The girlfriend who could finally endure no more

 

There is an old proverb which says: "As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly." Tammy Kingdon's folly was to return to Troy Mercanti on more than a dozen occasions during their tumultuous 16-year relationship. The final result was that she became, at least as far as the underworld is concerned, a dog - the derogatory term reserved for anyone who gives information to police. It was the prolonged brutality of Mr Mercanti's alleged attack on January 6 which turned the unerringly loyal Ms Kingdon against him. Her lawyers told the Perth District Court last year, after Ms Kingdon was convicted of stealing, that she was a victim of regular physical abuse and had once had her teeth knocked out and an eye socket broken. But she stayed with him anyway. This time it was different. She wasn't beaten because of a drunken quip or because of an argument. Police sources say Mr Mercanti believed Ms Kingdon had been cheating on him with another man. She was allegedly beaten mercilessly and degraded. Mr Mercanti went to Queensland to meet fellow Finks bikies after the incident, while Ms Kingdon stewed about it. Last Friday, she took the two boys she bore to Mr Mercanti and disappeared into police protection. When Mr Mercanti discovered Ms Kingdon and the children were missing, he went on a massive bender which ended when he was arrested on Sunday morning while trying to smash through the sliding glass door of a Duncraig home. He is in custody at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, under armed guard, and requires dialysis after his kidneys shut down. In the long-term, he needs a kidney transplant. But the next move is Ms Kingdon's. She has given police a statement in which she alleges Mr Mercanti bashed her three times in five years, including the attack on January 6. Will she continue with the claim or will she return to him as she has so many times before? The ramifications of her decision are dire. Bikies don't appreciate those who testify against them. And they rarely forgive and forget. Making matters worse for Ms Kingdon is that she has no visible means of support. Her assets consist of two properties - in Jurien Bay and Balga. Both are heavily mortgaged and the Balga property is the headquarters of the Finks. It's difficult to see them paying the rent while she is having their WA leader prosecuted. Just why Ms Kingdon continually returned to an allegedly abusive partner is something that a psychiatrist examined last year as part of the sentencing process after she was convicted of stealing. Dr Sam Febbo's report has been kept private, but the details of Ms Kingdon's life were revealed by her lawyer Stephen Shirrefs in court. Born on July 16, 1976, Tammy Cherie Kingdon grew up in Denmark, but her parents Norman and Faye separated when she was five. Ms Kingdon went to live with her father on a farm about 20km out of town and the District Court was told she was beaten and tormented by her stepmother. She had panic attacks at school because she feared going home. Ms Kingdon finished her schooling to Year 10 in Denmark before completing Year 11 at Albany. She then left to live on the Abrolhos Islands, near Geraldton, where she had a two-year relationship with a crayfisherman. When the relationship ended, Ms Kingdon, aged 18, moved to Perth and worked at the Wanneroo Tavern before moving to Kalgoorlie. There she met Mr Mercanti, then a nominee of the Coffin Cheaters bikie gang. They have been on-and-off ever since she was 19 and now have two children, aged 11 and 10. For a time, Ms Kingdon worked as a stripper, but these days she rarely works. Though she had said during last year's court case that she was leaving him and moving down south to be with family, she did not leave and has since travelled to the Gold Coast and Adelaide to be with Mr Mercanti. Few believe she could now return to Mr Mercanti after making the complaint to police. One said: "He's not the type to let sleeping dogs lie."

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Decapitated man John Grainger in Stockport 'was shot first' as two men quizzed

 

Mr Grainger's body was found by Greater Manchester firefighters as they tackled a blaze shortly after 5am in Wellington Street, near the Gala Casino. The 32-year-old's decapitated corpse, which is also thought to have suffered burns injuries, was found in the street - with his head nearby. A post-mortem examination has now concluded that Mr Grainger died from a blunt force head injury and a 'shotgun wound to the head'. John Grainger's decapitated body was discovered on a grass verge (Picture: PA) Two men, aged 29 and 31, are being held at a Greater Manchester police station, where they are still being quizzed on the circumstances surrounding the discovery. Police have said they were initially arrested on suspicion of possessing shotgun cartridges, before the body was found.. Superintendent Pete Matthews, from Greater Manchester Police, said: 'We have a team of dedicated detectives who are working hard to establish the exact circumstances surrounding John's death, so we can provide his family with some much-needed answers. 'We will be continuing with our inquiries and speaking to local residents. 'We also have extra officers in the area to offer reassurance and assist with the investigation.'

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Psycho gang boss set for arrest over Maria killing

 

THE net is closing in on the 30-year-old criminal who is suspected of murdering Romanian teenager Maria Rostas. Sources say that gardai should be able to re-arrest the psychotic south city gangster "within weeks" after the discovery of the body of the tragic 18-year-old in the Dublin Mountains on Monday. The criminal is in Cloverhill Prison where he is on remand and facing trial for a number of serious criminal offences. He is also the chief suspect for a number of other serious crimes including a pub murder last year. The development comes as authorities in Romania contact-ed the family of the Roma teenager who gardai believe was savagely sexually abused before being shot in the head. It is understood that the family of Maria (Marioara) Rostas, including her father Dimitri, will travel to Ireland to bring her body back home to Romania for burial. Sources are still unsure whether the victim was taken to a house near Newry to be violated by a notorious underworld figure or whether her ordeal involved being assaulted over a number of days in a house in Pimlico before being shot dead and her body dumped. The chief suspect, along with some of his closest associates, was arrested in December, 2008. But they were all released without charge. When arrested, the chief suspect was wearing a bulletproof vest in bed. Gardai have always worked on the theory that Maria was shot dead in the upstairs room of a derelict house in Brabazon Street just days after being abducted as she begged on East Lombard Street on January 6, 2008. The Brabazon Street property was later gutted in a fire which was started by criminals in a bid to destroy evidence. CANDLES The chief suspect is the number one target for gardai and it is understood that a strong case is being built against him. "This maniac is one of the most dangerous criminals in the country. Certain information has been received which indicates that he saw the devil in her eyes which caused him to freak out and shoot her," a source said. "Despite being an absolutely evil individual, he has some kind of strange religious beliefs and is very afraid of the devil. He is all into candles and altars and stuff like that." The investigation has been helped because the victim's remains were very well preserved after being so tightly wrapped in plastic bags. The Herald revealed that two major south Dublin criminals helped the chief suspect bury the body of the tragic teenager. Sources have revealed that the south city gangster enlisted one of his closest associates to help dispose of her body after he shot her. The suspect's pal was so terrified that the gangster would murder him after burying Maria that he brought a close relative with him to help in the dig.

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Gangster gets four years for drug stash

 

A CAREER criminal branded as “extraordinarily dangerous” has been jailed for four years after being caught with heroin worth £50,000 during a police raid. Detectives believe that Ronald Aldred was peddling the Class A drug in Edinburgh and West Lothian after recovering the stash kept at his Kirkliston home. The 44-year-old was jailed for 12 years in 2002 as the ringleader of a gang that took part in a campaign of kidnapping, assault and extortion, which a judge described as being like “something out of a 1930s Hollywood gangster movie”. Aldred had been hired by dealers to recover a kilo of stolen cocaine, and at one point the gang tried to put a loaded gun into a victim’s mouth during a vicious interrogation. In 1992, he was jailed for nine years for two attempted murders after launching an attack with a sword and knife at The Royal Nip pub in Albert Street, Leith. Detective Sergeant Jim Robertson, from the force’s Serious Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), worked on the drug investigation against Aldred, which saw him jailed at the High Court in Edinburgh yesterday. DS Robertson said that Aldred was caught with half a kilo of heroin at his home in Marshall Road, Kirkliston. Aldred, who has a total of five previous convictions, pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of heroin on October 6 last year, and prosecutors have already begun steps to seize his assets under the Proceeds of Crime Act. Police raided his home after a tip-off and found five packages of heroin along with phones, scales, sandwich bags and more than £700 in cash. Prosecutors said that if the heroin had been broken down and sold on as “tenner bags” then it had the potential value of £50,000. His defence counsel, Frank Gallagher, told the court that during his last period in prison Aldred had developed a drug problem and built up debts. Mr Gallagher said that his client agreed to the drugs being in his home in return for the debt being reduced. DS Robertson told the Evening News: “This conviction shows our commitment to tackling serious and organised crime. The drugs were being stored at that address and we’re confident Aldred was involved in dealing. “We welcome this four-year sentence, both as a deterrent to Aldred and to anyone else involved in drug dealing.” In early 2002, Aldred’s gang was recruited to hunt down stolen cocaine, abducting one man from outside a Scottish court who was handcuffed and forced to hand over £7000. Sentencing them for that offence, Lord Dawson told Aldred and his two accomplices: “I regard all three of you as extraordinarily dangerous men against whom the public must be protected.” But Aldred’s 12-year sentence was later cut to eight years by appeal judges. In May 1992, Aldred was found guilty after a five-day trial for attempting to murder two men and seriously assaulting two others. Aldred attempted to murder Thomas Brown by stabbing him with a knife and striking him with a sword, and assaulted Thomas Monaghan with the sword in The Royal Nip in September 1991. He also attempted to murder David McKinlay with a knife in Ardshiel Avenue, Drumbrae, on October 19, 1991 and struck Kevin Smith on the head with a knife in Easter Road on August 3, 1991.

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How supergrass Damon Alvin turned the tables in gangland murder case

 

By the time Dean Boshell's blood-soaked body was found in allotments on the outskirts of Leigh-on-Sea in Essex, rigor mortis had set in. He had been shot once in the head before the killer fired twice more into his temple. The death of Boshell, a 24-year-old petty criminal and police informant, in February 2001 took detectives from Essex police into the heart of the violent and feuding criminal gangs that competed for control of the drugs scene around Southend. When a conviction for Boshell's murder was eventually secured, they made legal history with their use of unprecedented supergrass evidence. Prosecutors described the case as unique: the first time a murder charge had been dropped against one individual, who then went on to become the crown's star supergrass witness against another man who was ultimately convicted. Six years on, however, the activities of Essex detectives and prosecutors, and the lengths they went to in order to convict someone for the murder, are coming under scrutiny – along with a string of other convictions which have relied solely on the uncorroborated word of supergrasses. In the murky world of the supergrasses, most of whom are criminals who snitch on former friends to cut their own jail time, the case of Damon Alvin is unsurpassed. He started his criminal career in his early teens and by his mid-20s was running a mini drugs empire from his dormer bungalow in Benfleet, Essex. Over the years he had been convicted of several offences and been in and out of prison. He had convictions for violence, burglary and drugs offences, and police intelligence showed he was a skilled liar who was involved with firearms. It was during one of his frequent spells in jail that Alvin met Boshell and the pair became close; but the relationship was not on equal terms. According to court papers, Alvin treated Boshell as a gofer, while the younger man looked up to him as a brother. When Boshell was found dead on a cold morning in February 11 years ago, it was a sign to police that rivalries between groups of criminals engaged in supplying drugs in the region had boiled over. Detectives turned first to known associates of the dead man: Alvin, and another known drug dealer, Ricky Percival. Percival had built a drug-dealing business around individuals he met within the Essex bodybuilding scene, according to legal sources close to the case. But during a frustrating inquiry, which for years seemed to go nowhere, it was Alvin that the police focus returned to repeatedly. Arrested three times in three years for the murder, he was often pressed to talk and name others who might have been involved, but always refused. In 2003, after he had been arrested for supplying 1kg of cocaine, detectives recruited him as an informant in their efforts to disrupt local drug gangs, according to court papers. After his third arrest, detectives charged Alvin with the Boshell murder on the basis of mobile phone evidence which proved his alibi for the night was a lie. The mobile footprint revealed Alvin had driven to Southend to collect Boshell on the night he died – something he had never mentioned. Percival and two others were charged with conspiracy to pervert the course of justice; the police alleged they had made up an alibi for the night. What happened as Alvin faced his murder trial is now being scrutinised by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC). Two weeks into the trial at Chelmsford crown court, while lawyers were arguing about admissible evidence, Alvin indicated he wanted to change his story. He spoke out after a successful application by the prosecution to admit into evidence police contact sheets which would reveal to a jury that the dead man was a police informant, who had been passing information to detectives about Alvin for several serious offences – thus providing a murder motive. The trial was halted and in interviews with the police, Alvin accused Percival of being responsible for Boshell's death. Alvin admitted for the first time that he had been at the allotments on the night of the murder, but said he had stood by as Percival first threw bleach in the victim's face, before shooting him dead. Alvin also implicated Percival in a string of other crimes he himself was suspected of, and later admitted to, including the attempted murder of three people in a gangland feud. The police will not comment on the case but are likely to argue that Alvin – facing possible conviction for a crime he had not committed – finally agreed to inform on the individual responsible at the 11th hour. Percival, however, says Alvin did his deal with the police to escape the murder charge and in doing so fingered an "innocent" man. Peter Hughman, a solicitor who has acted for Percival, said: "There is something strange in relying on uncorroborated evidence from a person of simply appalling character." Eight days later, the Crown Prosecution Service sent Alvin a letter announcing the Boshell murder charge was being dropped. He became the crown's star supergrass witness against Percival, and entered into a deal with police and prosecutors which required him to confess all his criminality. Over five and a half months, Essex detectives spent 94 hours interviewing Alvin. In December 2006, after an 11-week trial, Percival was convicted on the basis of Alvin's evidence of the murder of Boshell and given life with a recommendation he serve a minimum of 28 years in prison. Today Alvin is living under a new identity, having been relocated following two and a half years in jail for a string of offences he admitted as part of the agreement he entered into with the police. Over the months he was held in a safe house during his supergrass interviews, police documents show officers spent nearly £35,000 on him – including £7,125 towards a new car and £468 on a laptop. He received money to top up his mobile phone, pay parking fees and buy an enclosure for his tortoises. Alvin also benefited to the tune of £190,000 from the sale of his house, allegedly facilitated by the police while he was in jail. Land Registry records show the property changed hands on 22 November 2006 for £250,000. It is understood there was a £60,000 mortgage on the house. A source close to the process said: "The police were always in the background of the sale." Under the Proceeds of Crime Act, the Essex force could have seized the money from the sale, but no seizure was made and the proceeds went to Alvin. Now 32, Percival is serving his life term at a B category prison, Swaleside in Kent, from where he has been protesting his innocence for six years. Percival – who learned to read and write in prison – told the Guardian: "I still cannot really believe what happened to me. When I first came into prison I was in some kind of intense shock: I couldn't sleep, I was having nightmares, I was turning it all over in my mind – how could this happen in the British justice system? "They had to put me on medication because I was suffering from such anxiety and shock. And today it still feels the same, the shock is as raw. "What makes it even harder is that anyone who has a good understanding of my case says: 'How did a jury convict you?' " Percival's claims of innocence were bolstered recently when he passed a lie detector test – the results of which are being considered by the CCRC. Much derided in the past, the accuracy of polygraph tests has improved so much that they are being evaluated by at least one police force, and the Association of Chief Police Officers could extend the trials across the country. Percival, who admits he played a major role in the Essex gangland drug world, lost his appeal last year. The court of appeal said the case was unique, in that it "relied for its essence on the evidence of a witness, Alvin, who had been charged but acquitted on the same murder as that on which Percival was tried … [The case] stood or fell on Alvin's evidence." But after considering the case, the judges ruled that there was a "richness" to Alvin's story which made it believable, and they refused the appeal. Those close to Percival say this "richness" comes from the months in which Alvin studied the papers from the case while on remand. Evidence in court documents reveals that prison officers said Alvin's cell resembled a police incident room, papered with case documents, timings, maps and testimonies. "Damon Alvin used his year on remand to develop this false story which guaranteed his freedom," said Percival's mother, Sandy. "The records of his statements to police show his story has changed several times. Our argument has always been: show us the corroborative evidence that supports Alvin. There isn't any. "My son has done wrong, I know that, but he is not a murderer. There is no proof that he did any of these things, it is all Alvin's word against his. If I thought my son was a murderer, I would never stick by him." Documents held by the CCRC highlight another key challenge to Percival's conviction. Under the terms of the witness protection scheme Alvin entered into, he had to confess all his criminality. Yet court papers show he did not reveal one key element to his criminality that could breach the protection agreement he entered into, and which raises questions about his credibility as the crown's star witness. Alvin failed to tell police he had previously lied in court – potentially perjuring himself – in order to gain a reduced sentence for possession of 1kg of cocaine. Facing a seven-year sentence, Alvin fabricated a story that his life was under threat from four unnamed gang members, court papers show. To colour his story, he arranged for his wife and mother-in-law to cut out letters from newspapers to create threatening notes, and told another family member to send him a wreath at home, to supplement his claims. He also used hospital records from an injury he received during a domestic row as evidence that he had been attacked. Alvin's story was enough to convince a judge at Basildon crown court, who gave him a reduced sentence of 30 months for the drug offence. Hughman said the CCRC should examine the whole issue of supergrass evidence, and called on the court of appeal to issue guidance on such witnesses. "There should be a continued public interest and questioning about using people who are so manifestly unreliable to secure convictions, even if the authorities are particularly anxious to convict certain people. It doesn't make for safe convictions." The CCRC said it was still examining the case and would not comment. The Guardian made repeated requests to the CPS but it also refused to comment on the case. Detective Chief Superintendent Liam Osborne, of Kent and Essex serious crime directorate, said he would not comment while the case was with the CCRC.

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Two businessman linked to a Glasgow gangland family will have almost £1m assets confiscated under proceeds of crime legislation.

Russell Stirton and Alexander Anderson, who ran a sex toys business and were involved in the McGovern family, will have their homes taken by the Crown as part of the court action.

The pair have never been convicted of a criminal offence in relation to gangland activity, but the long-running action by the Scottish ministers found that they had made money through "unlawful conduct".

Stirton and Anderson were found to have been involved in the importation of drugs and a handgun into the UK, to have extorted "protection money" from Glasgow taxi firm Spring Radio Cars and money laundering through a petrol garage in the city.

In Lady Stacey’s opinion released on Tuesday, both men were also found to have laundered money through purchasing Skoda cars using cash obtained by criminal activity before re-selling the vehicles.

A formal order transferring ownership of the assets, worth £922,000, to the Scottish ministers will be made before it is sold and the proceeds used to fund community projects.

Lady Stacey's opinion states: "I have found that Mr Stirton was present when controlled drugs and a hand gun were imported into Dover from Calais in 1997, in circumstances which prove he was involved in the importation.

"Mr Stirton and Mr Anderson were found to have a large amount of cash in a car on the M74 in 2000, in circumstances from which I infer that they were involved in some capacity in the supplying of controlled drugs or other contraband or the laundering of cash."

Stirton, who is married to Jacqueline McGovern, told the court during the case that began in 2005 that he did not associate with his wife’s brothers who are reported gangland figures based in the Springburn area of Glasgow.

The businessman, who ran the sex toys firm Loveboat with 54-year-old Anderson and who had previously been involved in construction, told a hearing that he was not involved in drug dealing, extortion or money laundering.

Police investigation

After Stirton and Anderson were caught with between £20,000 and £50,000 in cash on the M74 in 2000, a large-scale police investigation was conducted into claims of money laundering and extortion relating to them.

In 2005 they appeared on petition in relation to these allegations, but were released on bail and the criminal case was taken no further.

Lady Stacey also stated in her decision: "I have found that the purchase of Skodas for cash was money laundering, and that payment by Spring Radio Cars of a non-commercial interest in respect of them was achieved by intimidation of the directors of Spring Radio Cars" by Stirton and Anderson.

Houses bought by 51-year-old Stirton, including The Limes in Mugdock and his mother’s home in Milngavie will be confiscated and sold under the order, while the Uddingston house owned by Anderson’s partner Janice Leonard will also be taken under the proceedings after the judge found it was bought through mortgage fraud.

The loan Anderson secured to buy Thomson's Bar in Springburn was obtained by fraud, the judge found, which will result in it also being confiscated by the Crown.

On Tuesday, Ruaraidh Macniven, head of the Civil Recovery Unit, said: "I welcome Lady Stacey's careful and detailed opinion in this long-running case. Her Ladyship's decision vindicates the assessment of the Civil Recovery Unit that Russell Stirton and Alexander Anderson hold property which was obtained through a variety of serious crimes, including extortion, fraud, involvement in the supplying of controlled drugs or other contraband and the laundering of cash.

"Those crimes have a destructive impact on individuals and businesses in Scotland and it is important that all of the available tools, including civil recovery, are used to tackle those who seek to profit through them.

"The unit does not shy away from difficult and complex cases which can take some time to resolve. Our focus is on both the disruption of crime and depriving criminals of their assets. In this case the unit has shown that we are determined to disrupt crime and to ensure that any proceeds of crime are recovered and put to good use in our communities."

All money raised from the selling off of Stirton and Anderson’s assets will be invested by the Scottish Government into its CashBack programme to fund community projects.

Chief Supt Wayne Mawson, of Strathclyde Police, added: "Strathclyde Police also notes, with pleasure, the successful outcome to this very long-running and often complex case.

"Its result bears proper testament to the assiduous and exhaustive efforts of a large number of officers, and members of police staff, whose work went towards identifying and recovering the evidence to support the claim.

"The Proceeds of Crime Act offers a valuable tool to law enforcement agencies to see that ill-gotten gains do not remain ill-gotten. This case also offers a timely reminder that the police and other justice agencies will pursue the holders of such property for however long it takes."

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News International faces FBI phone hacking probe

 

Yesterday the company paid the actor £130,000 after accepting that it had published stories gleaned from hacking his phone. One of the articles News International accepted had come from phone hacking was a 2003 story in the News of the World which referred to telephone calls Law’s assistant Ben Jackson had made to him when he arrived at an airport. It is believed the airport was John F. Kennedy airport in New York. News International’s admission has led the US authorities to investigate whether a crime took place on American soil. It is thought the possibility that Law’s phone was using an American network at the time could lead to offences having been committed under US law.

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Machete-wielding bank boss ‘received death threats from Sunderland gangster’

 

BANK sales manager armed himself with two machetes after underworld loan sharks torched his home and threatened to “make his life a misery”, he told a court. Debt-ridden David Baker turned to the criminal fraternity to borrow £5,000 in cash, despite holding down a £30,000-a-year job with Barclays. But, when he was unable to repay the loan given to him by a “well-known” Wearside gangster, his Audi A5 was torched on the driveway of his Seaham home and he later received death threats. Just 24 hours later – on Christmas Eve last year – arsonists set his front door alight as his partner and young daughter sat upstairs. Fearing for his life, he armed himself with two foot-long machetes and stashed them in the footwell of his partner’s car as they drove to meet an acquaintance who might be able to end his problem. And, after discovering his home had been targeted, he flew into a rage at passing motorist Lee Atkinson and brandished the blades, screaming: “Do you want some you little ****.” David Wilkinson, prosecuting, said: “Mr Atkinson was driving along the Coast Road when the defendant and his partner Vicky Barnes were driving behind his vehicle. They overtook the vehicle and pulled in front. Mr Atkinson saw that the defendant was holding a knife that had a blade of about a foot in length and a width of about two inches. “He shouted: ‘Do you want some of this you little ****?’. “He had acted out of the misapprehension that Mr Atkinson was linked to the incident at his home. “Officers recovered two machetes, which were 15ins in length. In an interview, he said he was in debt to a gangster he was not going to name. “He heard from third parties that the person concerned was going to make his life a misery and he then bought the two machetes for his own protection.” Baker had applied for a loan at his work after deciding that he wanted to buy a second car for him and his family. But, after building up debt during his youth, his credit history was shot and they rejected his request. In September last year, he opted to take a four-month break from work to spend more time with his family. At the same time, he claimed he was making £10,000 a month working as a professional gambler on internet gaming sites. His friend had told him that he could get him a loan and he was eventually given a £5,000 pay-out. However, after he failed to make the repayments he said that he began receiving threats and his house and car were both set on fire. Following the attack on his home, his partner received a phone call from the Sunderland gangster and she told police he was calling to follow up his threats. Baker, 23, from Seaham, appeared at Durham Crown Court yesterday after he pleaded guilty to possession of an offensive weapon and using threatening and abusive behaviour. But Judge Michael Cartlidge adjourned the case after questioning Baker’s legal team, led by Lewis Kerr, and saying he wanted Baker to prove that he had applied for a loan. The judge said: “He must have though at some point that this was all sounding a bit rubbish.”

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Thousands of children are being "needlessly dumped in prison" because of Britain's failing youth justice system

 

Thousands of children are being "needlessly dumped in prison" because of Britain's failing youth justice system, a think-tank has warned. The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) said courts and prisons were being used to "parent children" and were expected to sweep up problem youngsters inadequately dealt with by other departments, such as social services. In a new report, the group called for a radical overhaul in the way the Government deals with young offenders. It said there needed to be a drastic cut in the 5,000 children a year currently given custodial sentences, arguing the imprisonment of youths between the age of 10 and 17 should be limited to the "critical few" guilty of the most serious or violent crimes. The CSJ said too many children are being taken before the youth courts for trivial reasons. The report cited one example where a child who had thrown a bowl of Sugar Puffs at his care worker, jumped out of the window, then climbed back in, was held in a police cell over a weekend on suspicion of assault and attempted burglary. The independent think-tank, set up in 2004 by Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith, urged a return to a "common-sense" approach to minor incidents with parents and teachers using their judgment to deal with them at a home or school level. It also criticised the widespread use of short sentences for young offenders, arguing they undermine justice and disrupt attempts to educate and rehabilitate them. Gavin Poole, executive director of the CSJ, said: "Many young people fall into the system unnecessarily and do not receive the help they need to free themselves from it. Custody is sometimes neither a protective nor a productive place for children, and community orders can be equally ineffective. Moreover, despite years of good intentions, many young people leaving custody are still not being provided with the basic support they need for rehabilitation." Among a series of recommendations, the CSJ said there should be no sentences shorter than six months and an emphasis should be placed on non-custodial punishments where underlying behavioural problems can be tackled more effectively. The group also said measures to prevent lawbreaking by young people should be the primary responsibility of child welfare services rather than the youth justice system. It added local services needed to work together to ensure that young people and their families receive the help they need early.

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Birmingham murders: Second man arrested

 

A second man has been arrested on suspicion of murder over the death of a couple in Birmingham. The 41-year old is being questioned over the murder of Carole, 58, and Avtar Singh-Kolar, 62, who were found dead at their home in Handsworth Wood. Post-mortem tests confirmed the couple died as a result of blunt force trauma to the head and that both had been struck a number of times. A 24-year-old man arrested on Friday in Birmingham remains in custody. The couple's bodies were discovered on Wednesday by their son, Jason, a serving police officer.

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Man arrested on suspicion of murder

 

24-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder over the death of a couple in Birmingham. Carole, 58, and Avtar Singh-Kolar, 62, were found dead at their home in Handsworth Wood on Wednesday. Post-mortem tests confirmed the couple died as a result of blunt force trauma to the head and that both had been struck a number of times. Their bodies were discovered by their son, Jason, who is an officer with West Midlands Police. Officers arrested the man at a house in the city on Friday night. He has been taken to a police station in the West Midlands where he is being questioned on suspicion of murder. Det Supt Richard Baker, who is leading a team of more than 60 officers assigned to the case, said: "This was a horrendous attack. "We continue to follow a number of lines of enquiry and we thank those who have called us so far. We encourage anyone with information to speak to us no matter how insignificant they feel the detail is." Crimestoppers said the double murder was a "vile crime" and has put up a £10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible. 'Special people' The couple had four children and eight grandchildren. At an emotional press conference on Thursday, two of the children made a desperate plea for help to catch their killers. Daughter Michelle Kirwan, 39, described them as "the sweetest, kindest people that I have ever met". She said: "Our hearts are broken forever and our lives will never be the same." Detectives have said they are looking into a number of lines of inquiry, including a rise in burglaries and gold thefts in the area. Speaking earlier this week, Mr Baker said a possible link between Jason Kolar's position with the force and his parents' death was "not a significant line of inquiry".

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Royal Navy captures 13 Somali pirates

 

The Royal Navy has captured 13 Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean, the Ministry of Defence says. RFA Fort Victoria and a US Navy vessel intercepted the pirates' boat, which had refused to stop despite warning shots from a Royal Navy helicopter. Royal Marines in speedboats approached the vessel and boarded it, capturing 13 pirates and seizing weapons. Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said the UK troops, part of a Nato-led force, could be "proud" of the success. "The Royal Navy and Royal Marines are playing a crucial role in securing and protecting international sea lanes that are vital to global trade," the minister said. The dhow was identified as a known pirated vessel operating in Indian Ocean shipping lanes Capt Gerry Northwood, who leads the counter-piracy operation on RFA Fort Victoria, said: "This firm and positive action will also send a clear message to other Somali pirates that we will not tolerate their attacks on international shipping." The operation was carried out around dawn on Friday. Capt Shaun Jones RFA, commanding officer on RFA Fort Victoria, said: "To manoeuvre such a large ship at speed in close vicinity of a nimble dhow takes extreme concentration and skill; my team were never found wanting. "The 13 Somalis certainly found Friday 13th unlucky for them.

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Officer finds own parents Avtar and Carole Kolar killed in ‘revenge attack’

 

The unnamed son went round to see Avtar Kolar, 62, and his wife Carole, 58, after they failed to answer his morning phone call. ‘It was obvious from the scene the couple had been assaulted and had more than likely died of their injuries,’ said Dep Supt Richard Baker, who is leading the inquiry. When asked if it might be a revenge attack linked to their son’s police work, Mr Baker replied: ‘We are definitely looking at that as a possibility but we have no information to suggest it is the case at this stage.’ Mr Baker added: ‘At 7.15 on Tuesday night, a family member spoke to Carole and there were no issues. At 8am yesterday, their son went round to find the couple dead at the scene.’ Detectives were keeping an open mind about what kind of weapon was used. ‘We have a full team of experts and forensic scientists now at the  address,’ said Mr Baker. The couple, who had four sons and eight grandchildren and had been married for 40 years, had lived in  Birmingham for most of their lives. ‘The local community – and the  family – have been extremely  supportive in what they are telling us and how they are co-operating with us,’ Mr Baker added. ‘We will catch the people responsible but we would like to make an appeal for information at this very early stage.’ More than 60 detectives, as well as uniformed offiers, from the West Midlands force are working on the case. Post-mortem examinations will be carried out on Thursday or Friday.

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