Cheating husband who 'set house on fire to cover up wife's murder'

Pic:Darren Byrne has been convicted of the murder of his wife Maria
Crime reporter(wp/es):

A former city trader who killed his wife then tried to burn down the family home to cover it up has been convicted of murder.

Darren Byrne, 40, attacked his 34-year-old wife Maria then turned on the gas in the kitchen of their home in Theydon Bois, Essex, claiming she died making him a bacon sandwich, a court heard. 

He reportedly attacked her while the couple's two young children were staying with their grandparent. 

Byrne killed his wife after she discovered he was having an affair with his osteopath, Chelmsford Crown Court heard. 

He was found guilty of murder and arson by a jury at Chelmsford Crown Court on Monday, Essex Police said.

In a statement released after the trial, Mrs Byrne's mother Linda Biggs said what Darren Byrne did to her daughter was "beyond any human comprehension".

She said: "Eight years ago we entrusted Maria, the most precious thing we had, to Darren Byrne.

"We loved him and treated him like our own son.

"This person, instead of loving and protecting her, took her life in the most degrading way." 

The court heard that Byrne began an affair with an osteopath he was receiving treatment from in London.

He was discovered a first time by his wife but then continued the affair.

When his wife discovered for the second time that he was having an affair he killed her on February 13, 2016.

When paramedics arrived Byrne told them his wife had been making him a bacon sandwich and when he returned home she was dead, the court heard.

Byrne told police he had been out walking his dog.

Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Stephen Jennings said after the hearing: "Byrne brutally killed his wife before dousing her in white spirit and turning the gas on in the kitchen to cover up what he had done.

"He was motivated by his own selfishness and anger, needlessly ending Maria's life in a most horrific way and tearing apart his own family.

"Two young children have been robbed of their mother by their own father and my thoughts are very much with them and Maria's family as they continue to come to terms with their loss.

"Byrne has not shown any remorse and will now have to live with the consequences of what he has done and the devastating impact of his actions."

Byrne is expected to be sentenced later this week.

Post Office workers to strike for five days in run-up to Christmas

Pic:The union is embroiled in a long-running dispute over job losses 
Staff reporter(wp/es):

Post Office workers are set to strike for five days next week in a dispute over jobs, pensions and branch closures.

The action, which will include Christmas Eve, threatens to cause chaos as thousands of staff walk out.

The Communication Workers Union union is embroiled in a long-running dispute over job losses, the closure of a final salary pension scheme and the franchising of Crown Post Offices, the larger branches usually sited on high streets.

CWU assistant secretary Andy Furey said: "All of the blame for this unfortunate turn of events is 100% down to the intransigence of the company, who have launched an unprecedented attack on the jobs, job security, and pensions of thousands of hard-working and loyal Post Office workers.

"Our members want the Post Office management to pause its closure and privatisation programme, hold off on its planned pensions changes, and commit to sitting down with us and with the other key stakeholders of this Great British institution and, together, construct a lasting vision.

"We want to work together to build a positive future for the Post Office, its workforce and, of course, the people who we serve.

"The CWU can be a constructive partner to work with, but sadly, the people currently running the company have, so far, chosen the path of conflict and industrial disputes."

CWU general secretary Dave Ward said: "Our members are being forced into fighting to save their jobs and this great institution from terminal decline.

"We didn't want to be in this position, but unless we stand up now, the Post Office as we know it will cease to exist. We are defending the very future of the Post Office in this country.

"We want a Post Office that works for everyone, for communities, for small and medium-sized businesses, and for the people who serve them - our hard-working members, but the people running the Post Office have no serious plan other than further closures and managed decline and we won't accept that."

"We will be making a firm proposal for meaningful talks to establish a vision for the future and, if the company respond to that positively, then this dispute can be avoided."

Kevin Gilliland, the Post Office's network and sales director, said: "Just today, we agreed with the CWU that we would resume talks, which have been ongoing throughout the summer, on Wednesday.

"We are extremely disappointed that they prefer to resort to calls for strike action and we will be reviewing our position in light of this development. Our focus must be on supporting our customers, who rely on us at Christmas more than ever.

"We want to reassure customers that if further strike action takes place next week at least 97% of our 11,600 branches will not be involved. It will be business as usual in almost all of our network, with over 50,000 Post Office people on hand to support customers as they make their preparations for Christmas.

"The Post Office plays a vital role in communities all over the UK and the changes we are making support our commitment to keeping these services widely available into the future.

"Our progress is clear - over the last four years, we've dramatically reduced our losses and need for Government subsidy, at the same time as modernising nearly 7,000 post offices, adding more than 200,000 extra opening hours each week, and becoming the largest UK retailer open on a Sunday."

Sadiq Khan gives green light for two tallest towers in the City to be built

Staff reporter(wp/es):

A pair of mega-towers that will be the two tallest buildings in the City cleared their final planning hurdle last night when Sadiq Khan gave them both the green light.

Work can now begin on the skyscrapers at 1 Undershaft - better known at The Trellis - and 22 Bishopsgate, the site where the doomed Pinnacle was originally due to be built.

The Mayor gave his consent after developers agreed to include free public viewing galleries in their plans for the buildings. They will also make £6 million of contributions towards affordable housing and £14 million towards the construction of Crossrail.

The 73 storey Trellis will be the highest building in the Square Mile and, at 305 metres, only marginally shorter than The Shard at London Bridge. It was given consent by the City of London Corporation last month.

The 59 storey tower at 22 Bishopsgate will be 255 metres making it the second highest structure in the City. Its planning all-clear ends a saga that dates back to 2001 when the Pinnacle - also known as the Helter Skelter - was first proposed for the site. Work on the tower ended in January 2012 when funding ran out after had reached nine storeys high.

Mr Khan said: “These two projects represent a significant investment in the heart of London’s economy and are a clear sign that the capital is open for business. They will be highly visible signs of London’s enduring appeal as a place to invest.

“These new landmark buildings will offer world-class offices and it’s great news that the development of the site at 22 Bishopsgate can now proceed as this has lain unused for almost five years.

“What’s more, Londoners and visitors alike should have the opportunity to take in the views from the upper reaches of these new buildings, for free, and I’m really pleased we have been able to secure this as part of the plans.”

Teacher at top school sacked over calls, texts and messages to young girls

Pic:Thomas Laessing was sacked and is facing being banned from teaching
Educational reporter(wp/es):

A teacher at one of the country’s top schools was sacked and is facing a classroom ban for sending inappropriate messages to young girls, the Standard can reveal.

Thomas Laessing, a mathematics teacher and head of tennis at St Paul’s School’s junior department - previously known as Colet Court - was also warned by the police to stop harassing one of the youngsters who had asked him to leave her alone.

Laessing, 40, who married his wife Louisa seven years ago, obtained the teenager’s phone number from a ‘crew list’ at a youth sailing organisation where he also worked as a volunteer tutor.

Despite the girl asking him to stop, the teacher continued to ring and message her, resulting in him being issued a police Prevention of Harassment letter.

He even urged the girl to keep his advances secret, knowing it could get him into trouble, and inappropriately pursued two other pupils via Facebook and other social media.

Laessing now faces being struck off as a teacher after being investigated by the government’s schools watchdog.

The professional conduct panel of the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) met in private last month after Laessing was fired by St Paul’s over the incidents.

Its report, seen by the Standard today, found that he failed to maintain appropriate professional standards or appropriate professional boundaries while working as a teacher.

The panel ruled that he was guilty of unacceptable professional conduct, and conduct that may bring the profession into disrepute, relating to “inappropriate telephone, text message and social media contact with pupils”.

A decision on whether he should be allowed to remain a teacher will be made in the coming weeks.

When confronted about the wrongdoing outside a property in Barnes which he rents out on Airbnb, Laessing today simply said: “No comment”.

The allegations came to light when St Paul’s School was contacted by the Richmond Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) which deals with safeguarding issues, the police, and the school which the girl involved attended. 

Laessing was suspended and then sacked by St Paul’s following an investigation. 

A source at the school, where fees cost more than £23,000 a year, said no-one ever had any reason to be concerned about the teacher.

The source said: “He taught our boys maths and tennis for over two years at the school and we never had any complaints from parents, staff or pupils about any inappropriate conduct. 

“St Paul’s has incredibly stringent policies, which includes whistleblowing, to safeguard our boys.”

The NCTL panel found that he had “misused” the crew list from the Ocean Youth Trust South organisation, while also finding that he sent inappropriate messages to two other schoolgirls via social media. 

It said his conduct was “of a serious nature” and fell “significantly short” of the standards expected of the profession.

It was of “particular concern” that his “pre-meditated” conduct was repeated over a roughly three-month period and was “entirely unsolicited”, the panel said, adding: “Mr Laessing was clearly aware that his conduct crossed proper boundaries.

"This is confirmed by his attempt to persuade Pupil A not to share the occurrence of the communications with other people, and by his own statement in a communication with Pupil A that recognised it could get him into difficulty.”   

Laessing, a keen sailor, studied English at Nottingham Trent university before gaining his teaching qualification at St Mary’s University in Twickenham.

He admitted the facts in full in writing earlier this year and was not represented at the hearing.

Mark Todd, chief executive of Ocean Youth Trust South, said it took the safeguarding and welfare of its young people “very seriously”.

He said: “Earlier this year we were made aware of concerns about someone who had volunteered with us and following an investigation, that volunteer was dismissed. 

“We notified the appropriate bodies at the earliest opportunity and have fully co-operated with them.”

He added that they were “greatly saddened that a single individual associated with the charity should fall short of the very high standards that we have established”.

In a statement St Paul’s School said it was “fully committed” to ensuring its standard of safeguarding provision is “of the highest level. 

It said: “Working closely with the police and the LADO, Mr Laessing was dismissed following allegations which related to conduct outside of school. None of the allegations was relating to any pupils at St Paul’s. 

“The School, acting in accordance with employment law and in line with the school’s statutory safeguarding procedures, passed the matter onto the NCTL. 

“This is an excellent example of agencies and schools working together to safeguard children.”

Rush hour Tube commuters face chaos after Brixton signal failure

Pic:Crowds at Brixton
Staff reporter(wp/es):

Commuters on the Victoria line have faced chaos during the morning rush hour after a signal failure at Brixton caused "carnage".

The line was suspended between Victoria and Brixton after the problems broke out, with frustrated passengers being urged to use buses or overground trains.

With no trains on a swathe of the route, severe delays were reported across the entire line.

In a further blow, commuters already hit by a strike on Southern Rail, were also affected by additional delays on the District and Piccadilly lines.

The initial signal problem broke out at around 6.25am, and Transport for London said one platform was put out of action as engineers tried to fix it.

Photos published on social media showed large crowds of passengers struggling to get on packed Tube trains across the network.

Hundreds of commuters were also shown being turned away from Brixton station, with hordes of people swarming at bus stops in a desperate attempt to get to work.

Masses of people were also shown at Finsbury Park station, with reports of a 45 minute wait for trains, as the chaos rumbled on through the morning.

Amol Rajan tweeted: "Avoid Finsbury Park for tube at all costs this morning."

One commuter told the Standard her usual 45-minute journey took double the time.

She said: “When I got to Finsbury Park at 6.45am it was rammed with no space for anyone to get on trains and the platforms were full. 

"People were forced to cram in or wait for 15 minutess – it wasn’t safe with that many people pushing."

“There isn’t really an excuse for there to be such disruption that early in the morning – it’s a joke," she said. 

Olivia Heath tweeted: “As if the Southern train strike wasn't bad enough there's now severe delays on the Victoria line. 

“It's going to be a nightmare morning.”

Alice Vincent warned: “If you're planning on using the Victoria Line to get to work today, it's already a horror show.”  

Elsewhere on the network, a signalling problem at West Kensington caused disruption on the District line.

Piccadilly line commuters also continued to suffer delays after trains were taken out of service due to wet weather.