A man has been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder following a rush hour shooting near a school yesterday (May 20).

The incident happened in Leicester Road at 8am yesterday, and the man, who is in his 20s, was arrested this afternoon.

He was also arrested on suspicion of threats to kill, arson and criminal damage and will be questioned at Luton Police Station.

The victim, 27, suffered a “life-changing” injury to his leg and remains in hospital in a serious but stable condition.

Bedfordshire Police continue to investigate the incident and is appealing for anyone with information to contact DI Iain Morgan in confidence on 101 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

Yasir Masood and Mohammed Iqbal have been convicted by Luton Magistrates Court of offences relating to the use of a licensed private hire vehicle.

Both pleaded guilty.

Masood, 32, of Dewsbury Road, received a financial penalty of £240 and three penalty points on his licence.

Iqbal, of Ashburnham Road, was fined £435 and also received three penalty points.

Eviction procedures have started against travellers who pitched up in Leagrave last week.

But Luton Borough Council says health checks must first be completed before the caravans can be moved on from the car park in Bramingham Road.

A number of arrests have been made in relation to the recent spate of gun crime in Luton.

A man in his 20s was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder, threats to kill, arson and criminal damage after a 27-year-old man was shot in the leg in Leicester Road at 8am on Monday.

He remains in hospital in a serious but stable condition with “life-changing” injuries while the suspect is questioned by police.

Two people, aged 18 and 24, have also been arrested in connection with the attempted murder of a 16-year-old who was shot in the back in Thricknells Close, Marsh Farm on May 11.

Armed police executed warrants at properties in Glaisdale and Cannon Lane, Luton on Tuesday and also searched houses in Acworth Crescent and Pomeroy Grove where Class A drugs were found.

A third person, age 19, was previously arrested and was released on bail on Thursday.

There have been 10 shootings in Luton so far in 2013. For a map of gun crime in the town click here

There have been 18 incidents of gun crime in 2013 including ten in which a firearm was illegally discharged. Details of arrests for the ten shootings are as follows:

Date Location Arrests

Jan 30 - Wellington St/Russell St. - No arrests yet

Feb 3 - Arrow Close - Three arrests

April 9 - Brunel Road (fatal) - Two arrests

April 16 -Burnham Road - One arrest

April 24 - St Michael’s Close - No arrests yet

April 30 - Tudor Road - No arrests yet

May 5 - Culverhouse Road - No arrests yet

May 7 - Kirby Drive - No arrests yet

May 11 - Thricknells Close - Three arrests

May 20 - Leicester Road - One arrested

No one has been charged yet.

Luton ghost buster and jazz drummer, Tony Broughall, has died in Kings Lynn at the age of 80.

He had been in poor health for some time.

His friend – author and fellow paranormal enthusiast, Paul Adams - said: “Tony was the town’s original ghost buster and wrote the first gazetteer of Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire hauntings in the early 1970s.

“I edited and published it in 2010 as Two Haunted Counties, to favourable reviews.
“He was born in Ashburnham Road and in his early days was an ace jazz drummer.

“He organised Luton’s first jazz festival at the Old Alma Theatre and jammed on one occasion with Dudley Moore, no less.”

But he suffered from diabetes and lost a leg through the condition 17 years ago.

Tony met his wife Georgina when they were both working at Dunstable’s ABC.

“We were both only children,” she said. “He was from a strong Spiritualist family.

“I became a lot more interested in that side of things after we got together.

“He was a lovely man, always telling jokes and making people laugh.”

English Defence League members clashed with police last night after travelling to Woolwich following the killing of a soldier in a suspected terrorist incident.

The leader of the Luton-based group, Tommy Robinson, real name Stephen Lennon, called for “feet on the streets” in Woolwich after the attack.

He had earlier tweeted: “There has to be a reaction by the British public to this attack on one of our brave young soldiers.”

Sky News reported around 100 EDL supporters had gathered close to where the incident happened and that bottles were thrown at police.

Channel 4 reporter Brian Whelan tweeted: “Cops surrounding square, Edl milling about spoiling for a fight, helicopter up and scene of terror attack up road.”

A deadline for expressions of interest in rescuing a Milton Keynes company from adminstration passes this evening (Friday).

Administrators Deloitte say there have already been “a number” of expressions of interest for Atmosphere Bars and Clubs, based in Seebeck Place, Knowlhill.

Three of the company’s 24 outlets have already been closed as the administrators seek to sell the business as a going concern.

Another 11 bars are set to close by May 31, but a spokesman for Deloitte said they could close and then re-open depending on any new owner’s plans.

The spokesman would not confirm which 11 outlets have been selected to close, saying: “Our priority is to tell the employees first.” At the start of the administration process, the business had 75 full-time and 418 part time employees.

The company runs the Chicago’s bar in Luton and Modello’s in Bedford.

Daniel Butters and Adrian Berry of Deloitte, the business advisory firm, are joint administrators to Atmosphere Bars and Clubs.

Mr Butters said, when the company went into administration on May 14 that “unfortunately, as a consequence of cash flow problems, the decision was taken by the directors of Atmosphere Bars and Clubs to place the company into administration.”

The spokesman added that the administrators would “like a conclusion as quickly as possible” not least for the company’s remaining employees.

The family of a man who killed himself in the grounds of a primary school say his death might have been prevented by a psychiatric assessment.

Lee Biddle, 33, of Dellfield Court, Luton, was found hanged in the grounds of Ramridge Primary School on March 7 this year. At an inquest into his death on Tuesday (May 19), his family said they still had unanswered questions about his final days.

Dunstable Coroner’s Court heard Mr Biddle, who had a history of heroin addiction, was arrested after a police officer was assaulted in Luton town centre on March 5.

While in custody at Luton police station he became violent, punching and headbutting the cell door, and threatened to kill himself if charged. But PC Philip Rutt told the inquest once Mr Biddle sobered up he “became a normal person and apologised for his behaviour”, and made no more suicide threats.

He was seen by a doctor at the station and then taken to hospital as he had broken a bone in his hand. Later that day he was bailed after being charged with the assault.

When asked by assistant deputy coroner Belinda Cheney why no consideration was given to Mr Biddle receiving a psychiatric assessment, PC Rutt said he did not know, adding: “I was looking after him because he was drunk.”

Two nights later PC Rutt and a colleague were called to Ramridge at 11pm after a caretaker discovered Mr Biddle’s body hanging from a metal fence.

“He was cold and had no pulse,” said PC Rutt. “Both of us recognised it as Lee.”

Mr Biddle had locked his dog, a Staffie, in the school’s bin store, and his belongings were found in a doorway.

Beds Police had contacted Mr Biddle’s mother, Teresa Skelton, earlier in the evening after receiving a distressed call from him, but could not trace his whereabouts.

Det Con Kim Willis told the inquest she had seen him at 8.40pm that night while off duty, when she came across his dog attacking a spaniel near Ramridge Primary. She helped him separate the two animals and said she would have to report the incident to the police.

“I could smell alcohol on him,” she said. “I didn’t tell him I was a police officer, he was a big guy and I was on my own.

“He seemed upset and sorry for what had happened.”

She requested an ambulance crew called to treat the spaniel’s owner report the dog attack, and called it in to the control room herself when she got home a short while later.

Asked by the family why no officers went to track Mr Biddle down, she said: “Ideally we would go and find someone immediately but it doesn’t work like that. The way the police are working at the moment we just don’t have the people.”

The inquest was adjourned so that more information could be obtained from Bedfordshire Police, whose professional standards department carried out an internalinvestigation after Mr Biddle’s death.

A force spokeswoman said no failings were found and that a pre-release risk assessment had taken place.

She added: “Following the events of March 7 this was referred to the IPCC due to previous police contact. They identified no issues.”

Speaking outside the coroner’s court, Mrs Skelton said: “They could have just referred him to the crisis team. If he was in the cells saying he was going to commit suicide they should have referred him.

“I think they system has let him down.”

Mr Biddle, originally from Dover, had been getting help for his drug problems from Luton rehab service Walk to Freedom.

His partner, Sue Richards, said: “He was trouble but it was down to the drugs and the drink, they make people different.”

New bosses are promising customers will reap the benefits as a leading national chain moves into the Namco Station.

The bowling and amusements complex in Luton’s Galaxy Centre has been taken over by Garland Leisure who will transform it into a 1st Bowl over the coming weeks.

Namco commercial director Phillip Millward explained their position: “Garland were willing to make a longer time commitment and a greater financial investment so we have taken the decision not to renew our lease.”

1st Bowl manager Matt Scotney said: “We’re bringing in newer machines, introducing new offers and customers will definitely see positive changes. ”

The Wimpy food outlet will remain open during the transition but is soon to be relaunched as Fat Sam’s Diner, the signature restaurant in most 1st Bowl centres.

Despite the takeover, existing staff will stay on in their current roles. Centre manager Brian Moore is positive about the changes the new owners will bring: “We’ve got some great ideas, we’re going to be getting in new DJs, introducing new events such as student nights. They are a much bigger company, their aim is to be number one in the country.”

A damning new report describes Luton as a “benefits ghetto”, with the fourth highest spend per person on welfare in England and Wales.

In Luton, an average of £5,292.80 per head is spent on welfare, according to The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ)report released on Monday.

Only Sefton in Merseyside, the London borough of Barking & Dagenham, and Blackburn with Darwin in Lancashire, had more costs per head than Luton.

CSJ managing director Christian Guy said: “People in these neighbourhoods have been consistently written off as incapable and their poverty plight inevitable. Their lives have been limited by a fatalistic assumption they have little prospect of anything better.”

The report also found that nearly one fifth of UK children are growing up in a workless household, and when asked what they wanted to be when they grew up, some said they wanted to be “famous” or the “boss of a gang”.

In Luton, Biscot and Northwell wards had the highest number of out of work benefits claimants in April 2013 – an estimated 6.5 per cent of the working-age population (16-64). In 2012, Dallow ward had the highest number of claimants at 7.3 per cent, but this has dropped to 6.3 per cent this year.

Overall, Luton has an above average percentage of working-age people claiming benefits; 4.5 per cent compared to the England average of 3.7 per cent.

A Luton Borough Council spokesman said: “We provide a number of initiatives aimed at supporting getting people into work including assisting young people with career choices, improving skills levels through activity within community centres, adult learning and our European Social Fund programme, supporting a volunteer programme which helps people move into work, providing space for Job Centre Plus to work and supporting access to welfare advice and guidance.”

Out-of-work benefits are managed by the Department for Work and Pensions, but the council is responsible for administering housing and council tax benefits.

The spokesman said: “We are unclear regarding what the calculations quoted have been based on.

“The NOMIS official labour market statistics show the level of out-of-work benefits to be consistent at 14 per cent for a number of years. Of the 5,900 job seekers allowance claimants in Luton, only 1,600 have been unemployed for over six months.”

A Dunstable woman grabbed national headlines last week when she found George Michael lying in the middle of the M1 and phoned him an ambulance.

Katherine Fox, 23, was driving home from work in Watford when she had to slam on the brakes after the global superstar fell out of a Range Rover travelling at 50mph.

After being one of only a handful of people to stop and offer assistance to the singer, the forme r Harlington Upper School student has been all over the front pages.

She told the Gazette: “These last few days have been weird. I’ve almost had the feeling of being famous.

“I’m not used to this, I’m just a normal person. My phone’s been non-stop.”

After getting out of her car to help, Katherine was assisted by an off-duty police officer – who dragged Mr Michael to the side of the road – while she called 999 on her mobile phone.

She said that many motorists did not stop to help after swerving to miss Mr Michael.

She said: “People were just driving past like it was nothing. If you see someone in the road you stop, surely. I do not know how he wasn’t run over.

“George had a massive hole in his head. He was looking around but didn’t say a word.”

“The whole time I was there, no one mentioned that it was George Michael, which was so strange.

“I wouldn’t recognise him if he walked into a coffee shop. I don’t know anything about celebrities.”

Mr Michael is currently recovering in hospital. Katherine added: “Even if his spokespeople got in touch with me, it would be nice to just know how he is.”

Pupils at nine schools in Luton are experiencing an unusual kind of English lesson as a radical new programme is introduced in classrooms.

Move4words is a physical activity programme which claims to drastically improve children’s reading ability by enhancing their self-control and attention through exercise.

St Joseph’s Catholic Junior School is taking part in the programme, and Luton North MP Kelvin Hopkins visited the Gardenia Avenue school to try it out himself.

Mr Hopkins said: “Move4words is clearly a great benefit for children and I was very impressed with the performances by the pupils I saw at St Joseph’s. The children said the exercises helped them with everything from reading to sports. I was invited to take part which was really a new experience and actually quite difficult (by week 11 of the 12 week programme). The children were all excellent at the exercise routine so it helped me to imitate what they were doing.”

Dr Elizabeth McClelland developed the programme based on studies that look at the relationship between reading difficulties and physical and sensory impediments.

Move4words is designed to be used alongside normal teaching techniques.

And the programme has been shown to benefit pupils of all abilities, with poor readers improving the most.

Headteacher Jacqueline Lee said: “The staff and pupils of St Joseph’s have fully embraced the Move4words programme, they have enjoyed the structure of daily routine and active exercises. Many pupils have reported that it has helped them with their reading and concentration. They have also enjoyed watching the staff struggle with some of the more challenging moves!”

Luton Council is part-funding the trial of the programme in the town’s primary schools.

Hosting the Olympic Torch cost taxpayersin Luton and Dunstable £116,902 last year, a Freedom of Information request revealed on Monday.

The Olympic Torch was carried through Luton on July 8, followed by an evening celebration attended by more than 12,000 people.

The torch left the town the following morning, carried by torchbearers including Formula 1 star Lewis Hamilton and cost Luton council £67,000 in total.

It then travelled into Dunstable, where Central Bedfordshire Council spent £49,902 to host the flame across the county.

A Luton Council spokesperson said: “This was a once in a lifetime opportunity which not only brought the community together like never before, but also the positive media coverage and the boost it gave the local economy was unprecedented.”

In the East Anglia region, only Peterborough spent more than Luton Council, with a bill of £134,034. The cheapest celebration was £1,246 in Northampton, although the torch did not stay there overnight, only passing through on the morning of July 2.

£3,500 was spent on park and ride, £20,000 on marketing and media, £5,000 on the artistic director, £7,020 on expenses to see off the torch in the morning, and £27,300 on production costs such as staffing and fencing.

Pets at Home in Dunstable is offering pet owners the chance for their handsome hound to become the next top dog model.

They are appealing for dog owners in Luton and Dunstable to get in touch. See www.petsathome.com/strikeapaws.

Bedfordshire Police have charged a man with attempted murder and a firearms offence.

Khadeem Newell, 22, of Jasmine Road, Luton, has been charged with one count of attempted murder and one count of possession of a Section One firearm.

Newell has been remanded in custody and will appear at Luton Magistrates Court on Monday, May 27.

The charge follows an incident in Fountains Road, Luton, on May 5.

Seven charities are set to benefit from a partnership with Luton-based Monarch’s new charitable foundation.

The company is bringing together all of its charity activities under the Monarch Foundation, and its chosen partners are Macmillan Cancer Support, When You Wish Upon A Star, Children in Need, Home-Start UK, Toe in the Water, the Dick Camplin Educational Trust and the Homeless World Cup.

On Thursday staff, charity representatives, Luton mayor Sheila Roden and Luton South MP Gavin Shuker celebrated the foundation’s launch at Monarch headquarters in Percival Way.

Glorious sunshine, hypnotic music and fantastic costumes made for a great day out at Luton Carnival today.

The streets were packed as onlooker watched the floats, dancers and musicians as they braved scorching sunshine.

For your carnival spoecial with pages of pictures, see this week’s Luton News, out on Wednesday.

Detectives from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit (MCU) have launched a murder investigation following the fatal stabbing of a 20-year-old man in Luton on Sunday evening.

Officers were called to a property in Thrales Close, Marsh Farm, by colleagues from the Ambulance Service at around 8.15pm after they received reports that somebody had been stabbed.

Firearms units attended the property where the victim was found with serious injuries. He was rushed to the Luton and Dunstable Hospital but was pronounced dead shortly afterwards.

The victim’s family have been informed.

Det Ch Insp Sharn Basra, of the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire MCU, is keen to trace anyone who may have information relating to this incident.

He said: “This was a very brutal murder and a team of detectives is now piecing together exactly what took place in Thrales Close this evening. Our officers are working with witnesses and members of the victims’ family to establish what happened prior to the stabbing and who may be responsible for this.

“I would urge anyone who may have seen the incident itself or anyone with even the smallest piece of information to come forward and speak with the police in complete confidence, or alternatively, they can speak to members of the independent charity Crimestoppers, completely anonymously, on 0800 555 111.”

Anyone with information relating to this investigation is urged to contact officers from the MCU, in confidence on 01707 355666, or call Bedfordshire Police on 101, or text information on 07786 200011.

“Ride or die, remember?”

Fast Five back in 2011 was a crazy jump start for an auto-action franchise that was in danger of running out of gas.

Now the series blasts back and instead of misfiring, Fast & Furious 6 – yes, with the ‘& Furious’ back in the title – sees loveable street racers Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel) and Brian O’Conner (Paul Walker), plus their pals Roman (Tyrese Gibson), Han (Sung Kang) and Tej (Ludacris) getting in over their heads. Again.

Director Justin ‘Community’ Lin somehow manages to create a plot that allows for the vehicular warfare to go further over the top than anything we’ve seen on a big screen before.

It revolves around the Fast gang – now fugitives living the high life after their successful Rio heist of Fast 5 – being recalled by hard ass cop Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) to help him take down a new threat in the form of Shaw (Luke ‘The new Crow’ Evans).

It seems that evil Shaw, working with a gang of nasty mercenary drivers, is stealing parts to construct a super weapon, which would be worth over a billion dollars, by attacking military convoys.

He only needs one more part and so Hobbs and his new partner Riley (Gina Carano) are desperate enough to offer full pardons to Dom and crew if they can help nail Shaw – and save the world.

Cue high speed chases, tons of auto-destruction – some of which involves a battle tank on a Spanish motorway – all ending with a climax that would be perfectly at home in a Die Hard movie.

The action globe hops round the world with segments in the US, London, Spain and Tokyo – each is well used and as a Brit it was especially cool to see the London scenes, although the good ol’ UK coppers aren’t any match for the hotshot street racers or their new enemies.

The car action is what has always been the beating heart of the Fast & Furious films and it pays off again here.

That does mean that the ‘acting’ has to take a back seat to modified vehicles going incredibly fast and crashing.

There is an awkward subplot about Dom trying to win back the heart of Letty (Michelle Rodriguez) who was thought to have been killed in an earlier film but who survived, lost her memory and is now working for the bad guys.

So sure, it’s nonsense – but it is highly entertaining high octane nonsense which certainly keeps the engine of this turbocharged series revving nicely!

Police are keen to speak with three people who were seen in Thrales Close, Luton, around the time that a 20-year-old man was murdered in his own home last night (Sunday, May 26).

Officers were called to a property by colleagues from the Ambulance Service at around 8.15pm after they received reports that somebody had been stabbed.

Firearms units attended the property where the victim was found with serious injuries. He was rushed to the Luton and Dunstable Hospital but was pronounced dead shortly afterwards.

Detectives from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit (MCU) have been scanning hours of CCTV footage and have identified three people who were walking together around the Thrales Close and Purley Centre area, and may hold valuable information about the incident.

They are:

A black male riding a bicycle;

A black male with a dog on a lead; and

A young white female, possible a teenage girl, wearing shorts or a short skirt with coloured red hair in a ponytail.

Det Ch Insp Stephen Collin, of the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire MCU, is keen to here from anyone who may have information relating to the incident but particularly the three people seen on CCTV.

He said: “The early stages of this investigation suggest that the victim may well have known his attacker as there was no indication of a disturbance prior to the fatal assault. We have identified three people from local CCTV cameras and I would urge them to come forward as they may hold extremely important information about this attack.

“Marsh Farm is a very community orientated area and I’m sure that local residents will be able to assist us with our inquiries. I would urge anyone who may have seen the incident itself or anyone with even the smallest piece of information to come forward and speak with the police in complete confidence, or alternatively, they can speak to members of the independent charity Crimestoppers, completely anonymously, on 0800 555 111.”

Anyone with information relating to this investigation is urged to contact officers from the MCU, in confidence on 01707 355666, or call Bedfordshire Police on 101, or text information on 07786 200011.