News Caravan terror
gang is jailed THREE men who terrorised a Detling caravan site in front of young children have been jailed. Armed with a machete and an axe, Eli Smith (25), James Lee (22) and Prince Adeshokan (21) broke into three caravans just off Scragged Oak Road during the early hours of July 22 last year. Three victims suffered injuries, including a man who was stabbed in the arm with a knife. A woman carrying a young child
was ordered to leave her home by a man wielding an axe, whilst an- other was forced to seek refuge in a bedroom with her children. The suspects left in a white Tran-
sit van which was later found on fire in Rumstead Lane, Thurnham. Appearing before Maidstone Crown Court, all three admitted conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary.
Smith, of Five Kilns, Stockbury
Valley, Sittingbourne, was jailed for eight years. Lee, also of Five Kilns, was sentenced to seven-and- a-half years’ imprisonment. Adeshokan received 10 years, which included two years for breaching a suspended sentence.
Council move FORMER Maidstone borough
councillor Matt Boughton is the new leader of neighbouring Ton- bridge
and Council.
His first aim is to sort out the council's waste collection crisis which has led to the recent deci- sion to suspend recycling pick-ups. He said: "I'm looking forward to working with a great team to de- liver reform of council services." Former Fant member Cllr Boughton will carry on working for Tonbridge and Malling MP Tom Tugendhat on reduced hours.
Woman found
A WOMAN who went missing in Maidstone was found by police. Elizabeth Davison (27) vanished from Melville Road on July 12. We understand that she was found safe and well in the Mote Park area after a helicopter search.
Garage re TWO fire engines battled a garage
fire in Headcorn on July 13. Crews were called to Brooklands at 5.40pm and stayed for almost two hours. A car was damaged but no casualties were reported. The cause is believed to be electrical.
22 Malling Borough
downsmail.co.uk
Leave us alone, say allotment holders
BEARSTED Parish Council (BPC) came face to face with angry allotment holders who are opposed to proposals to move their plots.
BPC has acquired, as a donation,
land next to the allotments and ten- nis courts and has proposed sev- eral key changes to the site. Codenamed Project A, allot-
ments would be moved to the new parcel of land while the tennis club would get two extra courts and the car park would be extended. Plot holders feel they have been left out of the loop while the tennis club has been part of ongoing dis- cussions.
Allotment holder Philip Noakes, pictured, made an impassioned address to the council members, urging BPC to drop the scheme "to retain its own integrity and repu- tation in the face of mounting op- position". Several allotment holders were present in the public gallery for the short parish council meeting. Mr Noakes added: “As an expe- rienced project manager, project A is, by far, the worst I have seen. “(BPC has) no idea about the im- plications of requiring allotment
Bearsted Parish Council allotments and above, Philip Noakes
holders to move or the impact on wellbeing created by uncertainty. “And so creating division amongst allotment holders – the majority have voted to stay, but some would move.”
Cllr Dennis Spooner, who has voiced concerns about BPC's han- dling of the issue, said the council could face significant planning and highways problems.
He said: "We have no idea whether this scheme is financially or physically deliverable." Cllr Spooner said the council pro- ceeds with "the proviso the scheme might have to be dropped". The chairman, Cllr Michael Bol- lom, said the scheme's working party would meet in September to discuss the findings of the consul- tation.
James going for gold in Tokyo
A MAIDSTONE gymnast is getting ready to take part in the Olympic games in Tokyo this month. British all-around champion
James Hall (25) has been a member of Pegasus Gymnastics club since he was seven years old, and recently announced that he had made the Great Britain team. The former Oakwood Park Gram-
mar School pupil has participated in weeks of intense training at the Na- tional Training Centre in Shropshire with the rest of the GB gymnastic team. Ionut Trandaburu, who has coached James for the past 19 years, said: “I am extremely proud of James. He has worked so hard in the gym and completely deserves his spot on the GB team. “We have worked with great per-
severance for many years to get to this position. He is a great role model for our gymnasts who strive to be just like him one day.” Mr Hall, who was born in Bankstown, Australia, before moving
to Maidstone with his family in 1997, will compete in Team GB's four-pronged men's gymnastics squad alongside Joe Fraser, Giarnni Regini-Moran and two-time Olympic
champion Max Whitlock. The opening ceremony takes
place on July 23 and the gymnastics competition starts on the following day.
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