Almost two months after Air India Flight 171’s deadly crash, some of the 53 British nationals on board are only now being laid to rest.

Some 300 friends, families, and locals from the Gujarati community in and around London gathered in Wembley for a prayer and memorial service dedicated to remembering some of the victims.

Wearing his father’s emerald ring that was miraculously recovered from the wreckage, Miten Patel addresses the crowd.

His parents, Ashok and Shobhana Patel, were travelling back to their home in Orpington, Kent, after a spiritual trip to India, when they were killed in the crash on 12 June.

Their funeral was held only days ago, after being delayed following the discovery that the remains of other individuals were found in Miten’s mother’s casket.

He credits Professor Fiona Wilcox, the senior coroner at Inner West London Coroner’s Court, for meeting with him and his family to break the news.

“My parents were the first ones repatriated in the UK,” Miten explains – he organised the repatriation of his parents before he flew out to Ahmedabad.

“When they were back home, the first thing that they did was a CT scan. And that’s when it came about, the CT scan showed that with mum’s remains, there were further remains there too.

“I don’t know what they were. I don’t know how many.”

Miten’s parents’ funeral was attended by hundreds. His father, Ashok, was a financial adviser and his mother, Shobhana, was a retired microbiologist.

As the eldest son, organising much of his parents’ farewell fell to him. The concern around his mother’s remains delayed the family’s chance to grieve.

“I think there should be a level of responsibility taken. Why did that happen? Where was the flaw in that process? I mean I do understand that whole situation, people were rushing, people were very tired.

“You know, to get all the remains, then having to separate them by DNA, it’s a long process. But really, for us as loved ones, it is very upsetting.”

Indian government spokesman Randhir Jaiswal previously said the country was “working closely with the UK side from the moment these concerns and issues were brought to our attention”.

“In the wake of the tragic crash, the concerned authorities had carried out identification of victims as per established protocols and technical requirements,” he said. “All mortal remains were handled with utmost professionalism and with due regard for the dignity of the deceased.

“We are continuing to work with the UK authorities on addressing any concerns related to this issue.”

The flight crashed moments after take-off en route to Gatwick, killing 241 people on board. Horrifying images were beamed around the world within minutes.

Confusion and fear spread like wildfire among relatives back in the UK, who immediately tried to get hold of their loved ones.

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It was a family member of Komal Patel’s who called her after seeing the images on the news.

There was only one flight out of Ahmedabad back to London that day, and she had only just been texting her brother Sunny and his wife Monali, who’d been on holiday.

The events of the past few weeks have been unfathomable.

In her first interview about her brother and her sister-in-law, Komal explains how she flew out to India with her cousin Jina to go and identify her little brother.

“Because we weren’t really allowed to see the body, I don’t think I’ve really come to terms with it. I still think I’m dreaming and it’s not really real,” Komal tells us.

Sunny and Monali Patel were in their 30s and about to celebrate their 10-year anniversary.

The couple were the “light” and “soul” of their families.

They loved having fun, playing with their nieces and nephews and adored travelling. Komal says her brother loved barbecues and her sister-in-law worked with children and adored hers too.

“They’re just really fun, exciting, really lived life, just made memories, just made everyone really happy,” says big sister Komal.

“They were like the heart of my kids. Whenever they walked into a room, they just filled up the room with laughter and happiness.”

The couple had been due to fly back home to London a week beforehand but postponed their flight.

“It has just been very traumatic, very, very sad for us, losing Sunny and Monali at 39 years old,” says their cousin Jina.

“They were full of life and brought so much light into our family. As a family, we’re devastated at why two people so young, with so much energy, who brought so much into our families have just sort of gone in one day.”

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A joint funeral for the husband and wife was held a fortnight ago and like hundreds of families impacted by this tragedy, the family are now rebuilding a foundation that has been shattered.

Thousands of motorists who bought cars on finance before 2021 could be set for payouts as the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said it will consult on a compensation scheme.

In a statement released on Sunday, the FCA said its review of the past use of motor finance “has shown that many firms were not complying with the law or our disclosure rules that were in force when they sold loans to consumers”.

“Where consumers have lost out, they should be appropriately compensated in an orderly, consistent and efficient way,” the statement continued.

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The FCA said it estimates the cost of any scheme, including compensation and administrative costs, to be no lower than £9bn – adding that a total cost of £13.5bn is “more plausible”.

It estimates most individuals will probably receive less than £950 in compensation.

The consultation will be published by early October and any scheme will be finalised in time for people to start receiving compensation next year.

The announcement comes after the Supreme Court ruled on a separate, but similar, case on Friday.

The court overturned a ruling that would have meant millions of motorists could have been due compensation for over “secret” commission payments made to car dealers as part of finance arrangements.

The FCA’s case concerns discretionary commission arrangements (DCAs) – a practice banned in 2021.

Under these arrangements, brokers and dealers increased the amount of interest they earned without telling buyers and received more commission for it. This is said to have then incentivised sellers to maximise interest rates.

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In light of the Supreme Court’s judgment, any compensation scheme could also cover non-discretionary commission arrangements, the FCA has said. These arrangements are ones where the buyer’s interest rate did not impact the dealer’s commission.

This is because part of the court’s ruling “makes clear that non-disclosure of other facts relating to the commission can make the relationship [between a salesperson and buyer] unfair,” it said.

While it’s unclear exactly how many motorists could be eligible for any compensation, it was previously estimated that about 40% of car finance deals included DCAs.

Britain’s most-wanted fugitive is still on the run – exactly 20 years after the fatal shooting of a young mother of three.

Kevin Parle is a suspect in the murder of Lucy Hargreaves, 22, who was shot dead at her home in Liverpool before the house was set on fire on 3 August 2005.

Since then, after many appeals for information, there has been no confirmed sighting, word or trace of him.

Two decades on, Ms Hargreaves’ family have had no justice. Two young men prosecuted for her murder had charges dropped when a judge ruled there was insufficient evidence against them.

In a statement marking the anniversary of her death, they said: “The way we lost Lucy is not something families can ever truly come to terms with – it is still incredibly difficult and painful to think about.

“Over the past 20 years, people will have talked with family and friends. A number of people were contacted by males using a phone that was stolen along with a vehicle used in Lucy’s murder.

“We appeal directly to them to please come forward. Now is the time.”

Three men burst into Lucy’s home 20 years ago today, shot her dead as she slept on a sofa, and set alight the duvet she’d been sleeping under.

It’s believed the gang were looking for her boyfriend Gary Campbell, who was upstairs. He fled from a window with their two-year-old daughter and then tried in vain to save Ms Hargreaves.

Mr Campbell had allegedly been a passenger in a stolen car that had hit and killed a young boy 12 years earlier, supposedly the motive for the shooting. He denied he was in the car at the time.

Howard Rubbery, head of the Serious Crime Review Unit at Merseyside Police said: “The family remain absolutely devastated by Lucy’s death.

“It’s important to note Lucy is an absolutely innocent victim. She’s not from a family of criminality. She wasn’t involved in criminality.

“The hunt for Kevin Parle is very much on, and we ask anybody with information, anybody who is close to Parle and knows where he is, to please come forward.

“There were three males responsible for this offence and we are looking for justice for Lucy’s family in relation to all three.

“I do believe that there are people out there who have yet to speak to the police, even though it’s 20 years on, who hold information that’s absolutely vital to our investigation.”

Police believe Parle, now in his 40s, fled to Spain where he hid among the vast expat community with criminal help.

Several years later, I tracked his movements to a holiday complex near Torrevieja, where staff convinced me he had stayed there for several weeks.

‘Huge value to organised crime’

Former Scotland Yard detective Peter Bleksley, who recently spent four years on a personal hunt for Parle, also visited the complex and said: “He was bold and he was brash and he had a girlfriend at one point.

“The police actually should have captured him there, but they were too late.”

He claimed he nearly caught up with Parle at a villa elsewhere in Spain, but spooked him into disappearing again.

Mr Bleksley hosted an award-winning podcast and wrote a book in which he chronicled his manhunt.

He said: “Kevin Parle has remained hidden because he is funded, protected, looked after and of huge value to global, serious and organised crime.”

Parle can’t be hard to spot – he’s well-built, 6ft 5in tall, red-haired with a face scar and, originally at least, has a Liverpool accent. Of course, he might be dead.

Mr Bleksley said: “I can think of many reasons why certain criminals would want to get rid of Kevin Parle because he could, in terms of evidence about the cases that he’s wanted for, should he flip and become a witness for the Crown, be highly damaging for a lot of very tasty criminals.”

Parle is also wanted in connection with the murder of 16-year-old Liam Kelly, who was shot dead over an alleged £200 debt in June 2004, a year before Lucy’s death. Parle was arrested and questioned, but then freed on bail.

There have been reports of the fugitive in Australia and Dubai, but nothing to corroborate any of them.

If he’s alive and if no one is prepared to shop him, what might lead to his capture?

“I think when he has a fallout with those who have guarded him, funded him, fed him, put a roof over his head and all of that, maybe even paid for his plastic surgery that could have altered his appearance,” Mr Bleksley said.

“When he finally has a fallout, when he’s no longer of use, then perhaps that will be the day that somebody goes, Peter, he’s here.”