Latest news with #Spalding
BBC News
4 days ago
- BBC News
Spalding man guilty of masked kidnap attempt on lover's husband
A man has been found guilty of attempting to kidnap his girlfriend's husband in a botched Algar, 41, from Spalding, was convicted of attempting to kidnap Gary Leggate following a trial at Lincoln Crown girlfriend and Mr Leggate's wife, Lucy Leggate, 35, from Fishtoft, near Bolton, was cleared of any was granted conditional bail and will be sentenced on 29 August. The court heard police were called to an incident on the A52, near Boston, shortly after 22:00 BST on 22 September Leggate had left work without realising a masked Algar had hidden in the rear seat of his car, jurors heard.A witness described how the car stopped suddenly on the wrong side of the A52 before Mr Leggate and Algar both got out of the Leggate told the witness he knew the masked man was having an affair with his wife, and identified him as "Dan from Spalding."The court heard Mr Leggate had become aware that his wife was having an affair with Algar about two months earlier but had had suspicions for much of 2022. In the witness box Algar denied being the masked man in the car and claimed Mr Leggate had plotted a "vendetta" against him because of the affair he was having with Mrs addressing the jury prosecution barrister Luc Chignell argued Algar was trying to spin a conspiracy Jeyes, defending Algar, suggested Mr Leggate might have been seeking revenge after discovering the affair had resumed in September."If it was a competition for the affections of the girl then Mr Algar was winning," Mr Jeyes prosecution said Mr Leggate recognised Algar's "distinctive" Yorkshire accent when the masked man spoke to him in his heard Mr Leggate also became aware of a "musty, smoky" smell and during his evidence Algar confirmed that he was a conceded the boots worn by the hooded figure in the car park were similar to his work boots but said he had different facial James House KC, warned Algar "to expect a custodial sentence" and told him "to put his affairs in order." Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here. Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Daily Mail
Man convicted of attempting to kidnap girlfriend's husband during botched hijack attempt - as she is cleared of involvement
A mother accused of attempting to kidnap her own husband walked free from court today - while the lover she was on trial with was convicted of the offence. Gary Leggate was chased by a masked Daniel Algar, 41, after he hid in the victim's car as part of the botched kidnap attempt, a court heard. Jurors heard Algar was having an affair with Mr Leggate's wife, Lucy Leggate, 36, when the attempted botched kidnap took place in September 2022. Prosecutors alleged Mrs Leggate helped in the planning by providing Algar with a spare key for her husband's car and disclosing his movements. But the jury cleared the mother-of-four of any involvement and found her not guilty of attempted kidnap. Algar, of Spalding, Lincolnshire, was convicted of the same charge and granted conditional bail ahead of his sentencing in August. The trial judge, Judge James House KC, warned Algar 'to expect a custodial sentence' and told him 'to put his affairs in order.' Judge House also asked for 'observations' on what were the possible outcomes of Algar's plan. 'Whatever they were they caused considerable fear to the victim in this case,' Judge House added. The court heard police were called to the incident on the A52, near Boston, shortly after 10pm on 22 September 2022. Jurors heard Mr Leggate had just left work at the nearby Reflex Labels printers plant in Swineshead without realising Algar had hidden in the rear seat of his car. A witness described how the car stopped suddenly on the wrong side of the A52 before Mr Leggate and a man wearing a mask both got out of the vehicle. The man 'appeared to run after' Mr Leggate before changing direction. In her statement, which was read out in court, she said she was 'immediately concerned' for Mr Leggate and had asked him if he was ok, to which he replied 'someone was in my car'. 'He was in a right state,' the court was told. Mr Leggate told the witness he knew the masked man was having an affair with his wife, and named him as 'Dan from Spalding.' The court heard Mr Leggate had become aware that his wife was having an affair with Algar around two months earlier but had suspicions for much of 2022. Jurors heard a phone belonging to Mrs Leggate made a 42 minute call to Algar which began at 9.27pm on 22 September and ended just before Mr Leggate reported the hijack. The prosecution said Algar had been searching how to use the automatic answer facility on his phone and the call had been arranged as a 'sham' to deceive the police into believing he was at home in Spalding. But Mrs Leggate failed to mention the 42 minute call when police spoke to her A few hours after the attempted kidnap and said she last spoke to Algar at 9pm when he asked about her, Gary and the family. Mrs Leggate, of Fishtoft, Lincolnshie, chose not to give evidence during her trial alongside Algar at Lincoln Crown Court. Prosecution barrister Luc Chignell argued both defendants 'shared a motive' even if he could not speculate about the 'end game' or who was the mastermind behind the plan. Mr Chignell added: 'If ultimately they wanted to set up away from Gary.' But the jury cleared Mrs Leggate of any involvement after four hours of deliberations. In the witness box Algar denied being the masked man in the car and claimed Gary Leggate had plotted a 'vendetta' against him because of the affair he was having with Lucy. But addressing the jury Mr Chignell argued Algar was trying to spin a conspiracy theory similar to those surrounding the moon landing or Elvis Presley's death. 'One of the great mysteries of this case is what Daniel Algar was going to do if Gary Leggate complied with him,' Mr Chignell added. Chris Jeyes, defending Algar, suggested Mr Leggate might have been seeking revenge after discovering the affair had resumed in September. 'If it was a competition for the affections of the girl then Mr Algar was winning,' Mr Jeyes stated. During his evidence Algar was asked if his case was that Mr Leggate had made the hijacking up and that nothing had happened? Mr Algar claimed: 'Yes, I believe so.' But after being shown footage from the car park at Mr Leggate's place of work Algar accepted it did appear to show another person getting into his vehicle before he left work. Algar conceded that he had a 'distinctive' Yorkshire accent which the prosecution said was recognised by Mr Leggate after the masked man spoke to him in his car. Jurors heard Mr Leggate also became aware of a 'musty, smoky' smell and during his evidence Algar confirmed that he was a smoker. Algar also conceded the boots worn by the hooded figure in the car park appeared to be similar to his work boots. But Algar insisted the person shown in the footage had different facial features to him. When asked if Mr Leggate had done a good job in finding someone to look like him Algar insisted: 'It would appear so.'
BBC News
5 days ago
- BBC News
Lincoln Crown Court told alleged victim made up kidnap plot
A man accused of attempting to kidnap the husband of his girlfriend told a jury he believed the alleged victim had made it Algar, 41, from Spalding, is on trial at Lincoln Crown Court alongside Lucy Leggate, 35, from Fishtoft, near both deny attempting to kidnap Mrs Leggate's husband, Gary Leggate, on 22 September 2022. Prosecutors claimed a masked Mr Algar tried to hijack Mr Leggate after hiding in his car as he left work. Mrs Leggate, a mother-of-four, chose not to enter the witness box when it was her turn to give evidence. The jury previously heard Mr Leggate was driving home when a "masked man" appeared in the back seat of his vehicle.A witness described how the car stopped suddenly on the wrong side of the road before Mr Leggate and a man wearing a mask both got out of the man "appeared to run after" Mr Leggate before changing direction, the court was evidence, Mr Algar claimed Mr Leggate plotted a "vendetta" against him because of the affair he was having with his asked if he believed Mr Leggate had made the kidnapping up and that nothing had happened, Mr Algar replied: "Yes, I believe so."But after being shown CCTV footage from the car park at Mr Leggate's workplace, Mr Algar accepted it did appear to show another person getting into his also conceded the boots worn by the hooded figure in the car park appeared to be similar to his work Mr Algar insisted the person shown in the footage had different facial features to asked if Mr Leggate had done a good job in finding someone to look like him, Mr Algar replied: "It would appear so."The prosecution allege Mrs Leggate helped Mr Algar by providing a spare key fob to her husband's car and disclosing the time he left trial continues. Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here. Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices.
BBC News
5 days ago
- BBC News
Jutyar Jelal Salah jailed for possessing illegal cigarettes
A former shopkeeper has been jailed for 22 months after being convicted of possessing more than 77,000 illegal cigarettes and 16kg (2st 5lb) of hand rolling Jelal Salah was "caught red-handed" by Trading Standards retrieving contraband cigarettes from a container, which he planned to sell via a home delivery 36-year-old owned Easy Shop on Station Street in Spalding, which, according to Lincolnshire County Council, was served with two closure orders in September 2023 and April 2024 after raids uncovered illegal was sentenced at Lincoln Crown Court on Friday. Andy Wright, principal Trading Standards officer at Lincolnshire County Council, said following the closure of his premises Salah "persisted by selling cigarettes from his car" in Spalding town was later caught by police and Trading Standards officers retrieving illegal cigarettes from a storage container in the town centre, Mr Wright Matthew Dickinson, from Lincolnshire Police, said: "Mr Salah was given opportunities to work towards rehabilitation, but instead chose to commit further offences."This is an excellent result and demonstrates how serious the courts take this sort of offending, rightly recognising the impact on the wider community." Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here. Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices
The Sun
7 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Beloved cafe is forced to close down due to rising costs leaving loyal customers ‘gutted'
ANOTHER independent cafe has been forced to close as a result of the crippling economic conditions. Bookmark in Spalding, Lincolnshire, will be serving customers for the last time at the end of this month. 1 The cafe, which also boasts its very own bookshop, broke the news to loyal visitors recently. Owner, Darren Sutton, said: "Unfortunately, due to the current economic conditions and challenges in the retail and hospitality sector together with increased labour costs, increased employers' national insurance, business rates, food and energy costs it has become increasingly difficult for stores in town centre locations to be economically viable. "So with great sadness and regret that we announce that Bookmark will be closing on Friday, July 25. 'We wish to place on record our thanks to our dedicated staff who have worked for us during our tenure of the business, our suppliers and the support shown by our customers over the years.' The website has been taken offline so remaining purchases can be made directly through the store. The company also issued a short statement on Facebook, which read: "Unfortunately, the Coffee House of Bookmark is no longer open from today. "The Bookshop will remain open until we close. Thank you to our customers for all your support!" Customers flocked to the comment section to offer their condolences and support. "Bookmark will be sorely missed by so many of us. A wonderful independent store with a great coffee shop. I did manage to come into the shop last week," one wrote. "Can't imagine it not being part of Spalding any longer," they added. A second echoed: "When I moved to Spalding over 20 years ago, I was so excited that there was an independent book shop in the town. "I have loved spending time here over the years. Absolutely gutted you are closing." A third wrote: "Oh no, gutted you're closing. I always pop in when I visit on the way to my mum's. So sorry to hear this. Hope you have fantastic adventures planned!" It's not just the small companies being forced to shut up shop. Costa Coffee has been closing branches across the country, which has been described as "a sign of the times". On June 29, the store on Whitstable High Street, Kent, closed its doors for the final time. When Costa Coffee first arrived on Whitsable High Street five years ago there was some initial disquiet. The area is fiercely proud of its reputation for independent stores and cafes. But it's the latest casualty in a string of nationwide closures by the coffee chain which were first announced last year. This included the Costa in Maidstone town centre which shut up shop in January 2024. The British Retail Consortium predicted that the Treasury's hike to employer NICs will cost the retail sector £2.3billion. Three-quarters of companies cited the cost of employing people as their primary financial pressure. At the start of this year, the Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has also warned that around 17,350 retail sites are expected to shut down in 2025. It comes on the back of a tough 2024 when 13,000 shops closed their doors for good, already a 28% increase on the previous year. Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the CRR said: "The results for 2024 show that although the outcomes for store closures overall were not as poor as in either 2020 or 2022, they are still disconcerting, with worse set to come in 2025." Professor Bamfield warned of a bleak outlook for 2025, predicting that as many as 202,000 jobs could be lost in the sector across the year. "By increasing both the costs of running stores and the costs on each consumer's household it is highly likely that we will see retail job losses eclipse the height of the pandemic in 2020."
