Jacob Ker: Body found in search for Stockton teenager, 14
Follow BBC Tees on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
43 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
The Albanian small boat migrant who flooded the streets with crack cocaine after boasting about how easy it was to sneak into Britain
An Albanian small boat migrant began dealing crack cocaine after fleeing his luxury asylum hotel. Elvis Zoto, 22, gloated on social media about entering the UK illegally and even posted a photo of his Home Office registration form showing his arrival in Dover in 2022. Approached shortly afterwards by a Mail on Sunday reporter posing as migrant still in France, he said the journey to the UK had been easy, and revealed he had already fled his asylum hotel by climbing out of a window. Shocking new details about his case have now emerged in a High Court judgment that finally gave the green light to his deportation - a whole three years after he first arrived in Britain. Campaigners said his case is the latest evidence of the 'desperate' need to reform the immigration system. Zoto flew from Albania to Belgium before travelling by train to France. He then paid a people smuggler to get him on a small boat to Britain, where he was detained by Border Force at Dover on June 29, 2022. More than 12,600 Albanians came to Britain on small boats in 2022 before a returns agreement slashed this number. At the time, the National Crime Agency (NCA) warned that Albanian drug gangs were using the route to bring workers into the UK. In common with most Albanian small boat arrivals at the time, Zoto claimed asylum and was put up in a hotel, the four-star Crowne Plaza in Basingstoke. At his initial interview, Zoto claimed he had left Albania after being forced to deal drugs. He later claimed to be a victim of human trafficking. However, the Albanian only stayed at the Crowne Plaza for two days before fleeing on July 2 as part of a pre-planned escape. Asylum seekers are required to maintain contact with the Home Office as part of their release and to inform the authorities of any new address. The Home Office drafted a letter to Zoto stating that his decision to leave the hotel meant his asylum claim was considered 'implicitly withdrawn', but this was not sent because they did not know where he lived. Court documents state there is 'no evidence' officials tried to contact him by any other method - despite having his Albanian phone number. It appears Zoto quickly linked up with a drug gang, and on November 1, 2023, he was arrested by Essex Police after a stop and search. The following April, he was convicted of dealing crack cocaine and sentenced to two years and nine months in prison. Criminals who receive a custodial sentence of over a year automatically face deportation, but Zoto won the right to challenge the decision on the basis he still had a pending asylum claim and a hearing took place in July 2025. But his appeal was dismissed in a judgment issued on Wednesday by High Court judge Claire Padley, who backed the Home Office's claim that Zoto had forfeited his right to claim asylum by escaping his hotel. Zoto had a conditional release date of December 2024. The Mail has asked the Home Office where he is now and when he will be deported but has not received a response. Alp Mehmet, Chairman of Migration Watch UK, told the Daily Mail: 'Three years on from making his way here illegally in a small boat, Zoto is finally to be deported. 'He should have been refused entry and removed within hours of reaching the UK. A system that allows such a chancer to string it out for three years, at huge cost to the taxpayer, is clearly in desperate need of reform.' A video posted on Zoto's TikTok social media account shortly after he fled his asylum hotel showed him sitting outside a cafe on a busy London street. The video was accompanied by laughing emojis. Separate images showed him posing with huge wads of £20 and £50 banknotes. Asked by the undercover Mail on Sunday reporter posing as a migrant about the dangers of the cross-Channel crossing, Zoto said: 'Do not be scared of it. I arrived on a boat. A journey that doesn't need a lot of money and the best for you.' In a later message, he added: 'They keep you in detention a maximum of two days, then send you to a hotel. In the detention centre it's good conditions. 'You tell them you are married and that's the end of the story. You have to get away from the hotel and just wait for your relatives to get you in a car. 'I left from the window of that hotel... I disappeared... Keep a low profile and after a month get a solicitor.' Small boat migrants have regularly documented their crossings on social media. One, Parwiz Hanifyar, gained nearly one million views for this a 'step by step' guide on entering Britain illegally. The Afghan, who left Calais at around 4am last Saturday, shared videos of himself on the small boat before live streaming from an asylum hotel. It later emerged he had been reported to police for allegedly sharing another clip telling men how to kill their estranged wives. In a video filmed in Germany last month, Hanifyar is claimed to have said: 'A brave man does not allow his wife to marry another man, even have children and live with someone else.' He is now staying in a taxpayer-funded hotel near Heathrow. More than 27,000 small boat migrants have arrived so far in 2025 – a record for this point in the year since data began in 2018. On Wednesday, a record 107 small boat migrants have reached Britain in just one dinghy, confounding Labour's pledge to 'smash the gangs'. The use of bigger migrant boats will be of deep concern to British officials, who have ploughed significant resources into attempts to disrupt traffickers' supplies.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
What do people in Epping think of the town's migrant hotel?
For weeks now, there have been protests near the Bell Hotel in Epping, which houses single male asylum far this month they have largely been peaceful, but in July some descended into disorder. Riot police were on residential streets; helicopters were whirring over homes at night. Twenty-eight people have been arrested, with police officers injured and vehicles damaged. The protests started after an asylum seeker housed at the hotel was accused of sexually assaulting a teenage girl. He is in custody awaiting further court where Sir Winston Churchill was MP from 1924 to 1945, is at the end of London Underground's Central line. Its bustling High Street has bakeries, hair salons, cafes and on some of the protest days, it has been a ghost town - with many businesses shutting early. One local councillor described Epping as the epicentre of Britain's anti-migrant protests. What do locals make of it? "They shouldn't be there. They should be gone. "They are causing nothing but trouble in the town," said Debbie was pushing her grandson in a pram on a warm said the asylum seekers should be "kept in a camp until they are processed" and suggested a military base like MDP Wethersfield in north Essex - where hundreds are currently being housed - would be Ellis welcomed the protests."I think it should be happening, I've been to a couple. If we don't stand up for our town no-one else is going to," she said."They shouldn't be left in a population where there's little kids running round, shops where they go shoplifting," she added. Several people alleged asylum seekers have been shoplifting. One store manager who did not want to be named said stealing from their shop was an issue, but they had no idea if the culprits were asylum seekers or not. They did not feel thefts were worse in Epping compared to other crime up to June (the current figures) has remained broadly the same in Epping and Ongar over the past 18 months, with between 261 and 365 crimes reported a month. The figure was slightly higher in some months in 2022-23 according to Essex Police's crime statistics. 'Haven't felt unsafe' For Priyam Atter, out and about with her toddler, it was the protests she was concerned about."I've never had any issues with people who I can see are from that hotel. "I certainly haven't felt unsafe by those people, but I certainly have felt unsafe by the riots that happened in this area."I think it is a stain on Epping." Elsabe Coericius was out shopping. She said "if the hotel is the only place where they can stay they should be allowed".She is a Quaker and said: "I believe in peaceful protest. "I think everybody should be able to share their views and opinions."Epping Forest District Council has been seeking an injunction against the owner of the Bell Hotel to stop it being used to house asylum seekers. Ms Coericius described that move as "a disgrace". But others like Sara and Jan Russell, out for a brisk summer walk, supported the council's High Court action."I'm all for it. I've lived here for over 50 years now. We've never seen anything like this."It's not right, nobody likes it," said Jan Russell added: "It's about time these asylum seekers did just go. "We are such a small town - we can't really afford to have that sort of people walking up and down the street." She said she saw the asylum seekers "just dossing around" in the town. They had not been involved in the protests, but they supported said Sara Russell, not "when people are coming off the Central line from the other side of London and are just pretending to be from the local area". "There's a very small percentage of people who are protesters from Epping town," she said she had "nothing against the legal migrants" but when it came to those arriving by boat across the Channel, her answer was to "put them on Ascension island". Social media 'drums drumming' As she strolled past, another resident, Sue Rosso, heard what they were saying and disagreed."There is this major issue that we have in this country with lots of people coming to seek refuge. "Fundamentally, the hotels, whilst not an ideal option is - as I see it - the only temporary option," she the shoplifting accusations, Ms Rosso said: "There's a lot of drums drumming on the social media and a lot of fake news."In my view those incidents are not true."She said she felt the protests should be in Westminster, not Epping, as it was the government who was placing asylum seekers in the are strong views on the Bell Hotel in Epping and it appeared to be dividing opinion."It's turning neighbour against neighbour," Ms Rosso said. "This was a community based town and I hope it will be that again in the future." Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
The Review Geek
an hour ago
- The Review Geek
In The Mud – Season 1 Episode 5 Recap & Review
Episode 5 Episode 5 of In The Mud starts with a flashback from five years ago, with Cecilia trying to calm a protest where Maria and Zurda are on the same team. The two women put up a fight against Cecilia, asking her to allow visitors inside the prison despite the COVID pandemic. Cecilia agrees to let some of the inmates have their cell-phones and while Maria asks Zurda to take responsibility for the phones, the protest ends. The episode moves to the present day as the police investigate the new inmate who died in the greenhouse. Cecilia tries to conceal the issue by claiming that the inmate died while trying to escape the prison. Meanwhile, Amparo is furious that Zarda was not able to protect her, upset that she had to protect herself. She threatens Zarda, which makes the latter promise to make the guilty person pay. Zarda tells Victoria that she is sure Maria was after this. At lunch, Marina joins the five, but Gladys leaves the table. Soledad, Yael and Olga wonder what's happened, and Marina explains that Gladys is mad at her. Olga starts to doubt Marina, too, when Maria is asked to meet Cecilia. Maria neither accepts nor denies responsibility for the inmate's death and asks Cecilia about Patricia and her baby to throw her off her back. Meanwhile, Yael tells Gladys that her daughter is being sent out of the prison for a short outing with the governor's wife. Gladys wonders why Cecilia is always nice to the pregnant women and wonders what is going on. Amparo gets furious when she learns that Maria has a monopoly on the meat that arrives inside the prison. Coco introduces Lana to Cleo, who promises to help reunite her with her son. Marina also talks to Lana, and during their conversation, she reveals how toxic her relationship with Martin was. She goes on to reveal how Martin was a jealous person but shared everything with his brother Dario, including her. Coco and Lana are shocked to hear this and promise to help Marina. Amparo notices the family unit and sees little children there. Elba tells Amparo how all the kids leave after they turn five years old, while the mothers stay back to complete their respective sentences. Elsewhere, Marina is thriving in prison as an adult content creator. She has all the privileges she needs while working out, taking videos and photos, eating the meals that she wants and consuming the drugs that she likes. All of this is at the behest of Zurda, who profits out of her work. China watches Marina from the side-lines when one day Zurda tells Marina that one of the men wants to have sex with her. Marina refuses, but Zurda puts her in place, declaring that she needs to entertain the client. Gladys shows up at Zurda's unit to collect the money according to her deal with Maria. The two women talk about Amparo, and Zurda threatens Gladys, asking her to keep away from Amparo. Marina is asked to go meet the client, but she asks Alan to come with her. Alan refuses, which upsets her. Gladys gives Maria the payment she had collected from the different units while Rocky gives her a massage. Maria reveals to Gladys how both her minions, Rocky and Cachete, were serving time for killing rapists. She asks Gladys to be prepared for any attack from Zurda and Amparo in the days to come. Maria gives Gladys a weapon from her collection to protect herself. That night, Amparo dreams of Cuervo but ends up suffering from a miscarriage in her sleep. Cecilia meets Amparo in the infirmary and consoles her, but the latter is shattered after losing the love of her life and his child, too. The next day, Andrés' wife shows up to pick Brisa up for a day out. At the same time, Marina's mother, Paula, comes to visit her. She asks Paula about her money. Marina is shocked to learn that Paula had spent all her money on her boyfriend. There is a cancer drive at the prison, and it is discovered that Gladys may have some growth in her breast. Gladys panics upon hearing the news but tries to keep calm. Meanwhile, Dr Soriano tells Vanessa that she is pregnant and asks her to keep the details of her pregnancy a secret. Marina learns that Alan was married and gets upset. She agrees to have sex with the client. Marina is disappointed when she is not able to climax during the intercourse, remembering her time with Alan. Yael, on the other hand, grows restless when Brisa does not come back that evening. She tries to visit Cecilia but is asked to go back. Just then, Eugenia shows up with Brisa. Yael takes her daughter back inside the prison. Meanwhile, the meat is delivered, and Maria goes to collect the best cuts for herself while Cachete and Rocky accompany her. Rocky leaves to collect Maria's medicine, leaving her behind with Cachete, who invites Amparo and the twins inside. The attack Maria while Gladys cries in the shower, worried about her diagnosis. Yael finds out about the diagnosis and tries to console Gladys. The two end up sharing a kiss while the twins kill Maria and hang her up on a meat hook. The Episode Review So, Zurda and Maria were friends before all this? No wonder Cecilia tried to cause differences between them; both of them were too much for her to handle as a team. It seems that Marina had a poor excuse for parents and had to work hard throughout her life. Even from prison, Marina is earning an income by selling her body on the internet, which makes me feel sorry for her. It's hard to see Gladys find out about her possible cancer diagnosis, but I am glad she has Yael in her journey. Given the fact that she has had a hard time coping with the loss of her husband, I hope Gladys continues to keep the bond that she has with the other four inmates. It was sad to see Maria die, but Amparo is a bigger threat to everyone inside now. I really wish she hadn't been caught because things would have been so different inside the prison. Gladys would be the best replacement for Maria now that she is dead but I am not sure how open she would be to stepping into her shoes, given the diagnosis. Previous Episode Next Episode Expect A Full Season Write-Up When This Season Concludes!
