Connect with us

Published

on

Police have warned the public about fraudsters looking to profit from the Southport stabbings tragedy after a fake link to a “live stream” claiming to show a victim’s funeral was shared on Facebook.

Officers were made aware of a number of Facebook accounts providing a fake link to a stream, as well as a link to a bogus donations page.

Six-year-old Bebe King’s funeral was held on Saturday after she was killed in the attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class on 29 July.

Nine-year-old Alice da Silva Aguiar and seven-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe were also killed in the Merseyside town.

An 18-year-old boy, Axel Rudakubana, has been charged with their murders and further counts of attempted murder.

Misinformation about the suspect’s identity sparked protests and riots in several towns and cities across England and Northern Ireland.

(L-R) Victims Elsie Dot Stancombe, Bebe King and Alice Dasilva Aguiar
Image:
(L-R) Victims Elsie Dot Stancombe, Bebe King and Alice da Silva Aguiar

Follow Sky News on WhatsApp
Follow Sky News on WhatsApp

Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News

Tap here

Merseyside Police have warned the public to avoid similar scams ahead of Elsie’s funeral on Friday.

Detective inspector Steve Frame said taking advantage of Bebe’s death was “appalling”.

“Many frauds start by tricking people into entering their details into an apparently legitimate site,” he said.

“Take care when accessing websites, particularly those promoted by social media accounts – they may not be what they appear to be.”

The police also urged the public to never automatically click on a link in an unexpected email, text or social media post.

The force added: “Remember, email addresses and phone numbers can be spoofed, so don’t use those as a means to verify that a message or call is authentic.

“The best way to get in touch with a company is to use a known email or phone number, such as the one on the back of your bank card.”

Read more from Sky News:
Five bodies identified after superyacht sinking
Top GCSE grades fall as thousands receive results

Earlier this week, the King visited Southport to meet with survivors of the attack and pay tribute to the emergency services who responded to it.

Elsie’s service, which her family have named Elsie’s Special Day, will be held in the Birkdale area of Southport on Friday.

Continue Reading

UK

League table of foreign criminals awaiting deportation and their offences set to be published

Published

on

By

League table of foreign criminals awaiting deportation and their offences set to be published

A league table of foreign criminals and their offences is set to be published for the first time.

The plans, due to be announced on Tuesday, will reportedly focus on those offenders awaiting deportation from the UK.

The latest data shows there were 19,244 foreign offenders awaiting deportation at the end of 2024, a rise from 17,907 when the Conservatives left office in July and 14,640 at the end of 2022.

Despite more offenders being deported since Labour came to power, the number waiting to be removed from the UK has been growing.

Factors are understood to include the early release of inmates due to prison overcrowding, instability and diplomatic problems in some countries and a backlog of legal cases appealing deportation.

Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said the decision to publish the nationalities of foreign criminals showed Labour had “buckled” under pressure from the Conservatives to disclose the data.

The latest government statistics show there were 10,355 foreign nationals held in custody in England and Wales at the end of 2024, representing 12% of the prison population.

More on Crime

The most common nationalities after British nationals were Albanian (11%), Polish (8%), Romanian (7%), which also represented the top three nationalities who were deported from the UK in 2024, according to Home Office figures.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is understood to have ordered officials to release the details by the end of the year, according to The Daily Telegraph.

The newspaper reported Ms Cooper overruled Home Office officials, who previously claimed it was too difficult to provide quality data on foreign criminals.

A Home Office source said: “Not only are we deporting foreign criminals at a rate never seen when Chris Philp and Robert Jenrick were in charge at the Home Office, but we will also be publishing far more information about that cohort of offenders than the Tories ever did.”

The source added that ministers wanted “to ensure the public is kept better informed about the number of foreign criminals awaiting deportation, where they are from and the crimes they have committed”.

In March, the government announced £5m in funding to deploy staff to 80 jails in England and Wales to speed up the deportation of foreign offenders.

Read more from Sky News:
‘Return hubs’ get UN backing
Sex offender allowed to stay in UK
Woman born in UK faces being deported

Foreign nationals sentenced to 12 months or more in prison are subject to automatic deportation, but the home secretary can also remove criminals if their presence in the UK is not considered desirable.

Shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick welcomed the news, saying: “We will finally see the hard reality that mass migration is fuelling crime across our country… Frankly, the public deserved to know this [detail on foreign criminals] long ago.”

Continue Reading

UK

Rachel Reeves to head to Washington amid hopes of US trade deal

Published

on

By

Rachel Reeves to head to Washington amid hopes of US trade deal

Rachel Reeves will pledge to “stand up for Britain’s national interest” as she heads to Washington DC amid hopes of a UK/US trade deal.

The chancellor will fly to the US capital for her spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the first of which began on Sunday.

During her three-day visit, Ms Reeves is set to hold meetings with G7, G20 and IMF counterparts about the changing global economy and is expected to make the case for open trade.

Politics latest: Tributes paid to Pope Francis

Her visit comes after Donald Trump imposed blanket 10% tariffs on all imports into the US, including from the UK, and as talks about reaching a trade deal intensified.

The chancellor will also hold her first in-person meeting with her US counterpart, treasury secretary Scott Bessent, about striking a new trade agreement, which the UK hopes will take the sting out of Mr Trump’s tariffs.

In addition to the 10% levy on all goods imported to America from the UK, Mr Trump enacted a 25% levy on car imports.

Ms Reeves will also be hoping to encourage fellow European finance ministers to increase their defence spending and discuss the best ways to support Ukraine in its war against Russia.

Read more:
Mission: Impossible? Chancellor heads to the IMF

Starmer and the King pay tribute to Pope Francis

Speaking ahead of her visit, Ms Reeves said: “The world has changed, and we are in a new era of global trade. I am in no doubt that the imposition of tariffs will have a profound impact on the global economy and the economy at home.

“This changing world is unsettling for families who are worried about the cost of living and businesses concerned about what tariffs will mean for them. But our task as a government is not to be knocked off course or to take rash action which risks undermining people’s security.

“Instead, we must rise to meet the moment and I will always act to defend British interests as part of our plan for change.

“We need a world economy that provides stability and fairness for businesses wanting to invest and trade, more trade and global partnerships between nations with shared interests, and security for working people who want to get on with their lives.”

Continue Reading

UK

Murder arrest after woman stabbed to death in Enfield – as victim named

Published

on

By

Murder arrest after woman stabbed to death in Enfield - as victim named

A woman who was stabbed to death in north London has been named by police – as a man was arrested on suspicion of murder.

Pamela Munro, 45, was found with a stab wound and died at the scene in Ayley Croft, Enfield, on Saturday evening, the Metropolitan Police said.

A 29-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder on Monday and is in custody, the force added.

Detective Chief Inspector Neil John said: “Investigating officers have worked relentlessly across the weekend to investigate the circumstances around Pamela’s death.

“We continue to support her family who are understandably devastated.”

GVs from SN footage on 20/04/2025 at scene of murder on 19/04/2025 of woman at Gainsborough House, Ayley Croft, Enfield in north London.
Ingest 25 NM25 SKY SAF ENFIELD MURDER GVS ENFIELD 2045
Image:
Police at the scene at Ayley Croft in Enfield

Read more from Sky News:
Fresh appeal over student’s murder
100 firefighters battle flats blaze

The Met Police has asked anyone with information or who was driving through Ayley Court between 6.30pm and 7.30pm on Saturday and may have dashcam footage to contact the force.

Continue Reading

Trending