Latest news with #vandals
The Independent
28-05-2025
- General
- The Independent
Police investigate fire at Princess Diana's childhood home
A farmhouse on the Althorp Estate, the childhood home of Princess Diana, was targeted in a suspected arson attack. Earl Spencer, Princess Diana 's brother, expressed his shock on social media, stating the farmhouse was 'apparently burnt down by vandals'. Firefighters responded to the blaze at the Dallington Grange farmhouse on Mill Lane, Kingsthorpe, which started about 1.30am on Wednesday. Northamptonshire Police are investigating the incident to determine the cause of the fire, but it has not yet been officially classified as a crime. The targeted building, an unoccupied late 18th-century farmhouse, is located on the Althorp Estate, which houses the Grade I-listed stately home in which the late Princess of Wales grew up.
Sky News
28-05-2025
- General
- Sky News
Althorp: Arson suspected after fire destroys farmhouse at Princess Diana's family home
A farmhouse at the former family home of Princess Diana has been burnt down in a suspected arson attack, her brother has said. Earl Spencer posted pictures on social media of the building on fire and its gutted remains the next morning, saying he was "stunned" to find out it had been "apparently burnt down by vandals". The building was unoccupied at the time, he said. He thanked firefighters for "doing their very best", and lamented it was "so very sad that anyone would think this a fun thing to do". Firefighters were called to the scene in Mill Lane, Kingsthorpe, at about 1.30am on Wednesday and found a derelict two-storey property fully on fire, Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service said. "Crews arrived to find a derelict two-storey property fully on fire. "At the height of the fire, four crews from across the service wearing breathing apparatus used hose-reel jets to contain the blaze and prevent it from spreading further," the service added. "One crew remained on the scene into this afternoon with a water bowser to continue dampening down any remaining hotspots, and then returned to their station shortly before 1pm."
The Independent
28-05-2025
- General
- The Independent
Princess Diana's former home targeted in ‘suspected arson attack', her brother Earl Spencer claims
A building at the home of the late Princess Diana has been targeted in an apparent arson attack, her brother Earl Spencer has claimed. Firefighters rushed to the scene of a blaze at one of the farmhouses at the Grade I-listed Althorp House on Tuesday night. Sharing photographs on social media, the Earl said he was 'stunned' to learn that the farmhouse 'was apparently burnt down by vandals last night'. Noting that the building was unoccupied at the time, the late princess's younger brother said: 'So very sad that anyone would think this a fun thing to do.' Northamptonshire Police are understood to be investigating to establish the cause of the fire.
Telegraph
28-05-2025
- General
- Telegraph
Princess Diana's former home hit by ‘arson attack'
A farmhouse at Princess Diana's former home has been destroyed in an arson attack, the Earl Spencer has claimed. Firefighters were called in the early hours of Wednesday to Althorp House to find the building 'fully on fire'. Lord Spencer, the younger brother of Princess Diana, claimed that the fire had been started deliberately by vandals. In a post on X, he said: 'Stunned to learn that one of Althorp House's farmhouses – fortunately, unoccupied at the time – was apparently burnt down by vandals last night. 'So very sad that anyone would think this a fun thing to do.' Adey Greeno, the estate's long-standing head gamekeeper, added: 'The farmhouse that we lost to a deliberate act of vandalism last night has now had to be razed to the ground for safety reasons. 'So sad. The world we live in.' A spokesman from the fire service said: '[We were] called at around 1.30am this morning (May 28) to reports of a fire on Mill Lane in Kingsthorpe. 'Crews arrived to find an unoccupied two-story property fully on fire. 'At the height of the fire, four crews from across the service wearing breathing apparatus used hose-reel jets to contain the blaze and prevent it from spreading further. 'This morning, one crew remains on the scene with a water bowser to continue dampening down any remaining hotspots.'
The Independent
09-05-2025
- The Independent
Detectives faced daunting task but mobile phone evidence proved damning
It appeared to be a daunting task to catch the vandals responsible for the destruction of a much-loved tree in a remote corner of Northumberland, away from witnesses and in the dead of night. Amid a national fury at the senseless act, Northumbria Police set to work to track down those responsible for a seemingly motiveless crime which had inflamed social media and led the TV news. Then police and crime commissioner Kim McGuinness, since elected as North East Mayor, was 'incandescent' and promised 'officers will do their utmost to catch whoever is behind this'. A detective inspector was assigned to lead the investigation, despite criminal damage usually being categorised as a more minor crime. Indeed, when the case came to trial, the Crown Prosecution Service appointed a King's Counsel to lead the case and a High Court judge was chosen to preside. A 16-year-old boy was arrested on the day of the felling but he was released without charge. A lumberjack in his 60s was also questioned and told reporters after he was bailed that he was innocent. Police told him he would face no further action in December 2023. Others had come under scrutiny following public tip-offs including people who had issues with the National Trust and even a boy who reported his brother. But by the end of October 2023, police had identified and arrested friends Daniel Graham and Adam Carruthers, who lived in the Carlisle area. Northumbria Police were reluctant to explain how they came to identify the two, apart from saying it followed 'intelligence-led policing'. Number plate recognition cameras had identified that Graham's Range Rover had been driven to a nearby car park at the relevant time, Newcastle Crown Court previously heard. The movement of Graham's phone was tracked using network masts and indicated that it had travelled east from the Carlisle area, before being switched off. And when police recovered his mobile from his jacket pocket, they found a video of the tree being felled on a pitch black night. That video was enhanced by a digital specialist to make the picture clearer and it proved to be a piece of telling evidence. In his police interview a month after the tree was felled, Graham told the police that the guilty person had young children but did not specifically name co-accused Carruthers, a father-of-two. And in August last year, he made an anonymous phone call to the 101 number and said: 'One of the lads that done it, Adam Carruthers, has got the saws back in his possession.' Asked in court why he had decided to 'grass' on his former friend, Graham said publicity around the crime and his arrest had led to a backlash against his business. For whatever reason, the former friends were at loggerheads, each blaming the other for a crime which shocked the country. Following their conviction, Superintendent Kevin Waring, of Northumbria Police said: 'The Sycamore Gap tree was an iconic landmark – recognisable across the world – and which held a special place in the hearts of many. 'In September 2023, we woke to the devastating news that the tree had been cut down. Since then, we have been carrying out a meticulous investigation to identify those responsible. Due to the unwavering commitment of those involved in the case, today we have seen two men be found guilty of damaging not only the tree but also Hadrian's Wall. 'We often hear references made to mindless acts of vandalism – but that term has never been more relevant than today in describing the actions of those individuals. At no point have the two men given an explanation for why they targeted the tree – and there never could be a justifiable one.'
