Paul Scholes' Car Stolen While Defrosting

Thieves stole a top-of-the-range 4x4 owned by Manchester United star Paul Scholes as he defrosted the windscreen, police have confirmed.

The footballer left the engine running to melt ice on his grey Chevrolet Captiva Estate while it was parked on his driveway and nipped back inside his home in Oldham, Greater Manchester.

When he returned, the car had been stolen.

The theft happened on Monday morning shortly before 8am, Greater Manchester Police said.

"Police are investigating after a car was stolen while the owner was defrosting the vehicle," a spokesman said.

"The grey Chevrolet Estate was stolen from the drive of a house in the Greenfield area of Oldham between 7.45am and 8am on Monday 28 January 2013.

"Inquiries to locate the car are ongoing."

Police have warned drivers not to leave their cars running and unattended while defrosting, as it only takes a thief a few seconds to steal the vehicle.

Scholes, 38, has played his entire professional career at Manchester United, making more than 700 appearances for the club.

He has also made 66 appearances for England.

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Syrian Group: 65 People Shot Dead In Aleppo

A Syrian opposition group says 65 people have been found shot dead, with their hands bound, in Aleppo.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the death toll could rise as high as 80, calling the killings a "new massacre".

Photos posted online by opposition activists showed the muddied bodies of several men lying by a small river near the western outskirts of the city in northern Syria.

Close-up shots of some of the corpses showed they had what appeared to be gunshot wounds to the head.

Most have their hands tied behind their backs.

It was not clear who carried out the killings.

Restrictions on independent media in Syria make it difficult to verify reports from activists.

The fighting, which began almost two years ago, has claimed at least 60,000 lives.

More than 700,000 people have fled the violence, according to the United Nations.

Human rights groups have accused both government forces and the rebels of carrying out summary executions.

Aleppo, the country's most populous city, has seen fierce fighting since the summer. The rival forces are stuck in a stalemate, with the city divided roughly in half between the two.

Fighting in Aleppo has left the city divided between the two sides

Both sides blamed the other for the killings.

An officer with the Free Syrian Army, the rebel force, told the AFP news agency that at least 68 bodies, including some of teenagers, had been recovered and that many more were still being dragged from the water.

He said all had been "executed by the regime".

A senior government security source told AFP that many of the victims had been reported kidnapped earlier.

The source accused "terrorists" - the term usually used by the government to refer to the rebels - of carrying out the executions and spreading propaganda to deflect responsibility.

In the video, a cameraman is walking along a river filming over 50 bodies lying on a concrete path, blood seeping from their heads.

Some of the men were dressed in jeans, shirts and sneakers.

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Martin Clunes Slams Insurer That Sacked Him

Television star Martin Clunes has called car insurance company Churchill "rude" for dropping him from its adverts after he was banned for driving.

Clunes featured in the lucrative television campaign alongside the company's trademark nodding dog for almost a year.

But Churchill Insurance axed him in November after he accrued 12 points on his licence for speeding offences and magistrates banned him from driving.

The star of Men Behaving Badly and Doc Martin said he did not expect to be dropped.

"I was very surprised by their reaction. It was neurotic and very heavy-handed," said Clunes.

"Quite rude, actually. They never said goodbye. They never said thanks. They washed their hands of me completely."

The ad featured Clunes and an animatronic version of the Churchill dog travelling together on a motorbike and sidecar through the English countryside.

Speaking to the Radio Times magazine, Clunes also described his life with his family in a 135-acre Dorset farm with horses, dogs, cats, sheep, chickens and cows.

"I imagine there'll come a time when television withdraws itself from me.

"I do love my job. But I'd really like the farm to wash its face. That's still a way off, because there's been a lot of investment in infrastructure," he said, adding it would take a while to get it back.

Clunes has made an ITV documentary called Heavy Horse Power to look at how the traditional uses for working horses have been changing. He said he would like to see the working horse make a comeback in British farming.

Clunes is not the first Churchill frontman to fall foul of driving laws.

In 2005, comedian Vic Reeves was dropped as the voice questioning the dog in the campaign after he was caught drink driving.

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Man Clinging To Car For 10 Miles Shot By Ex

A Florida woman who shot dead her ex-boyfriend after he clung on top of her car for 10 miles will not face any charges.

Nikki McNeil, 33, had just dropped the couple's three young children off at their home in Ocala on Saturday evening and was trying to leave when she got into an argument with Lamark Tucker.

Her 36-year-old former partner wanted to talk about their failed relationship and took away her car keys and phone, the Marion County Sheriff's Office said.

Ms McNeil grabbed a spare set of keys and attempted to drive off, but as she pulled away, Mr Tucker jumped onto the front of the car.

Lamark Tucker

He held on for nearly 10 miles, allegedly threatening his ex-girlfriend throughout.

She stopped twice to ask others for help.

Eventually, fearing he was reaching for a gun, Ms McNeil pulled out her own weapon and shot him once through the windscreen, she told police.

Investigators said she appeared to act in self-defence, and they will not be recommending charges.

"We're satisfied, at that moment, that her story played into a situation where it was not necessarily foul play, and she didn't necessarily have to be placed under arrest," Officer Judge Cochran told local TV station WOGX.

The couple had recently separated and just two days earlier Ms McNeil had filed, and then withdrew, a request for a domestic violence restraining order against Mr Tucker.

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Liberty Head Nickel Coin Could Sell For $5m

A lowly five-cent coin with a remarkable history could fetch as much as $5m (£3.18m) at auction in the US.

The 1913 Liberty Head nickel is one of only five known to exist.

It was cast illegally, discovered in a car wreck that killed its owner, declared a fake, forgotten for decades and then found to be the real thing.

"Basically a coin with a story and a rarity will trump everything else," said Douglas Mudd, curator of the Colorado museum which is holding the coin.

Conservative estimates put its value at around $2m (£1.27m).

But Mr Mudd thinks the sale price could reach as much as $5m (£3.18m).

"A lot of this is ego," he said of collectors who will bid for it when it comes up for auction on April 25 in Chicago.

"I have one of these and nobody else does."

The current US record is $8m (£5.08m) for a 1933 Double Eagle, a $20 gold coin.

The nickel was one of five struck surreptitiously by Samuel Brown at the Philadelphia mint in late 1912, the final year of its issue, but with the year 1913 cast on its face.

Mr Brown offered them for sale in 1920, and the set was broken up in 1942.

A North Carolina collector, George Walton, bought one for $3,750 (£2,386).

The coin was with him when he was killed in a car crash in 1962, and was found among hundreds of others scattered at the crash site.

His sister was told it was a fake and stuck it in an envelope in a cupboard.

It remained there almost forgotten for 30 years until her death in 1992, when experts confirmed it was the long-missing fifth coin.

Four siblings who inherited the nickel will split the money equally after it is sold.

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Mali Conflict: British Troops To Train Forces

Up to 200 British military personnel could be deployed to West Africa to help train a regional intervention force for Mali, the Government has said, in a further deepening of the UK's involvement in the conflict to drive out Islamist militants.

Downing Street said the troops would be in addition to up to 40 personnel that Britain is offering to contribute to a European Union training mission to build up the Malian army.

In addition, the UK has offered to supply a roll-on, roll-off ferry to help transport heavy equipment to the French intervention force currently spearheading the fight against militants.

It will also allow allies such as the United States to fly air-to-air refuelling missions from British airbases in support of the French operation.

However an offer to establish a joint Anglo-French logistics headquarters in Mali to organise supplies to the French force has not been taken up by Paris.

With around 90 UK personnel already committed in the region with the RAF Sentinel surveillance aircraft and two C-17 transport aircraft already operating in support of the French mission, it could take the numbers involved to more than 300.

A spokesman for David Cameron said the Prime Minister remained adamant that British troops would not be involved in combat operations against the militants.

Mali shares its border with seven countries

Answering an urgent question from Labour in the Commons, Defence Secretary Philip Hammond confirmed the deployment numbers and said the 200 British troops would assist Anglophone West Africa countries.

He said the role of UK soldiers "is clearly not a combat role and will not extend to a force protection role".

When pressed by the opposition party about exit strategies, Mr Hammond said he shared plans outlined by France that it should be a "short intervention to stabilise the situation on the ground". 

The Defence Secretary added that Britain was "very clear" about the risks involved and the Government had "defined very clearly the support we are willing and able to provide to the French and Malian authorities".

The mission to train a West African force known as Afisma - which has been under consideration since late last year - was being discussed at a donor conference for Mali being organised by the African Union in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.

British personnel will be involved in training troops from countries, such as Nigeria, which is expected to be one of the largest contributors to Afisma which is slated to take over from the French once their mission is over.

Speaking from the historic city of Timbuktu, which was taken by the French forces on Monday, Sky News special correspondent Alex Crawford said British soldiers would help "bolster" the Malian forces, which she described as "very depleted".

Local troops had been unable to fight off militants entering Timbuktu last year and simply put down their weapons and fled - leaving the already armed radical jihadists with further weaponry.

Crawford added: "Malians themselves as an army have a reputation for being ill-disciplined, badly motivated and are accused in some towns of carrying out human rights abuses, so there's clearly a lot of training to be done there."

Looting and violence broke out in Timbuktu on Tuesday. Homes and businesses of suspected jihadist supporters were broken into as local residents vented their anger at the regime which had controlled the city until French troops moved in.

Shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy told Sky News that Labour supported the Government's decision to send troops to Mali for training purposes.

But Mr Murphy cautioned that the public were "wary" about military commitments after the UK's involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq.

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Belcuore Knee Death: Compensation For Widow

The widow of a man who died during a botched knee operation more than three years ago has been awarded an undisclosed amount by a High Court judge.

Luigi Belcuore, known as Louis to his friends, agreed to take part in a clinical trial testing new techniques for treating knee cartilage problems in October 2009.

But the 43-year-old died during surgery when the operation went drastically wrong as air got into his blood vessels, causing an embolism.

His widow, Penny Belcuore, discovered weeks later that she was expecting the couple's third child, now a two-year-old boy. They also had two daughters, now aged five and six.

Speaking after the hearing at the High Court in Birmingham, Mrs Belcuore said it had been "a long slog", adding: "I'm relieved today is over and it's finally come to an end."

Mr Belcuore was a 43-year-old businessman

In a statement, she said: "For the past three-and-a-half years I have felt in a state of limbo, trying to find out exactly what happened and why Louis died suddenly during what should have been a routine knee operation.

"Whilst today's approval hearing brings the civil action to an end and I am grateful that my children's future is now at least financially secure, it remains an ongoing struggle to carry on without Louis by my side.

"I know that he would want me to stay strong and I do this for the sake of our two daughters and our baby boy.

"However, it's incredibly hard knowing that both they, and the son he never even got to see, will now grow up without their Dad and at every milestone in their lives he will sadly not be there to share in their happiness.

"To be able to fully come to terms with this we need full answers about exactly what went wrong and proof the same errors can never happen again."

Victoria Blankstone from Irwin Mitchell, the law firm which represented Mrs Belcuore, said: "Today is a difficult day for Louis' family.

"Whilst Penny is relieved that the approval hearing means that their three young children will be properly provided for financially, nothing can turn back the clock and the fact remains that Louis' death remains the most appalling and needless tragedy.

"What marks out this particular case is how difficult it has been to get to the truth of what happened and whilst it is a testimony to Penny that she has remained resolutely determined in her search for answers, she is deeply upset that it has taken so long to discover the full facts of what occurred the day her husband died."

The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital in Oswestry, which was ordered to pay the undisclosed sum, made an early admission of liability and had previously apologised to the family.

In a statement a spokesman for the hospital trust said: "The Trust deeply regrets the tragic loss of Mr Belcuore's life and offers its sincere apologies to Mrs Belcuore and her family and would like to wish them well for the future."

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Norfolk Broads: Man Killed Partner Then Himself

A mother was strangled by her partner then tied up and thrown from a boat into a river while her daughter slept a few feet away, an inquest has heard.

The body of 49-year-old Annette Creegan was found naked in the River Bure on the Norfolk Broads in August 2012 after a major police search which began after her 13-year-old daughter was found alone on a boat the couple had hired for a holiday.

The body of her partner, 41-year-old John Didier, was found nearby. Evidence suggests he had tied weights to his own arms and legs before jumping overboard to drown himself.

The girl told police she woke up one morning to find her mother was not there anymore and Didier said her mother had "gone away".

She stayed on the boat with him for another week before she woke up one morning to find he too had disappeared.

Police found Ms Creegan's body in the river weighed down with dumb-bells

As the boat was surrounded by marsh and woodland with no footpaths, she felt unable to leave and did not have a mobile phone to contact anyone.

She was only discovered when a Norfolk Broads ranger noticed the boat had been moored in the same secluded spot for several days and he decided to approach it.

Ranger Andrew Ellson said: "The curtains were closed and the motor was running. I knocked on the side of the boat and the window opened and I saw a young girl who told me she was by herself."

Police launched a search of the river and Didier's body was discovered in the water weighed down with two 17.5kg dumb-bells tied to his feet and two 15kg weights tied to his wrists.

Ms Creegan's decomposed body was found in the river nearby the following day, suggesting she had been there about a week.

The couple had moored their boat by picturesque Salhouse Broad, Norfolk

Pathologist Ben Swift said the hospital nurse was naked and her hands had been tied behind her knees.

She was weighed down with a 30kg dumb-bell and the cause of death was strangulation. Bruises to her fists suggested she had tried to fight off Didier.

Detective Constable Christina Stone told the inquest: "They had moored the boat at about 5.30pm on the Friday.

"The following day she (the girl) woke up and Mr Didier told her that Annette had left. She had no access to a mobile telephone and no means of getting off the boat so stayed there over the following days.

"Six days later she woke up and there was no sign of Mr Didier and she was rescued by a passing Broads ranger."

Giving evidence to the inquest, Detective Inspector Gary Bloomfield said: "I'm confident saying John Didier killed Annette then took his own life a number of days later.

"It seems he had planned the events of that week. There was no evidence he was mentally impaired. It was a deliberate decision to kill Annette then drown himself."

He added officers had found no evidence of any tension in the relationship and Didier's motive remained unclear.

Norfolk coroner William Armstrong recorded a verdict that Ms Creegan died as a result of unlawful killing and that Didier committed suicide on either August 31 or September 1.

"What a grotesque irony that this happened in the idyllic setting of the Norfolk Broads," he said. "What a contrast between the calm serenity of the waters and this dreadful tragedy."

Ms Creegan worked as a "devoted" community nurse for the Trinity Hospice charity in Clapham Common, London, while Didier, originally from Ohio, previously worked in IT for the NHS.

Both families declined to comment as they left the inquest. The girl is being cared for by other members of her family.

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Mensa: Three-Year-Old Joins High-IQ Society

A little boy who can count up to 200 and name every country in the world has become one of the youngest members of Mensa.

Sherwyn Sarabi, aged three, from Barnsley, South Yorkshire, is ranked in the top 1% of the most intelligent people in the world after tests revealed he had an IQ of 136.

His mother, Amanda Sarabi, said she was really proud of her gifted son, who she describes as "amazing".

Sherwyn, who has a reading age of six, began speaking at the age of 10 months and was talking in sentences at 20 months.

By the age of two, Sherwyn could read, recognise and name countries, flags, planets in the solar system, parts of the body and internal organs.

Sherwyn with Susan Vaughey, his head teacher from Rastrick School

Mrs Sarabi, 36, a former teacher, said her son could point out every country in the world on a globe and match it to its flag. He could also explain the function of each internal organ.

"His general knowledge is amazing. He knows about everything. It's not like talking to a three-year-old. He doesn't even watch children's programmes, he watches the news," she said. "The weather is his favourite, especially the world weather. He loves that."

She added: "We take every day as it comes. I've never forced teaching anything on to him. If he comes to me and asks me about a topic, I teach him to the best of my knowledge. Sometimes I have to look it up because I don't know the answer but I explain it to him, then he's happy."

Mrs Sarabi said she and her husband, Davoud, 37, who was studying construction management until he was involved in an accident, were well-educated but "nothing extraordinary".

She said they first noticed Sherwyn's interest in learning when he was 18-months-old but his intelligence seemed normal to them until other people pointed out how unusual it was.

After his third birthday, Sherwyn was tested on the Wechsler Pre-School and Primary Scale of Intelligence, which placed him in the 99th percentile with an IQ of 136. The normal range using this test is between 85 and 115, with the average IQ being 100.

The high-IQ society Mensa has only 100 members aged under 10 out of 22,000 members across Britain.

John Stevenage, chief executive of British Mensa, said he was pleased to welcome Sherwyn to the society.

"As a bright child with great potential we hope he will thrive with the Mensa network as support."

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Footballer Sex Trial: 'It Was Just Boy Banter'

A Brighton player charged with sexually assaulting a teenager in a hotel room has claimed it was just "boy banter".

Anton Rodgers, 20, denied there was a sexual element to what went on in the room where photographs were taken on mobile phones.

He said: "This was never the case. It was just a bit of boy banter. It was a laugh but it seems stupid now. She was just giggling. She was laughing. She was bubbly."

Rodgers denied the 19-year-old was asleep. He said team-mate Leon Redwood came into the room and sprayed the initials GB, representing fellow player George Barker, onto her thigh with shaving foam.

Anton's father, Liverpool manager Brendan, watched from the public gallery

Rodgers said he took a photograph of Barker making a thumbs-up sign next to the girl.

"It was a funny picture at the time. That's all it meant," added Rodgers.

Rodgers' father, Liverpool football manager Brendan Rodgers, sat at the back of the court with relatives of the accused.

Brighton and Hove Albion players Rodgers, Barker, 21, Lewis Dunk, 21, and former team-mate Steve Cook, 21, who now plays for Bournemouth, deny sexual assault and voyeurism.

The prosecution says the players assaulted the drunken woman when she was asleep and took pictures as a "record of their conquest".

They were arrested six months later, in July 2011, following a night-out clubbing in Brighton to celebrate winning a local cup.

The trial continues.

Cook, Barker, Rodgers and Dunk (L-R)

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