living the high life Manning also withdrew cash using the cards to pay the deposit on a rented flat and spent thousands on electrical goods and furniture for his new home.

During his spree he stayed at top hotels in Brighton, including the Thistle, the Hilton Metropole and The Grand.

Rachel Beckett, prosecuting, told the court Manning, of Whippingham Road, Brighton, ran up debts of totalling £38,274.61 before his arrest.

He stole the card in May 2006 and was arrested in July that year.

The court heard he has served jail sentences in the past for deception, burglary and handling stolen goods.

Julian Dale, defending, said Manning suffered from depression and became ill after splitting from his partner in March 2006.

He said: "By the summer he found himself without accommodation, suffering from severe depression and to his shame indulging in the sort of criminal behaviour he had committed in the past.

"He is absolutely determined he will not go back to this sort of behaviour."

Off-licences ban sales of booze in Storrington

2007-12-20T16:35:00.000Z

By Andy Whelan

Off-licences have banned the sale of alcohol to under 21s in a bid to crack down on underage drinking.

Shops have agreed stop selling drink to young people without valid proof of age to reduce crime and antisocial behaviour.

The scheme has been launched in Storrington, near Horsham, which has high levels of underage drinking.

Police and ambulance crews have backed the scheme because they have been inundated with calls relating to teenage boozing.

If it is successful and helps alleviate the pressure on emergency services it could be introduced across West Sussex.

All five licenced shops in the village have banned selling booze to youngsters, including a Co-op, Tesco Express and Sainsbury's store.

Police have asked all the shops to take part because officers have found older people have been buying alcohol for their younger friends.

Licensees agreed to the scheme after they were approached by Horsham district crime and disorder reduction partnership.

The partnership is made up of various organisations including Horsham District Council and the emergency services.

Council community safety officer Greg Charman said: "When talking to the members of the partnership Storrington continued to crop up as being a problem area, especially on a Friday and Saturday night.

"The number of incidents was disproportionate to the number of people who lived there.

"It was showing a high level of complaints from members of the public who were complaining about antisocial behaviour.

"We spoke to police officers and licensees and we agreed the main driving force behind the problems was alcohol.

"It will protect people of other generations and also the young people themselves who are often picked up by police and ambulance crews."

The trial period will last for two months over the festive period and emergency service statistics will then be reviewed.

Posters will be displayed inside and outside participating stores warning shoppers of the new policy.

The poster will also inform customers of the fines for buying booze for minors and will remind them it is breaking the law.

Neighbourhood Specialist Team Sergeant Darren Lillywhite of Sussex Police said: "I hope we can look forward to a dramatic improvement in crime and antisocial behaviour.

"Underage alcohol purchasing is a serious problem and we hope that addressing it in this way will discourage any young people from using fake identities or proxy purchasing where an older person purchases alcohol for underage friends."

Peter England, the administration manager of the World of Wines in High Street, Storrington, backs the scheme.

He said branches in Henfield and Steyning have also banned selling booze to under 21s.

Mr England said: "We are fully supportive of anything which will help reduce underage drinking.

"We don't get many youngsters in here because we are a wine merchant but we can see the problems in the town.

"We are happy to do anything we can to help reduce those problems."

Will banning under 21s from buying booze solve antisocial problems? Tell us what you think below.

For more information about crime in your area visit the local information section of this website.

andy.whelan@theargus.co.uk

Stolen jumpers turn up on eBay

2007-12-20T16:18:00.000Z

By Katya Mira

Cashmere sweaters stolen from a family business have been found by one of its customers on eBay.

More than £35,000 worth of goods were taken from clothing firm Woolovers, based in Haywards Heath, at the beginning of the month.

Crooks swiped 800 sweaters and 500 tops on two occasions a few days apart and what had seemed like a bumper Christmas for the company began to look bleak.

But after founder Mark Shenton sent an email round to their regular customers asking them to keep an eye out for the speciality clothes, all labelled with company name, he was pleasantly surprised to get a reply.

One customer told him he had spotted some of the clothing, all still labelled with the Woolovers logo, on internet marketplace eBay.

Mr Shenton passed the information on to the police who retrieved 140 of the tops from an address in East London. A 28-year-old woman from the area was arrested on suspicion of handling stolen goods.

She was released on police bail without charge and was told to return to a police station on January 11.

Mr Shenton said: "It is almost farcical that it was just sitting there on eBay.

"It still had the company's branding all over it and everything - you think they would at least cut the labels out.

"But we are really over the moon - it is a great start to getting some of our stock back.

"I wonder how much more stolen goods end up there on internet sites for all to see.

"Hopefully this will be the tip of the iceberg and will lead to the recovery of more of the stock.

"What really warmed our hearts was the way people were so in the mood for helping and wrote in to tell us about the eBay thing.

"It was nice to have that support."

The gang of thieves first escaped with 800 items on November 27 after breaking into a parish hall in Essex where they were being stored for a sale. Three days later the criminals broke into a Woolovers lorry parked outside the company headquarters at Bolney Grange Industrial Estate and grabbed another 500 tops.

The mail order business has achieved record sales this year but Mr Shenton said the thefts at the busiest time of year were a serious concern.

He said he was concerned the firm was being specifically targeted by professional criminals after the two separate incidents so close to each other in time but far apart in place.

Christmas lights row in ho-ho-Hove

2007-12-20T13:09:00.000Z

By Miles Godfrey

As Christmas decorations go they are among the most flamboyant you could ever expect to see.

But a takeaway shop which decided to really push the boat out this year has got a decidedly chilly reception from its neighbours.

Eddy's Takeaway in Sackville Road, Hove, has covered its entire shop in the amazing flashing festive lights, including trees, snowmen and rooftop decorations.

It has cost Christmas-mad owner George Shakir thousands of pounds and drawn praise from the shop's hundreds of regular customers.

Mr Shakir said: "We love it, it really gets us all in the festive spirit and the customers seem to enjoy it too.

"It takes ages to put it all up but when you stand back and take a look, it looks brilliant."

But despite the dazzling display, some people living near the shop have complained that the decorations are over the top.

Kim Sayers, 54, from Sackville Road, said: "At night, when the lights get switched on, they beam straight through my window and makes it difficult for me to get to sleep.

"Luckily I have some really thick curtains which just about blocks them out.

"But for anyone who hasn't it's probably a big problem. I'm all for the Christmas spirit - I love this time of year.

"But that is a bit over the top."

Another resident, Sharon Carter, 32, also from Sackville Road, said: "I like the lights but there are too many of them.

"We all love a bit of festive cheer but when it intrudes right into your living room every night there is a limit to how far that will stretch.

"Don't get me wrong, I go into Eddy's quite a bit and my husband does too.

"I think I'll ask them next time to tone it down a bit."

However Eddy's regular Tony Shapiro, from the nearby Old Shoreham Road, said: "How can you moan about it? Anyone that does is a Scrooge in my book.

"It brighten's up the place and really gets you in the festive spirit. They do a great bit of grub too so you can't really go wrong."

Mr Shakir has been putting up the lights for a number of years with the display growing each time as his collection of decorations grows.

He said he has no plans to tone them down but said he would try and consider neighbours' concerns in the future.

There are no specific laws governing the use of Christmas lights on properties.

But environmental health inspectors can order their removal if deemed to be too bright, or a hazard to passing motorists or pedestrians.

Are the lights too much or do they give the area a festive feel? Tell us what you think below.

miles.godfrey@theargus.co.uk

Maternity unit axed in Eastbourne

2007-12-20T13:00:00.000Z

By Siobhan Ryan

Campaigners have vowed to fight all the way after health managers today approved plans to downgrade a hospital maternity unit.

Members of the East Sussex Downs and Weald and Hastings and Rother Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) spent three hours discussing the controversial proposals at a meeting in Uckfield this morning.

Members of the joint board were heckled throughout the meeting. Campaigners shouted 'sham' and 'farce'.

At one point the chairman Charles Everett warned the meeting could be held in secret because of the constant disruptions.

They agreed to accept a recommendation by PCTs chief executive Nick Yeo to allow the Conquest Hospital in St Leonards to keep full maternity services while downgrading those at Eastbourne.

The Conquest will also become the home of the special care baby unit.

Tens of thousands of people including medics, midwives, GPs and residents opposed the plans during a public consultation held earlier this year.

Opponents fear lives could be put at risk by making mothers needing specialised birthing facilities travel 20 miles from Eastbourne to Hastings.

They said full services should be kept at both hospitals.

Campaigners, including local MPs, were out in force this morning with around 50 people packed into Uckfield's Civic Centre to hear the debate.

Members of the Save the DGH and Hands Off the Conquest campaign both condemned the decision made.

Members of the South East Coast Strategic Health Authority board are this afternoon expected to approve the PCT's decision.

For more information about health in your area visit the local information section of this website.

How will the decision affect you? Tell us your stories below or call Siobhan Ryan on 01273 732254.

siobhan.ryan@theargus.co.uk

Wind turbine ripped down by vandals in Climping

2007-12-20T12:46:00.001Z

By Sam Underwood

Thieves pulled down a wind turbine from the county's first wind-powered school in a bid to steal its metal for scrap.

The 30ft turbine, at Climping St Mary's School near Littlehampton, was found by teachers on the ground.

The securing bolts of the £35,000 structure had been removed and ropes had been tied to it in one corner of the school's playing field.

Tools, including three large wrenches, were found nearby.

Police believe the aim was either to strip it of copper and other metals that could be re-sold or that the attack was wan act of vandalism.

The damage is expected to cost up to £25,000 to fix.

The tools have been sent away for forensic tests.

Headteacher Janet Llewelyn said: "A group of staff arrived at school at the same time on Wednesday and found the turbine lying on the ground.

"It was a very sorry sight.

"Tools were left nearby and we know it hadn't blown down as it was secured with bolts used to hold up pylons.

"The whole thing was just so dangerous. A rope that had been tied to a tree to lower it to the ground had snapped, sending it crashing down. Someone could have been killed.

"The children are devastated. One boy had been out all lunchtime looking for clues."

Pupils reacted angrily to the news that someone had tried to steal their turbine, which is a beacon of the school's green credentials.

Kayleigh Puttock, ten, said: "I think it's very sad because when it's up we like to jump over the shadows of the blades."

Tommy Cushway, ten, said he hoped police caught whoever was responsible and "locked them up".

He said: "When it was up the turbine made me feel good because I knew we were protecting the environment but now it's down I feel sad.

"I hope the police catch these people and lock them up. They should be told that it's wrong to wreck other people's property."

A spokesman for West Sussex County Council said the aim was to get the turbine, which was insured, up and running again as soon as possible.

The turbine was officially opened in September 2005 and was the first to be installed at a West Sussex school.

In its brief life its three 2.75-metre blades generated 15,000 kw hours of energy - one-third of the school's electricity account and generated a surplus which has been re-sold back to the National Grid.

A panel inside the school showed the running tally of how much had been generated.

PC Peter Childs of Sussex Police said: "It's soul-destroying to see the turbine damaged in this way because the school were very proud of it.

"It's either sheer vandalism, which I doubt, or they were after the copper inside the turbine which is not worth much compared with the amount of damage caused.

"It's always sad when people attack schools as these are our children who come in and see it."

Anyone with information should call PC Childs at Arundel police station on 0845 6070999.

For more information about crime in your area visit the local information section of this website.

sam.underwood@theargus.co.uk

Record numbers head abroad for Christmas

2007-12-20T12:27:00.000Z

Around 6,000 passengers are expected to jet abroad from Gatwick airport this Christmas.

Spain's Canary Islands are high on the list of destinations of those travelling overseas during the festive period, travel association Abta said.

Egypt, Goa and Dubai are also proving popular, while many skiers are heading for the slopes in France, Austria and Italy.

Top city-break destinations include Paris, Amsterdam, Dublin and New York.

Abta said the busiest day for overseas travel will be Saturday, followed by December 30 when people head off for New Year's Eve celebrations abroad.

Abta president Justin Fleming said: "This is always a peak time for travel as people make the most of the bank holidays and once again there are a record number travelling."

The Highways Agency is suspending roadworks on a number of motorway and major A-road sites in England over the holiday period, but roadworks remain on some key routes, including the M1 and M25, for safety reasons.

It is estimated that tomorrow will be the busiest day on the roads, with 3pm the peak time.

The RAC has forecast that rising fuel prices will mean a reduction in road usage this Christmas. But even so, the organisation is predicting that 18 million cars will be on the road today, four million on Christmas Day and about 16 million on December 27 and 28.

Talk of milder weather has prompted bookmakers to cut the odds on a White Christmas.

Paul Mott, of the Press Association's weather company MeteoGroup, said: "Anyone who's put money on a White Christmas is unlikely to win anything. We're not expecting snow on the day and it's actually likely to be a lot milder than of late."

He added that while Saturday could see rain coming in from the west, milder weather was expected on Christmas Eve with temperatures reaching as high as 9-10C (48-50F).

Teacher who's made history

2007-12-20T12:25:00.001Z

An award winning history teacher will retire this week after teaching almost 6,000 children at a school in more than 34 years.

Greg Hetherton moved from London to take his first teaching job at Portslade Community College in 1973 and has stayed there ever since.

Tomorrow he will spend his last day at the school in his role as head of humanities before taking early retirement at 57.

Mr Hetherton said: "In one sense I'm chuffed to bits to have reached retirement. It will be a nice feeling not to have to come in on the first day of next term.

"On the other hand I will be sad as hell to leave. I love teaching and I'll miss a lot of people here."

In 2005 Mr Hetherton was named teacher of the year at The Argus Achievement Awards.

He was nominated by pupils and colleagues who said he was brilliant at communicating his love for his subject.

He has become well established as a historical author during his three decades in Portslade and has had a number of textbooks published, including several about the First World War.

He said he planned to pursue several projects in his retirement and publishing would be one of them.

His wife, who is deputy head at Downlands Community School in Hassocks, will continue with her job. The couple have two teenage children.

Mr Hetherton said he had lost count of the number of pupils at Portslade whose parents he had also taught.

He said: "It has been quite funny sitting on the bus on the way into town and having 45-year-olds sit down next to me and say, Hello, Sir.' "But as far as I know I have not taught three generations of the same family yet."

He said one of the proudest moments of his career was when a former pupil won a place at Cambridge University and later appeared on television in the final of Mastermind.

His funniest memory was when he was arrested on the touchline while coaching at a school football game.

Mr Hetherton explained: "The ball got kicked into a neighbour's garden and I sent a lad off to get it.

"Unfortunately, he broke their fence in the process and they called the police.

"When they turned up they asked to know who had done it and I said I was responsible so they carted me off in a police car."

After an apology to the neighbour and a promise to repair the fence, the drama blew over.

He added: "The thing I'll remember most about this place will be the kids. I've taught between 5,000 and 6,000 and there are so many who stand out."

For more information about education in your area visit, www.theargus.co.uk/localinfo

andy.chiles@theargus.co.uk

Baby seat may have saved toddler

2007-12-20T09:47:00.000Z

By Andy Whelan

A baby seat may have saved the life of a three-year-old toddler.

A mother suffered injuries to her hand and face after her Vauxhall Vectra overturned on Tuesday.

She lost control of the car in Keysford Lane in Horsted Keynes in freezing conditions.

The woman was taken by Air Ambulance to East Surrey Hospital in Redhill and her toddler followed her by ambulance.

Were you the mum involved in the accident?

Contact the newsdesk on 01273 544519.

Police appeal after biker dies in Eastbourne

2007-12-20T09:45:00.000Z

By Sam Underwood

A motorcyclist died after his bike crashed into traffic lights along the A259 at Eastbourne at around 1.40am today.

The rider, believed to be a 23-year-old Eastbourne man, was travelling east along the dual carriageway.

No other vehicles are believed to have been involved.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Haywards Heath Road Policing Unit on 0845 6070999, quoting Operation Bayfield.

Newsreader's wife reveals how drink led to downfall

2007-12-20T09:44:00.001Z

By Rachel Wareing

Judy Mitchell today

As he first told it, Ed Mitchell's fall from grace was simple.

After losing his high-flying job as a presenter for the American CNBC channel, his credit card debts spiralled out of control, putting such pressure on his 25-year marriage that it broke down.

He lost his family, his home, and eventually found himself living in a seafront shelter in Hove.

It was only then, Ed said, that he turned to alcohol to numb the pain.

But as his family are only too aware, alcohol and gambling played a far more fundamental role in his riches to rags tale.

Ed met his wife Judy in Hong Kong in 1975, and in the early days they were blissfully happy together.

"I was madly in love with him," she said. "He had this mop of beautiful, blond curls.

"We had a similar sense of humour and always knew what the other was thinking, and he had this beautiful voice, like honey."

Ed worked as a business journalist, first for the BBC and then ITN, and was a doting father to their children Alexandra and Freddie, now both in their twenties.

It was only when Ed was offered a new job in Zurich in 1990 that his drinking started to escalate.

He has admitted since that he would begin drinking at 8am after his night shifts had ended, and friends dropped away after he became paralytic at parties.

He still managed to maintain a sober facade for the camera, and after the Zurich station folded was able to obtain a job with CNBC in 1995.

However, his drinking continued, and two years later he went into rehab at The Priory.

He stayed dry for ten months - "a magical, wonderful time" said his family. Soon he was back to his old ways, and when CNBC paid him off in 2000 his alcoholism became week-long binges.

Judy discovered he had run up enormous debts on 25 credit cards, much of it on gambling.

At the end of 2003 the family sold their seafront house in Hove and purchased a much smaller property in Portslade.

Judy did all she could to maintain calm in the house, hauling him out of pubs and betting shops, ridding the house of alcohol and throwing away the little bottles of vodka hidden in his jacket pockets.

It was no use. He'd disappear for days at a time, then stagger home drunk and become verbally abusive if she asked where he had been.

Ed would get into accidents, be turfed off trains, pretend he was off to buy a paper but then buy a quarter bottle of vodka and sit in a walled garden at the park to drink it.

The length of time between binges became shorter and shorter, and when he was too sick to drink any more he would get the DTs, curl up on the floor and vomit, suffer hallucinations and stomach cramps.

Eventually "survival instinct" kicked in and Judy sought a divorce last year.

She is aware Ed stayed with his mother in Lancing during this year - who was also forced to kick him out despite her best efforts - but has had little contact with him since.

It was a "bolt from the blue" to see his story in The Argus last week, she said.

She felt his decision to talk publicly - and not at all honestly - about his position showed little thought for the effect it would have on his family.

She said: "One just has to remember that he is very ill and still in denial. He does not accept he has done wrong and no offer of accommodation or job will help him until he gives up alcohol.

"He has fallen in with dubious characters, fellow drinkers who have probably taken advantage of him and encouraged him to spend what was left on his credit cards, but he obviously hasn't sunk low enough to realise this yet.

"No one would be doing him any favour by taking him in. He needs to make that brave decision and face up to life without alcohol.

"He should forget about the book and perhaps consider publishing a weekly diary of his recovery in a newspaper, and with public interest and encouragement behind him, he might actually stick with it and rebuild his life and career. I wish him well."

Since speaking to The Argus last week, Ed has been inundated with offers of help from old friends and strangers touched by his story.

He has also had a great deal of interest from national newspapers, magazines and TV companies - so much so he has engaged a PR consultant.

Last night she told The Argus Ed was staying "with friends" and was considering offers of work - and finally has admitted his wife's version of events is the true one.

rachel.wareing @theargus.co.uk

Industrial disputes threaten seasonal air travel

2007-12-20T09:44:00.000Z

Ballots for strike action among thousands of workers at airports and Virgin Atlantic airline in separate disputes over pay and pensions end today, bringing the threat of travel chaos a step closer.

More than 5,000 firefighters, security, maintenance, administrative and clerical staff at BAA's seven airports, including Gatwick, Heathrow and Glasgow, have been voting on whether to take industrial action in protest at the closure of the final salary pension scheme to new workers.

Unite, which represents the workers, is confident of a vote in favour of strikes, which would lead to the threat of action in the new year.

Voting ends today and the result is expected to be announced tomorrow.

Brendan Gold, Unite national officer, said: "BAA has just posted profits of over £500 million and the Spanish owners Ferrovial have seen their profits rise by nearly 60 per cent. It is clear that the pension scheme is financially sound, and should be left alone."

Mr Gold said BAA and Ferrovial should understand that the workforce has lost trust in them. Not allowing new employees to join the company's final-salary pension scheme after December 1 was viewed as being the first step in the axing of the whole scheme for everyone.

The strike ballot covers Unite members at Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Southampton, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

In the event of a "yes" vote the union will have 28 days to take any action, and is required to give seven days' notice of any walkout.

The union warned that if industrial action does take place, it is "inevitable" that airports affected will be closed.

BAA said it regretted the union's threat of industrial action, describing it as unnecessary.

A spokesman said: "BAA has given clear and unequivocal assurances that existing employees will not be affected by the end of the final-salary pension scheme and that its replacement for new employees will be of the highest quality.

"During the past few weeks we have offered to give more detailed assurances to union representatives. We believe the way to resolve this is through negotiation."

Meanwhile more than 3,000 cabin crew at Virgin Atlantic have been voting on whether to take industrial action over pay.

The airline said it had offered a two-year deal worth 8.3 per cent on basic pay.

Lyell Strambi, Chief Operating Officer at Virgin said: "Virgin Atlantic does value its many employees who have built the airline's excellent reputation for customer service and we know our cabin crew would not want to damage that reputation."

Care of woman, 92, 'far from satisfactory'

2007-12-20T09:42:00.002Z

By Sam Underwood

An elderly woman was left starving and in pain in a hospital bed for four days with a broken leg.

Doris Richards, 92, suffered a fall while at Southlands Hospital in Shoreham, fracturing her right femur.

She was transferred to the Royal Sussex County Hospital the following day but it was another four days until she was properly treated because her operation was repeatedly cancelled.

Each day she was included on the trauma operation lists, Mrs Richards, a former cook, was given nothing to eat and only allowed fluids by intravenous drip.

The day after she was transferred to Brighton she was not even included on the list but was still classed as "nil by mouth" due to an administrative error.

She was eventually operated on but died soon after from a blood clot in her lung, among other symptoms.

The hospital's handling of the treatment of Mrs Richards was described by Sherree Fagge, one of the hospital's managers, as "far from satisfactory".

She went on to say lessons had been learned and the trauma lists system had been improved.

An inquest in Brighton was told Mrs Richards, from Brighton, was first admitted to the Royal Sussex in April after suffering a stroke.

On May 2 she was transferred to Southlands Hospital for rehabilitation.

On the night of May 4, Mrs Richards got out of bed at about 10.30pm and went to speak to nurse Christine Gillings.

Ms Gillings said Mrs Richards then walked to an adjacent room.

The inquest heard she lost her balance while in the unoccupied room and fell to the floor. Ward sister Sarah Bucktownsing told the inquest that at first Mrs Richards had not complained of any pain and said she and her colleagues could find no evidence of any injury.

It wasn't until the next morning that Mrs Richards, who had slept through the night, complained of pain in her right leg.

A bedside X-ray revealed a fracture and Mrs Richards was transferred to the Royal Sussex. It was five days until she was successfully operated on.

Pathologist David Wright, who carried out a post-mortem examination, found Mrs Richards died from a blocked artery, deep vein thrombosis, a fractured leg and a stroke.

Hilary Martin, one of Mrs Richards' two daughters, said: "Mum was a feisty woman who knew her own mind and was very independent but at the same time she was very loving and caring with her family.

"I am happy with the care she received in hospital and would like to thank all the doctors and nurses who treated her."

Brighton and Hove deputy coroner John Hooper said: "Doris Richards died on the second day after surgery for repair of a hip fracture.

"The surgery was carried out on the fifth day after a fall while in hospital for rehabilitation following a stroke."

sam.underwood@theargus.co.uk

Parking staff to strike over party

2007-12-20T09:42:00.001Z

By Simon Barrett

Parking attendants will go out on strike after bosses cancelled their Christmas party and bonuses.

About 120 staff plan to walk out on January 5 in Brighton and Hove, creating fears of a parking free-for-all as Saturday shoppers head to the sales.

NCP Services, which patrols the streets on behalf of Brighton and Hove City Council, told staff it could not afford the cost of a party or an annual bonus - usually a £25 Argos voucher for each year of service with the firm.

But the GMB union, which represents NCP attendants and support staff, said this was ludicrous and criticised the "Scrooge-like" firm.

Now a ballot of members has revealed 86 per cent in favour of all-out strike action and almost all staff in favour of at least some action short of a strike.

GMB organiser Rachel Lyons said: "The result of the ballot shows NCP's attempts to cancel Christmas have been met with a resolute response from our members.

"While NCP allege the removal of the Christmas bonus and party are down to cost, savings made through cutting a minimal reward for staff doing a difficult and challenging job are quite clearly not worth having.

"NCP's management have not contacted us to discuss the dispute believing staff would not vote for action. This result shows our members are more determined than NCP give them credit for and their message is clear - this is a principle worth standing up for and we will not be bullied."

NCP is owned by private equity firm 3i whose owners made £235 million profit earlier in the year through a partial sale of the business.

The attendants had originally planned to start the three-day strike this weekend to coincide with the Christmas rush, for maximum disruption.

It is believed two days of non-strike action will now take place on January 4 and 6, during which time attendants will walk the streets but not issue any tickets.

Tim Cowen, of NCP Services, said: "We are disappointed at the result.

"We will be talking to all the staff at staff committees across Britain in January to seek their views about how they would like the money previously spent at Christmas to be distributed in 2008.

"We have a good relationship with the GMB and look forward to their views on the subject.

"We hope they do not take industrial action but if they do we have a contingency plan in place to ensure we deliver the same level of service to Brighton and Hove, to ensure that parking continues to be managed effectively."

simon.barrett@theargus.co.uk

New blow for Omar

2007-12-20T09:42:00.000Z

By Miles Godfrey

Guantanamo Bay detainee Omar Deghayes has been freed from prison but faces a fresh battle to be reunited with his family.

After more than five years locked in a cell without being charged or tried for a crime, Mr Deghayes flew home tonight.

He spent the first few hours back in Britain being questioned by police and had been expected to be released to go home to Brighton in the early hours of tomorrow morning.

But it then emerged that Spain had asked the Government to extradite Mr Deghayes along with a second man brought back from Guantanamo Bay to face further questions on the continent over allegations of terrorism.

And tonight Mr Deghayes' relatives in Brighton were in turmoil as they tried to find out whether they would get to see their loved one after all.

Brother Abubaker Deghayes said: "We're very disappointed with the way things have turned out.

"The family expected him to be home either tonight or early tomorrow morning.

"We'll have to see where the legal process now takes us."

Mr Deghayes, a law student and Libyan national, had lived in Brighton for 16 years before he was arrested, allegedly by bounty hunters, in Pakistan in 2002.

He was transferred to the notorious US jail in Cuba months later.

Mr Deghayes left Guantanamo today and flew to Luton Airport with two other British citizens, Jamil el-Banna and Abdenour Samuer, on board a chartered aircraft.

The men were accompanied by officers from the Metropolitan Police counter-terrorism unit as well as uniformed officers requested by the Foreign Office.

They arrived at around 7pm and Mr Deghayes and Mr Samuer were arrested under the Terrorism Act and taken to Paddington Green police station in London where they were questioned by detectives.

Mr Deghayes' family - mother Zohra, brothers Abubaker and Taher and sister Amani - were waiting expectantly at the family home in Arundel Drive, Saltdean, in the hope he would be released.

It is thought Omar's six-year-old son Suleiman and his wife Maryam will return from Pakistan next week.

The Home Office said each of the released prisoners will now have their immigration status reviewed "immediately".

After the release of the trio from Guantanamo Bay Clive Stafford-Smith, from human rights group Reprieve, had spoken of his delight the men were being sent back to Britain.

He said: "It's fantastic news - the best. The fact that he will be home for Eid, the biggest Muslim festival of the year, is just brilliant.

"We've agreed completely to the security measures required by the UK. We aren't free to discuss what they are but we have nothing to hide.

"Omar trained as a lawyer.

"He'd be one now if he hadn't been languishing in Guantanamo for five, almost six years. As for the people of Brighton, I think it's fantastic what they've done for Omar."

The Argus has campaigned for Omar Deghayes's release for more than three years.

Save Omar campaigners, based in Brighton, said they would hold a vigil tomorrow night for all the prisoners left at the US detention facility.

Brighton Kemptown MP Des Turner, who delivered a dossier of stories The Argus has published on Omar to the White House earlier this year, said: "I never understood the Americans' case against Omar or why they felt it was necessary to hold him along with hundreds of others for so long in such inhumane conditions."

A Home Office statement said the US had agreed to the releases on December 10.

It said: "This does not imply a commitment on our part that they can remain permanently in Britain and their immigration status will be reviewed."

Crawley and Brighton drug gangsters face jail

2007-12-19T22:03:00.002Z

By Ben Parsons

An ice-cream man, a judo champion, a homeless Peruvian chef and his son were the lynchpins of an incredible plot to smuggle cocaine halfway around the world through the post.

After a gruelling 14-week trial six men now face decades behind bars for their part in the conspiracy.

On October 31 last year Detective Constable Peter Stapleton, dressed as a postman, knocked on the door of a house in Hophurst Drive, Crawley Down.

He was carrying jiffy bags with Peruvian postmarks - dummies of parcels intercepted in Germany.

The man who answered the door, Paul Casella, was staying at the home of his brother Richard.

He sleepily accepted the parcels.

The next knock on the door was from Detective Constable Caroline Robinson who showed him her badge and arrested him.

While police were at the house, a real postman delivered another package from Peru.

It contained 37 grams of 97 per cent pure cocaine.

The first steps in what Sussex Police's Serious Organised Crime Unit dubbed Operation Zoffany had been a success.

For the next few weeks similar finds were made at addresses in and around Crawley.

The investigation was sparked by the discovery of several Crawley-bound packages containing cocaine by German customs officers at Frankfurt Airport.

At Hove Crown Court tomorrow the operation will come to an end with the sentencing of six men for their part in a plot to smuggle cocaine worth millions of pounds into Sussex.

The lucrative but short-lived scheme saw drugs posted to a series of addresses in and around Crawley, Horsham and Brighton.

Three consignments of cocaine are known to have been sent from Peru between July and October last year.

More is thought to have found its way into clubs, pubs and the streets of Crawley, Brighton and other Sussex towns before the ring was discovered The substances would have been worth £2 million if converted into crack cocaine.

The money for the smuggling operation was put up by Lubhia Ram, a well-known face in the clubs, bars and restaurants of Crawley.

The 44-year-old, branded the operation's "head of finance" by detectives, provided £53,000 to buy the drugs.

Ram bragged about being a millionaire and sported designer jewellery and other trappings of wealth.

He was driven round Crawley in a black Range Rover while his other cars included a BMW and a £90,000 supercharged Mercedes AMG.

His haunts included the Ja Ja Bar in Crawley,and the VIP lounge of the town's Liquid Envy nightclub where he drank champagne at £80 a bottle.

Ram told the jury he made his money by running ice cream vans from his family's Southern Counties business in Three Bridges, Crawley, and his Brighton shop.

He claimed he thought he was investing in a new pornographic magazine by giving Oscar Salas-Weslke his money.

Evidence showed that cocaine worth £36,810 had been sent to flats linked to him and Salas-Weslke at Pulman Court, Delfont Close, Crawley.

When police searched the addresses they found torn-up pages from a diary and a notebook.

After the pieces were put together they contained a full handwritten list of the addresses where the drugs were sent.

Police learned maintenance men had been called to the flat because the toilet was blocked and found Peruvian purses and polythene dry-cleaning covers in the drains.

Salas-Weslke, 54, lived at a number of addresses cocaine was destined for in Crawley.

Detectives referred to him as the operation's "head of purchasing".

He helped Ram mastermind the plot and went three times to Peru between June and August last year to organise the buying and posting of the cocaine.

The jury unanimously found him guilty of his part in the conspiracy.

Salas-Weslke was born in Peru where he made jewellery to sell to tourists.

He moved to England and settled in Crawley after meeting and marrying an English tourist in 1976.

The cocaine user, who was jailed for ten years in Peru for possessing the drug, was also jailed in Britain in 1999 along with another gang who plotted to bring cocaine into the country through the post from Peru.

He later worked at Gatwick airport before training as a chef and landing work in the kitchens of a school in Horsham.

He was introduced to Ram through a cocaine dealer and became his right-hand man.

Salas-Welske was arrested after he fled to Cornwall to hide at his youngest son Raymi's home in Buddock Terrace, Falmouth.

More empty Peruvian purses and film canisters were found there.

He also had a diary and notebook which were forensically proven to be the origin of the torn pages found by the police in the bin at Delfont Close.

His son, Nathan Chapman-Salas, 28, of Innes Road, Horsham, acted as "gofer" for his father and Ram.

Police dubbed him the "head of distribution".

He flew with his father to Peru in June last year as the conspiracy was being organised.

On his return he used the Western Union offices in Crawley to wire money supplied by Ram to Salas-Weslke in Peru.

He then collected the packages after they arrived in Crawley.

Nathan was found guilty by the jury on a majority verdict of nine to one.

The married father-of-three was born in England but spent part of his childhood in Peru.

Chapman-Salas is a dedicated Tottenham Hotspur fan and cheekily used Spurs goalkeeper Paul Robinson's name on packages of cocaine posted to Trevor Bowden's address in Clive Way, Crawley.

Another fake name used was George Galloway, the radical MP.

Nathan told police he knew about his father being jailed for drugs offences in the past, but claimed he accepted his father's word that he was not using him for anything illegal.

He also claimed he thought the films contained pornography.

Other defendants told the jury Nathan had been put under pressure by his father.

Two Peruvian purses containing cocaine worth £3,471 were found at Innes Road.

Richard Casella, 43, an unemployed baker and bouncer, of Hophurst Drive, Crawley, was a close friend of Ram and had known him for 25 years.

The jury found him guilty by a majority of nine to one of providing addresses for the cocaine to be delivered to.

The court heard Casella had a reputation in Crawley for being a hardman.

Police believe Ram used him as the "muscle" of the conspiracy.

Casella was an international martial arts champion and has black belts in judo, karate and ju-jitsu.

A former girlfriend described him as a Jekyll and Hyde character with a furious temper.

He had money problems and had run up credit debts of £30,000.

In all, 17 packages of almost pure cocaine were sent to his house at Hophurst Drive, with a street value of £106,000.

Trevor Bowden, 38, of Clive Way, Crawley, was a self-confessed former crack cocaine and heroin addict.

Bowden had known Nathan Chapman-Salas since they worked together on a Horsham building site in 2000.

He said he feared for his life when he was arrested because he thought "some pretty serious people" were involved in the Peru ring.

Cocaine destined for Clive Way was destroyed after it was intercepted in Germany.

Julian Fernandez, 25, was arrested at his home in Railey Road, Northgate, Crawley, in November last year.

He pleaded guilty to his part in the conspiracy in the hope of getting a lighter sentence.

Portuguese-born Fernandez was a student who worked part-time as a waiter at Pizza Express and a tapas bar in Crawley.

Film canisters were found in the kitchen and in his room.

They were packed with cocaine that was 98 per cent pure.

The cocaine destined for Railey Road had a street value of at least £131,800.

Three other people also stood trial.

Businessman Russell Lawrence, 49, was arrested after drugs were delivered to the dry-cleaner's he ran at Maidenbower Place, Crawley.

Paul Casella, 44, of Capricorn Close, Crawley, and Fabio de Palma, 30, of Albany Road, Crawley, were also arrested after being found at addresses where cocaine was delivered.

They all denied involvement in the plot and were found not guilty by the jury.

After the verdicts at Hove Crown Court, Detective Inspector Jez Graves, of Sussex Police, said: "We're extremely pleased with the outcome of this lengthy police operation, which we hope will be a deterrent to criminals who want to 'get rich quick' from other people's misery.

"The additional concern is that these large quantities of cocaine may be converted into the even more socially destructive form of the drug, known as crack."

He praised Detective Sergeant Tony Pike, who spent days on the witness stand explaining how the operation worked and being quizzed by lawyers for each of the defendants.

Case officers Detective Constable Stuart Black and Detective Constable Robinson were also singled out for praise, alongside other officers from Crawley for their support in the operation.

Scores of Worthing IT staff face axe

2007-12-19T22:03:00.001Z

By Rachel Wareing

Staff face an uncertain Christmas as hundreds of jobs at an IT firm are threatened.

Up to 600 jobs at Capgemini could be axed, including 50 of the 200 posts based at the firm's offices in Barrington Road, Goring, Worthing.

Those affected work on a contract to manage the IT system used by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs.

Around 3,000 staff work on the contract at Capgemini's branches in Goring, Telford and Basingstoke.

Staff will be balloted over industrial action in mid-January and discussions are underway about the type of action which could be taken. A strike is one possibility.

Chris Morrison from the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCSU) said there had been "overwhelming" support for a ballot.

The union believes compulsory redundancies are unnecessary as a large number of employees have indicated they would be happy to take voluntary redundancy.

Mr Morrison said: "The company is seeking to ensure they make a 10 per cent profit on the contract and they are somewhere short of that - though they are still making a huge profit.

"We believe a voluntary round of redundancies would go a long way towards hitting that target.

"There are a sizeable community of people who would leap at the chance.

"This would be the sensible option. It would cause far less pain and would be fairer."

He said it would cheaper for the firm to ask for voluntary redundancies, but said bosses were reluctant because they did not think they would get enough volunteers.

The announcement is the latest in a series of job cuts by companies in Sussex.

At the beginning of the month it emerged that up to 1,000 workers at the Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis in Horsham could lose their jobs.

More than 300 posts at GlaxoSmithKline in Crawley and Worthing, 200 at Parker Pen in Newhaven, 180 at COSi in Littlehampton and up to 130 at South East Water in Haywards Heath could also be lost.

Redundancy is also on the cards for hundreds of workers at Brighton and Hove Council and Hastings Borough Council as the local authorities try to balance their budgets.

No-one from Capgemini was available to comment.

HM Revenue and Customs, which includes the Inland Revenue, awarded Capgemini the IT contract three years ago. At the time it was one of the world's largest IT outsourcing deals.

Capgemini work alongside Fujitsu and BT to deliver the contract, forming a body called Aspire (A Strategic Partnership for the Inland Revenue).

Fujitsu is subcontracted to manage the data services, input and output services, desktop and disaster recovery services while BT is responsible for voice support and for providing call centre solutions.

Capgemini has overall responsibility for the delivery of services.

Brighton pensioner left with untreated broken leg for days

2007-12-19T22:02:00.000Z

By Sam Underwood

An elderly woman was left starving and in pain in a hospital bed for four days with a fractured leg.

Doris Richards, 92, suffered a fall while at Southlands Hospital in Shoreham, fracturing her right femur.

She was transferred to the Royal Sussex County Hospital the following day but it was another four days until she was properly treated as her operation was repeatedly cancelled as other cases were prioritised.

Each day that she was included on the hospital's trauma operations lists, the frail pensioner was given nothing to eat and only allowed fluids by intravenous drip.

The day after she was transferred to Brighton she was not even included on the operations list but due to an administrative error was still kept nil by mouth.

She was eventually operated on on two days later but died soon after from a blood clot in her lung, among other symptoms.

The hospital's handling of Mrs Richards' treatment was described by one of the hospital's managers, Sherree Fagge, as "far from satisfactory".

She went on to say that lessons had been learned and the trauma lists system had since been streamlined and improved.

An inquest at Brighton was told that Mrs Richards, from Brighton, was first admitted to the Royal Sussex in April after having a stroke.

On May 2 she was transferred to Southlands Hospital for rehabilitation.

Despite being 92, she was placed in a ward for under-65s, Bluebell Ward, as it was the only one with a bed free.

In Mrs Richards' hand-over notes from the Royal Sussex, staff described her as confused, unsteady on her feet and requiring 24-hour supervision but she was still allowed to walk around the ward.

On the night of May 4, she got out of bed at around 10.30pm and went to speak to nurse Christine Gillings who was on her medicine rounds.

Ms Gillings said she talked to Mrs Richards who then walked off into an adjacent room.

The inquest heard that Mrs Richards lost her balance while in the unoccupied room and fell to the floor.

The ward sister Sarah Bucktownsing saw her fall and went to help.

She told the inquest that at first Mrs Richards had not complained of any pain and said that she and her colleagues could find no evidence of any injury as they checked her over.

It wasn't until the next morning that Mrs Richards, who had slept through the night, complained of pain in her right leg and the medical staff saw that it was badly swollen.

A bedside x-ray taken later that day showed the fracture and Mrs Richards was transferred to the Royal Sussex.

It was five days until she was successfully operated on.

Pathologist David Wright, who carried out a post mortem examination on Mrs Richards' body, found she died from a blocked artery, deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a fractured leg and a stroke.

The inquest heard from Dr Wright that the risk of developing DVT was exacerbated by long periods of inactivity, such as lying on a bed.

Following the death of her husband Les in 1968, Mrs Richards, a former cook, moved in with her daughter Gillian in Crayford Road, Brighton.

She has two daughters, Gillian and Hilary Martin, five grandchildren and nine great grandchildren.

Hilary Martin said: "Mum was a feisty woman who knew her own mind and was very independent but at the same time she was very loving and caring with her family.

"I am happy with the care she received in hospital and would like to thank all the doctors and nurses who treated her."

Recording a narrative verdict, Brighton and Hove deputy coroner John Hooper said: "Doris Richards died on the second day after surgery for repair of a hip fracture carried out on the fifth day after a fall whilst in hospital for rehabilitation following a stroke."

Brighton council still loaning out music of gay-hate artists

2007-12-19T22:01:00.000Z

By Lawrence Marzouk

A council trying to ban anti-gay music is loaning CDs from its libraries of artists who have penned homophobic lyrics.

Pubs and clubs which play or allow artists to perform songs inciting homophobic acts face having their licence taken away in Brighton and Hove.

But it has emerged that work by Buju Banton, who recorded a song called Boom Bye Bye which advocates the shooting of gay men, and an album of songs by rapper Eminem, which includes homophobic lyrics, are available for loan at Brighton and Hove City Council libraries.

The CDs were initially withdrawn yesterday after The Argus contacted the council but tonight a spokesman for the authority said: "We've not banned any acts from nightclubs and it's not our role to provide artistic taste police in our cultural facilities either."

The council last week voted to tackle so-called "murder music" with a new section to its licensing policy.

This followed the furore surrounding a Buju Banton gig last year at Concorde 2 in Madeira Drive, Brighton, which was cancelled at the 11th hour after the council threatened to withdraw its licence.

Although the new council policy cannot legally ban any form of music, it was specifically designed to discourage murder music acts and allows licences to be reviewed if performances include incitement to violence.

The council already bans "murder music" from libraries following a decision in 2005.

But it emerged yesterday, after contact from a regular library user, that an album by "Buju Banton and friends", which does not include the notorious lyrics, was available from the Jubilee Library.

And four CDs of Eminem's song Criminal were available from the Jubilee Library and Hove Library.

Dave Jones, of Springfield Road, Brighton, who spotted the CDs said the confusion over what music is acceptable shows that any form of censorship leads to problems.

He said: "My sympathy with Brighton and Hove council's attempt to stop murder music is outweighed by my fear of censorship.

"Will the council destroy their CDs? I hope not.

"Performers like Buju Banton should be warned before a gig that if they advocate the murder of gay men they will be arrested and jailed. It is already a crime.

"Britain's censors have such a terrible record when it comes to permitting lesbian or gay sexual freedom that I can never trust them."

Banton is banned from singing the homophobic lyrics in this country but gay campaigners claim he performed it abroad as recently as 2005. The singer has since signed a commitment to ban hatred and prejudice from his music.

The council spokesman said: "A small section in the council's new licensing policy is aimed at preventing crime and antisocial behaviour in licensed premises.

"There is no ban or censorship on any particular artist or song and this section of the policy is not there to prevent people being offended - its sole purpose is to prevent crime and disorder.

"This is a separate issue to the library service, which also does not aim to censor material which is legally available to the public.

"The library service sets out to maintain a balanced stock of material, offering a wide range of materials reflecting a broad spectrum of views and opinions.

"The Eminem Marshall Mathers LP was released over seven years ago, the lyrics are controversial and the CD is labelled with an explicit content warning."

Young star of Brighton gig is unveiled

2007-12-19T22:00:00.000Z

By Ben Parsons

A schoolboy's dreams came true when he was invited onto the stage at his favourite band's concert.

Ben Beauvallet was hoisted into the limelight at the Kaiser Chiefs' Brighton Centre gig on Sunday.

He spent several minutes on the stage with frontman Ricky Wilson, at one point leading the crowd in a chorus of the band's track Na Na Na Na Naa.

The 14-year-old Brighton College pupil was at the gig with a schoolfriend.

The band reeled off hits from their first album, Employment, and their second, Yours Truly, Angry Mob.

Ben, who has already seen the Kaiser Chiefs play in Paris, was lifted above fans' heads when he 'crowd-surfed' and was carried towards the stage.

Tonight he told The Argus going on stage was one of the high points of his young life so far.

He said: "I had a massive adrenalin rush.

"I don't know what the exact capacity of the Brighton Centre is but there were loads of people there.

"My friend Giles was really jealous."

He got down after a couple of songs, but when his name was mentioned between numbers the crowd hoisted him back onto the stage.

Later in the gig the band dedicated some more of their hits, including Oh My God, to Ben, and encouraged women in the audience to give him their attention.

Ben, who lives at Compton Road, Brighton, said singer Mr Wilson was an "amazing guy".

He said the Brighton gig - the band's last of 2007 - was better than the concert he had seen before.

Ben said: "They were much better, probably because it was the last gig of the tour."

While he is not at school to enjoy the kudos of his brush with stardom, Ben's friends have trawled the internet finding video footage and pictures of him on the stage.

Thanks to a string of hit singles, the Kaiser Chiefs have won popularity with the teenage audience.

They have replaced names such as Kings of Leon, The Libertines, The Velvet Underground and Art Brut as Ben's current favourites on the strength of their performance on Sunday.

Ben said: "A lot of people are listening to them.

"Pretty much everyone knows them, they're really famous."

Have you had a brush with fame like Ben? Leave your stories below.

Brighton and Hove council shuts cash offices

2007-12-19T21:59:00.000Z

By Lawrence Marzouk

A service which allows more than a 1,000 people each week to pay council bills in cash is to be cut.

The cashier offices at Priory House, Brighton, and Hove town hall handle payments for council tax, business rates, parking fines, some rents, insurance and various other debts.

Around 1300 people visit these two offices each week but the council is planning to shut the counters from next May to save £60,000 a year.

Three posts are at risk but one is covered by a temporary contract and the council hopes to find other jobs for the other two members of staff.

People would no longer be able to bring cash in person to make payments at either Priory House in Brighton's Bartholomew Square, or at Hove town hall - although they could still do this at district housing offices.

Andy Richards, who is leading the negotiations for Unison, said the service is most used by the elderly.

He added: "This doesn't say very much of the service ethos of the council.

"People will be disappointed that they are losing a local service and I think they should reconsider."

But a spokesman for Brighton and Hove City Council said the local authority had to find savings.

He said: "At the moment it's a proposal subject to consultation and only affects cash offices at Hove town hall and Priory House.

"Rent collection at district housing offices is not affected. Concessionary travel and revenue enquiries will continue to be administered at Priory House."

Closing the two cash offices will bring the council in line with eight out of the 13 Sussex councils which have ended in-person cash payments at main offices.

More than half of council tax payments are already made by direct debit.

The spokesman added: "We know that this facility is popular with its regulars however we have a duty to improve value for money for residents.

"Having our own cash offices is the most expensive way for us to receive cash when there are lots of other ways for residents to pay us, such as banks, post offices, paypoints, the internet, direct debit and through the post, all of which we will continue to process.

"These are increasingly preferred by customers and the change reflects this."

A report on this proposal will go to the council's policy and resources committee in February and if approved the changes will be implemented in early May.

Omar Deghayes arrested in London

2007-12-19T21:58:00.000Z

Omar Deghayes has landed back in Britain.

The 38-year-old, whose family live in Saltdean, was arrested and taken from Luton airport to Paddington Green police station in London.

He has just returned from Guantanamo Bay where he has been held for the past five years.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said he would be medically examined by a forensic medical examiner to ensure that he was fit to be detained and interviewed by police.

The spokesman added: "Inquiries are being carried out, as they must be, strictly in accordance with UK law."

Brighton parking attendants in New Year strike

2007-12-19T21:57:00.000Z

By Simon Barrett

Parking attendants will go out on strike after bosses cancelled their Christmas party and bonuses.

Around 120 staff plan to walk out on January 5 in Brighton and Hove, creating fears of a chaotic parking free-for-all as Saturday shoppers head to the sales.

But the GMB union, which represents NCP attendants and support staff, said the claim was ludicrous and criticised the "Scrooge-like" firm.

Now a ballot of its members has revealed 97 per cent were in favour of action short of a strike, with 86 per cent in favour of all-out strike action.

GMB organiser Rachel Lyons said: "The result of the ballot shows NCP's attempts to cancel Christmas have been met with a resolute response from our members.

NCP is owned by private equity firm 3i whose owners made £235m in profit earlier in the year through a partial sale of the business.

The attendants originally planned to start the three-day strike this weekend to coincide with the Christmas rush for maximum disruption but the strike will now take place on January 5.

It is believed two days of non-strike action will take place on January 4 and 6, during which time attendants will walk the streets but not issue any tickets.

Tim Cowen, of NCP Services, said: "We are disappointed at the result. We will be talking to all the staff at staff committees across the UK in January to seek their views about how they would like the money previously spent at Christmas to be distributed in 2008.

"We have a good relationship with the GMB and look forward to their views on the subject.

Rail bosses blasted after near miss on Brighton line

2007-12-19T21:55:00.000Z

By Katya Mira

Rail bosses have been told to improve their safety procedures after a workman was forced to dive clear of an oncoming train with just seconds to spare.

The welder was carrying out urgent repairs to a track at Tinsley Green Junction, near Crawley, at 9.30am on March 17 when he came within inches of losing his life.

He managed to jump clear of the Brighton to Watford train just in time, when it was just 50 to 80 metres away, but his welding equipment, sitting where he had been a few moments before, was hit and crushed.

He went straight back to work despite being left shaken by the incident.

The train had just been re-routed from a fast line to another line ready to arrive at a platform.

It is thought the welder did not hear the warning given by a lookout and his assistant was not close by and so unable to give the usual warning.

An investigation into the narrow escape said it happened because the safety manager on duty on the day was not expecting any trains to be re-routed in this way.

It said the controller of site safety was inexperienced, did not have local knowledge and had not been properly briefed by his superiors.

The system of identifying hazards set up to deal with staff working under these conditions was also found to be unclear and flawed.

A report from the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB), the UK's independent railway investigation organisation, has now recommended new safety regulations be introduced.

The results of the nine-month investigation also criticised safety procedures which did not stipulate staff moving to a safe place when approaching on the fast line.

It said: "The immediate cause of the incident was the system of work implemented at the site did not take into account the possibility of trains switching lines via the crossover on which the team were working.

"Causal factors were the limited experience of the Controller of Site Safety, and the established system of work did not involve staff moving to a position of safety when trains were approaching on the up fast line."

It said new safety training procedures should be introduced as a result of the incident and made eight different recommendations involving the competency of staff in charge of safety, rules and training and the identification, recording and briefing of hazards.

A Network Rail spokesman said: "We welcome the publication of the RAIB report.

"Network Rail has carried out its own formal investigation which reached similar conclusions and the recommendations within the RAIB report are currently being considered."

Fears over released Omar's health

2007-12-19T16:21:00.000Z

By Miles Godfrey

The news that Guantanamo Bay detainee Omar Deghayes has been released by the US authorities has been tempered by substantial fears for his health.

Supporters of the former Brighton resident believe he could now face severe difficulties adapting to normal life.

Jackie Chase, from the Save Omar Campaign, said: "We don't know what condition he will be in at all. There are substantial fears he will have been very severely affected mentally and that he could be suffering."

It is understood Omar will land at Luton Airport at around 7am on Thursday before being taken to Paddington Green police station for questioning and a medical.

Long term mental health assessments are expected to take longer.

Brighton Kemptown MP Des Turner, who along with The Argus and Omar's friends and family have campaigned for justice, said: "It is fantastic news.

"I never understood the American's case against Omar or why they felt it was necessary to hold him along with hundreds of others for so long in such inhumane conditions."

Omar's sister Amani Deghayes said: "I'm not really sure what's going to happen to Omar and his family now.

"As a family we want them to take it easy and to adapt to normal life."

Lawyers acting for Omar have told The Argus they anticipate him being released by the Metropolitan Police at some stage tomorrow and will then be free to return to his family's home in Saltdean.

A spokesman for the Met Police said: "Three men are being accompanied on a charter flight from Cuba by Metropolitan Police officers for security reasons."

MP complains about festive public transport in Sussex

2007-12-19T15:34:00.000Z

By Simon Barrett

A Sussex MP has complained that passengers are getting a raw deal from the public transport "shutdown" over the Christmas period.

Peter Bottomley, Tory MP for West Worthing, has signed a Parliamentary motion calling for an improvement in rail and bus services from next year.

The motion expresses "deep disappointment" that "once again during this festive season the UK's railways will undergo a 58 hour shutdown with no services whatsoever being provided on the overwhelming majority of lines and in most areas there will be no buses running over a similar period."

It goes on: "This is in stark contrast to the situation that prevails in the rest of Europe where regular services run throughout the Christmas holidays".

It adds: "The closure of the rail and bus network leaves many people without access to transport to visit family or friends or attend sporting events."

The early day motion, which has been signed by 28 MPs, calls on the transport industry and Government to work together to ensure that from 2008 "an adequate" rail and bus service is provided on Boxing Day at least".

But it fails to mention that passengers in parts of Sussex are already being offered limited bus and rail services on December 26.

Brighton and Hove Bus Company said the city would be served by regular services on Boxing Day.

Managing director Roger French said: "We are unique outside of London in running a Boxing Day bus service as a commercial proposition with no public money.

"Brighton does fantastically well by bucking the trend and running a service on Boxing Day."

Southern Railway said it was running a "limited service" in Sussex on Boxing Day for the first time in many years.

A spokesman said an hourly service will run between 9am and 7pm between Brighton and London Bridge, calling at Haywards Heath, Three Bridges, Gatwick Airport, Redhill and East Croydon.

Search for century-old cars in Sussex

2007-12-19T15:12:00.000Z

By Naomi Loomes

The great granddaughter of one of the first car manufacturers has seen one of the century-old vehicles pass its first-ever MOT.

Josephine Lisle, 67, has been living in Portugal for the last 20 years but moved to Sussex two years ago to investigate the vintage cars made by her great grandfather Edward Lisle in the 1890s.

She wanted to track down any of the cars still in existence.

Ms Lisle's great grandfather began his career bicycle-making in a factory in Wolverhampton before moving on to designing and building high-end cars for the upper classes of Britain.

The first Star car was built in 1897. It took ten weeks to get the engine started and when it finally did in the middle of the night there was a street celebration in Wolverhampton to mark the event.

Star Engineering was one of just six car manufacturers at the time.

It is believed that Mr Lisle's son Joseph bought a top-of-the-range car in Holland that inspired his father's new design. Six were made by the end of 1898, and by 1903 the Star was an original design.

Retired Ms Lisle, from Five Ashes, near Mayfield, has now started the difficult project of finding the cars and their often famous owners.

She said: "I knew there were around 100 still in existence in one form or another. I began searching the internet for anyone claiming to know where they are.

"I heard one had been found in rusty pieces in a shed in New Zealand by a Jeremy Collins who now lives in Oxfordshire.

"I gave him a call and he said he'd had the parts, all original, flown back to the UK and the car, which is a racing car, was being rebuilt by a specialist in Horam near Heathfield, ten minutes away from me."

Ms Lisle tracked the car down at specialist car restorer Nigel Parrott's workshop on Marle Green, Heathfield. It had been rebuilt using exactly the same parts it had when it was first created in 1907 and was being prepared to pass a modern-day MOT. Ms Lisle was given her first ever ride in the car on the day it passed.

The company was sold in 1934 before Josephine was born and she has only ever seen the vehicles at vintage car rallies when she was a child.

Ms Lisle added: "It was so exciting. Cold but exciting. This is my retirement project. I'd like to find the rest of the cars and make a documentary about them."

Anyone with any information about the Star Engineering Company should contact The Argus newsdesk on 01273 544516 or leave comments below.

news@theargus.co.uk

Omar Deghayes is on plane home

2007-12-19T15:11:00.002Z

By Simon Barrett

Omar Deghayes has been released from Guantanamo Bay and will arrive back in the UK later today.

Omar is travelling back alongside two other British citizens, Jamil el-Banna and Abdenour Samuer, on board a chartered aircraft along with a doctor and Metropolitan Police officers.

Another freed UK resident, Shaker Abdur-Raheem Aamer, is expected to return to his native Saudi Arabia.

A fifth UK resident, Ethiopian Binyam Mohammed, will remain at Guantanamo.

The three released men were accompanied by officers from the Met's counter-terrorism unit as well as uniformed officers, whose presence was requested by the Foreign Office.

The Argus has campaigned for Omar to get a fair trial.

Six guilty of Crawley drugs smuggle

2007-12-19T15:11:00.001Z

By Nigel Freedman

Six men face decades behind bars after they were found guilty of trying to smuggle cocaine into Sussex.

They were part of a highly organised drugs ring that sent the Class A drug through the post from Peru to Crawley.

The haul was one of the biggest ever seized by Sussex Police.

The 99 per cent pure cocaine had a street value of £1.5million.

But detectives believe it was destined to be turned into crack cocaine - boosting its value to well over £2million.

The conspiracy failed after three consignments were intercepted by German customs officers last year.

They tipped off Sussex Police and a sting was set up to snare members of the gang.

A detective posed as a postman to see who accepted dummy packages at safe addresses in Crawley and Brighton. A string of arrests were made.

The two men who masterminded the plot could face more than 20 years each in jail when they are sentenced at Hove Crown Court today. (thu) Flash "businessman" Lubhia Ram, 44, of Delfont Close, Crawley, was the paymaster who put up more than £53,000 to buy the drugs.

He drove a £90,000 Mercedes AMG sports car, wore flash jewellery and drank £80 bottles of champagne.

Ram was found guilty by a majority verdict of nine to one after a four-month trial.

Smooth-talking charmer Oscar Salas-Weslke,54, who was staying at Ram's luxury rented flat in Delfont Close, Crawley, was his trusted lieutenant.

Salas-Weslke helped mastermind the plot and flew to his native Peru to buy the cocaine.

He then arranged for it to be posted to safe addresses in Sussex.

He was unanimously found guilty of his part in the conspiracy.

He had been jailed before for an almost identical plot to supply cocaine.

He and Ram fled from Crawley when they realised the police net was closing in on them.

Oscar's son Nathan Chapman-Salas,28, of Innes Road, Horsham, acted as their "gofer" transferring money put up by Ram to his father in Lima.

He also collected parcels delivered to safe address in Crawley and Horsham provided by other conspirators.

He cheekily used the name of his hero, Spurs goalkeeper Paul Robinson, on some of the packages.

The yellow "Jiffy" envelopes each contained five colourful Peruvian purses with 35mm film canisters inside packed with cocaine.

Chapman-Salas, a father-of-three, was found guilty by a majority of nine to one.

Bouncer and former judo champion Richard Casella, 43, of Hophurst Drive, Crawley, was Ram's "muscle".

He, too,provided safe addresses for the drugs to be delivered to.

Trevor Bowden, 38, of Clive Way, Crawley, was also convicted of allowing his address to be used to receive drugs.

Julian Fernandez, 25, of Railey Road, Crawley, pleaded guilty to his part in the conspiracy in the hope of getting a lighter sentence.

Businessman Russell Lawrence, 49, of Maidenbower Place, Crawley, was found not guilty by the jury.

Paul Casella, 44, of Capricorn Close, Crawley, was also cleared after the jury had considered its verdicts for 12 days.

Fabio de Palma, 30, of Albany Road, Crawley, was cleared after the jury heard he had moved into a room previously occupied by Nathan Chapman-Sallas where traces of cocaine were found.

Window cleaner Trevor Bowden, 38, of Clive Way, Crawley was the final defendant to be convicted yesterday.

The verdicts were welcomed by detectives who spent 18 months investigating the case, codenamed Operation Zoffany.

Detective Constable Stuart Black, one of the lead officers, said: "We are elated with the outcome.

"We have taken out Oscar Salas-Weslke who was the head of purchasing in Peru.

"We have taken out Ram, the head in this country of financing the operation.

"We have taken out Nathan Chapman-Salas, the head in this country of distribution.

"We have taken out Richard Casella, in our belief the main muscle behind those three.

"We have managed to convict four major people within this organised crime group.

"Although three importations were stopped we are convinced others got through."

Moves may now be made to deport Salas-Weslke back to Peru.

Fernandez is an EU citizen and cannot be deported.

Three consignments of cocaine are known to have been sent from Peru between July and October last year.

Other shipments almost certainly got through undetected.

They contained "bullets" of 98 per cent pure cocaine with a street value of about £1.5million.

Detectives believe it was to be converted into crack cocaine - boosting its value to more than £2 million.

The haul is thought to have been destined for sale in the clubs, pubs and on the streets of Crawley and Brighton.

Ram had connections with both places, running an ice cream business in Crawley and a convenience store in Brighton.

Alan Kent, prosecuting, said the first consignment was intercepted by German customs officers in August last year.

Post from Peru and Central America is systematically screened for drugs at Frankfurt airport.

German customs alerted the National Criminal Intelligence Service in Britain and then destroyed the drugs.

The second consignment sent by Salas-Weslke arrived in Frankfurt on October 12, last year.

This time, the Germans contacted Sussex Police and detectives Stuart Black and Caroline Robinson went to Heathrow to collect the envelopes.

The cocaine was removed by officers based at the Force's serious and organised crime unit in Brighton.

The Jiffy bags were re-sealed and DC Peter Stapleton posed as a postman to see who accepted them.

Brothers Richard and Paul Casella were arrested after packages were accepted from DC Stapleton at Hophurst Drive, Crawley, on October 31.

A short time later Russell Lawrence, 49, was arrested after accepting a package at his dry-cleaning business in Maidenbower Square, Crawley.

The three men, along with Fabio de Palma, and Trevor Bowden had all denied providing safe addresses for the drugs to be delivered to.

Mr Kent told the jury at the start of the trial:"This case involves a conspiracy to smuggle cocaine through the post from Peru to England.

"You may conclude that some defendants were involved in the finance and purchase and posting of the drugs from Peru.

"Others were involved in the English end receiving the packages and passing them on to others.

"Ram, Oscar Salas and Nathan Salas were involved in the purchase of the cocaine and organised posting it on to address in this country.

"Other defendants provided their addresses or other safe houses for the packages to be delivered to, knowing that the cocaine was going to be smuggled.

"Once they arrived in this country they were to be collected by Ram or Nathan Salas."

Ram claimed he was duped by Oscar Salas-Weslke into investing £25,000 in a pornographic pictures business in Peru.

He said photos taken there were to be used in a Penthouse-style magazine to be sold in Spain and Portugal.

Ram said he provided Salas-Weslke with a list of addresses to send the films to.

But he insisted he knew nothing about drugs being sent through the post.

Salas-Weslke claimed he had nothing at all to do with importing drugs or pornography.

He blamed Ram and accused him of being a police informer who had set him up by planting evidence to incriminate him.

He claimed small amounts of money sent by his son Nathan and Ram to Peru was used to help his family in Lima.

He claimed someone else had used his passport and identity details to collect the bulk of the money.

Mr Kent told the jury Salas-Weslke was jailed for four years in 1999 for supplying cocaine in an almost identical importation of from Peru.

He was also earlier jailed for ten years for possessing cocaine found in his car by police in Peru.

Mr Kent added: "Oscar said Ram knew about the convictions and had been to visit Oscar while he was in prison.

"Oscar said Ram adopted his methods, that this importation was down to Ram and that Ram is trying to blame him."

Nathan Chapman-Salas claimed he was also tricked by his father who told him the money he was sending to Peru was to set up a legitimate photographic business.

Richard Casella chose not to give evidence during the trial and also gave no comment answers during police interviews.

Judge Guy Anthony praised the jury for the attention they gave to the evidence during the trial.

Two of the jurors fought back tears as they returned the final verdict on Bowden yesterday.

All have been excused from having to do jury service for the next ten years.

'Suicide attempt woman not helped by health services'

2007-12-19T15:10:00.000Z

By Siobhan Ryan

A former golf professional who cannot stop jumping into the sea in apparent suicide attempts is not being helped by health services in Sussex as they do not class her case as urgent, a court heard.

Amy Beth Dalla Mura, 46, has cost the emergency services about £1 million in rescuing her more than 50 times.

Dalla Mura, who is living with relatives in Hove, appeared before Judge Keith Thomas at Swansea Crown Court for sentencing for breaching an antisocial behaviour order, imposed by Aberystwyth magistrates in Wales, banning her from going anywhere near the sea.

She breached the order five times, the latest on June 25 this year when a helicopter, two lifeboats and two shore search teams totalling 26 men were called out.

She was found semi-conscious on rocks at the water's edge.

Dalla Mura was bailed to live in Hove while she was examined by a psychiatrist.

Judge Thomas concluded she suffered from a serious emotional disorder but, the court heard, the medical services in Sussex refused to class her case as urgent.

Judge Thomas said: "There is nothing the legal process can do to assist her because it requires the co-operation of the local health services and that has not been forthcoming."

He said all he could do was make Dalla Mura the subject of a two-year supervision order in the hope probation services could influence the situation.

Dalla Mura, who appeared in court in a wheelchair, had described the suicide attempts off the west Wales coast as cries for help for her physical condition.

In 2001 she developed problems with her hips. Surgery, she said, made her condition worse and she is in constant pain.

Since then Dalla Mura has waded out to sea at Aberystwyth and leapt off piers, jetties, rocks and cliffs.

Catherine Collins, prosecuting, said the main concern of the emergency services was while they were busy rescuing Dalla Mura other stretches of the coast were left uncovered.

A spokeswoman for the Sussex Partnership NHS Trust, which provides mental health services across the county, said: "We have offered Ms Dalla Mura an appointment to use our services.

"However we have no legal powers to force her to receive treatment.

"We will continue to offer assistance to Ms Dalla Mura and hope she will make use of the services made available to her."

Following her last court appearance in August Ms Dalla Mura told The Argus the number of rescues had been exaggerated by the authorities and said it was a very complicated and bitter story.

She said she had lived a very active and special life which had over the last few years been taken away from her.

As a golfer Dalla Mura taught in the US but was forced to give up because of a back injury.

She damaged her spine as a child when thrown by a horse but the injury went undetected for many years.

She has undergone several unsuccessful operations.

siobhan.ryan@theargus.co.uk

Binmen take one small step to be kind

2007-12-19T15:09:00.000Z

Binmen slammed for their rubbish service have finally collected an elderly woman's refuse after braving a four-inch step previously deemed a step too far.

Priscilla Thomas, 76, of Elizabeth Avenue, Hove, was relieved to see that her complaints to The Argus had been heeded by Brighton and Hove City Council yesterday when her rubbish was removed.

The pensioner, who is just 5ft and weighs six stone, had been forced to take the bags to the tip herself in the back of her car after they were left piling up outside her home.

She said she was told by a binman that the step was a health and safety issue and the bin would need to be left on the street, despite her being registered for an assisted-collection.

A council spokesman said an administrative error was to blame for the mistake and not health and safety.

Asbo boy, 14, on equipped to steal charge

2007-12-19T15:08:00.000Z

By Sam Underwood

A teenager, regarded by police as one of Brighton's worst young offenders, has appeared in court charged with going equipped to burgle.

Korrel Kennedy, 14, was arrested in the garden of a house in Hartington Place, Brighton, along with his accomplice, Jamie Jacquemai, 19, from Taunton Road, Bevendean, on November 9.

Magistrates in Brighton were yesterday forced to issue a warrant for the arrest of Jacquemai after he failed to attend court.

Initially, the magistrates were told by one of Jacquemai's friends, coincidentally also in court, that the defendant had broken both his legs and therefore could not attend.

This was later found to be untrue when officers arrested him at his home shortly afterwards.

Both Jacquemai and Kennedy pleaded not guilty to charges of going equipped for burglary.

In a police interview, Kennedy claimed they were simply garden-hopping - jumping over walls to get through the gardens.

The court heard that the police helicopter was scrambled after a householder in Hartington Terrace, which runs parallel to Hartington Place, with the gardens of both in between, called police to report seeing an individual skulking around on a neighbour's property.

David James told the court he initially thought the figure was a neighbour in their garden but became suspicious when the person began to climb the garden wall and stood on top of it.

Mr James called police and, after turning his own garden lights on, saw one of his patio chairs had been moved across the garden and placed next to the fence to act as a step.

PC Collins, who attended the incident, told the court he had been guided to the defendants' hiding place by the police helicopter's thermal imaging camera, which had located a heat source in bushes next to a shed.

Joined by colleagues, PC Collins found the pair crouched on the ground in bushes next to each other.

Kennedy, of Gladstone Place, Brighton, was found to have been carrying a pair of black gloves, while a plastic glove found in the garden is believed to belong to Jacquemai.

David Packer, prosecuting, told the court Kennedy has a previous conviction for going equipped to burgle and a reprimand for the same offence. He was also found with a pair of bolt cutters on a seperate occassion.

Mr Packer said: "Korrel has a propensity to equip himself to commit crime."

The trial continues.

Church veteran's heartbreak in Brighton

2007-12-19T15:07:00.000Z

By Lawrence Marzouk

A woman who has attended a church almost every week for 57 years has spoken of her heartbreak at plans to close it.

Anne Dixon, 94, of Saxon Road, Hove, has worked with St Peter's Church in York Place, for more than half her life, making the altar cloth and raising money.

But despite being the city's biggest and best known church, the Parochial Church Council (PCC) voted to shut St Peter's in October, because it is no longer financially viable to keep it running.

A public consultation on the plan officially ends at midnight tonight and only letters received before the deadline will be considered.

Ms Dixon said: "I am absolutely brokenhearted after the 57 years I have been going to St Peter's. I have given my life to St Peter's."

The PCC has stressed that letters should be written about how vital the church is for the city, rather than its architectural value.

Write to Rex Andrew, Pastoral Division, Church Commissioners, Church House, Great Smith Street, London SW1P 3AZ, email rex.andrew@c-of-e.org.uk or fax 020 7898 1873.

Murderer's ex-girlfriend 'hates herself' over baby, says website

2007-12-19T15:05:00.000Z

By Andy Whelan

The former girlfriend of a teenage killer says she hates herself for bringing his baby into the world, according to a message posted on a website in her name.

The message says Louise Williams cannot bear to look at her own daughter because its father is murderer Kieran Wright.

Wright, 17, was sentenced to life in prison on Thursday for butchering his sleeping pal Michael Morgan,

He attacked his friend at a party using two kitchen knives and a table leg with a screw protruding, causing 30 separate injuries to his head.

Louise, 16, has ended their relationship and stopped him from contacting their newborn baby Dionne.

A posting on the social networking internet site Bebo attributed to her says she hates herself and her former boyfriend.

Addressed to a friend, it says: "I hate kieon (sic) so much and I wish d(ionne) wasn't his.

"I feel like the worst person in the world for bringing her into such a screwed up world.

"And sometimes I can't even bear to look at her because I know who she came from and I hate it and hate myself."

The message is dated just days before Wright pleaded guilty in court to the brutal murder.

The Argus has tried to contact Louise, who is from Shoreham, to verify whether the posting is genuine. But she is refusing to talk to the press.

Her friend replied to the message by reassuring her she was a good mother who would give her daughter an amazing life.

She wrote: "None of this is ur fault at the end of da day dionne is beatiful n she will hav a gr8 life cz she has gt such an amazin mum.

"Everyone h8s kieron lou bt u gota member dat u never new ne of this was guna happen.

"Thers onli one person to h8 n hes guna be locked up for the rest of his life."

Michael, of Nicolson Drive, Shoreham, who was a pupil at Kingís Manor Community College, was asleep on the sofa when he was attacked.

He had spent the day drinking and smoking cannabis with Wright before attending a party at a caravan site in Brighton Road, Lancing, on July 1.

The other guests at the party awoke the following day to find his massacred body in the living room of the caravan.

Wright, of Adelaide Square, Shoreham, was detained at Her Majesty's Pleasure for killing Michael without mercy and without motive.

It was recommended he serve at least 12 years behind bars before he is considered for release.

The judge described the attack as "an appalling act of wanton violence".

Police have said they may never know the real reason why Wright killed his friend.

But they have said that Wright, who smoked cannabis every day, may have been affected by drug and alcohol misuse.

Do you know man hit by high speed train?

2007-12-19T15:04:00.000Z

By Richard Gurner

A man was hit by a high speed train - and survived.

Now the hunt is on to track the man down to tell his story.

Commuters on board the train were left stunned as they watched the victim get up minutes after they were told by a conductor that there had been a fatality on the line.

The unnamed 42-year-old from Crawley was struck on the line at the town's Horsham Road crossing just after 8am on Wednesday last week.

Ambulance crews said he was conscious as they took him to East Surrey Hospital in Redhill.

He suffered neck, back and abdominal injuries, which are not believed to be life-threatening.

Police said the 6.57am Bognor to London Bridge service struck the man as he approached the crossing.

It is believed he climbed over the barrier and police are not treating the matter as suspicious.

The commuter train stopped at the scene for more than half an hour while police and rail engineers checked the safety of the line and crossing.

Were you the miracle man? Or do you know him? Let us know by calling Richard Gurner 01273 544531 or the newsdesk on 01273 544519. Alternatively you can email us on news@theargus.co.uk

Van man cons pensioner out of £7K

2007-12-19T15:03:00.000Z

By Nigel Freedman

A retired trawler skipper told a jury he was conned out of Christmas cash by a man in a van.

Gareth Owen allegedly disappeared with more than £7,000 given to him by Leslie Meredith.

The former fisherman had planned to spend the money on buying televisions, DVD players and a computer as Christmas presents.

Mr Meredith, 68, who now runs a charter boat from Brighton Marina, said Owen spoke to him after he left the Comet electrical store in Hove last December.

Owen allegedly told him his name was Joe and that his brother worked for the firm.

Owen allegedly claimed he could get him a 15 per cent staff discount in return for a drink.

Mr Meredith said: "He asked me if I was interested in buying a 42in plasma TV.

"I assumed he had heard me talking to a member of staff in Comet.

"I said I was after a 40in Sony LCD set and a blueray DVD player. He said he could get me a deal because his brother worked there."

Mr Meredith said he gave "Joe" his phone number but wanted to check first to see if he could get what he wanted cheaper on the internet.

He rang his brother David and told him about the offer.

His brother said he was interested in the same items and also wanted a Sony Vaio laptop computer.

Mr Meredith said he arranged to meet Owen at Brighton Marina. He alleged Owen drove him to building society branches in George Street, Hove, and Western Road, Brighton, where he took out the maximum £1,000 at each and repeated the withdrawals during the next two days.

Mr Meredith said he met Owen at the Goldstone Retail Park on December 10.

He took £6,850 with him to cover the £6,730 cost of the electrical equipment and the rest was for Owen's "drink".

Mr Meredith said Owen arrived in a white van with another man and drove around his car several times. He said the behaviour raised his suspicions and he took a note of the van's registration number.

He added: "He told me to go round to the back of the Comet store down the road to check the goods and asked if I had the money. I put my hand in my pocket and pulled out the cash and he grabbed it.

"He said his friend was going to help him load the things at Comet and then they were gone.

"I walked around there and it was deserted. There was not a soul there."

Mr Meredith said Owen phoned to say his electrical equipment had been wrongly loaded on to a Comet van and was on its way to Dartford.

He said he was chasing after it but Mr Meredith said he did not believe him and would go to the police if he was not back within 90 minutes.

He alleged Owen later called and claimed the truck did not belong to Comet but was his.

Mr Meredith added: "He said the truck had been stopped and was being held for using illegal diesel. He said he was being charged £11,000 to get it back and had used my £7,000 to pay some of it.

"He said his father would lend him £2,000 and he wanted me to go to the building society again to get him another £2,000.

"I agreed and contacted the police and tried to get him down to Brighton the next day so we could capture him."

Mr Meredith said he arranged to meet him at Brighton Marina but Owen called twice to change the location.

He was directed to the car park at Wickes DIY store in Davigdor Road, Hove.

Mr Meredith said: "He phoned me again as I arrived there. By coincidence a police car arrived in the car park and he took to his heels. I did not see or hear from him again."

Owen, 28, of Shortgate Road in Brighton, denies obtaining money by deception between December 5 and December 10 last year. The trial continues.