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The conviction of Thomas Cashman for the murder of nine-year-old Olivia Pratt-Korbel was largely down to the testimony of a key witness, who now potentially faces a life under witness protection.

While Olivia’s family and police both praised the “powerful and emotional” evidence she gave in court, the witness now could be leaving her community in Liverpool behind – potentially being given a new name and identity.

Currently there is no evidence to suggest the witness, who has been granted lifelong anonymity, has moved into witness protection, but it has been reported she has been “given more death threats than any other protected witness in Merseyside for many years”.

“In her own words in court, she said that her life and the life of her family has been ruined by this whole episode,” Sky’s crime correspondent Martin Brunt explained.

“The woman gave evidence anonymously because she lives within this tight-knit community. She was giving evidence against not just one of her own, but a man with whom she had had an affair.

“Police sources suggest that Thomas Cashman was a much feared gangster in that part of Liverpool. So anybody giving evidence against him would understandably feel vulnerable.”

Despite receiving support from Merseyside Police, it is understood the witness was moved straight out of Liverpool where she now faces a “difficult life” if she wants to maintain her anonymity.

What is witness protection?

In a nutshell, witness protection in the UK is a voluntary scheme that protects a threatened person providing testimony to the justice system.

As Sky’s Martin Brunt explains, it aims to offer individuals with “something better than the alternative” of staying where they are and running the “risk of being killed”.

The precise number of individuals under witness protection is unknown, but there are thousands of people protected to varying degrees.

“It would mean – broadly – moving away from the area you’ve been living in with your family, a new identity, a new back story,” Brunt said.

“One of the difficulties people face is when they make new friends, they have to have a story to explain what they’ve been doing for the previous years, and they have to learn it and stick to it because to make a mistake can cause obvious problems.”

Even simple things such as FaceTiming family members or sending birthday gifts have to be closely monitored and sent through a special channel to be checked by police.

‘I was scared for my mum’

Reece, who spent several years in a witness protection programme during his childhood, said he initially enjoyed being somewhere different until his mother told him it wasn’t going to end.

Growing up, he also found that he would isolate himself from others, becoming “angry and bitter” at the situation he was in.

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“My mum didn’t want to go into witness protection but she started getting phone calls from private numbers about what was going to happen to her,” he told Sky News correspondent Sally Lockwood in the Sky News Daily Podcast.

“I was scared for my mum. I remember having to move around a lot. It was a hotel for three weeks, an apartment for a month and then another house. It was all over.”

Reece explained that he and his mum had to leave their house and all their sentimental possessions behind, only taking their clothes. They were also not allowed to contact their family and friends for at least a year at the start of witness protection.

“It was difficult. I started to notice my anger at around age 11 – it really impacted me,” he added.

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Protected people can ‘become complacent’

Criticism of the system has been raised in the past after some people reported being disappointed with their new lives.

Simon McKay, a barrister who has advised the government on witness protection, said one of the main problems when an individual enters witness protection is preconceived “sexy” ideas they have.

However, he says it quickly becomes clear these preconceptions are not true.

“The biggest vulnerability is always the protected person who can become complacent, who is just sick of their life and yearns for some contact with their former loved ones, family and friends,” Mr McKay said.

He added that social media has made things even more difficult to keep protected individuals safe as criminals can start to “put the jigsaw pieces together”, which can potentially lead to where the individuals are now located.

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Body found in search for missing jogger Jenny Hall

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Body found in search for missing jogger Jenny Hall

A body has been found in the search for 23-year-old runner Jenny Hall. 

She was last seen leaving her home in Barracks Farm, County Durham, in her car just after 3pm on Tuesday.

Police said there are not thought to be any suspicious circumstances after a body was found in a very remote area in Teesdale on Sunday morning, five days after she went missing.

Jenny Hall. Pic: Durham Constabulary
Image:
Jenny Hall went missing on Tuesday. Pic: Durham Constabulary

“We’re sorry to report that officers searching for missing woman Jenny Hall, have sadly found a body,” Durham Constabulary said in a statement.

“Officers carried out an extensive search alongside specialist partners and have been working around-the-clock to locate Jenny after she went missing on February 18.

“The body was found in a very remote area in Teesdale just after 9.30am today.

“Formal identification has yet to take place. Jenny’s family have been notified and are currently being supported by specialist officers. They have asked for privacy at this devasting time.

“It is not believed there are any suspicious circumstances and a file will be prepared for the coroner.”

A major police search was launched after Ms Hall’s disappearance.

Her car, a red Ford Focus, was found on Wednesday parked on the B6278, near remote moorland between Eggleston and Stanhope.

Mountain rescue teams, specialist drones and sniffer dogs had been combing the Hamsterley Forest and the surrounding areas, where there are a number of running trails, this week.

Digital intelligence officers also carried out extensive inquiries into Ms Hall’s mobile phone, smart watch and running apps.

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Fresh amber warning for rain as Met Office issues alerts for much of UK

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Fresh amber warning for rain as Met Office issues alerts for much of UK

A fresh amber weather warning for heavy rain has been issued by the Met Office – with much of the UK already on alert for high winds and showers.

Northern Ireland, Scotland and the UK’s west coast and the Midlands have yellow warnings for wind on Sunday – meaning the possibility of transport delays and short-term power cuts.

There are also rain warnings in place for several parts of western UK.

The new amber warning has been issued for rain in south and central Wales and is in force from 3pm on Sunday to 6am on Monday.

An amber warning means danger to life from floodwater, homes and businesses are likely to be flooded, and there is a chance some communities will be cut off.

Winds across the west of the UK will increase throughout the morning with gusts up to 70mph in exposed areas, the Met Office said.

Zoe Hutin, a meteorologist at the forecaster, said Sunday is expected to be the “worst day” before conditions improve.

“The wind warning itself for the mainland UK ends at 6pm, but we can expect to continue to see quite blustery conditions even into the evening as the mainland rain itself pushes through.”

She added: “By the time people get up on Monday, we’ll still have some of the residual rain from that front in the far south-east of the country, and quite cloudy across England as well.

“But actually elsewhere, it could be a decent start.”

The Met Office’s yellow weather warnings for much of England and Scotland came into force at 6am and are expected to run until 6pm on Sunday.

A separate yellow warning for Northern Ireland came into force at 3am and runs until 3pm.

Rain and high winds are expected across the west of the UK
Image:
Rain and high winds are expected across the west of the UK

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People who have noticed some slightly higher temperatures the last couple of days may be dismayed at the latest predictions.

“Through the week, those temperatures are trending back down,” Ms Hutin said.

“And so it will be getting cooler each day, but they will actually just be recovering to around average for the time of year. So it won’t be cold.

“It will just be returning back to where we would expect to be for this time of February.”

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Starmer says ‘US is right’ about UK and Europe needing to take more responsibility for defence

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Starmer says 'US is right' about UK and Europe needing to take more responsibility for defence

Sir Keir Starmer has said the United States “is right” about the UK and Europe needing to take more responsibility for defence and security.

The prime minister, speaking at the Scottish Labour conference in Glasgow on Sunday, said he is clear Britain “will take a leading responsibility” in protecting the continent.

“Instability in Europe always washes up on our shores,” he said.

“And this is a generational moment. I’ve been saying for some time that we Europeans – including the United Kingdom – have to do more for our defence and security. The US is right about that.”

He added “we can’t cling to the comforts of the past” as it is “time to take responsibility for our security”.

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Donald Trump sparked an emergency meeting of European leaders this week after he said European NATO members should spend more on defence, while the US should spend less.

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Sir Keir has said he will set out a path for the UK to spend 2.5% of GDP on defence, up from the current 2.3%, but has not indicated when that will be.

It is believed he may announce the details when he visits Mr Trump in Washington DC on Thursday, bringing forward the announcement that was expected in the spring when a defence spending review is published.

The prime minister reiterated the UK will “play our role” if required in Ukraine following a peace agreement after he earlier this week said the UK would send troops to be part of a peacekeeping force.

Pic: AP
Image:
Sir Keir will meet Donald Trump in the White House on Thursday. Pic: AP

However, his comments caused a row with Germany and Italy who said it was premature to commit to boots on the ground, although France agreed with the UK.

Sir Keir said: “As we enter a new phase in this conflict, we must now deepen our solidarity even further.”

He added: “There can be no discussion about Ukraine without Ukraine.

“And the people of Ukraine must have long-term security.”

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This week has seen US officials meet their Russian counterparts in Saudi Arabia to discuss Ukraine – which has been met with indignation by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as none of his team were invited.

No Europeans were invited either, sparking concern the US is pandering to Vladimir Putin.

Sir Keir has promised Mr Zelenskyy he will make the case for safeguarding Ukraine’s sovereignty when he meets with Mr Trump, who has called the Ukrainian president a dictator.

Mr Trump also said Sir Keir and French President Emmanuel Macron, who will visit the White House too this week, “haven’t done anything” to end the war.

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