Author: Darren Smith

A massive fire has engulfed a Paris warehouse, sending towering plumes of black smoke visible across the region and prompting a major emergency response, with around 150 firefighters and 50 vehicles deployed to tackle the blaze. The inferno broke out at around 2pm at the Vignes industrial park on Rue Henri Gautier in Bobigny, a commune in the north-east of the French capital. The fire took hold of a 75,000 square foot two-storey warehouse housing approximately ten furniture and equipment companies, rapidly engulfing the entire building. Shocking footage circulating on social media shows the blaze spewing vast towers of black…

A teenager who started running a cannabis supply network across a city while still about to sit his GCSE exams has been unmasked as the ringleader of what a judge described as a family drug operation involving his girlfriend and her father and siblings. Jack Barrett, now 21, was just 14 years old when he established the illicit business that would grow to span the city of Norwich, operating for more than four years between June 2019 and October 2023. When police eventually seized his phone, they found a staggering 47,000 drug-related messages — a figure that laid bare the…

A worried mother’s call to police in rural Ohio four days before Donald Trump’s 80th birthday celebrations at the White House set in motion an FBI investigation that uncovered an elaborate plot to use explosive drones and concealed rooftop snipers to massacre high-profile guests at the president’s UFC birthday event on the South Lawn. Tycen Proper, 19, from Danbury, Ohio, north of Columbus, had been spending his graduation money on guns and body armour and talking to online contacts about “recons” and “hit and run missions.” His parents alerted Knox County police after finding maps of Washington exchanged via text…

Boxing legend Floyd Mayweather is facing two felony charges after allegedly using a bad cheque to purchase a $200,000 luxury watch from a Las Vegas boutique, according to Nevada court records seen by ESPN. The 49-year-old, who retired with a perfect 50-0 professional record and earned an estimated $1.1 to $1.2 billion across his career, is charged with theft and intent to defraud following an incident at Gold and Beyond, a Las Vegas resale boutique, in December 2024. Mayweather allegedly wrote a cheque for $200,000 drawn on a Wells Fargo Bank account, but the account reportedly contained “insufficient money, property…

A former healthcare worker has been formally cautioned after attempting to sell the Princess of Wales’s private medical records, the data protection watchdog has confirmed. The employee, who worked at the London Clinic where the Princess underwent surgery, tried to sell highly sensitive personal information for financial gain, the Information Commissioner’s Office said on Wednesday. The ICO said it had carried out a full assessment under the Code for Crown Prosecutors and its own Prosecution Policy before issuing a formal caution to the now-former healthcare professional for an offence under section 170(5) of the Data Protection Act 2018. In a…

The 16-year-old girl killed after being struck by a car in Gateshead has been named as Jessica Metters, as her devastated family described her as “the most loving, precious innocent little girl” and said their hearts were “broken into a million pieces.” Jessica, from Consett, County Durham, was hit by a silver Ford Fiesta on Lobley Hill Road at around 10.40pm on Friday. She was rushed to hospital with serious injuries but died a short time after her arrival. In a heartbreaking tribute, her family said: “She lit up every room she walked in and always made a good situation…

A four-year-old British boy has died after falling into a swimming pool at a holiday home on the Costa del Sol, just a day after arriving in Spain with his family. Emergency services were alerted at around 8.30am this morning after the toddler fell into the pool at a rural property in the region. Police, paramedics and a medical helicopter all rushed to the scene in a desperate attempt to save the child, but he could not be saved. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has been contacted for comment.

An Amazon delivery driver with a PhD who ran what is believed to be the most lucrative exam cheating operation ever uncovered in Britain has been jailed for three years after secretly earning up to £2.4 million completing university coursework and sitting online exams for more than 100 students across the country. Shahid Adnan, 43, operated from his home in Everton, Liverpool, where police found bundles of cash and uncovered more than £2.4 million spread across multiple bank and trading accounts when they raided the property. A Barclays account alone held £1,505,156, with a further £600,590 in a personal Lloyds…

A mother has been arrested for allegedly stabbing her 28-year-old daughter to death with a butcher’s knife in Argentina, after sending a cryptic audio message that authorities are now racing to decipher for clues about what prompted the killing. The shocking crime came to light on the evening of 12 June when a 40-year-old man approached police claiming his sister had admitted to him that she had attacked her daughter. Officers rushed to a residence in Tres Isletas, in Argentina’s Chaco province, where they found Pamela Magalí Gauna lying in a pool of blood. She showed no signs of life.…

Britain is heading for another burst of scorching heat this weekend, with temperatures expected to climb into the low 30s across parts of the south east and the government issuing a five-day health alert warning of a “greater risk of death to the vulnerable.” The Met Office has said the heatwave threshold — defined as three consecutive days at or above set temperature thresholds — may be reached in the south by Saturday, as high pressure builds across Europe and funnels warm air northwards. London is forecast to reach 29C tomorrow, with the heat expected to hold until at least…