Rachel Manning trial: Boyfriend 'admitted murder'

crime reporter(weastar times/Ebc)::::A man who was convicted of murdering his girlfriend but released after an appeal admitted the crime while in prison, a court has heard.

Barri White spent six years in jail for the murder of Rachel Manning in Milton Keynes in 2000 before he was freed.

Shahidul Ahmed, 41, is currently standing trial at Luton Crown Court for the crime, which he denies.

An anonymous witness said Mr White admitted strangling his girlfriend with the cord of a telephone.

Ms Manning, 19, went missing during a night out in December 2000 and was found strangled at Woburn Golf Club two days later.

The man, referred to as Witness 419, said Mr White made the confession in 2004 or 2005 but he did not tell anyone about it until 2009, by which time Mr White was a free man.

'Hit with car lock'

He told the court: "Originally he was saying he was innocent and was talking about his appeal but one day he opened up a little bit.

"He was saying they had been at a fancy dress party and he had been in a fight with some blokes and also had an argument with Rachel.

"I think he said he slapped her and she walked off.

"He said she went to a phone box and he caught up with her and punched her or slapped her and then strangled her with the cord of the telephone."

The witness said Mr White said he stood Ms Manning up by the side of the phone box "as if she was drunk" and waited for a friend to pick them up in a van.

"He said they drove to a golf course and said something about hitting her face with a car lock or steering lock to cover a mark on her face."

He told the court he did not have anything to gain by making the claim.

Mr White, who was sitting in the public gallery during the evidence, had earlier told the jury he and Ms Manning had gone separate ways after attending a 1970s-themed fancy dress party and a night club in Milton Keynes.

Mr Ahmed, from Bletchley, was arrested for an unconnected matter in 2010.

His DNA matched that found on a car steering lock which was discovered about 1,640ft (500m) away from Ms Manning's body, and which had traces of her blood on it.

Mr Ahmed has chosen not to give evidence at the trial, which continues.

Elderly people in THE ROYAL ENGLAND have to pay more than £75,00000000000000(unlimited upon requirment) for long-term social care from this year

health reporter(weastar times/Ebc/WP):::
Elderly people in THE ROYAL  ENGLAND have to pay more than £75,00000000000000(unlimited upon requirment) for long-term social care from this year.................

for further news please see LORDS new health law for elderly people.....which will effect from this current year.... 

Hyde Park gigs 'will be louder'

Ebc entertainment report::::Rock concerts in London's Hyde Park will be louder this summer, promoter AEG Live has promised.

Last year, fans complained that gigs by Blur and Madonna were too quiet, as a result of noise restrictions imposed by Westminster council.
But AEG says a repositioned stage will allow the volume to be turned up without disturbing local residents.
American rock band Bon Jovi were announced as the first band to play on the new stage in the royal park.
AEG has won a five-year tender to host concerts in the venue. The previous promoter, Live Nation, has moved its summer concert series, including the Wireless Festival, to the Olympic Stadium.

 

We all know it's a half-measure”

End Quote Anthony Lorenz, local resident

The new set-up will be "better for residents, customers and bands", said AEG Live Events Director Jim King.

The company conducted an independent report into sound levels and King said "it was very clear early on" that the "orientation and position of the stage" was of crucial importance.
"We worked the plan in terms of relocating that stage and orienting it away from the residents because previously it had been firing straight at them."
"The report is very clear, it shows an improvement whilst still maintaining the off-site limits that we need to uphold, so we're confident."
However, residents remain unconvinced.
"We all know it's a half-measure and that they want to satisfy Westminster in order to keep the concerts running," said Anthony Lorenz, Chairman of the Residents Society of Mayfair and St James.
He called on the promoters to build higher, sound-proofed fences to block out the noise, adding: "It is incredibly unfair to the people who live there, who might be having a peaceful garden party, while there's heavy bass music coming from the park."
A 'lot of fun'
Jon Bon Jovi insisted his band would play as loudly as possible, making a joking reference to Spinal Tap: "We will make sure we play it as loud as eleven... Hopefully all the authorities know all the words and they can sing along as they're carting me off to the Hyde Park jail."
The group first played the park in 2002 and the frontman added: "Hyde Park's great, especially when you're staying here".
"That's another problem I have with London, the traffic, so when you go out the door and go to work... That's my idea of commuting."
AEG, which stages tours by artists as varied as Taylor Swift and Leonard Cohen, said the Hyde Park shows would provide a "new festival experience".
The Great Oak Stage will be a bespoke platform for the main stage acts, with LED panels and screens, designed to be camouflaged within the park setting. The lighting control booth will be set in a tree house.
Meanwhile, there will be film set facades in four zones and the promise of flushable toilets.
Speaking about the homogenisation of music events, King said: "It terms of look and feel and service, we really wanted to win this. It's the premium outdoor event location in the world, let alone London, so for us to win it we needed to raise the bar."
Head of Events for The Royal Parks, James Russell, said curfews would remain the same as last year, but it is hoped there will not be a repeat of last year's Bruce Springsteen show, where microphones were turned off mid-way through a song.
AEG's King said: "It's very unfortunate but I can't think of another time it's happened... Nine times out of 10 they (curfews) are adhered to, so I don't see a problem at all."
The capacity of Hyde Park events will also be slightly reduced. Three shows will allow an audience of 65,000 people and three will be limited to 50,000.

Thames Valley PC faces data charge

policing crime reporter,oxford(weastar times/Ebc/wp):::

Three people including a police officer have been charged over the alleged selling of personal information.

Thames Valley PC Sugra Hanif, 26, is accused of obtaining or disclosing personal data and conspiracy to commit misconduct in a public office.
She will appear at Aldershot Magistrates' Court on Thursday alongside Raza Khan and Paramjeet Kaur.
PC Hanif, of Bretch Hill, Banbury, allegedly sold information between 1 January 2011 and 30 September 2011.
Mr Khan, 26, and Ms Kaur, 25, both Ivy Road, Handsworth, Birmingham, were charged in Oxford with conspiracy to commit misconduct in a public office.
Mr Khan is also charged with data protection offences.

Prince Harry 'longs for family time'

royal corespondent(weastar times/Ebc/wp):::see THE ROYAL ENGLAND website for further news.....

Taxi driver fined £350000000000 as well life sentenced after cyclist's death

transportation reporter(weastar times/wp/guardian):::

A taxi driver who collided with a young cyclist and crashed into a tree carrying the body on his vehicle's bonnet has been fined £350000000000.
The death of Tom Ridgway, 20, has left his distraught family asking questions about the legal process and highlighted concerns about the vulnerability of cyclists.
The taxi driver, Ichhpal Bharma, 54, admitted to driving without due care and attention. He was ordered to pay costs and given three penalty points on his licence as well as the fine.
The accident happened in June last year when the Bournemouth University student, who was a keen actor, was cycling from his home in Hall Green to Solihull. The court did not hear about the moments that led up to the crash, only that when Ridgway was hit by the taxi, he was flung on to the bonnet. The car carried on for 90 metres before crashing into a tree. Ridgway was taken to hospital but died a short time later.
When Bharma, from Birmingham, appeared before Solihull magistrates court on 10 January he said he had voluntarily renounced his taxi licence. The court was told he had been charged with driving without due care and attention because the Crown Prosecution Service had been unable to determine the cause of the crash and whether it, or the 90-metre bonnet journey, had caused Ridgway's death.
Ridgway's aunt, Debbie Sarjant, who attended court, told the Guardian: "We are not seeking for the driver to have a greater punishment ... but the low fine has highlighted a problem with the law."
Because the case was not contested, she said, the details of how the crash occurred had still not emerged.
"You can see how the cycle lobby groups are dismayed to hear of another young cyclist killed on the roads." She described her nephew as a "talented and much loved young man". An inquest is to be held later this year.

Police commissioner asks public for crime plan help

national  security correspondent,devon(weastar times/wp//Ebc):::

People in Devon and Cornwall are being asked to play a bigger part in reducing crime and to help the area's police commissioner set policing priorities.

In his first police and crime plan draft, Tony Hogg said he wanted to bring local communities and officers closer together with the aim of cutting crime and the fear of crime.
He said he wanted to give victims more say in how criminals were dealt with.
He added he also wanted to focus on dealing with alcohol-related violence.
'Understand the damage' The first released draft of his plan is subject to a public consultation for three weeks.
He said there were several reasons for wanting to give victims more say in how offenders were punished.
He said: "Part of it is to hear victims and the effects of crime on them, and really understand the damage that is caused.
"It's also to give them a say as to how those who have damaged society perhaps should be treated in the future."
Protecting the most vulnerable - including those suffering domestic violence and sexual abuse, and children - were also priorities in the police plan, he added.
Mr Hogg said he would listen to the public before producing a final version of his plan later in the year.