Man shot dead on doorstep A man in his 20s died after being shot on the doorstep of his home in Point Clear, Essex, police said. The victim, who has not been named, was attacked at 9.20pm on Tuesday. Detectives said that a “politely spoken” man of Asian or Turkish appearance called at the victim’s home before the shooting. It is not clear whether the attacker, who was about 5ft 10in and in his 20s or early 30s, arrived by foot or in a vehicle.
Victim’s last words
A dying man named his killer after being shot by a rival gang in front of his girlfriend in Willesden Green, northwest London, the Old Bailey was told. Jahmall Moore, 22, shouted “Rufus” before he died. Roberto Parchment, 24, known as Rufus, and Romain Whyte, 25, deny murder. The trial continues.
Unionist anger
Tony Blair has angered Unionists by comparing Islamist extremists with Protestant terrorists. He was accused by Ian Paisley Jr of character assassination after saying that terrorists were no more proper Muslims than “the Protestant bigot who murders in Northern Ireland is a proper Christian”.
Teacher convicted
A primary school teacher who used his mobile phone to photograph a half-naked seven-year-old pupil was found guilty of 18 counts of making possessing and distributing indecent images. Ryan Price, 41, from Kingsbury, northeast London, will be sentenced by Harrow Crown Court on April 12.
Alzheimer’s drug
Aricept, a drug used to treat Alzheimer’s disease, can reverse some of the severe symptoms that appear in the late stages, a study in Sweden suggests. Until now the drug has been used mainly in mild Alzheimer’s, but the trial published by The Lancet online shows it has benefits for sufferers at advanced stages.
Everest attempt
A team of soldiers hoping to become the first Britons to climb Everest by its treacherous West Ridge have set off for the Himalayas. The nineteen men and two women have been training for the attempt since 2003. Only nineteen people have conquered the route, last attempted ten years ago.
New Booker deal
The Booker Prize has reached a new £5 million sponsorship agreement with Man Group, the futures brokers. The literary award will be called the Man Booker Prize for another five years under the agreement, which takes effect from November. The deal also covers the biennial Man Booker International Prize.
Cancer screen ‘under threat’
The cash crisis within the NHS threatens to delay a new screening programme for bowel cancer planned to begin next month (Nigel Hawkes writes).
Cancer Research UK has accused the Department of Health of “unacceptable prevarication” over the programme, while an editorial published online by the British Medical Journal said that the programme faced a delay because no funding had been put in place.
Bowel cancer is the second biggest cancer killer in the UK after lung cancer. In 2004, 16,148 people died from it.
Bogus passport
A pregnant teenager has been sentenced to six months youth custody by Maidstone Crown Court for attempting to leave Britain on a false passport. The court also recommended that Halima Aboubacar, 19, from Cameroon, West Africa, be deported after completing her custodial sentence.
Falconio story
Joanne Lees, the British backpacker who survived an attack in the Outback in 2001 in which her boyfriend, Peter Falconio, was murdered, has signed a deal to write a book. The publisher Hodder Australia said that it would be released after the killer’s appeal hearing in September.
Hepatitis C fears
Official figures could greatly underestimate the number of people infected with hepatitis C, a specialist said. The Health Protection Agency puts the figure at about 200,000 in England and Wales, but it could be as high as a million, said William Rosenberg, a professor at the University of Southampton.
Rare violin found
A Stradivarius violin that went missing in 1985 is being reunited with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra after it was discovered by a London auction house. The 1725 instrument is estimated to be worth about £570,000 and was found in the US by a specialist from Bonhams. Only 600 Stradivarius violins exist.
Ashdown honour
Lord Ashdown of Morton-sub-Hamden, the former Liberal Democrat leader, is to receive an honorary degree from the University of Ulster. The honour is in recognition of his peace-keeping work as the international community’s High Representative in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
War camp views
An album of postcards documenting life in a First World War German prison camp was sold at auction by Bonhams for £611. The 77 cards are signed by George Muffin, who was interned in Ruhleben camp for the duration of the war.
Police target sex traffickers
A police crackdown on sex trafficking has rescued 13 women allegedly forced into prostitution, and a girl aged 15. Operation Pentameter, which involves all 55 forces in the UK, has also led to more than 50 arrests of suspected human traffickers.
The 14 alleged victims come from several Eastern European countries, but also from Brazil and Zimbabwe.
Officers have executed warrants in brothels, massage parlours and private homes.
Police have asked men who use prostitutes to be on the lookout for women who may have been lured into the sex trade against their will. Clients who do so will not face prosecution.
Fraudster jailed
A benefits cheat who took part in half-marathons while claiming that he was virtually unable to walk has been jailed for 12 months by Liverpool Crown Court. Stephen Sinnott, 49, of Kirkdale, Liverpool, claimed more than £23,000 in disability allowance. After a tip-off, he was filmed training for road races with his club, the Penny Lane Striders. He pleaded guilty to two offences, and asked for 234 similar offences to be taken into consideration.
Last wish by text
A pensioner texted his wife to say he had fulfilled his dream of climbing a mountain on holiday — and died hours later of a heart attack.
Geoffrey Haworth, 79, a retired school inspector, had wanted to scale the 561m-high Morey mountain in Majorca ever since he and his wife Kath, 77, bought a nearby flat 20 years earlier. Mr Haworth finally managed it while on a walking holiday with friends as his wife stayed at home in Eaton, Norfolk.
Fire attack on boy
A schoolboy suffered severe burns after two hooded youths attacked him with a homemade flame-thrower made out of an aerosol can. Luke Wenman, 14, from Bishop’s Cleeve, Gloucestershire, was left with severe injuries to his hands and arms when he tried to stop his face being burnt by the assailants, who then fled the scene of the attack laughing. Gloucestershire police are looking for two white youths aged 16.
Tree thieves strike
Police are looking for thieves who stole 400 trees from a beauty spot. The culprits dug up and removed a 330ft stretch of trees lining a footpath in Bosham, West Sussex.
Claire Wilton, of the Chichester Conservation Volunteers, said that her team of 25 helpers had spent days in the rain planting the saplings. She added: “It’s such a shame because this was going to be such a wonderful addition to the area.”
