Gold toilet: Two men jailed for £4.8m Blenheim Palace heist
Two men have been jailed for the theft of a £4.8m gold toilet from from an art exhibition at Blenheim Palace.Thieves smashed their way in and ripped out the functional 18-carat, solid gold toilet, hours after a glamorous launch party at the Oxfordshire stately home in September 2019.James 'Jimmy' Sheen, 40, pleaded guilty to burglary, transferring criminal property and conspiracy to do the same in 2024, while Michael Jones, 39, was found guilty of burglary in March. The men, from Oxford, were sentenced to four years and two-and-a-half years in prison, respectively.
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Daily Mail
10 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Nigel Farage hails Epping Council's migrant hotel win 'a great victory' after weeks of anarchy following sex assault charge - and makes call to 'step up the pressure'
Nigel Farage has hailed the decision to move migrants out of a controversial asylum hotel as a 'great victory' - as he called for it to be 'inspiration' to the rest of Britain. Council leaders yesterday won the first stage of their battle to close the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, on planning permission grounds after it became an epicentre of anti-immigration protests, including some which turned violent. The demonstrations were sparked when a migrant living at the hotel was charged with a series of sexual offences, including some against a 14-year-old girl. Writing in The Telegraph, the Reform UK leader welcomed the decision by the High Court in London to grant the temporary injunction. Mr Farage said: 'This is a great victory for the parents and concerned residents of Epping. Let it also be an inspiration to the rest of Britain.' 'Now the good people of Epping must inspire similar protests around Britain,' he added. 'Wherever people are concerned about the threat posed by young undocumented males living in local hotels and who are free to walk their streets, they should follow the example of the town in Essex. 'Let's hold peaceful protests outside the migrant hotels, and put pressure on local councils to go to court to try and get the illegal immigrants out; we now know that together we can win.' The new junction means that the hotel's owner, Somani Hotels Limited, must stop housing asylum seekers at the site by September 12. It came after the Home Office unsuccessfully attempted to block the legal challenge, claiming its closure would cause 'acute difficulties' and breach asylum seekers' 'fundamental human rights'. The decision was also welcomed by jubilant locals who were pictured opening bottles of Prosecco outside The Bell Hotel. Mother Sarah White, 40, one of the protest organisers, said the news was 'amazing'. She said: 'This is great news - it is fantastic. This is not just for Epping but the rest of the country. Hopefully this is the sign of things to come. 'I really do hope they do not put these people in houses of multiple occupancy within our community now. 'That would be a kick in the face and we would fight it. 'But today's news is really positive. Families and women will be able to sleep easier at night knowing they will not be there. 'It's been a disgrace we have had to fight like this.' Sarah said they would be talking to other towns where migrant hotels are. She added: 'We will start protesting with towns up and down the country. We are standing shoulder to shoulder with them as well. 'We want to show this is bigger than Epping, it is impacting the whole country.' Maureen Chapman, 73, has lived in Epping for 50 years and said she felt 'under threat' by the hotel being there. Yesterday she said: 'This has restored my faith in humanity. It has restored my faith in common sense. Thank God, somebody has actually listened to the people. 'Locals have finally been heard and it feels like it has taken a very long time for that to happen. 'I hope councils up and down the country hear this message loud and clear. These hotels are not wanted and if local people rally around as a community, their voices can be heard.' Admin assistant Sarah Corner, 44, added: 'I am so pleased. Today is a huge day for the people of Epping. It is absolutely amazing. 'I only hope people now don't go through the same hell as we did. 'I was so worried every night. I only live half a mile away from the hotel. 'When there was the news of the alleged sexual assaults, it was horrific. I felt sick. 'We can all now hopefully get on with our lives.' Edward Brown KC, for the Home Office, warned the High Court the move 'runs the risk of acting as an impetus for further violent protests'. It would also 'substantially interfere' with the Home Office's legal duty to avoiding a breach of the asylum seekers' human rights, he said. The barrister added: 'The balance of convenience can never favour a course of conduct that creates a real risk of interfering with fundamental human rights. 'If the injunction is granted by the court, it will substantially impact on the Home Secretary's statutory duties. 'The local authority should in fact have given some consideration to the wider public interest in this application.' He added that the injunction bid 'causes particular acute difficulties at the present date'. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said it was 'good news and a victory for the mums and dads I spoke to in Epping who just want their children to be safe'. She added: 'Putting a hotel full of young male illegal immigrants in the middle of a community like Epping was always going to lead to issues. 'They need to be moved out of the area immediately. 'But Epping is just one of many towns struggling with these asylum hotels. 'Labour have no solution, they're not smashing any gangs and small boat arrivals are at record highs. 'I do have a plan - bring back a proper deterrent and remove all illegal arrivals immediately, so towns like Epping never have to deal with this again.' Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: 'Residents should never have had to fight their own Government just to feel safe in their own town.' He accused Labour of deciding to 'tear up the deterrents the Conservatives put in place', such as the Rwanda asylum scheme. Outside the Royal Courts of Justice, Epping council leader Chris Whitbread said: 'This is a decision that's important to Epping Forest, but also important to have councils up and down the country, and it shows that the Government cannot ignore planning rules, just like no-one else can ignore planning rules.' He added: 'This is only the start of a process and subject to appeal, we recognise that, but all things being equal, the Bell Hotel will be empty by September 12, and that's really important for the students, residents, businesses of Epping Forest.' Addressing local residents, he went on: 'If they decide to go outside the Bell Hotel, don't protest, don't over-celebrate. This is the beginning. It is not the end.' The Home Office had not been represented at a previous hearing in the case on Friday. But yesterday the department asked to be allowed to intervene Mr Justice Eyre was due to hand down his ruling on whether the injunction should be granted. Philip Coppel KC, for Epping Forest District Council, said the Home Office's request was 'a thoroughly unprincipled application made in a thoroughly unprincipled way'. He added that the department knew of the injunction bid last week but 'sat on their hands'. It comes after a series of protests in recent weeks outside the hotel. A resident at the hotel, Hadush Kebatu, 41, from Ethiopia, was charged with sexual assault, harassment and inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity. The incidents allegedly happened within two days, just over a week after the 41-year-old arrived in the UK by boat. Raphael Pigott, defending, told a hearing at Colchester magistrates' court on July 17: 'I believe he is here as a refugee or asylum seeker, and that he arrived informally on a boat.' It is alleged Mr Kebatu tried to kiss a schoolgirl as she ate pizza near a busy high street, and the next day attempted to kiss an adult near a fish and chip shop in the town centre, telling her she was 'pretty' while putting his hand on her leg. He then encountered the girl again and tried to kiss her, a court was told. Mr Kebatu has denied the offences and is in custody. A second man who resides at the hotel, Syrian national Mohammed Sharwarq, has separately been charged with seven offences. A series of protests have taken place outside the hotel since the alleged incidents. There was violence outside the premises last month after 'anti-immigration' campaigners clashed with 'anti-racism' demonstrators. Activists brawled in the streets while police battled to contain the chaos. Twenty-eight people have since been arrested in relation to disorder, and 16 of them have been charged. Police chiefs have already described the unrest at The Bell as a 'signal flare' for another summer of disorder. At a hearing on Friday the council told the High Court the housing of asylum seekers at the property was becoming a 'very serious problem' which 'could not be much worse'. Barristers for the council claimed Somani Hotels breached planning rules as the site is not being used for its intended purpose as a hotel, stating there was an 'overwhelming case for an injunction'. Somani Hotels defended the claim with its barristers telling the court in London that a 'draconian' injunction would cause asylum seekers 'hardship'. They added that 'political views' were not grounds for an injunction to be made. They also said that contracts to house asylum seekers were a 'financial lifeline' for the hotel, which was only one per cent full in August 2022, when it was open to paying customers. Opening Friday's hearing Philip Coppel KC, for the council, said: 'Epping Forest District Council comes to this court seeking an injunction because it has a very serious problem. 'It is a problem that is getting out of hand; it is a problem that is causing a great anxiety to those living in the district. 'There has been what can be described as an increase in community tension, the catalyst of which has been the use of the Bell Hotel to place asylum seekers. 'The problem has arisen because of a breach of planning control by the defendant.' He continued that the site 'is no more a hotel than a borstal to a young offender' for asylum seekers and that Somani Hotels had not had 'the courage of conviction to seek a certificate of lawful use', which would have 'resolved the matter in its favour'. Mr Coppel also referenced the alleged sexual assault of the teenage girl, and said several schools were in the nearby area. He said: 'Having this sort of thing go on in such a concentration of schools with no measures in place to stop a repetition is not acceptable. 'It really could not be much worse than this.' Another factor in favour of granting an injunction would be removing a 'catalyst for violent protests in public places'. The barrister added: 'Allowing the status quo to continue is wholly unacceptable, providing a feeding ground for unrest.' Piers Riley-Smith, representing Somani Hotels, said the alleged planning breach was 'not flagrant', and that it was 'entirely wrong' for the council to 'suggest the use has been hidden from them'. The barrister told the court that the hotel previously housed asylum seekers from 2020 to 2021, and from 2022 to 2024, and that the council 'never instigated any formal enforcement proceedings against this use'. He said company applied for planning permission for a 'temporary change of use' in February 2023, but this was later withdrawn as it had not been determined by April 2024. Asylum seekers then began being placed in the Bell Hotel again in April 2025, with Mr Riley-Smith stating that a planning application was not made 'having taken advice from the Home Office'. Addressing the public protests at Epping, the barrister said: 'The court should bear in mind - as recognised by the claimant - that these have spread far beyond locals who might have a genuine concern about their area to a wider group with more strategic national and ideological aims, but that does not necessarily mean the concerns are well-founded. 'Fears as to an increase of crime associated with asylum seekers or a danger to schools are common, but that does not make them well-founded. 'It also sets a dangerous precedent that protests justify planning injunctions.' Mr Justice Eyre refused to give Somani Hotels the green light to challenge his ruling, but the company could still ask the Court of Appeal for the go-ahead to appeal. In his judgment, he said that while the council had not 'definitively established' Somani Hotels had breached planning rules, 'the strength of the claimant's case is such that it weighs in favour' of granting the injunction. He continued that the 'risk of injustice is greater' if a temporary injunction were not granted. A further hearing on whether the injunction should be made permanent is expected to be held at a later date, and is expected to last two days.
Daily Mail
40 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Couple are jailed after victim was raped on camera - but only found out when blackmailer sent her footage and demanded £5,000
A couple has been jailed after a man raped an unconscious woman while his partner filmed it. Their victim only found out what had happened when one of the pair blackmailed her by sending her the footage and demanding £5,000. Indre Bruziene, 40, and her partner Vasile Radacanu, 33, invited the woman to their address in Sheerness, Kent on September 18, 2020. They downed alcoholic drinks together at the property, causing the victim to become intoxicated. Radacanu then raped her during which she was, at one point, unconscious. Bruziene filmed the incident throughout, first from through a window and later from inside the home. Radacanu clearly was aware he was being recorded as he made gestures towards the camera on several occasions. The victim then woke up in her own bed the next morning with no recollection of what had happened to her. In March 2021, she received a call from Bruziene accusing her of breaking up her family before sending her the clip of the rape. She asked the woman for £5,000 and claimed that if she did not pay her she would send the video to the victim's husband. The victim refused to pay the sum of money and told her family about the ordeal before calling the police. Radacanu, from Romania, and Bruziene, from Lithuania, were both arrested the next day. Their phones were seized by investigators and Radacanu was later charged with two rapes, attempted rape and two sexual assaults. Bruziene was charged with blackmail. The pair pleaded not guilty at Maidstone Crown Court but were convicted of these on January 28, 2025, following a trial. Radacanu was sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison on Thursday, and Bruziene was jailed for three years and three months. Detective Constable Hollie Brown said: 'The criminal actions of Radacanu and Bruziene were unspeakably vile as they took advantage of a vulnerable victim who was not aware of what was happening to her. 'As soon as the victim received the video of her abuse from Bruziene she showed great courage in disclosing her ordeal to her family and then contacting the police. 'Detectives then swiftly secured the offenders phones and they have now, quite rightly, been brought to justice.'
The Sun
40 minutes ago
- The Sun
Shocking moment helicopter swoops on ‘extremely dangerous' speeding biker just feet above the ground
THIS is the moment a police helicopter pursues a man on an allegedly stolen motorbike while flying just feet above the ground. Footage shows the chopper circling above the rider as he drives at speed around a field near St Helens, Merseyside. 4 The pilot then lowers the helicopter just metres above the ground, in a desperate attempt to keep up with the fleeing motorcyclist. At one point the dark blue and yellow coloured helicopter is seen to be flying almost parallel alongside the bike. Moments later, both helicopter and motorbike disappear from the view of the camera behind a small patch of trees. The chopper flies so low past the outcropping of trees it becomes obscured by the foliage. The shocking video comes to an end but not before it cuts to a shot of a police officer in the field with the chopper heard circling overhead. Another cut shows the speeding motorcyclist flying past the camera one last time. Blitzing through the field at high speeds the rider passes just meters away from the cameraman in a final bid to lose the pursuing helicopter. The helicopter appears to have stayed on the rider's tail the whole time however and is seen flying overhead in a final cut. The National Police Air Service (NPAS) said the high octane chase happened on August 13. The incident is being reviewed internally in consultation with the Civil Aviation Authority. High-speed 'super-chopper' that races through sky at 260mph could fly from London to Paris in 50 minutes Merseyside Police said the bike was driving in an "extremely dangerous" manner. The rider is alleged to have been speeding, mounting pavements and nearly hitting a pedestrian as they revved the off-road bike around the area. The rider is said to have been joined by a second man with the pair fleeing cops together along the A580 and through fields near a dam. Officers later detained the second man on the ground when he dismounted his bike. 4 The yob seen in the footage was reportedly arrested when he ran out fuel, his bike has been seized. Chief Superintendent Fiona Gaffney, Chief Operating Officer at NPAS, said: "We're aware of the video currently circulating on social media and the level of public interest it has generated. "The circumstances are being thoroughly reviewed internally and in consultation with the Civil Aviation Authority to ensure all relevant standards and procedures have been followed." It comes amid talks that police choppers could soon be replaced by police drones. One unmanned helicopter being trialled by the NPAS is capable of flying at speeds of 115mph and is able to stay airborne for up to six hours. The NPAS said that the unmanned helicopter, a Schiebel Camcopter S-100, is larger than existing drones used by police forces and has a greater range. Uncrewed aircraft manufacturer Schiebel selected for UK police trials The National Police Air Service (NPAS) has selected global manufacturer Schiebel to support its most ambitious trial so far of 'Beyond the Visual Line of Sight' (BVLOS) uncrewed aircraft operations. The aim of the trial was to determine if advancements in aviation technology can bring future benefits to policing and, if they can, how they could be safely introduced into UK airspace. David Walters, NPAS Head of Futures and Innovation, said: 'We will be evaluating how we might integrate uncrewed aircraft into the existing NPAS operating model, under the current management of our CAA-approved Accountable Manager and Form 4 certificate-holders, who are qualified and accountable for the delivery of safe police air operations over England and Wales.'
