Latest news with #Herts
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Second man admits arson after pub destroyed by fire
A second man has admitted setting a pub on fire shortly before Christmas more than two years ago. The Green Man in Clophill, Bedfordshire, was severely damaged, and eight people were taken to hospital on 21 December 2022. Tony Button, 49, from Kempston, admitted arson with intent to endanger life at Luton Crown Court and is due to be sentenced on July 24. In May 2024, Ian Chalmers, 67, from Campton, also pleaded guilty to arson with recklessness as to whether life was endangered. Chalmers was given a two-year prison sentence, suspended for two years and was instructed to carry out 200 hours of community work and pay a £187 surcharge. Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. Pub arsonist given suspended prison sentence Man admits to arson after pub destroyed by fire Eight people taken to hospital after pub fire HM Courts & Tribunals Service
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE The brutal reality of Britain's shoplifting epidemic: Tearful charity shop owner reveals harrowing toll of daily struggle with thieves and violent customers who attack him
A charity shop owner has revealed he is verbally abused by customers 'at least twice a week'. Tone Jarvis-Mack, founder of The Fertility Foundation, says aggressive behaviour and shoplifting is 'out of control' across Britain's retail sector. And the 54-year-old believes charity shops are specifically targeted by criminals due to the belief 'we get stuff for free', even though every theft deprives good causes of crucial funds. Other charity shop owners have complained of a 'significant increase' in thefts and anti-social behaviour, while overall retail crime is surging - with a 20 per cent annual increase in shoplifting offences. Mr Jarvis-Mack has now decided to install a facial recognition system called Facewatch at his shop in Waltham Cross, Herts, in a bid to protect staff against thieves and customers who turn violent over minor issues, such as refund disputes. One particularly nasty incident, caught in CCTV and phone footage shared with MailOnline, saw a woman who had previously been barred from the store hit him and - in front of customers - outrageously claim he was a child abuser. The thug also threatened to smash the windows of the house Mr Jarvis-Mack shares with his partner and kill their dog before she was arrested by police and convicted of assault and public disorder. Sharing his story, the shop owner told MailOnline: 'We banned the woman because she was rude and threatened me. She didn't come back for years but one day she just walked in and started screaming abuse when I told her to leave. 'She accused me of being racist - although, like her, I am black - and then homophobic, but I'm gay so that didn't exactly work either! She was saying she knew where I lived and she'd get someone to smash my windows and kill my dog. 'This went on for a good hour when we phoned the police three times. We didn't say a word to her after the first exchange and let her rant. We have CCTV, but I also started recording on my phone so there was audio. 'At that point - as you can see in the footage - she lunged at me to try and grab my phone and caught my hand with her nails. About 10 minutes later the police turned up.' The incident happened in June 2023 but Mr Jarvis-Mack has decided to share his experience to raise awareness of retail crime. The woman, who was in her forties, was arrested, convicted of assault and handed a restraining order. The Fertility Foundation, which raises money to help fund IVF for people who cannot afford it, now uses Facewatch to recognise repeat offenders so they can be barred. Mr Jarvis-Mack says this had led to a reduction in shoplifting. 'The police were amazing - they couldn't have supported us any more really, we now have a restraining order against her too,' he said. 'The abuse I received was shocking and put me on anti-depressants for six months.' Sadly, his experience is far from unique. According to the Charity Shops Survey, branches across the UK have reported rising levels of shoplifting, verbal abuse, and anti-social behaviour. One, Tenovus Cancer Care, reported a 'significant increase' in thefts, describing offenders as acting 'more brazenly, while Longfield Community Hospice issued banning letters to repeat offenders and began issuing personal alarms to staff. Separately, Guild Care, which operates 15 stores in Sussex, closed most of its changing rooms due to 'rampant shoplifting and anti-social behaviour'. The charity noted a marked increase in such incidents since the COVID-19 pandemic and the financial crisis. Overall retail crime is surging across the UK. In 2024, England and Wales recorded 516,971 shoplifting offences - a 20 per cent increase year-on-year. The man is seen calmly walking out past customers during the middle of the day The British Retail Consortium estimates 20 million theft incidents occurred last year, costing the sector £2.2 billion, with much of the increase linked to organised gangs. Nick Fisher, CEO of Facewatch, said: 'Sadly, no part of the UK retail industry is untouched by criminal activity today including our nation's much-loved charity shops, which do so much to support vital causes. 'Through our Take Back Control campaign, we want to shine a spotlight on the real experiences retail workers face daily while on the shop floor. 'Behind the almost daily headlines and statistics - like the 20 per cent year-on-year rise in shoplifting, or the 1,000-plus incidents of violence and abuse suffered by shop workers every day - are real people simply trying to do their jobs. 'As we share their stories, we're also showing how live, accurate facial recognition systems can help protect them. 'From corner shops to charity stores to large retail businesses, Facewatch enables stores to take back control by significantly reducing crime and making stores safer for retail employees.' In another example of retailers investing in technology to deter shoplifters, Tesco has now followed its rivals to begin installing AI detectors at self-checkouts. A bird's-eye-view camera above each of the tills records the shoppers scanning and packing their items. The camera uses AI to detect when something has not been scanned correctly. In a video shared to Instagram that has amassed close to three million views, a shopper shows how the new software works. The man is seen correctly scanning a tin of tuna, but then just moving a bottle of milk over the scanner and into the bagging area to make it look like he has. The till then showed the shoppers an instant replay of himself failing to scan the products. Any aspiring robbers will see the message: 'The last item wasn't scanned properly. Remove from the bagging area and try again.' The new feature has been likened to Video Assistant Referee (VAR) - the system used by officials to replay incidents in football matches and review potential errors. One user commented below the viral video: 'The security guy watching VAR with you somewhere.' Hertfordshire Police confirmed the woman had admitted assault by beating and two counts of using threatening behaviour that caused alarm or distress. She was fined a total of £260 and was given a restraining order.
Daily Mail
21-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Former England forward receives ANOTHER driving ban after being caught speeding again - as he's also hit with fine after pleading guilty
A former England forward has been hit with another driving ban after being caught speeding yet again. Jermaine Defoe has lost the privilege for a year after being caught doing 82pmh in a 70mph zone last October. He was driving a Land Rover in Wormley, Herts, JPs in St Albans were told. The ex-forward, who was capped 57 times by England and played for the likes of Tottenham, Portsmouth and Sunderland, was fined £660 plus £90 in costs and a £226 victim surcharge. The 42-year-old also received three points on his licence to go with the nine he already had. In July 2008, he was banned from driving for six months in July 2008, and received another six-month ban the following year for the same offence. He admitted to driving at 45mph in a 30mph zone in Portsmouth in May 2008. Defoe was handed three points and narrowly avoided a ban after being caught on his phone behind the wheel in October 2010 while driving in Loughton, but was fined £800. His next ban came two years ago when he was seen speeding in South Lanarkshire. He was clocked doing 56mph in a 30mph zone. Glasgow's Justice of the Peace Court was told Defoe was behind the wheel of a Range Rover at the time. Prosecutor Ryan Watson said the striker was snared by a speed camera in the area's Mill Street around 11pm. At the time, Paul Mullen, defending, stated: 'He apologises to the court for a momentary lapse in judgement.'
The Sun
20-05-2025
- The Sun
Ex-England footie star, 42, banned from driving for speeding for FOURTH time
FORMER England striker Jermain Defoe has been hit with a fourth driving ban for speeding. The ex-Premier League star, 42, was barred for a year after being clocked at 82mph in a 70mph zone last October. 2 2 Defoe, who played 57 times for England, was driving a Land Rover in Wormley, Herts, JPs in St Albans were told. His barrister said the ex- Spurs ace deserved credit for pleading guilty. Defoe, who was not in court, was fined £660 plus £90 costs and a £266 victim surcharge. He also got three points to add to the nine already on his licence. Defoe was previously banned from the road for six months in July 2008 for speeding. He received another six-month ban for the same offence the following year. He later admitted driving at 45mph in a 30mph zone in Portsmouth in May 2008. He was given an additional four points on his license. The star ended up in court again in October 2010 after being caught with a phone behind the wheel while driving in Loughton. He was handed three points - narrowly avoiding another ban - and fined £800. Defoe was then slapped with his third six-month ban two years ago when he was clocked doing 56mph in a 30mph zone in Rutherglen, South Lanarkshire in December 2020.
The Sun
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
First look at HUGE £1bn mini-city where new Harry Potter TV series will be filmed – complete with school and even a ZOO
THE new Harry Potter TV series will be filmed in a £1billion mini-town — complete with school and medical centre. Producers are pouring money into Warner Bros' rapidly expanding studio complex at Leavesden, just outside Watford, Herts. 6 6 6 It will include new roads, multi-storey car parks and vast hangars to house the sets. A school is being built for the hundreds of young actors who will have to commit to filming for years, while a facility is needed for dogs, birds of prey, rodents, snakes, spiders and horses which will appear. And, as our images show, execs are even using wasteland next to the studios to build an updated version of Privet Drive, the street where wizard Harry spent his younger years. A TV insider said: 'Warner Bros are making a huge commitment to the new TV show, looking at making multiple, lengthy series over the next decade. 'So they see pumping a huge amount of cash in upfront to construct this infrastructure as a worthwhile investment which they'll eventually get a return on. 'What they'll have is a small metropolis which will not only provide the backdrop for the show but all the facilities the huge cast and crew need, too.' The series, described by producers as a faithful adaptation of JK Rowling's books, is being made by US TV giant HBO. The three leads have not been announced yet but more than 32,000 hopefuls have sent in audition tapes. They hope to emulate Daniel Radcliffe, now 35, Emma Watson, also 35, and Rupert Grint, 36, who starred as Harry, Hermione Grainger and Ron Weasley in the eight films. Animals, including Harry's pet female snowy owl Hedwig, Hermione's cat Crookshanks, and Ron's pet rat Scabbers also featured heavily in the movies. Harry Potter's Weasley twins look worlds away from iconic roles as they launch baking show Warner Bros Studios said of the complex: 'No animals are housed overnight for this, or any other production.' In the first instalment, a house in Bracknell, Berks, was used for Harry's Privet Drive home. A replica now stands in the Harry Potter attraction on the 200-acre studio site, which Warner Bros leased for ten years from 2000 to make the films before buying it outright in 2010. Homes on the new Privet Drive — in the fictional Surrey town of Little Whinging — have been updated with Tudor features. 6 6 6
