Latest news with #Moray
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
Man charged over crash that left three in hospital
A man has been charged in connection with a crash in Moray which left three people in hospital. Part of the A96 between Elgin and Alves was closed for several hours following the incident involving a bus and a van on 20 May. Three people between the ages of 37 and 60 were taken to Dr Grey's Hospital for treatment. A 37-year-old man has been reported to the procurator fiscal. Three in hospital after crash closed A96
BBC News
a day ago
- General
- BBC News
Man charged over crash near Elgin that left three in hospital
A man has been charged in connection with a crash in Moray which left three people in of the A96 between Elgin and Alves was closed for several hours following the incident involving a bus and a van on 20 people between the ages of 37 and 60 were taken to Dr Grey's Hospital for treatment.A 37-year-old man has been reported to the procurator fiscal.
Sky News
4 days ago
- General
- Sky News
Man jailed for at least 24 years over murder of Elgin woman
A man who went on a spending spree after beating a mother-of-two to death in Moray has been jailed for at least 24 years. Owen Grant, 43, killed Lucretia Donaghy, 32, known as Kiesha, at her home in Elgin in November 2023. Judge Lord Scott said Grant murdered the "unarmed and defenceless" woman by repeatedly striking her on the head and body with a claw hammer or similar implement. Ms Donaghy died as a result of blunt force head injuries. Lord Scott described the frenzied attack as "exceptionally savage" and "brutal". He told Grant: "Whatever implement you used, whether a claw hammer or something similar, the murder weapon was never found, undoubtedly disposed of by you in calm and calculated efforts to conceal your crime and dispose of any evidence in its immediate aftermath." The court heard there had been no evidence of provocation, with Grant accused of murdering Ms Donaghy for money. Lord Scott stated: "On the evidence, you were struggling to pay your rent at the time. On your own evidence, you owed Lucretia Donaghy money for drugs. "Almost immediately after her death, you embarked, once again calmly, on a spending spree involving attending to your own needs and drug habit. "You went from having only £12.36 in the bank on 15 November 2023 to frittering away hundreds of pounds on cocaine in a matter of three or four days. "Frittering away hundreds of pounds of the murdered Lucretia Donaghy's money entirely on your own selfish purposes. You started to do so before her body had even been discovered, within no more than two hours of her death." Grant denied any wrongdoing but was on Thursday found guilty of murder following a trial at the High Court in Edinburgh. Lord Scott handed him a life sentence with at least 24 years behind bars. The judge highlighted a victim impact statement prepared by Ms Donaghy's mother, Amanda Gow. Lord Scott said: "She mourns for her daughter and the life Kiesha would have had. Her mind returns constantly to Kiesha's final minutes, wondering if she was in pain." In a statement released through Police Scotland, Ms Gow thanked all those who have shown support. She added: "Life without Kiesha will never be the same. She was my only daughter and my first born. Her two daughters will have to live their lives without their mum. "I still cannot get my head around the fact that she is gone and that her life was taken in such a brutal way." Detective Superintendent Lorna Ferguson said it had been a "complex enquiry", but Grant was now facing the consequences of his actions. She added: "My thoughts remain with Kiesha's family and friends as they continue to try to come to terms with what happened. I hope the verdict will bring them some form of justice."
The Sun
4 days ago
- General
- The Sun
I transformed my council house garden into an extra parking space to help neighbours but people pointed out same issue
A DAD-OF-12 has revealed his freebie garden makeover after converting it into an extra parking space - all to stay on his neighbours' good side. Ben, 50, and Zoe Sullivan, 46, and their bumper brood make up one of Scotland's biggest families. 4 The pair are parents to Elizabeth, 20, Olivia, 18, Noah, 15, Eva, 13, Toby, 12, Agnes, seven, Joseph, six, Flo, three, and two sets of twins, Charlotte and Isabelle, 17, and Leah and Erin, nine. They live in a six-bedroom council house in Burghead, Moray, where they regularly document their hectic lives on their YouTube channel. After buying a Fiat 500 as a "runaround car" for their eldest daughters, the couple were worried they were taking too much on-street parking away from their neighbours They already have two people carriers for ferrying around the whole family on day trips and holidays, and only had room for one car in their driveway. And they feared that having two cars parked on the street could create an issue. Ben said: "Since the girls have now got their car, the issue with parking is raising its head. "We don't want to take the mickey. We don't want to take up too much space outside because obviously it's a cul-de-sac. "There's lots of houses and most homes these days have cars and some two cars and it's just creating a bit of a traffic jam out there. "What we don't want to do is just to overtake an entire road with cars." As a solution, they decided to sacrifice their spare front garden space and converted it into another parking spot instead. I'm fuming after nosy neighbours left note on my car asking my 'plans for parking', despite having a four-car driveway Ben said the decision "improves curb appeal and makes their council home more functional". In a recent video, he documented his one-day transformation of the front garden - and it didn't cost a penny. Alongside sons Noah and Toby, Ben removed the front garden fence, digged out the deep fence posts and filled the holes with mud and stones that were already in the garden. Their job was made easier as the council had already removed half of the fence to accommodate for sewage works. And Ben "got the green light" from officials to remove the rest of the fencing too. Showing off the finished results, the delighted dad said: "That just leaves the little runabout just parked near to our house so it just saves a lot on space. "We're not taking up too much space and we've actually got a place to park." 4 4 4 But after sharing the transformation on social media, people were quick to point out a potential issue. "You need a dropped kerb now putting in which is an expensive job", one person said. Somebody else chimed in: "I guess if the kerb isn't dropped you run the risk of being blocked in if someone parks there?" And a third added: "Some jealous eejit will report for not having a drop kerb and removing the fence/posts." But Ben insisted that: the kerb is "partially dropped already" and added: "It's fine for now." "I put an application in with the council, plus it was the council who removed half the fence for us in the first place ️ "People will always try and trip us up unfortunately there are little bullies everywhere." Social media support Other people, however, were full of praise for the savvy dad's DIY project. One said: "Wow, I bet it will make a huge difference getting the cars on the drive! Much easier for you all... easier to load up... and safer off the road. Great job all." Someone else wrote: "Great job on the driveway, hopefully will make a difference especially now with the girls car. Well done to your helpers too." "Nice you can park on the drive now. So considerate of you as you have three cars", chimed in a third. A fourth agreed: "Front is looking good, much better use of the space in the front, and leaves the street less crowded." "Great job converting it into a driveway!! Looks really good!!" gushed a fifth. And a sixth said: "That's a great idea parking the two bigger cars in the driveway and the wee Fiat on the street it would be lovely if more neighbours were thoughtful like this and considered others." The garden renovation comes after the Sullivans were forced to hit back at trolls who claim they're jobless spongers on benefits - insisting they couldn't be more wrong. Zoe was faced with hateful messages after revealing she spends £400 on the weekly food shop. Opening up about the hate, Zoe said: "There is this assumption that number one, we don't work and number two we bring in mass incomes on benefits and then spend it all on rubbish. "People seem to be so angry at large families, [they] just assume you have children and you suddenly become a sponge on society. "We pay our taxes, we pay our bills, we pay our council tax, we pay our rent, we pay all that stuff." "Obviously getting us by, there's 14 of us, it takes quite a lot of money. But we budget, we make ends meet."
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Savage killer who beat mum to death in 'exceptionally brutal' attack in home given at least 24 years
A killer who went on a spending spree after savagely beating a woman to death in her own home has been jailed for life for her murder. Owen Grant repeatedly bludgeoned Lucretia Donaghy, known as Keshia, with a weapon like a claw hammer in the fatal attack. A judge ordered that the 43-year-old must serve a minimum prison term of 24 years before he is eligible to seek release on parole because of the 'exceptionally brutal nature of the murder' and the killer's extensive record for violent crime. Lord Scott told Grant that he murdered 'an unarmed and defenceless' woman. He said: 'The attack was exceptionally savage, frenzied and, as your own senior counsel said, brutal.' The judge added: 'The reasons for this brutal murder remain unknown, but appear almost certainly to have been related to money.' Lord Scott said that after the murder Grant embarked on a spending spree 'frittering away' hundreds of pounds on cocaine. The judge told him that when, if ever, he is released, it will be a matter for the parole board. He said that in a victim impact statement the deceased's mother said her heart was broken following the loss of her only daughter. The mother-of-two died after sustaining multiple blunt force head injuries and was found lying face down in a bedroom at her address in Elgin, Moray. A neighbour had heard sounds of an argument coming from the downstairs flat and the victim calling out: 'No, no, no.' A passport in the name of Owen Grant was found in the property and he left his hand print in the victim's blood on a bedroom wall but claimed it came from tattooing her wrist. However, he was caught on camera with a wad of money after the killing. Grant, of Elgin, denied murdering the 32-year-old and claimed: 'I never laid a finger on her.' He told the High Court in Edinburgh that the killing was 'disgusting' and 'horrible' and he was devastated by the death. But a jury found him guilty of assaulting Ms Donaghy by repeatedly striking her on the head and body with an unknown object and murdering her on November 15, 2023 in Elgin, by a majority verdict on the third day of deliberations. Grant, a former labourer, who has previous convictions for violence and was sentenced to eight years detention in 2003 for arson to danger of life at Warrington Crown Court, in Cheshire, admitted he owed the victim £300 for cocaine but insisted he was planning to pay her back. But the court heard he had just £12 in his bank account at the time of the murder and had not paid his rent that week. Advocate depute Christopher Wilson KC told jurors: 'My suggestion to you is the accused had run out of money. A drug habit and a lack of money is a bad combination.' He added: 'No one saw Owen Grant wield the hammer. The hammer itself has never been recovered, if you accept it was a hammer.' Grant was seen on CCTV putting a bag in a refuse bin after the killing and buying cigarettes and drinks at a Scotmid store with a large amount of cash in his wallet. No money was recovered when police searched Ms Donaghy's home following the slaying and no murder weapon was found, however, a witness said Grant had made attempts to buy hundreds of pounds worth of drugs afterwards. Following the sentencing, her grieving mother, Amanda Gow, said: 'Life without Keshia will never be the same. She was my only daughter and my first born. Her two daughters will have to live their lives without their mum. 'I still cannot get my head around the fact that she is gone and that her life was taken in such a brutal way.' She thanked for police and everyone who's supported the family and asked for their privacy to be respected. Detective Superintendent Lorna Ferguson said: 'My thoughts remain with Keshia's family and friends as they continue to try to come to terms with what happened. I hope the verdict will bring them some form of justice. 'This was a complex enquiry and I would like to thank the local community for their patience and assistance throughout our investigation. 'Grant now faces the consequences of his actions.'
