Latest news with #FranklinPark
The Independent
5 days ago
- The Independent
Bhim Kohli's grandson ‘haunted' by thought he could have saved grandfather
A grandson who rushed to help his 80-year-old grandad after he was fatally injured in an attack by teenagers as he walked his dog has said he is 'haunted' by the thought he could have saved him. A 15-year-old boy and 13-year-old girl, who cannot be named, are being sentenced on Thursday at Leicester Crown Court for the manslaughter of dog-walker Bhim Kohli, who was slapped in the face with a slider shoe and kicked and punched by the balaclava-clad male, while the female filmed and laughed. Mr Kohli had been racially abused, laughed at by the girl and left on the ground before his family found him severely injured in Franklin Park, Braunstone Town, near Leicester, on the evening of September 1 last year. He died in hospital the next day having suffered a broken neck and fractured ribs. In a statement read out by prosecutor Harpreet Sandhu KC during the sentencing hearing, Mr Kohli's grandson Simranjit Kohli said he had been left wondering if his grandfather may have survived if he had got there sooner after he cried out for help. He said: 'My grandad was one of the most important factors of my life. 'He's the main reason I am who I am. My story revolves around him and with him being taken away, it's as though the author won't be able to read his own book. 'It's painful for me and my family that we will never get to see if he is proud. We won't get to see the smile on his face when his grandkids get a house, get a car, then get married and have kids of their own. 'I was the first one out of my family at the scene. Not a day goes by when I think if I were minutes earlier I could have stopped what happened. 'There is, of course, sadness and sorrow, there's also hate, anger and rage. Everywhere I go I'm haunted by the thought I could be with him if things had happened differently that day.' Reading her own statement to the packed courtroom, Mr Kohli's daughter Susan Kohli said her family are surrounded by 'consistent sadness' since he died. She said: 'They left my dad on his own, helpless and in pain. Losing dad in these cruel, violent and deeply shocking circumstances feels like our hearts have been pulled apart. 'We can't put into words the pain we feel every day – we have never felt hurt and sadness like this. 'My mum, a gentle human being, has found herself saying she would like the children subjected to the same treatment they gave her husband to see how they feel.' She added: 'My mum and I felt we needed to attend the trial each day to understand the evidence fully. 'We tried to remain strong but, the truth is, inside we feel broken and it has been stressful listening to the enormity of what happened and what he was subjected to.' Describing the moments she found her father injured on the ground in the park just yards from the family home, Ms Kohli said: 'He was in so much pain, he was screaming out. It was horrendous and we have never seen him like this. 'We knew he was very poorly and in severe pain, but we thought he would go to Leicester Royal Infirmary and be fine. We never imagined he would never return home. 'We were later told the shocking news he was no longer able to take the medication that was keeping him alive. 'He passed away before our eyes, surrounded by his family who were in floods of tears and disbelief. 'Due to him being killed in these circumstances and being involved in a criminal investigation, dad was unable to donate his organs which were always his wishes. It pains me we were unable to meet his wishes.' The teenagers are due to be sentenced by High Court judge Mr Justice Turner on Thursday afternoon.
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Nutella announces a new flavor for the first time in its 60-year history
Nutella has announced the launch of a brand-new flavor for the first time in its 60-year history. Since its creation in 1964, Nutella has become a steadfast staple in millions of homes across the world. Despite its global success and cult-like following, the brand has never officially released a new flavour, aside from plant-based variations, until now. Ferrero, the company behind Nutella, revealed the new Peanut Nutella flavour in a press statement earlier this week. The parent company called it 'a bold yet natural evolution for a product rooted in tradition but ready to surprise.' According to Ferrero, the flavor 'combines the distinctive creaminess of Nutella cocoa hazelnut spread with the delicious taste of roasted peanuts.' The new spread will be launched in stores by Spring 2026, however there is a catch- it is only available in the US. Michael Lindsey, President and Chief Business Officer of Ferrero North America, said: 'Developing Nutella and Ferrero Rocher products specifically for the North American market represents a defining moment in our company's history. 'These innovations will engage both loyal fans and new consumers, boosting our power brands and further solidifying our position as a category leader in North America.' According to Chicago Tribune, the product will also be made in the US at its Franklin Park factory and Ferrero will 'invest $75 million in the plant' and create dozens of new jobs to help produce Nutella Peanut. Seth Gonzalez, the senior director of marketing for Nutella made clear that the new product was not a peanut butter. Speaking to the Tribune he said: 'We didn't want it to be another peanut butter, there's a reason why cocoa is still connected as a peanut-and-cocoa formula, instead of just peanuts.' It comes after Nutella fans in the UK were left ecstatic after discovering a new variety of the spread dubbed 'better than the original', is due to roll out in supermarkets. Now, Nutella has revealed it is stocking UK cupboards with a new iteration of the globally acclaimed sauce - a vegan variety. Soon, plant-based eaters will be treated to a vegan version that uses one unlikely ingredient to replicate its iconic creamy consistency. On top of the usual ingredients of cocoa, hazelnuts and sugar, manufacturers have also added some unlikely suspects, including chickpeas and rice syrup. They claim the new addition will have the same 'flavour and creaminess fans know and love' but has been 'specially crafted to offer a delicious new choice, blending Nutella's signature roasted hazelnuts and cocoa with plant-based ingredients like chickpeas and rice syrup'. It's already available on Amazon and will roll out in Sainsbury's from 25 May, with other supermarkets not yet having revealed when they plan to follow suit. The vegan Nutella will be sold in 350g jars, which is the same size as typically sold in the original variety. A jar of the vegan hazelnut spread will cost customers £3.99 from Sainsbury's, a slight price increase on the standard version which is £3.18 from the retailer. Ferrero has announced plans to expand availability to other supermarkets across the UK from 2026. The spread, which has already been released in a handful of locations across the world, delighted chocolate fans when it first debuted in Australia in 2024. Posting on social media, Melbourne-based supermarket, Melbourne's Best Vegan Eats, shared a post announcing the news that they would be stocking the product. Delighted foodies flooded the comments with excitement, as one wrote that they were 'drooling' while others simply exclaimed 'oh my god'. 'I literally sent my mum down the next day to get me two jars of it,' said another. According the comments, fans have also spotted the spread in Rome. Speaking about the launch, Mathieu Maggi, Marketing Director Nutella UK&I, Ferrero, said: 'For over 60 years, millions of people around the world have, been enjoying the unique taste of Nutella, and we are excited to welcome even more consumers to the brand with the launch of Nutella Plant-Based. 'We developed this innovation to provide a delicious new choice that delivers the unmistakable Nutella experience in a plant-based version, replacing milk with vegetal ingredients without compromising on quality and taste.' The decision to create a vegan version of the classic was inspired by a new wave of plant-based munchers, said the brand. Ferrero cited recent research that shows 4.7 per cent of UK adults - approximately 2.5 million people - follow a vegan diet.
Daily Mail
22-05-2025
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Anguish of DC shooting suspect's family as Daily Mail phones them after Israeli couple killed at Jewish museum
The family of the pro-Palestinian suspect in the slaying of two young Israeli diplomats were lost for words over the horrific attack in Washington D.C. Daily Mail contacted the parents of Elias Rodriguez, 30, by phone Thursday morning, just hours after their son allegedly shot and killed the two victims at point-blank range outside the Jewish Museum Wednesday night. When asked for her reaction to the shocking attack, a nervous-sounding woman at the Franklin Park home of the suspect's mom Elvira Rodriguez abruptly said 'I have no comment' before quickly hanging up the phone. Meanwhile, the accused killer's father, Eric Rodriguez, appeared to be too distraught to speak. At his address in Chicago, a woman came to the phone and explained that he is not speaking to anyone at this time. The stunned silence from the family comes as a chilling manifesto believed to be left by the suspected shooter pays tribute to his loved ones, amid a rambling diatribe about the conflict in Gaza and the American government. 'I love you Mom, Dad, baby sis, the rest of my familia, including you, O*****,' the manifesto, obtained and shared online by journalist Ken Klippenstein, reads. In the manifesto, signed off with the suspect's name, Rodriguez appears to defend the 'morality of armed demonstration' as he railed against the death toll in Gaza. In a seeming hint at what he was about to do, the 900-word statement said he was 'glad that today at least there are many Americans for which the action will be highly legible and, in some funny way, the only sane thing to do.' It was posted online around the time of the shooting, which claimed the lives of young couple Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim. The two victims were soon to be engaged. They had been attending a Young Diplomats event hosted by the American Jewish Committee at the Capital Jewish Museum Wednesday night. At the end of the event, Lischinsky and Milgrim were stood outside with a group of people when a gunman approached and opened fire. In the chaotic aftermath, the suspect was pulled inside the building by security staff believing him to be an innocent bystander and handed water as he appeared to be in shock. When police arrived on the scene, Rodriguez allegedly confessed to police that he was the assailant, telling officers he 'did it for Gaza.' A witness told Fox5 that he pulled out a red keffiyeh - a Palestinian scarf - from his pocket and waved it, shouting 'Free, free Palestine' as he was hauled into custody. The suspect also led police to the murder weapon, police said. Prior to the deadly shooting, Rodriguez was not known to police, according to Washington Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith. FBI agents in full tactical gear descended on his apartment set in a leafy courtyard in Chicago as the investigation into the attack continues. Before Wednesday's shooting, Rodriguez has previously taken part in liberal, pro-Palestinian protests. Photos show him at a Black Lives Matter protest in 2017. That same year, he was quoted in an article by Liberation condemning the police shooting of black 17-year-old Laquan McDonald and railing against then-Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel's plans to allow Amazon to build a headquarters in the city. 'The wealth that Amazon has brought to Seattle has not been shared with its black residents,' Rodriguez said in the paper, which is ran by the activist group Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PSL). 'Amazon's whitening of Seattle is structurally racist and a direct danger to all workers who live in that city. 'So, do we in Chicago and all across the country want a nation of cities dominated and occupied by massive corporations where only the rich and white can live and the vast majority of us must live on edges of the city and society living in deeper and deeper poverty?' Despite his past connections to the PSL, the group issued a statement on X saying that Rodriguez is not a member and has no affiliation to the group. According to his LinkedIn, Rodriguez works as a profiles administrative specialist at the American Osteopathic Information Association - a non-profit that focuses on promoting osteopathic medicine. Prior to this, he worked at The History Makers - a non-profit research and educational institution focused on telling 'the untold personal stories of both well-known and unsung African Americans' - between 2023 and 2024. has reached out to both organizations. A woman at The History Makers hung up the phone when asked for comment about their former employee.
