Smileband general news

A police constable has been sacked after an illicit encounter with a woman he had driven home earlier in a police car. PC Andrew Sweeney, 35, was dismissed from Hertfordshire Constabulary after an incident in September 2016, which began when he was on duty and gave a vulnerable woman a lift home in a marked police vehicle.

During the journey, telephone numbers were exchanged and messages were then sent between them, a disciplinary panel heard. Once PC Sweeney finished his shift, he visited the home address of the woman where consensual sex took place.

Sweeney worked within a local policing team in Hertford, and he was fired following a misconduct hearing.

Hertfordshire Deputy Chief Constable, Michelle Dunn, said: 'PC Sweeney's behaviour was totally unacceptable and it is quite right that he has been dismissed without notice.

'He grossly breached the high standards of professional conduct and ethical behaviour that we and the public expect from the police service.

'There is no place in Hertfordshire Constabulary for those who exploit vulnerable people, especially when we should be there to protect and support them.'

David Lloyd, the Police Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire, said: 'PC Sweeney's behaviour brought the excellent reputation of Hertfordshire Constabulary into disrepute.

'He failed to live up to the high standards we rightly expect of our officers and broke the trust of a vulnerable person. He fundamentally undermined the position of police officer.

'I welcome the decision of the panel and am pleased that the message from the Deputy Chief Constable has been so clear. This conduct will not be tolerated and the Constabulary will make sure that officers who break the rules are held to account for their behaviour.

'I also welcome the fact that these hearings now take place in public, which demonstrates how seriously complaints against the police are taken and the firm action which is taken as a result.'

The panel found that PC Sweeney, who was based in Hertford, had breached the Standards of Professional Behaviour namely Authority, Respect and Courtesy and Discreditable Conduct.

The panel found that these breaches amounted to Gross Misconduct.

Smileband general news

Armed robbers broke into a house in a wealthy Home Counties village and forced a cyber-currency trader to transfer a fortune in Bitcoin to them on his computer. The heist – believed to be the first of its kind in Britain – comes as the virtual currency has soared in value to just under £8,000 for a single coin.

Four thugs in balaclavas broke into the house. They tied up the man’s wife and put the couple’s baby outside in a pram, before threatening him with a gun and forcing him to transfer his Bitcoin into their control. The target of the robbery on Monday morning was a trader in the Oxfordshire village of Moulsford, where several episodes of Midsomer Murders have been filmed.

Bitcoin is favoured by criminals because it cannot be tracked by government officials, making it extremely difficult to track down the raiders.

It exists only in cyberspace and can be exchanged anonymously at the click of a mouse and then exchanged for normal money.

Horrified staff and children were locked inside a nearby independent school, Cranford House, as police deployed a helicopter to track the suspects while detectives quizzed locals and trawled through their bins for clues.

Cranford House headmaster Dr James Raymond emailed parents with Thames Valley Police’s appeal for witnesses – specifically for dashcam footage and anyone who saw four men acting suspiciously in the village.

A mother on the school run told The Mail on Sunday: ‘I saw four young men in black tracksuits with the hoods pulled up, crossing the road to the property where it took place.’

She added: ‘They were aged 18 to 25, dark-skinned and super-fit. They jumped over the fence on the other side of the road. I didn’t see any gun, but that’s what people locally are saying – and that the men wore balaclavas which I didn’t see either, just the hoodies pulled up. Last night, a Thames Valley Police spokesman confirmed an ‘aggravated burglary’ took place in Moulsford and said they believed the property was targeted.

Crypto-currency experts said the growing attention around Bitcoin could encourage other criminals to use similar tactics.

Mark Shone, chief executive of Explain The Market, said: ‘These are criminals who have likely caught on to the current popularity of Bitcoin.

‘But depending on how much they have, these coins are like being in possession of a rare painting. Trying to exchange large amounts for normal money without alerting suspicion will be very difficult.’

The police spokesman said: ‘Officers were called at about 9.40am to a report that offenders had entered a residential property off Reading Road and threatened the occupants. No one was seriously injured during the incident. The National Police Air Service helicopter was deployed to this incident. 

‘Officers are particularly interested in speaking to anyone travelling through the village on the A329 Reading Road between 7.30am and 10.30am on Monday who has dashcam footage, or anyone with mobile-phone footage.

‘People in the local community may notice an increased presence of officers in the area while our inquiries are ongoing. The investigation is in its early stages, however initial inquiries suggest this may be a targeted incident.

Smileband general news

A friend of a mother who was killed in a car with a shotgun has told how she was being stalked by a man shortly before her murder. Police received several reports that a shot had been fired on Farmers Gate, Newport, Shropshire, at just before 11.15pm on Friday January 26. 

Neighbours told how the teenage daughter of the victim was heard screaming 'my mum's been shot, she's dead' before officers arrived to find the woman in a black Range Rover Evoque with a gunshot wound to her neck. Paramedics desperately tried to save the woman, who is in her 50s, but she was declared dead at the scene.

West Mercia Police said a 45-year-old man was arrested on farmland in nearby Sutton, Staffordshire. A shotgun was also found with him. 

The man, from Newport, Shropshire, was held on suspicion of murder and is currently in hospital under police guard.

One Facebook user said: 'I know this woman and she moved to get away, he found her by stalking, shot her and my friend has lost her mom.

'There's nothing wrong with Shropshire. He lived in Sutton, she moved to get away from him, however he found her by stalking her. 

'I'm a friend of the lady's family. We are all hoping he wakes up and faces justice. A court of law will [bring him to justice], that's if he survives.

'We are in a great deal of shock. Lovely woman and fantastic mother and she will be sadly missed and that's all I'm prepared to say.' West Mercia Police currently believe the suspect and the deceased knew one another. 

Donna Campbell, 38, lives by the woman and said: 'I heard two bangs and thought it was fireworks to start with.

'Then I heard screaming, looked out the bedroom window and saw a silver Range Rover wheel spinning off.

I looked and a young girl was screaming 'my mum's been shot, my mum is dead,'

'I phoned 999 and went out to see if I could help. The girl was just crying that her mum was dead and one of the other neighbours was on the phone to the police.

'He was asking if I could check the lady in the car for a pulse but by that point the ambulance and police were just arriving.

Smileband general news

Piers Morgan has called for Donald trump to replace Mr Wenger as arsenal manager - because he can 'build a strong defence wall'. The TV presenter has long called for Wenger to be ousted from the club after 14 years without a Premier League title. 

Teasing his exclusive interview with the US President, Morgan also released a photo of himself holding an Arsenal shirt with the name 'Trump' on the back while sitting beside the billionaire.

He said: 'The moment I invite President Trump to be Arsenal's new manager - because he'd build a strong defensive wall, have an attacking philosophy and want to win big trophies at all costs.'

Earlier this year Wenger refused to step down and insisted the club's turmoil had merely strengthened his resolve to remain as manager.

Arsenal are currently trailing three points behind arch rivals Tottenham and five behind fourth place Liverpool, who occupy the final Champions League spot. But when asked in January if this could be his final season following a campaign of adversity, Wenger said: 'No, that's not the way I respond.

'I agree completely that 2018 until now has not been very positive but I am long enough in the job to know that what is important is how we respond to it and to focus on the performance.

'My personal situation is a bit secondary to all of that, what is important is how the team responds and what we make of 2018. 

During the interview Trump also apologised for retweeting videos posted online by Britain First and said he did it because he is a 'big believer in fighting radical Islamic terror'.

The 71-year-old was speaking to Morgan in Davos, Switzerland, and eventually said he would apologise if the far-right group was seen as being 'horrible and racist'.

It comes after the politician landed himself in hot water after he retweetedthree clips which purportedly showed 'anti-Muslim' material. Trump said that he retweeted the videos because he is a 'big believer in fighting Islamic terror' and also said he is the 'least racist person that anybody's going to meet'.

And just hours after the interview was aired on ITV this morning, Ms Fransen hit back at Morgan and demanded a sit down with him following the 'horrific accusations' he made.

Speaking outside a court in Belfast, where she faced a hate speech charge, she said: 'I have challenged Piers Morgan to sit down with me and to discuss these absolutely horrific accusations that I am a horrible nasty racist - something I wholeheartedly refute.'

If you're telling me they're horrible people, horrible racist people I would certainly apologise if you would like me to do that.  President Donald Trump

But Piers quickly replied on Twitter and wrote: 'Here's my apology to her: 'Sorry I wasn't more offensive about you'.'

It comes after the President, who also met Mrs May at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday, said: 'I know nothing about them and I know nothing about them today. Other than I read a little bit.

'I guess, again I'm in the United States, so I didn't read as much about it, perhaps it was a big story in Britain, perhaps it was a bit story in the UK. 

'But in the United States it wasn't a big story. I did a retweet. When you do your own tweeting, or you do your own social media, it's fine. 

'When you do those retweets it can cause problems, because you never know who's doing it to start off with.

'I don't know who they are, I know nothing about them, so I wouldn't be doing that. I am, as I say often, the least racist person that anybody's going to meet. 

'Certainly I wasn't endorsing anybody. I knew nothing about them. They had I guess a couple of depictions of radical Islamic terror. 

'Radical Islamic terror, whether you like talking about it or not Piers, it's a fact. 

'You look at what's going on in UK and you look at what's going on all over the world, you can try and shield it. 

Smileband general news

The younger generation face working until they reach 71, official forecasters warn. The state pension age will need to rise by about a year every decade, a report by the Government Actuary’s Department said.

It means those millennials who are aged around 20 will have to work to 71 before being getting the state pension. Those in their 30s must wait till 69.

To cope with an ageing population, the Actuary’s Department also said National Insurance (NI) rates may have to soar to keep the pension pot sustainable. It said the fund would not remain in balance unless NI rates rose by 5 percentage points, adding £1,000 to the average worker’s annual tax bill. Ministers announced last summer that the state pension age would rise to 68 from 2037 – a decade earlier than originally planned. This change affects people currently around the age of 50.

Ministers have not said what will happen after 2037, and any changes will need to be approved by Parliament.

But raising the age again would be controversial as it would force the young to work longer to fund the pensions of those who are already retired. Former pensions minister Baroness Altmann said: ‘Difficult decisions will need to be taken to deal with the future increases in state pension costs that are forecast for coming decades.’

The Actuary’s Department said that between 2047 and 2049, the pension age would have to rise to 69, which would affect people aged around 39.

Between 2057 and 2059 the age will have to hit 70, affecting those around 29 and younger. And in the two years from 2068 it will have to increase to 71, affecting those aged around 20. On top of this, taxes would have to rise to ensure the NI Fund is topped up.

The department warned that the 5 percentage point rise on NI which may be required to balance the fund would see payments go up to 17 per cent – equivalent to almost £1,000 a year for the average worker on £28,000.

A spokesman for the Treasury said: ‘We expect the fund to have a surplus for the foreseeable future.

Smileband health topics

Families of sick children last night condemned the decision by Great Ormond Street Hospital to return £530,000 raised for it at the controversial men-only galas. The sum was donated by the club between 2009 and 2016, but mothers of children whose lives the hospital saved say it is desperately needed by patients.

It could pay for 15 ventilators to help young patients unable to breathe on their own, or fund a month’s accommodation for 13 families to stay with their children.

Angela Formosa, whose five-year-old twins Ruby and Rosie were born conjoined before being separated in an operation at Great Ormond Street in London, said: ‘The hospital does rely so heavily on charitable donations and this is a lot of money which could pay for a lot of things and save lives. Mrs Formosa, from Bexleyheath, south-east London, whose children are still cared for by the hospital, added: ‘As a woman I do not agree with what happened at the gala, but the hospital needs the money and I think they should have kept the money.

‘Lots of people work hard to raise money for Great Ormond Street, and it is giving £500,000 back.’ 

Carly Hicks’ baby Lily almost died of meningitis at the age of six months after doctors misdiagnosed her symptoms as chickenpox. She spent five days in intensive care at the hospital.

Lily has made a full recovery, after being given only a 20 per cent chance of survival, and was discharged finally from the hospital’s care last year. Mrs Hicks, 31, said she was saddened by the decision, adding: ‘Everything costs so much money, all their equipment, the amount of staff that are there and their teaching programmes.’ The veterinary nurse from St Albans, Hertfordshire, who has raised £25,000 for the hospital and other charities, added: ‘I can understand where they are coming from.

‘They don’t want to be seen to have anything to do with that charity. But I do not like the thought of them giving that money back, if I am honest. ‘If it had nothing to do with the event, and was donated before that, I don’t see why they should.’

Theresa May has condemned the ‘appalling’ sexist behaviour at the gala, where it was claimed prostitutes were in attendance, while billionaires bid up to £400,000 for lots including a night at a strip club. A spokesman for Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity, which is separate to its NHS Trust, said: ‘The expert medical treatment that children receive at the hospital will not be affected by the return of these donations.

‘The day-to-day care and running of Great Ormond Street Hospital Trust is entirely paid for by the NHS.

‘GOSH charity has not taken the decision to repay this money lightly. The decision was made by the senior management team at the charity and the board of trustees, supported by the hospital. 

Smileband general news

Seven men were jailed yesterday for making fake British passports and degrees which they sold for up to £800 each. The gang were selling the counterfeit documents to immigration offenders to help them live illegally in the UK, a court heard.

But the racket unravelled after an undercover officer placed orders with gang leader Steven Kanaventi, 39. Kanaventi, of Coventry, supplied the officer with a string of fake documents, including three passports for £800 each, a British residency permit for £600 and a university degree certificate for £200.

Prosecuting, Lisa Hancox told Woolwich Crown Court yesterday: ‘Steven Kanaventi is the person who was at the coalface of taking orders and money and then the chain ran from there.’

She said Kanaventi had even offered to pay £100 for each new customer the officer supplied.

From late 2015 to June 2017, Immigration Enforcement officers uncovered the wide-scale manufacture and distribution of the fake documents by the London and Midlands gang. Kanaventi was said to have been partly responsible for ordering, supplying and delivering the false documents. He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to manufacture a fake document and was given 40 months and two weeks in jail.

Abdul Azeeza, an ex-professional footballer, was sentenced to four years in jail after the court heard the documents were made at his home. The former goalkeeper, 58, who once represented a club in the Nigerian equivalent of the Premier League before retiring in 1996, was found with a false passport in his back pocket, a residency card in his wallet and ‘all the implements of making them on the kitchen table’. Some of the items needed to make fake documents, including specially adapted tools for dismantling passports, threads for stitching, paint thinners and laminate, were found at his home in Walworth in South London. Azeeza pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing an identity document with improper intent and possessing equipment with the intention of making fake documents.

Alfred Adekoya, 47, also of Walworth, was sentenced to 40 months and two weeks after pleading guilty to conspiracy to manufacture a fake document.

Victor Ariyo, of Nunhead, London, acted as a go-between for Kanaventi and Adekoya, the court heard.

In a police interview, Ariyo, 53, said he was a go-between for ‘a spiritual service, and that is why money passed through his account’. But he admitted conspiracy to make a fake document and money laundering. He was sentenced to three years in jail. Luke Nkanta, 29, of Woolwich in south-east London, was said to have acted as courier. He was sentenced to 16 months in jail after pleading guilty to possession of an identity document with improper intention.

Paul Kanaventi, 37, of Nottingham, pleaded guilty to converting criminal property after he allowed Steven Kanaventi to use his bank account and set up an email address in his name. He was jailed for nine months. Madalitso Majawa, 33, of Redditch, Worcestershire, was sentenced to six months in jail after pleading guilty to possession of an identity document with improper intent.

Immigration Enforcement inspector Ben Thomas said: ‘The criminal business that Kanaventi and Adekoya were running was designed to undermine the fundamental immigration rule that if you have no legal status in the UK, you have no right to work.

‘Their customers hoped that the fake documents would be enough to convince prospective employers that they were entitled to work, in turn allowing them to a build a life for themselves in the UK to which they were simply not entitled... We have stopped a concerted, systematic and financially motivated assault on the UK’s immigration system.