Rod Minchin

Joseph Gibson, 35, of Denbighshire, was jailed for three years and two months after admitting four fraud offences involving three women and one man, whom he conned out of £68,000 between July 2020 and October 2021. He falsely claimed to be a multimillionaire, cancer patient and former Special Boat Service soldier, using fabricated investments, wealth and relationships to obtain money. A judge rejected his request to defer sentencing so he could repay victims, criticizing his continued attempts to mislead the court. The victims were left with substantial debts, damaged relationships and lost life plans, while proceeds-of-crime proceedings will seek to recover assets for compensation.

Around 100 relatives, friends and political colleagues attended Ann Widdecombe’s private requiem mass at Buckfast Abbey in Devon. The former Conservative minister, Brexit Party MEP and Reform UK spokeswoman died on July 8 after being attacked with a hammer at her home; Joshua Kerry has been charged with her murder. Nigel Farage did not attend because he was campaigning and the family requested privacy, but he paid tribute online and is expected at a later public memorial. The abbey and mourners remembered Widdecombe as a devout Catholic, warm character and dedicated public servant. Memorial donations will support the Leprosy Mission and Abound’s Christian Endeavour Hostel projects in India.

An inquest heard that 71-year-old Anthony Buxton called emergency services after strangling his 69-year-old wife, Michelle, at their home in Camelford, Cornwall, before fatally stabbing himself. Evidence described his worsening anxiety, paranoia and beliefs that an organised crime gang was targeting his family, while mental-health services struggled to determine the appropriate pathway for assessment and treatment. The coroner concluded that Michelle was unlawfully killed and that Anthony took his own life, noting that relatives and practitioners had not believed she was at risk from him and that no third party was involved.

Nine men aged 54 to 76 appeared at Newport Magistrates’ Court charged with a combined 41 historical child sexual exploitation offences relating to alleged abuse reported by women who were children between 1985 and 1996. The defendants did not enter pleas, were released on conditional bail and are due to appear at Cardiff Crown Court on August 21.