Author: Lucas Bennett

A schoolgirl has been left paralysed below the neck after catching the flu. Lexi Brown, 14, fell ill in December last year with a temperature and dizziness – but rang her mother a few days later screaming in pain. The GCSE student, from Clacton–on–Sea in Essex, was rushed to hospital after receiving CPR, where she was put in an induced coma. Doctors now suspect she suffered a spinal stroke which was triggered by a bout of flu. When she awoke, Lexi was unable to walk, talk or breathe unaided – and has since been in hospital using a ventilator. Her mother,…

A heartbroken mum has told of her horror after finding her ‘beautiful’ son dead in her kitchen after he overdosed on prescription drugs. Ruth Fowler, 54, never imagined that saying goodnight to her ‘funny and loving’ 22-year-old son William on July 2 last year would be the last time she told him, ‘I love you.’ William, a triplet, had been using cannabis and ketamine recreationally from the age of 16. Over time, his drug use escalated, and following diagnoses of mental health conditions, he began taking highly addictive prescription medications, including Valium, oxycodone, and Xanax, which he obtained from street…

Parents and retailers could face prosecution amid a surge in children injured in electric scooter crashes, police have warned. Police Scotland say buyers are responsible for being aware of the law and the implications when e-scooters are ridden illegally on roads or pavements. They say enforcement action can be taken against riders and ‘those who purchase’ e-scooters – including parents buying them for children. Penalties can include confiscation and fines. Causing injury will be dealt with in the same way as when a car or motorbike is involved. The crackdown comes amid concerns some retailers are failing to clearly warn buyers about…

A two-year-old boy is fighting for his life in hospital with life-threatening injuries after falling from a house window. Emergency services rushed to the scene in Tameside, Greater Manchester, on Buttermere Road in Ashton-under-Lyne yesterday evening after reports that a child had fallen from a house window. Greater Manchester Police said the toddler was rushed to hospital with life-threatening injuries. The incident is not being treated as suspicious and no arrests have been made but police are now investigating what caused the child to fall. Pictures from the scene show a heavy emergency service presence with several ambulance crews gathering on Buttermere…

A young bodybuilder and influencer has been found dead in his kitchen at the age of 22. Gabriel Ganley, a Brazilian bodybuilder and fitness influencer, was found lifeless on the floor of his kitchen at his home in Sao Paulo on Saturday morning. Investigative authorities have launched a probe into his death. While there were no apparent signs of violence at the scene, Gabriel’s death has been listed as ‘suspicious.’Unconfirmed reports suggested that Gabriel may have died due to hypoglycemia, when the level of glucose in your blood drops to an unsafe level. The condition is potentially deadly, as glucose is the…

Nicola Roberts announced on Sunday she secretly welcomed her first child, a daughter, with her fiancé Mitch Hahn a ‘couple of weeks ago’. The Girls Aloud singer, 40, took to Instagram to confirm the joyful news alongside a slew of sweet snaps as she lovingly cradled the tot.  Nicola, who had to have surgery at 22 weeks to ‘keep the baby in’, was positively glowing, while another snap showed footballer Mitch, 37, leaving the hospital with their baby daughter. She captioned the post: ‘Our beautiful baby girl is here. We haven’t stopped staring at her perfect little face or kissing her softest little head.…

A 63-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a woman was found dead during the early hours of the morning. Police were told by the emergency services that the woman in her 30s died at a home in St Helens, Merseyside, shortly before 3am on Sunday morning. Residents of Brook Cottage Close, where the alleged murder took place, told the local newspaper that they heard arguing during the middle of the night. A man, 63, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder and taken into custody for questioning. The woman who died is yet to be…

An investigation into the digital marketplaces where UK and US teenagers buy cannabis, MDMA, Xanax — and, increasingly, fake pills laced with lethal doses of fentanyl. E In the years since youth charities first flagged the rise of “Insta-dealers,” the marketplace for illicit drugs has migrated almost entirely onto the phones in teenagers’ pockets. The dark web — once the focus of policing concern — has been quietly displaced. Fewer than 2% of teenagers now report using the dark web to obtain drugs, according to research compiled by addiction-services providers. Why bother with Tor browsers and cryptocurrency wallets when a…

American unemployment claims edged lower last week, offering a rare note of stability in an economy increasingly strained by the ongoing conflict with Iran — though analysts warn that resilience in the labour market may not last as wartime inflation continues to build. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell by 3,000 to a seasonally adjusted 209,000 for the week ended 16 May, according to the Labor Department, slightly below the 210,000 forecast by economists polled by Reuters. The modest decline suggests employers have yet to respond to mounting cost pressures by reducing headcount — a significant signal given the…

Britney Spears told officers she had taken a combination of prescription medications and consumed a champagne mimosa before getting behind the wheel on the night of her drink-drive arrest earlier this year, according to a newly surfaced police report. The 44-year-old singer was stopped by California Highway Patrol officers on the evening of 4 March after her black BMW 430i was reported driving erratically and at high speed on the southbound 101 Freeway near Newbury Park, Ventura County. According to the Los Angeles Times, dispatchers had received reports of the car “erratically braking, swerving and driving without taillights” before officers…