Chuck Berry

Chuck Berry, rock 'n' roll's founding guitar hero who defined the music's joy and rebellion in such classics as Johnny B Goode has died. He was 90.

Emergency responders summoned to Berry's home by his caretaker about 12.40pm on Saturday found him unresponsive, police in Missouri's St Charles County said.

Attempts to revive Berry failed, and he was pronounced dead shortly before 1.30pm, police said.

A police spokeswoman, Val Joyner, told The Associated Press she had no additional details about the death of Berry, calling him "really a legend".

Berry's core repertoire was some three dozen songs, his influence incalculable, from the Beatles and the Rolling Stones to virtually any group from garage band to arena act that called itself rock 'n' roll.

While Elvis Presley gave rock its libidinous, hip-shaking image, Berry was the auteur, setting the template for a new sound and way of life.

Well before the rise of Bob Dylan, Berry wedded social commentary to the beat and rush of popular music.

"He was singing good lyrics, and intelligent lyrics, in the 50s when people were singing, 'Oh, baby, I love you so,'" John Lennon once observed.

Berry, in his late 20s before his first major hit, crafted lyrics that spoke to the teenagers of the day and remained fresh decades later.

Roll Over Beethoven was an anthem to rock's history-making power, while Rock And Roll Music was a guidebook for all bands that followed ("It's got a back beat, you can't lose it").

Johnny B Goode, the tale of a guitar-playing country boy whose mother tells him he will be a star, was Berry's signature song.

The song was inspired in part by Johnnie Johnson, the boogie-woogie piano master who collaborated on many Berry hits, but the story could have easily been Berry's or Presley's.

Johnny B Goode could have only been a guitarist.

The guitar was rock 'n' roll's signature instrument and Berry's sound, a melting pot of country flash and rhythm 'n blues drive, turned on a generation of musicians.

They included the Rolling Stones' Keith Richards, who acknowledged he had "lifted every lick" from his hero; the Beatles' George Harrison; Bruce Springsteen; and the Who's Pete Townshend.

When Nasa launched the unmanned Voyager I in 1977, an album was stored on the craft that would explain music on Earth to extraterrestrials.

The one rock song included was Johnny B Goode.

Country, pop and rock artists have recorded Berry songs, including the Beatles (Roll Over Beethoven), Emmylou Harris (You Never Can Tell) and AC/DC (School Days).

The Rolling Stones' first single was a cover of Berry's Come On and they went on to perform and record Around And Around, Let It Rock and others.

He received a Grammy for lifetime achievement in 1984 and two years later became a charter member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, along with Presley, Buddy Holly, Little Richard and others.

In the 1990s, Berry began giving monthly concerts in the intimate setting of the "Duck Room" of the Blueberry Hill club in St Louis, drawing visitors from around the world.

At times he was joined by his son, guitarist Charles Berry Jr, and daughter, Ingrid Berry Clay, on vocals and harmonica. He married their mother, Themetta Suggs, in 1948. They had four children.

Charles Edward Anderson Berry was born in St Louis on October 18 1926. As a child he practised a bent-leg stride that enabled him to slip under tables, a prelude to the trademark "duck walk" of his adult years.

Berry studied the mechanics of music and how it was transmitted. As a teenager, he loved to take radios apart and put them back together.

He began his musical career at 15 when he went on stage at a high school review to perform a cover of Jay McShann's Confessin' The Blues. Berry would never forget the ovation he received.

Influenced by bandleader Louis Jordan and blues guitarist T-Bone Walker among others, Berry signed with Chicago's Chess Records in 1955 after hooking up with Johnson three years earlier.

Maybellene reworked the country song Ida Red and rose into the top 10 of the national pop charts, a rare achievement for a black artist at that time.

Hits followed, including Roll Over Beethoven, and Sweet Little Sixteen. Among his other songs were Nadine, Let it Rock, Almost Grown and the racy novelty number My Ding-A-Ling, which topped the charts in 1972, his only No. 1 single.

Berry did not care for hard drugs, but he knew too well the outlaw life.

His troubles began in 1944, when a joyriding trip to Kansas City turned into a crime spree involving armed robberies and car theft. Berry served three years of a 10-year sentence at a reformatory.

In the early 1960s, his career was nearly destroyed when he was indicted for violating the Mann Act, which barred transportation of a minor across state lines for "immoral purposes".

There were two trials, the first so racist that a guilty verdict was vacated, and the second leading to prison time, 18 months of a three-year term.

Berry continued to record after getting out, and his legacy was duly honoured by the Beatles and the Stones, but his hit-making days were essentially over.

Tax charges came in 1979, based on Berry's insistence he receive concert fees in cash, and another three-year prison sentence, all but 120 days of which was suspended.

Some former female employees sued him for allegedly videotaping them in the toilet of his restaurant. The cases were settled in 1994, after Berry paid 1.3 million dollars (£1.1 million pounds).

Openly money-minded, Berry was an entrepreneur with a St Louis nightclub and property he dubbed Berry Park, which included a home, guitar-shaped swimming pool, restaurant, cottages and concert venue.

He declined to have a regular band and instead used local musicians, willing to work cheap, wherever he performed. Springsteen was among those who had an early gig backing Berry.

Music industry titans have reacted with sorrow at the death of Berry, who influenced stars from Elvis Presley to the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.

The Stones said they were "deeply saddened" by the news, and described him as "a true pioneer of rock'n'roll & a massive influence".

Sir Mick Jagger also tweeted: "I am so sad to hear of Chuck Berry's passing. I want to thank him for all the inspirational music he gave to us.

"He lit up our teenage years, and blew life into our dreams of being musicians and performers.

"His lyrics shone above others & threw a strange light on the American dream. Chuck you were amazing & your music is engraved inside us forever."

Ronnie Wood said the guitarist's death marked the "end of an era", writing on Twitter: "He was one of the best and my inspiration, a true character indeed."

Keith Richards wrote: "One of my big lights has gone out."

US rocker Bruce Springsteen said: "Chuck Berry was rock's greatest practitioner, guitarist, and the greatest pure rock 'n' roll writer who ever lived."

The Jacksons said: "Chuck Berry merged blues & swing into the phenomenon of early rock 'n' roll. In music, he cast one of the longest shadows. Thank You Chuck."

And Bruno Mars tweeted "RIP Chuck Berry" as he shared a tribute from Lenny Kravitz, which said: "Hail Hail Chuck Berry!!! None of us would have been here without you. Rock on brother!"

Police responded to calls to a medical emergency at Berry's home in Buckner Road, just outside his birthplace of St Louis, at around 12.40pm (5.40pm GMT) on Saturday.

Paramedics tried to administer "lifesaving techniques" but he could not be revived.

A police spokeswoman said: "The St Charles County Police Department sadly confirms the death of Charles Edward Anderson Berry Sr, better known as legendary musician Chuck Berry.

"The family requests privacy during this time of bereavement."

Born in St Louis in October 1926, Berry attempted to emulate his musical heroes including Nat King Cole and Muddy Waters, according to the biography on his Facebook page.

At high school his first stage performance, of a Jay McShann song called Confessin' The Blues, received a "thunderous applause", the bio said.

He went on to become a celebrated musician, known for his energetic stage presence and his signature move - a one-legged hop called a "duck walk".

Many of his songs, including Johnny B Goode, Maybellene and Memphis, have been much covered and taught to many a budding young guitarist.

In 1984 he was presented with a Grammy Award lifetime achievement prize and was among the first to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.

He was still touring as recently as 2014 and his website heralds his first new album in 38 years, which reportedly includes new material, as coming "soon".

He leaves behind his wife Themetta Suggs-Berry, who he met a year after his release from prison in 1947, and four children.

Daughter Ingrid Berry-Clay and son Charles Berry Jr both performed alongside their father as members of his band.

Gardai closed off the area following the collision

A teenager is in a serious condition in hospital after he was struck by a van in Dublin city centre.

Actress Tilda Swinton and partner artist John Byrne

Tilda Swinton's ex-partner John Byrne has claimed that he is the child of an incestuous relationship between his mother and grandfather.

Gardai have charged three males in connection with the attack

Three males have been charged in relation to a stabbing which has left a man fighting for his life, gardai have said.

Police at the scene of the 'incident' in London

A major search for a "suspect" is under way in a London park after a one-year-old boy died and a girl of the same age was left in a critical condition.

Officers were called to reports of two children injured in a flat in Wilberforce Road, near Finsbury Park, in north London at 11.10pm on Saturday, Scotland Yard said.

Both toddlers, believed to be twins, were found with critical injuries and were taken to an east London hospital where the boy died in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The girl remains in a critical condition. No arrests have been made.

Witnesses heard a woman shouting for help on the street outside and later saw two children being carried out of the property.

Mihai Manea, 29, who lives on the second floor of the building, said the children were twins and lived on the top floor with their Romanian mother and Indian father.

The father worked at the nearby Pembury Hotel as a receptionist, where Mr Manea also works, until a few days ago, he said.

A woman living opposite the building, who gave her name as Gui Gui, said she heard a woman shouting late last night and opened the window to offer help.

"I was watching TV," she said. "I heard someone was shouting.

"She kept on shouting. I do not know what she was shouting.

"I opened the window and I asked her 'Can I help you, can I call the police for you?'

"She said, 'My kids'."

She later saw two young children being carried out of the building, with one being held very close to a member of the emergency services.

Mr Menea described the mood inside the property as "tense".

"It's really tense," he said. "There's police coming and going all the time."

A police car remains parked outside the white three-storey building and neighbours said officers had been searching properties along the tree-lined street.

The Metropolitan Police said: "Next of kin are aware. Formal identification awaits and a post-mortem examination will be scheduled in due course."

They added that inquiries were under way to "establish the full circumstances of the incident".

The National Police Air Service helicopter tweeted that it was assisting "officers searching Finsbury Park for a suspect".

Rescue Helicopter 118 was deployed to the scene

A major rescue operation is underway off the Sligo coast after a number of people aboard a diving boat got into difficulty.

The Irish Coast Guard and local RNLI units have responded to the alert after the small craft apparently got into difficulty in waters offshore of Skreen in the southern part of Sligo Bay.

A distress signal was received shortly before 11.30am from the vessel, believed to be a diving boat. 

The Killala Coastguard Unit, the Bundoran Lifeboat, the Sligo Bay lifeboat and Rescue Helicopter 118 were deployed.

The Sligo-based Irish Coast Guard helicopter responded to the alert and arrived at the scene a short time later. 

A Sligo Bay lifeboat soon after rescued seven people from the craft who had gotten into considerable trouble in a heavy swell. 

An eight individual was rescued from the sea and was transferred to A&E at Sligo Hospital Rescue 118 helicopter.

It is believed two men, from a local diving club, have been hospitalised. One of believed to have suffered serious injuries, although the nature is unclear. 

The remaining six did not require hospitalisation.

More to follow... 

Scotland Yard appealed for the public's help to trace Bidhya Sagar Das

Murder detectives are hunting a man in connection with a "domestic" incident which left a one-year-old boy dead and a girl of the same age in a critical condition.

Scotland Yard appealed for the public's help to trace Bidhya Sagar Das, 33, after officers were called to a flat in Wilberforce Road, near Finsbury Park, north London, where the children were found.

Both toddlers, believed to be twins, were found with critical injuries and were taken to an east London hospital, where the boy died in the early hours of Sunday morning.

A murder investigation has been launched and the Metropolitan Police said: "Detectives are urgently trying to trace a man who was at the flat shortly before the injured children were found, but left before emergency services were called.

"The man has not been seen since this time.

"The incident is believed to be domestic. There has been no arrest at this stage and inquiries continue."

Witnesses heard a woman shouting for help on the street outside at around at 11.10pm on Saturday and later saw two children being carried out of the property.

Mihai Manea, 29, who lives on the second floor of the building, said the children were twins and lived on the top floor with their Romanian mother and Indian father.

The father worked at the nearby Pembury Hotel as a receptionist, where Mr Manea also works, until a few days ago, he said.

A woman living opposite the building, who gave her name as Gui Gui, said she heard a woman shouting late last night and opened the window to offer help.

"I was watching TV," she said. "I heard someone was shouting.

"She kept on shouting. I do not know what she was shouting.

"I opened the window and I asked her 'Can I help you, can I call the police for you?'

"She said, 'My kids'."

She later saw two young children being carried out of the building, with one being held very close to a member of the emergency services.

Mr Manea described the mood inside the property as "tense".

"It's really tense," he said. "There's police coming and going all the time."

A police car remains parked outside the white three-storey building and neighbours said officers had been searching properties along the tree-lined street.

The Met added: "Next of kin are aware. Formal identification awaits and a post-mortem examination will be scheduled in due course."

The force urged members of the public to contact 999 if they see Das or know of his whereabouts.

The National Police Air Service helicopter was assisting officers searching Finsbury Park.

Forensic experts at the scene of the shooting of Gilmore

Police investigating the murder of a prominent loyalist in Northern Ireland have arrested a woman.

The 32-year-old was detained in Carrickfergus, Co Antrim, in relation to the killing of George Gilmore.

Detectives from the PSNI's Serious Crime Branch are quizzing the suspect at Belfast's Musgrave Serious Crime Suite.

Two men charged with the murder appeared at Belfast Magistrates' Court on Saturday.

Mr Gilmore, 44, was driving his car when he was shot in the neck in Carrickfergus on Monday afternoon.

He died in hospital on Tuesday.

Ann Connors

The wife of slain crime boss 'Fat' Andy Connors claims she is surviving on social welfare after the Criminal Assets Bureau took all her money.

Ann Connors (40) was hit with a massive €2.5m CAB bill in March last year in the wake of her husband's murder.

She made the claim in Dun Laoghaire District Court, where she was found guilty of possession of a screwdriver and a pair of gloves for use in a theft or burglary.

Crime boss 'Fat' Andy Connors was shot five times before dying in his wife's arms outside their home in Saggart in Co Dublin in August 2014.

He was buried in a €50,000 gold-plated coffin wearing a €40,000 Rolex watch.

Soon after the CAB judgement against her, Ann Connors was nabbed by gardai driving around an affluent south Dublin suburb with a screwdriver, gloves and a balaclava.

A judge said she believed Mrs Connors was "part and parcel of an enterprise to commit a burglary" after two young men got out of her car and were seen walking up a driveway in Leopardstown.

Both men were wearing gloves and had their faces covered.

An off-duty garda spotted Connors driving on the M50 and followed her to Leopardstown, where gardai believe the intended burglary was to take place.

The defendant, of Boberboy Road, Saggart, was found guilty of possession of a 12-inch screwdriver and a pair of black gloves for use in a theft or burglary at Leopardstown Avenue in Leopardstown on April 19.

Judge Anne Watkin ordered a probation report and adjourned sentencing to May.

The judge also deferred legal aid after gardai objected, claiming that, at the time of the incident, Connors still had €13,000 in a bank account.

Connors told the court she had "never seen" the screwdriver or gloves before.

In his evidence, Garda Dermot Haugh said he was off duty and driving southbound on the M50 when he saw a brown Nissan Almera being driven in an erratic manner. He recognised Connors, who was the driver, as well as a young male in the front seat. There was a second young male and two children in the back.

Gda Haugh followed the car, which took Junction 15 off the M50.

He followed the car down Brewery Road in Stillorgan, lost sight of it briefly but saw it again parked up at Leopardstown Avenue.

He saw the two male passengers from Connors' car walking up a driveway. One had a green balaclava, while the second had his face covered with a wool hat. Both were wearing gloves.

Gda Haugh said they ran back and got into the car when they spotted him.

The car did a U-turn and, as it turned out of the estate, a screwdriver was thrown out of the passenger window.

The car was searched by gardai and a pair of gloves and a white sock with £160 (€184) was found.

Connors was arrested and taken to Blackrock Garda Station. Gardai searched the patrol car after she was taken to the station, and a pair of black gloves was found in the footwell where she had been sitting.

In her evidence, Connors said she had never seen the screwdriver or gloves before.

She claimed she was on her way to visit her ill sister-in-law in hospital, when she was pulled over, handcuffed and assaulted by gardai.

Judge Watkin said Connors was telling "complete lies".

Via Herald.ie

Ryan McBride

James McClean has paid his respects to "warrior" Ryan McBride who died suddenly yesterday at the age of 27.

McBride, who began playing for his home-town team Derry in 2011 and starred for the side alongside current Republic of Ireland star McClean, had played in all four games for City this season, most recently Saturday's 4-0 win over Drogheda United.

It was reported locally that defender McBride was found dead at his home in Derry on Sunday night. The cause of death is unknown.

His former manager at Derry, current Dundalk boss Stephen Kenny, and McClean were at RTE headquarters in Dublin attending the FAI International awards when news came through.

McClean, who will be excused from training with the senior Ireland team this week to attend the funeral, shared a poignant tribute on Instagram.

"Tonight we lost someone [I] had to the privilege to play along aside but also got on well with of the field, a warrior that literally would throw his body on the line when he pulled on that Derry City jersey, a club that meant so much to him, but more importantly a big gentleman of the field.. sleep tight big man may god bless you and your family #5 #townilovedsowell."

Tonight we lost someone i had the privilege to play along aside but also got on well with of the field, a warrior that literally would throw his body on the line when he pulled on that Derry City jersey, a club that meant so much to him, but more importantly a big gentleman of the field.. sleep tight big man may god bless you and your family 😔🔴⚪️ #5 #townilovedsowell

A post shared by Jimmymac_11 (@jimmymac_11) on Mar 19, 2017 at 5:02pm PDT

Little Gabriel was killed at his home

The first pictures have emerged of the tragic one-year-old boy who was killed in an alleged hammer attack at his home in North London.

The one-year-old twins, named locally as Gabriel and Maria, were rushed to hospital where the boy was pronounced dead while the girl remains critically injured.

Bidhya Sagar Das (33) was sought following a reported hammer attack at the address in Wilberforce Road, Finsbury Park, where the toddlers were injured in what police are describing as a suspected “domestic incident”.

Police confirmed that Mr Das has been arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder.

Horrified neighbours reported that a woman, believed to be the children’s mother, rushed out of her home screaming, “My children, my children!” shortly after 11pm on Saturday.

Witnesses told reporters they believe the children were attacked with a hammer, although police are yet to confirm this.

Neighbours called for emergency services and a police helicopter was dispatched to try and find the suspected attacker.

Police appealed for the public’s help in finding the suspect.

A statement said: “Detectives are urgently trying to trace a man who was at the flat shortly before the injured children were found, but left before emergency services were called. The man has not been seen since this time.

“He is Bidhya Sagar Das (33) of the address in Wilberforce Road where the injured children were found.

“If any members of the public see this man or know his whereabouts, they are urged to contact police via 999 immediately.”

The statement continued: “The incident is believed to be domestic. There has been no arrest at this stage and enquiries continue.”

Eyewitness Mihai Manea told reporters at the scene: “We heard the noise and went to the room … the boy was already dead.  (We are) just shocked, you wouldn’t expect something like this… when I saw the police, I said, ‘It’s just Saturday night, it’s like, somebody got drunk or in a fight but I wouldn’t imagine like a murder.”

Police said next of kin are aware and a post-mortem will be carried out on the little boy in due course.

The little girl remains in a critical condition in hospital.

FILE PHOTO

An Australian teenager suffered serious injuries to his arm when he was attacked by a crocodile after jumping into a river infested by the reptiles for a dare.

Paramedics said he was lucky to escape with his life in the incident, which emerged as the authorities recovered the body of another man who also may have been attacked by a crocodile in nearby waters.

British packpacker Sophie Paterson told how Lee de Paauw had started bragging that he could swim in the river, a known habitat for aggressive saltwater crocodiles.

They were at a hostel in the northern Queensland town of Innisfail around 2.30am local time on Sunday.

Ms Paterson said she and several others egged him on, though none of them thought he would actually get in the water.

But he did get in the water, and seconds later, a crocodile latched onto him.

"It all happened very fast. Pretty much as soon as he jumped in, there was splashing and screaming," Ms Paterson told Queensland's Courier-Mail newspaper.

"There was blood everywhere and he just wouldn't stop screaming."

Mr de Paauw, from Queensland state, managed to pull himself out of the water.

Queensland paramedic Neil Noble said the teenager suffered extensive injuries to his arm, and was lucky to escape from the crocodile before the animal drowned him.

Meanwhile, Queensland authorities on Monday recovered a body believed to be that of a man who vanished on Saturday while spearfishing alone in waters just north of Innisfail.

The 35-year-old man's boat was found anchored off Palmer Point, about 30 miles north of Innisfail, on Saturday evening, with his spear gun floating in the water nearby.

An air and sea search was launched and officials spotted a body in the water on Monday morning, Queensland police said.

An initial investigation suggests the man may have been taken by a crocodile, police said.

Wildlife officers were hunting for the animal, believed to be around 13 feet long.

Crocodiles have been a protected species in Australia since the 1970s, which has led to an explosion in their population across the country's tropical north.

Because saltwater crocodiles can live up 70 years and grow throughout their lives - reaching up to 23 feet in length - the proportion of large crocodiles is also rising.

Eraldo Gjoka

Gardai at Irishtown are seeking the public’s assistance in tracing the whereabouts of 17 year old Eraldo Gjoka.

Eraldo was last seen on Tuesday 14th March 2017 in the Merrion Rd area of Dublin 4.

He is described as being approximately 6’ 2” tall, of thin build and with brown eyes.

Anyone who has seen Eraldo or who can assist in locating him is asked to contact Irishtown Garda Station on 01-666 9600, The Garda Confidential Telephone Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.

Ian Bailey

An application to endorse a European Arrest Warrant for Ian Bailey for the alleged voluntary homicide of Sophie Toscan du Plantier will be heard at the High Court tomorrow.

Mr Bailey (61) denies any involvement in the French woman's death.

Justice Tony Hunt adjourned the hearing when Mr Bailey's legal team did not appear in court for the 10am hearing. Ronan Kennedy BL, counsel for the attorney general, said that Mr Bailey's solicitor was served notice of the High Court hearing on March 16, four days ago.

He said that Mr Bailey's solicitor was told that the hearing could go ahead without him or his legal representatives but that any submissions they want to make on the European Arrest Warrant should be made to the court.

Mr Kennedy added: "In light of the correspondence I am surprised there is not anyone in attendance in the court."

Justice Hunt said Mr Bailey and his legal representatives are "on notice" that the hearing will proceed tomorrow.

French authorities have already served Ian Bailey with an indictment and want him to face trial in France for the alleged voluntary homicide of Ms Toscan du Plantier, who was found beaten to death outside her holiday home in Schull, west Cork in December 1996.

This is the second time the French authorities have tried to bring Mr Bailey to France to face a charge in relation to her death. In 2012 the Supreme Court ruled against an endorsement of a European Arrest Warrant to have Mr Bailey sent to France to face a murder charge.

It is not unusual for the French authorities to prosecute a person for crimes committed against French citizens outside of France. The French authorities could also try Mr Bailey in his absence.

Mr Bailey has denied all links to the death of Ms Toscan du Plantier and alleges a garda conspiracy to frame him for her killing.

samata ullah.jpg

A hi-tech terrorist has admitted hiding his Islamic State activities in a James Bond-style cuff link.

Samata Ullah, 34, from Cardiff, admitted membership of IS in September last year, being involved in terrorist training, and preparation of terrorist acts.

At the time of his arrest, he had a USB cufflink with a Linux operating system loaded onto it to conceal a hoard of extremist data, including a blog.

At an Old Bailey hearing, Ullah pleaded guilty to five terror offences including possession of an article for terrorist purposes on or before September 22 last year.

From December 2015, he had provided instructional videos on how to secure sensitive data and remain anonymous online with the use of the Tor programme, and PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) encryption.

Ullah admitted researching ZeroNet and developing a version of a blog site using the decentralised internet-like peer-to-peer network.

He also pleaded guilty to having a book entitled Guided Missiles Fundamentals AFM 52-31 and an electronic PDF version of the book Advances In Missile Guidance, Control, And Estimation for terrorist purposes.

However, he denied a charge of directing terrorism between December 2015 and September last year contrary to section 56 of the Terrorism Act 2000.

Prosecutor Brian Altman QC said the Crown had accepted the pleas after referring to the Attorney General.

He asked for the remaining charge to lie on file.

The court heard Ullah had since been diagnosed with autism.

Mr Altman said a hi-tech report dealt with the defendant's desire to copy his blog onto a platform in a "format that meant it could not be closed down or deleted by the authorities".

Judge Gerald Gordon lifted reporting restrictions in the case.

He said the "issue of dangerousness" would have to be looked at before sentencing.

Ullah admitted the charges earlier this month but his pleas could not be reported until after the prosecution had time to consider whether to go ahead with a trial on the remaining charge.

He did not attend court to hear of the Attorney General's decision.

His barrister Ben Emmerson QC said Ullah had admitted membership of IS on the basis that was what he had professed.

Sentencing was adjourned to April 28 at the Old Bailey.

Ullah was arrested in Cardiff on September 22 last year by officers from the Met's Counter Terrorism Command (SO15), supported by the Wales Extremism and Counter Terrorism Unit (WECTU).

The move followed the arrest of a man in Kenya who had been in regular contact with Ullah and discussed developing special skills to help the IS campaign of terror, Scotland Yard said.

During the course of their investigation into Ullah's activities, officers found he was an active member of IS and had helped other like-minded extremists by teaching them how to keep their activities secret.

He developed a website on computer hacking and kept numerous documents and videos on electronic devices and at home, including the USB cuff link storing IS publications.

Commander Dean Haydon said: "Just because Ullah's activity was in the virtual world, we never underestimated how dangerous his activity was.

"He sat in his bedroom in Wales and created online content with the sole intention of aiding people who wanted to actively support ISIS and avoid getting caught by the authorities.

"This is just the sort of information that may have helped people involved in planning devastating, low technical level attacks on crowded places as we have seen in other cities across the world.

Detective Superintendent Lee Porter, head of WECTU, said: "Ullah's activities came as a shock for those who knew him, including his family and the local community. His actions and desires do not represent the people of Cardiff or Wales who have repeatedly voiced and demonstrated their resilience to extremist views."

Man was charged with 187 counts of indecent assault and sexual assault of the seven children between 1982 and 1999

A farm labourer man who raped six children and molested a seventh in the same family has been jailed for 20 years.

Michael McCarville (49) began abusing the first child in 1982 when the victim was aged 10. The abuser was aged 15 himself and had begun working as a labourer on a family farm in the north of the country.

The sisters and brothers were aged as young as seven and ten when the abuse began. The attacks continued for 18 years up to 1999, taking place in farm sheds, outhouses and fields.

The Monaghan native, with an address in Longfield, Lisboduff, Cootehill, Cavan, was charged with 187 counts of indecent assault and sexual assault of the seven children between 1982 and 1999. He pleaded guilty last December to 52 sample charges including oral and anal rape.

The seven victims have agreed that although they do not wish to waive their right to anonymity, they are happy for McCarville to be named in the media.

McCarville's first victim was just 10 years old when he began sexually assaulting him. These attacks occurred up to three times a week at various locations including within the family home.

In 1983, he also began orally raping the man's 7-year-old sister. He continued to rape her for five years. At the same time McCarville was anally raping a third brother, who was aged between 10 and 12.

Victim impacts statements for the seven adult siblings were read out during a lengthy sentence hearing at the Central Criminal Court. Five of the victims read their own statements, breaking down in tears as they described the harrowing effects of the abuse.

Six of the victims were subjected to sustained and regular assaults including rapes taking place regularly on a monthly and weekly basis. A seventh sibling was sexually assaulted twice from the age of seven.

The eldest child, now aged 45, said McCarville was “a master manipulator” who split the children apart in other to control them and get what he wanted.

He described his utter shock and horror when he learned over the last two years that his four brothers and two sisters had been abused too.

“I was overpowered by an evil and disgusting man who spent his life manipulating me,” he said. He later added that he felt that “it's a miracle that we have all survived”.
Many of the victims described how the sustained and regular abuse destroyed their childhood and has blighted their adulthood.

Some of the victims described struggling with alcohol abuse in their adult life and many said they still suffered from flashbacks, depression, anxiety and fear.

Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy said he struggled with whether McCarville should be handed down a life sentence as the offences were of the utmost seriousness, but he added that he should be given credit for his plea of guilty.

He sentenced him to 20 years in prison and ordered that he carry out five years post-release supervision.

Mr Justice McCarthy said McCarville became the employee of the victims' parents from a young age and a year later, he moved into the family home.

“He must have been treated as a family member, at least in terms of day to day matters,” the judge said, adding this made the crimes more obnoxious. He described them as being “a serious breach of trust”.

Remy Farrell SC, defending, said that his client, who assists with his local church and GAA club, had instructed him to offer an apology to the victims.

He said that since this offending ended the man has not committed any other offences.

He married and had three children and a subsequent intervention by Tusla raised no concerns regarding his own children, counsel said.

During an emotional sentence hearing five of the victims wept while reading their victim impact statements into the court record.

Tara Burns SC, prosecuting, read out the statements of the other two victims.

One brother described how in 1988 he ran to tell his mother after he saw McCarville molesting his brother in a farm shed.

“He caught me. I felt scared and confused. He told me if I told my mother, it would kill her,” he said. McCarville then began grooming this child by buying him sweets and soon began abusing him and his brother together.

He said he felt a responsibility to protect his brother from the abuse and believed by being abused himself he was doing this. He said he felt trapped and described a suicide attempt at 17.

“I got a rope and went to a big tree on the family farm. I tied the rope to a big branch and sat on the branch with the other end of the rope in my hands.

“I was crying. I was sad and angry at what was happening to me and my two brothers,” he said. McCarville found him like this and talked him down by promising not to abuse him anymore.

“Later that day he again sexually abused me and told me I was lucky he didn't tell my mother what I had done, that it would kill her,” the victim said.

He said he went to England to get away from McCarville but the man visited him at his university and sexually assaulted him again.

This victim described how he felt he was the only one in his family who wanted to talk about the abuse and that this caused massive rifts. He was the first to go to gardaí about the abuse.

He said that finding out about the extent of the child abuse was a massive shock to him. “I thought I had protected them all for years”.

He said when his first son was born he fell to pieces and began to drink heavily. “I was terrified I would be an abuser and an awful father,” he said.

He said that because of the abuse he found it challenging to participate in family life and is unable to be a loving partner and father to his own children.

This man's brother told the court that his brother “was always met with hostility” in trying to talk about the abuse. He said there was always a lot of fighting in his family growing up because their abuser “worked us against each other”.

Another man, who was abused from the age of seven, said he lived in utter fear of his parents finding out about the abuse.

“He groomed me, silenced me, manipulated me and threatened me. He used to make me feel like it was all my own doing,” he said, later adding “I grieve a grief for all the things I have lost.”

Like many of his siblings he described the difficulty in dealing with the full extent of the abuse that emerged during the garda investigation. He suffered several mental breakdowns last year and became suicidal.

The older of two sisters told how McCarville turned the children against each other. She said that she believed that he really cared for her.

“When I was seven he used and abused me to fill his own fantasies,” she said. The man first raped her orally in a farm building and told her after that she was “a good girl” and “his girl”.

McCarville later tried to vaginally rape her but was unable to. She said he was laughing and joking during this. It was then she realised this behaviour was wrong and she later reported it to someone in her school but nothing was done.

She said McCarville would call her fat and she said this has had a lasting effect on her body image and she struggles with her weight. She now feels she has no confidence or self worth.

She said the abuse ripped her family apart and nobody wanted to talk about it or face it. “We were like lost souls not knowing how to deal with it”.

She said the revelations of the abuse have turned her parents' lives upside down but said she is proud that the family have come together to deal with the impact of the legacy of the abuse.

“Since I've had the courage to tell the truth, I feel stronger and more positive,” she said.

Her younger sister said that she felt special when McCarville molested her on one occasion. He promised her she would get something special and the next day she asked him about this in front of others.

She said he looked shocked and he didn't abuse her again after this because “he realised he wouldn't get away with it”.

She said she felt like the lucky one and found it difficult to cope with the horrendous hurt and sadness caused by the horrific fallout of the abuse of her siblings.

Breaking down in tears she said: “I can't cope with all that they had to go through in their childhood and are still going through”.

The court heard that some of the boys wept when the man first raped them and they were sore for days after. He “hung” one boy across a gate to rape him and used lubricant to rape the children.

McCarville abused some of the boys together and would often perform oral sex on one boy while molesting his brother. Many of the victims said they were afraid of the man though some of them didn't know initially that what he was doing was wrong.

One victim who was 10 when the man began raping him said he began consuming alcohol at 13 and was drinking heavily at 15. He battled drink and depression throughout his 20s and still does.

He said when he was growing up his abuser would chase any girlfriends he had or take them for himself. He said he suffers flashback of the abuse to this day and becomes very angry.

The eldest sibling described one incident in 1984 when McCarville set up a date between the victim, then 12, and a young girl. The man became very annoyed afterwards because no sexual act had taken place between the couple and he proceeded to show the victim “what he should have done”.

This culminated in him anally raping the child. The victim cried out and McCarville put a pillow over his head when he was crying.

This victim described to gardaí how he had often begged the abuser to leave his younger brother alone.

He said he would cry during the abuse and beg the man to leave him alone.

The other members of the family left while the evidence relating to each sibling was given because they did not wish to hear the details of the other's abuse.

Mr Farrell said since the investigation into this offending began McCarville has reported events in his family history which has resulted in a garda investigation.

Colm Deely

A MARRIED man who strangled his lover as they “fooled around” in her bed after he claimed she threatened to tell his wife about their affair was jailed for eight years today

Deirdre McCarthy’s body washed up on Fanore Beach, Co Clare days after Colm Deely dumped her in the ocean.

Although he was convicted of Ms McCarthy’s murder by a jury in June 2013, that conviction was quashed after doubts over the evidence from a former assistant state pathologist emerged and a retrial was ordered.

But in January this year, Deely, (45), of School Road, Ballyvaughan, Co Clare, pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to the manslaughter of 43-year-old Ms McCarthy, at a place unknown on or about March 28, 2011.

His plea was accepted by the State at that hearing.

Today Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy said the sentence he was imposing was “in the absence of evidence which might have or might not have supported a more serious charge”.

Gardaí and paramedics were on the scene within minutes

A man has been seriously injured in a work place accident in Co Cork.

The incident occurred shortly after 9am at Fountainstown outside Crosshaven in south Cork.

It is understood the accident occurred near a popular mobile home park where works were being undertaken.

The precise circumstances of the accident are unclear but it is believed the middle-aged man was working on or near a deep trench.

Locals raced to his aid after the accident and Gardaí and paramedics were on the scene within minutes.

They then prepared to transfer the man to Cork University Hospital (CUH).

As is routine, the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) were notified of the incident.

Fountainstown is a popular seaside area, used particularly by Cork city residents given its proximity.

Via Independent.ie

Amanda Byram is one of the famous faces who appear in the video

21 well known Irish people from the worlds of acting, TV, music and sport feature in cracking video that highlights the challenges children with Down syndrome face and the supports that are so vital to help overcome these challenges.

Imelda May, Cian Healy, Mario Rosenstock, Amanda Byram, Keith Duffy, Brendan O’Connor, Aidan Turner, Charlie Murphy, Miriam O’Callaghan, Padraig Harrington, Gavin James, Lorraine Keane, Domhnall Gleeson, Una Healy and Kevin Kilbane all lent their time to this great cause.

The video, by the Down Syndrome Centre, is called 'Mission 21' and it comes ahead of World Down syndrome day tomorrow, March 21.

The Centre and Classic Hits 4fm are asking people to support the campaign by texting ‘DSC’ to 50300 to donate €4 or by logging onto downsyndromecentre.ie to make a donation.

The Down Syndrome Centre (DSC), which opened in 2014, has a wide range of early intervention services and supports including SKIP (Special Kids Intervention Programme), Team 21 Tots and vital services such as Speech and Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy which are directly aimed at helping children with Down syndrome to overcome these challenges.

The Down Syndrome Centre has also created a family focused centre for parents of the children using the service. The centre is a place for parents to meet, get information and advice, make friends and build support networks and communities.

They provide a wide range of supports for families such as New Parent Evenings, Counselling Service, Siblings Camps, and Grandparent Days and host monthly seminars for parents which look at important areas such as health, education and financial planning. DSC’s online expert panel also provides personalised advice and help to parents across Ireland.

The Down Syndrome Centre believes that every child with Down syndrome should be given the right supports to enable them to reach their full potential and have the opportunity to develop the skills to live independent and fulfilling lives in their communities.

DSC receives no government funding. 100% of their funding comes through fundraising.

John O'Neill

A British fugitive living under a false identity on the Costa del Sol shot dead an Irish dad-of-two after a petty pub row with another stranger, a court heard today.

Wanted Darren O'Flaherty, 42, went home to change his clothes and look for a gun before returning to murder innocent holidaymaker John O'Neill and shoot at other expats in an indiscriminate orgy of violence, a state prosecutor alleged.

The events leading up the killing of 'gentle giant' plasterer Mr O'Neill, from Coolock, north Dublin, were retold to a nine-strong jury at a criminal court in Malaga where O'Flaherty is standing trial.

The father-of-five from Liverpool - dressed in a white shirt, black tie and black trousers - sat impassively in handcuffs in the dock beside a translator as Rosa Romero told jurors he had shot his victim with the intention of ending his life at Coco's Bar in the popular resort of Benalmadena.

Claiming O'Flaherty's .38 revolver had failed when he pointed his gun at a father and his disabled son during the July 28, 2010 attack, she said: "He gave his victim absolutely no chance of defending himself when he killed him and under Spanish law that makes this a murder and not a simple homicide.

"The trigger was a petty row with a different man.

"Our main evidence is the CCTV footage at the bar which doesn't show the victim being killed but which you can hear the killer's shot on."

Telling the jury O'Flaherty was living in a nearby flat rented using a false passport in the name of William Anthony Doyle, she added: "He wasn't a tourist who had come here to have a good time.

"He was a man who hid his identity because he was wanted in the UK and was living here under a false name.

"He has never wanted to cooperate with the authorities. His reaction the day after his crime was to send a neighbour to try to recover his mobile phone which he realised he'd dropped in the bar and then flee the country."

Darren O'Flaherty

Mr O'Neill, who was on his first foreign holiday with his family including his son Jake, then three, and daughter Jasmine, then nine months, had attended a sunshine wedding the day before his life was ended.

He collapsed and died at a bus stop 50 yards from the bar in front of partner Maxine Sutcliffe after suffering a fatal wound to his stomach.

Bar manager James Walsh, who had thrown O'Flaherty out earlier that night after a row, and waiter Max Boon narrowly cheated death after the Brit shot at them but missed.

The suspect was held on a European arrest warrant while celebrating his birthday at a Chinese restaurant in north Wales in August 2013.

He was extradited to Spain in February 2015 to await trial after serving prison time in the UK for his role in a knifepoint hold-up.

O'Flaherty declined to take the witness stand after opening speeches by his lawyers and the state prosecutor, telling the court through his translator that he wouldn't answer any questions.

His defence team, led by Cristina Carrillo, said he was drunk and high on drugs the night of Mr O'Neill's death and had only a "hazy recollection" of what happened so would retain his right to silence.

Lawyer Oscar Chicarro, who spoke on his behalf in court, said his client had a psychological illness which had affected him along with the drink and drugs he had consumed.

He said: "His reaction was over the top but his intention was not to kill Mr O'Neill or the others in the bar that night, just to frighten them."

Coco's Bar in Benalmadena, the scene of the shooting

Prosecutors want O'Flaherty caged for 17 years if found guilty of the 40-year-old Irishman's murder.

They are also calling for a 12-year jail sentence for each of the two attempted murders he is charged with, plus an additional one year and six months for illegal firearms possession and the same prison sentence if convicted of using fake documentation to rent his flat.

They are further seeking €200,000 compensation for Mr O'Neill's children.

His defence lawyer told the jury he should be cleared of murdering Mr O'Neill because under Spanish law jurors who felt he had committed wrongdoing could convict him only of the lesser charge of homicide - and his mental health problems and drunkenness reduced his criminal responsibility.

The charge of homicide in Spain is a halfway house between manslaughter and murder and carries a 10 to 15-year prison sentence.

Mr O'Neill's aunt Peig Dowdall described her nephew after the killing as "a gorgeous, big soft guy, always with a smile on his face".

She added: "He was just in the wrong place."

Speaking on the anniversary of her partner's murder, Maxine said: "The last year has been devastating. There aren't words to describe what we went through.

"It was like you were living a nightmare and you didn't know when it was going to end and how.

"But the worst thing is, we're still going through it, every second of every day."

Recalling the moment she realised her 'best friend' had slipped away, she added: "I looked and I saw him lying on the pavement.

"I was running over to get to him but the police pushed me back. I told them I just needed to hold his hand but they said no."

The defendant's dad, who did not give his name, said outside court: "We are truly very sorry about what happened."

O'Flaherty is pleading not guilty. The trial, expected to last for around three days, continues tomorrow when Maxine Sutcliffe is due to give evidence by video-conference from Ireland.