Company In Dock After Lift Engineer Crushed To Death

A company learned it faces a date with the Old Bailey after a lift engineer they sub-contracted at a prestigious Mayfair development was crushed to death despite desperate efforts to save his life.

J Brown Services Limited of Nirvana House, London Road, West Kingsdown, Kent pleaded guilty at City of London Magistrates’ Court to a summons brought by the Health and Safety Executive.

Andrew Bates, 40, was tragically crushed to death when a lift he was fitting safety equipment to suddenly began moving at 17 Woodstock Street, a four-storey terraced office block, on December 6, 2005.

“Cables hanging from the shaft got snagged on bolts sending a rogue signal to the lift and causing it to move and then trapping Mr. Bates,” prosecutor Miss Hillary Ross told the court.

“Men on the site report they heard screams and Mr. Bates was trapped between the top of the lift roof and the shaft and they were unable to free him.

“They had to call the fire brigade to free Mr. Bates who later died in hospital,” added Miss Ross.

“The prosecution’s case is that he was unfamiliar with the lift and had no formal qualifications. When someone has neither that person is unqualified to take on the job.”

The court was told the building refurbishment included the removal of the old lift and installation of a new one and J Brown took over the half-finished job when the original contractor ran out of time.

Mr. Bates was not an employee of the company, but was a sub-contractor they knew and was working with a member of the Brown family when the tragedy occurred.

The Health and Safety Executive say J Brown should have used five-core cable instead of three-core which reduces the chances of a rogue signal.

They also maintain a person should have been assigned to manually control the lift.

The company’s lawyer Mr. Angus Withington told the court J Brown ceased trading on August 31, 2007 and will be wound-up at the conclusion of the prosecution.

It’s current assess total £11,300.

“There’s no doubt this was a tragic accident,” said Mr. Withington. “The lift was travelling extremely slowly when Mr Bates attempted to jump off, but failed and was trapped.

“The tragedy is if he had stayed where he was he would have been in a safe place designated for that purpose.”

An inquest at Westminster Coroner’s Court recorded a verdict of accidental death.

The Health and Safety Executive’s expert Dr. Anthony Wray told the inquest Mr. Bates would have had only a split-second to react when the lift started moving.

The company admitted that being an employer they failed to ensure that the safety, as far as was reasonably practicable, of persons not in their employment would not be effected by their work installing a lift between November 30 and December 6, 2005.

They will appear at the Central Criminal Court on a date to be fixed.

Cocaine Courier Caught With £24,000 Worth Of Drugs

A hardworking plumber, who risked delivering £24,000 worth of cocaine to fund the next stage of his business, is beginning a two-year prison sentence today after being stopped by cops exiting the Rotherhithe Tunnel.

Father-of-three Paul Collins, 42, of Northchurch, Daws Street, Walworth, South-East London, agreed a £1,000 fee to courier the drug, in a bid to raise cash for a Kingston College gas course.

He pleaded guilty at Inner London Crown Court (pictured) to possessing 602 gms of cocaine, with intent to supply, on February 11.

Prosecutor Mr. Ben Temple told the court it was 9.30 p.m. when two police officers stopped Collins in his white VW plumber’s van as he exited the tunnel in Bermondsey.

They searched the vehicle and on the front passenger seat found the block of wrapped cocaine in a plastic carrier bag.

Collins was arrested and handcuffed and at Southwark Police Station gave a positive cocaine sample.

“He realises one stupid mistake has blown everything he has worked for,” said Collins’ lawyer Mr. Martin Goudi, describing his client as a hard-working family man trying to make a success of his business.

“It is a great shame to see you back in the dock of a criminal court,” Judge Roger Chapple told Collins, whose first drugs conviction was in the same building nearly twenty years ago.

“Class A drugs wreck lives, causes misery and chaos and engenders crime,” added the Judge, sentencing Collins to two years imprisonment as his family looked down from the public gallery.

Pianist's Child Sex Shame

A musician whose stash of child porn was discovered after his arrest for filming up a woman train passenger’s skirt with his mobile phone dodged jailed today (Monday).

Pianist Joe Paice, 39, of Brockley Road, Brockley, South-East London pleaded guilty at Croydon Crown Court to committing a lewd or obscene act outraging public decency by filming up the woman’s skirt on December 14, last year.

He also pleaded guilty to possessing a quantity of indecent photographs of children at his home address on the same day and was sentenced to an 18 month supervision order, including 150 hours unpaid community service work.

Paice, who also teaches music, was reported by a shocked passenger and British Transport Police arrested him when he arrived at East Croydon Station.

While in custody his home was searched and officers found computer files of the Level One images, which are at the lowest level of indecency.

Paice was also ordered to pay £150 costs and ordered to forfeit the offending computer equipment.

Do You Know This Pervert?

Police have released this Internet image of an unknown paedophile who filmed himself sexually abusing young boys in a bid to identify the monster.

The fat bald-headed pervert is believed to be from Northern England, possibly the Manchester area, and committed the offences while abroad.

He posted homemade footage online for other paedophiles and is now being hunted by the Metropolitan Police’s Paedophile Unit.

The footage has been recovered by officers conducting pro-active covert inquiries on the internet and show the suspect sexually assaulting a number of victims, who are thought to be between six and ten years old.

While the image of the suspect is not very clear, officers are confident that anyone who knows him would recognise him.

The man is described as white, aged about 40, and of large build.

He is thought to have visited a number of countries, including Egypt, Malaysia and Italy, and has strong links to Dubai.

Anyone with information which can assist the investigation is asked to contact the Met's Paedophile Unit on 0207 161 2780, or to remain anonymous Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Medical Equipment Firm Fined

A company that supplies specialist diagnostic medical instruments has been hit was a £4,500 bill after flouting safety rules designed to protect patients giving tissue samples.

Cellpath Limited, of Mochdre Enterprise Park, Newtown, Powys, Wales supplied microtome blades – used to take biopsy samples – that did not carry the CE safety mark.

They admitted three summonses at City of London Magistrates’ Court of supplying the Royal Preston Hospital, Preston, Lancashire, the Medway Maritime Hospital, Gillingham, Kent and City Hospital, Birmingham in contravention of the Medical Devices Regulations between April 1 and May 31, 2007.

“We accept no patient was put at risk by these three supplies,” prosecutor Miss Deanna Heer, representing the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, told the court.

The agency’s senior device specialist Dr. Khalid Razak said the regulations were in place to ensure no blunted blades were used to obtain tissue samples from patients.

“The danger, if you have a very small piece of tissue, is that you waste a lot of it due to the blade not functioning and may have to go back for more.

“If the condition varies you may miss vital information that is lost,” added Dr. Razak. “It should be sharp from the start and if the next blade is faulty because of manufacturing problems you may have lost quite a bit of tissue.”

The prosecution agreed none of the blades supplied to the three hospitals were faulty.

“These are safety regulations and the breach arises from the fact this defendant became the manufacturer by attaching it’s own label and was responsible for the quality of the blade,” explained Miss Heer.

The company boasts it has a reputation for “innovation, novel product design and quality of both its products and service.”

Cellpath was fined £500 on each summons and ordered to pay £3,000 costs.

The prosecution dropped similar summonses regarding Beaston Institute for Cancer Research, Glasgow and all summonses against company director Philip Webber, 43, whose family founded the business were also withdrawn.

Canada's Next Top Model Robbed Bosses To Fund Cocaine Spree

A wannabe model blew a chunk of the £10,000 she stole from a top venture capital company on a cocaine and booze binge in a desperate bed to win friends after splitting with her boyfriend, a court heard yesterday (Thursday).

Canadian-born Courtney McMath, 25, of Hurlingham Square, Fulham, made out company cheques to herself while employed as a temp at West End-based Delin Capital U.K. to impress friends she was living the high-life in the capital, jumping in and out of cabs as she toured the clubs and bars.

She was eventually sacked by the firm for constantly taking days off with hangovers and weeks later her crime spree was discovered.

McMath, who modeled for the Jalouse Catwalk Show at London Fashion Week in February pleaded guilty to stealing £10,746 from Delin between November 5 and December 18, last year and received a twelve-month community order, plus 200 hours unpaid work and was ordered to pay £250 costs.

"She split up with her boyfriend and that led to the destruction of her entire social life. She used cocaine and was binge-drinking," Miss Judith Benson, defending, told Southwark Crown Court. "She was using the money to buy drugs and alcohol."

Prosecutor Mr. Nick Rimmer said first-time offender McMath, who sobbed in the dock throughout, forged signatures on the five cheques, making out sums to herself of between £75 and £6,220.

She was arrested on January 27 and said nothing when quizzed at Charing Cross Police Station, but later admitted everything on February 11 after requesting a second interview.

McMath told police she moved to the U.K. two years ago to settle down with her boyfriend, but after the split found herself homeless and friendless.

"She said she also blew the cash on meals and taxis entertaining new friends," added Mr. Rimmer. "She said she was trying to buy new friends with stolen money."

She even twice took cheques home and made them out to herself using the company director's signature, always paying them into her own bank account.

"It was inevitable she would get caught," said Miss Benson. "The cheques were made payable in her name.

"This woman had a promising future and is now aware she has damaged that. She has now stopped drinking and taking drugs, has new flat-mates and a family friend has come over from Canada to support her."

Recorder Jeremy Donne QC told McMath: "You took a fairly substantial sum of money over three or four weeks on a number of occasions. This was an unsophisticated scheme, cheques were made out to yourself, discovery was inevitable.

"Your relationship with your boyfriend had come to and end and I accept that effected you emotionally and socially in that his friends were your friends and you found yourself isolated."

Telling McMath he would not send her to prison Recorder Donne added: "You are a young woman starting out in life and it would be a shame if your foolish conduct blighted your life for several years."

None of the money has been recovered and the Recorded added: "It is unrealistic to order compensation."

Smuggler's Cocaine-Laced Rum Kills Unsuspecting Cabbie

A father-of-two died in front of his terrified son after innocently drinking pure liquid cocaine dissolved inside a bottle of rum, which a smuggler duped a pal into carrying into the U.K. a court heard yesterday (Wednesday).

Mini-cab driver Lascelle Malcolm, 63, of Rutland Gardens, Haringey, North London, was given the St. Lucian 'Bounty' rum as a gift for picking up a friend from her holiday trip to the Caribbean island.

She was given the bottle by a holiday friend who the prosecution say was persuaded to carry it through Customs by 50 year-old Martin Newman, of Wadeville Avenue, Romford, Essex.

He has pleaded not guilty at Croydon Crown Court to the manslaughter of Mr. Malcolm (pictured) and importing class A cocaine.

"In the early hours of May 26, last year Mr. Malcolm rang the emergency services because of chest pains and a headache, informing the doctors at the Whittington Hospital he had drunk Guinness and a shot of rum the night before," prosecutor Mr. Oliver Glasgow told the jury.

Tragically Mr. Malcolm was discharged because doctors could not find anything seriously wrong with him.

"The true nature of the illness had yet to be discovered and at home he suffered a cardiac arrest and collapsed in front of his terrified son," added Mr. Glasgow.

Friends and family paid their respects the next day and two mourners, including the dead man's 40 year-old nephew, toasted Mr. Malcolm with the cocaine-laced rum and were rushed to hospital after collapsing with seizures.

"The bottle they poured alcohol from was the same bottle of rum. They noticed an unpleasant taste and spat it out.

"It was a horrifying turn of events and the family asked: 'How could three men fall ill'."

Police analysed the bottle of rum. "Pure cocaine had been dissolved into the alcohol. The cocaine within it was lethal. A teaspoon could cause an overdose," explained Mr. Glasgow.

Mr. Malcolm's friend, Antoinette Corliss, who he had collected from the airport told police the bottle of rum was given to her by friend Michael Lawrence, a native St. Lucian, who she had travelled back from the Caribbean with.

She confirmed it had been given to him by the defendant at the airport.

"The defendant approached Mr. Lawrence and explained he needed help with taking rum back to the U.K. He had ten bottles and could not take that many in.

"Mr. Lawrence agreed and said he would return the bottles to the defendant back in the U.K," said Mr. Glasgow.

When Mr. Lawrence's bags showed excess weight Newman allegedly claimed he worked in St. Lucian immigration and could get the charges waived.

Tragically Mr. Lawrence did not hand the bottle over to Newman in London, but gave it to Ms. Corliss, who presented it as a gift to the Mr. Malcolm.

"The defendant was involved in the importation of liquid cocaine and the death of Lascelle Malcolm was a result of his gross negligence," Mr. Glasgow told the jury.

Lady Magistrate In The Dock For Trying To Throw Out Romanian Tenant

A respected lady magistrate is counting the cost today (Wednesday) of illegally evicting her Romanian tenant with a racist 6 foot 7 inch henchman after losing her good character and at least £9,000 for what a Judge described as a "disgraceful episode."

Bench Chairwoman Stephanie Lippiatt, 63, a senior Justice of the Peace at Kingston-upon-Thames Magistrates' Court stormed around to the bedsit during a rent row with 28 year-old Maria Percec and hurled her belongings down the stairs and into the front garden.

Widow Lippiatt, of Lower Ham Road, Kingston-upon-Thames, who is currently suspended from magistrates’ duties,was convicted of attempting to unlawfully evict Miss Percec at Durlston Road, Kingston, on June 18, last year and causing criminal damage to her property.

After her arrest Lippiatt (pictured) – a magistrate for over twenty years and a Samaritan’s volunteer – was recorded by an officer outside the police station saying: "They are bloody foreigners and they will get away with it."

Another tenant Victor Hawes, 41, of Durlston Road, who Lippiatt denies is her secret lover, pleaded guilty to racially aggravated criminal damage and received a suspended prison sentence.

Judge Stephen Waller told Lippiatt at Croydon Crown Court: "This was a disgraceful episode. You went around with Victor Hawes to one of your properties.

"The victim was effectively thrown out and her property was literally thrown downstairs and out the front door.

"You lost patience in a difficult situation and allowed Victor Hawes to take a prominent role. You shouldn't have allowed him to behave like that and as the landlord should have taken charge."

The jury cleared Lippiatt of racially aggravated assault on Miss Percec, who claimed her feet were stamped on by the magistrate, and they also found the criminal damage offence was not racially aggravated.

"This lady, at her age and having lost her good character is the greatest burden to bear," said Lippiatt's lawyer Mr. Paul Sharkey. "She is a respectable member of the community and a magistrate for several years."

Lippiatt was fined £2,000 for the attempted unlawful eviction, fined £250 for criminal damage and ordered to pay £1900 prosecution costs.

She was also ordered to pay her full defence costs or alternatively £5,000, whatever is the lesser by Judge Waller, who heard of Lippiatt's £1 million-plus property portfolio of eight rentals during the trial. "You are a woman of means," he told her.

Hawes was sentenced to four months' imprisonment, suspended for one year, ordered to perform 120 hours community service work, pay £100 costs, plus £45 compensation to Miss Percec.

Judge Waller told him: "You threw the chest of drawers down the stairs and you were heard to call the complainant a "Romanian cockroach."

"She came in and started swearing at me to 'get the fuck out of the house'," ex-box room tenant Miss Percec told the jury during the seven-day trial. "She pushed me and stamped on my feet."

Miss Percec told the jury Lippiatt was unhappy about the tenant’s boyfriend George Stanka, 31, staying regularly overnight in her room and demanded a rent increase from £150 p.m. to £250 p.m.

"She said: 'I want more money or you are out of here', that’s all she spoke about. More money," said Miss Percec.

"The £250 was way too much. The house was in really bad condition, it was a very old house.

"The room was tiny, I have now got a room six times that size."

Lippiatt, who has a rental portfolio of eight properties, denies being a slum landlady although the defence team conceded the property was not "Buckingham Palace."

The couple were naked in bed when Lippiatt and Hawes began banging on their door late at night, demanding they leave the property.

"It was really loud banging, like someone hitting the door with a fist three times," explained Miss Percec, who had managed to throw on a dressing gown before the defendant’s burst in.

"She pulled the covers off George. He was naked and she looked at him and shouted: 'get the fuck out'."

Mr. Stanka later told the jury Lippiatt racially abused the couple. "Romanian cunts'. She said that."

Both defendants then began throwing furniture, clothing and personal effects belonging to the couple down the stairs then out the front door.

Miss Percec told police Lippiatt hurled a chest down the stairs then deliberately trampled on her belongings, before tossing items out the front door.

The couple were also intimidated by Hawes. "Victor was behind her, he’s massive, the size of the whole door. You can’t compete with that force," said Miss Percec.

Lippiatt also shouted: "You are not living in my house. You are not living on my back," the jury was told.

Miss Percec told police Hawes shouted: "You’re being fucking evicted. You’re fucking Romanian. Get out of the fucking house, you ming."

Throughout his race rant, filmed on Mr. Stanka’s mobile phone, Lippiatt is standing next to him in earshot.

The jury were played the footage in which an enraged Hawes throws the tenant's belongings down the stairs and Lippiatt is seen kicking items out the front door.

"I was left with bruises on my feet and around my knee," said Miss Percec. "The police saw it and took photos the next day.

"She was trying really hard to hurt me and push me and get me out of that room. I have been abused verbally and physically."

The jury was told Hawes also called the couple: "Romanian cockroaches."

Lippiatt claims Miss Percec has done a "hatchet job" on her so her evidence would be believed and to bolster a compensation claim.

The J.P. told the jury: "Last year when I was 62, I would have said it wouldn't have even crossed my mind that I could find myself in this position."

After two decades on the bench Lippiatt finally discovered what it felt like to be a defendant when police locked her in a cell.

"I completely lost control of myself. I was screaming and I was crying and I was begging them to let me out."

She lost her removals businessman husband Clive when he was killed by a drunken motorcyclist.

Young Mum Gunned Down On Doorstep

This is the face of a young Turkish mum assassinated on her mother’s East London doorstep when a gunman now being hunted by police shot her in the chest at point blank range.

Gulistan Subasi, 26, was visiting family on the Kingsmead Estate, Kingsmead Way, Homerton to celebrate her son’s sixth birthday and was due to return to Turkey in a few days.

She was pronounced dead at the scene, just after 8.30 p.m. on March 22 and a post-mortem gave the cause of death as a gunshot wound to the chest.

Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire of the Homicide and Serious Crime Command, who is leading the investigation said: “Ms Subasi was callously shot at close range after answering a knock on the door to her mother's flat, which is reached via an alleyway off Kingsmead Way.

"As she collapsed on the doorstep, her killer made off from the scene along Kingsmead Way, heading towards Meeson Street E5.

"The suspect is described as male, approximately 6ft tall, of slim build, wearing a light coloured hooded top (worn with hood up), light coloured trousers, and a rucksack/drawstring bag on his back.

“His face may have been covered and he may have been wearing gloves.

"I appeal to anyone who was in the area at the time of the shooting, including anyone who was inside or close to Aysal Food Market, situated below the flat, who may have seen or heard anything suspicious to contact us.”

Late on March 24 a 27 year-old man was arrested in connection with the inquiry and taken to a north London police station and later bailed to return pending further inquiries.

The man arrested is believed to be the former partner of Ms Subasi and according to local reports he was arrested as he arrived back into the UK from abroad.

Ms Subasi had moved to Turkey following a divorce from her husband in 2006.