Rob England
BBC News Online

A woman who campaigned to bring about legislation for mobile home owners has had her own home stolen in Devon.

Sonia McColl, who founded the Park Home Owners’ Justice Campaign, was moving to Devon from Dorset when her new residence was loaded onto a trailer at a business premises in Willand, near Cullompton, and taken.

Mrs McColl was one of the campaigns representatives in helping to propose the Mobile Homes Act 2013, external, and helped bring about a phone service for mobile home owners last year.

"I still can't believe how someone could be so evil," she said.

Police have appealed for more information, and Mrs McColl said they were viewing CCTV footage of the haulage company's yard where the home was stolen.

Image source, Sonia McColl

BBC Radio Cornwall

Main Road, Kuggar, near the Lizard, is blocked by an overturned bin lorry on the road between Kuggar and Traboe.

BBC Radio Cornwall

Supporters of an area of outstanding natural beauty say they believe a controversial decision to approve the expansion of a quarry on the Devon and Cornwall border will probably be approved.

The Secretary of State is to decide whether an un-named road which borders Greystone Quarry, near Launceston, can be closed, thereby allowing firm Aggregate Industries to spread into an area of outstanding natural beauty.

Image source, Google

It comes after a controverial decision by Cornwall Council to approve the proposals, which was opposed by Devon County Council, among others.

Neil Burden, chairman of the Tamar Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty group, said: "We're deeply concerned about the consequences rather than the expansion.

"We always knew expansion would happen. That's been on the cards for 30 years."

Aggregate Industries said that, if approved, the expansion would be managed in a "sustainable way".

Andrew Segal
BBC Local Live

A man has been arrested after a knife attack in Exeter which saw two men injured, police say.

Officers said the victims received minor injuries "to the arm and the shoulder" in the incident in the Western Way inner bypass by the Kingfisher pub at about 03:20 on Saturday.

Officers said the male offender was "known to the two victims"

A 20-year-old man from Exeter has been arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm with intent and released under investigation, pending further inquiries.

Police have appealed for witnesses.

BBC Radio Devon

People living near Plymouth's Devonport Royal Navy base are being warned not to panic if they here loud bangs in the area this afternoon.

New saluting guns will be tested at HMS Drake to make sure that their permanent ground fixings are secure on.

Fifteen loud blank firings will take place until 15:00.

Rob England
BBC News Online

Image source, Devon and Cornwall Police

A 10-tonne, £30,000 mobile home was stolen from a haulage yard in Devon while repairs were carried out ahead of its owner moving to the county.

Police said the 40ft (12m) long home was taken by thieves who "knew what they were doing".

Officers said thieves entered a locked yard in Willand, near Cullompton, and loaded the 40ft-long caravan "on to a flat trailer and removed it from the yard" between 18:00 on Wednesday 22 November and 06:00 on 23 November.

The theft had left the victim homeless, they added.

Seventy-year-old owner Sonia McColl, who is now staying with friends, said she was "totally devastated" and "numb", and her home was not insured when it was stolen.

Her other possessions were in storage elsewhere at the time of the theft.

Officers said a specific low-load trailer would have been used to take the mobile home.

The serial number for the home is SA11.049221E. Police have urged anyone with information to contact them.

Andrew Segal
BBC Local Live

Image source, Mark Milburn

A suspected World War Two bomb discovered by local divers off a beach near Falmouth is thought to be a parachute mine, coastguards say.

The object has been found about 800m offshore from Maenporth beach.

A Royal Navy bomb disposal team from Plymouth is on its way to assess the object.

The Falmouth lifeboat was "keeping vessels clear of the area as a precautionary measure" and coastguards were "issuing safety broadcasts informing vessels of the exclusion zone", the Maritime and Coastguard Agency said, external.

Mark Rodaway, from HM Coastguard, said: "We won’t know exactly what we are dealing with until the EOD [explosives ordnance disposal] team make their way to the device.

"Until that time, we have taken measures to clear the area and make sure that vessels and the public are kept safe. We are appealing to people to keep at a safe distance until it has been declared safe by the EOD team."

Julie Skentelbery
BBC Radio Cornwall

Hamish Marshall
BBC Spotlight

A former Royal Navy officer from Plymouth accused of historic sexual offences has described one of the allegations as "inconceivable and unthinkable".

Charles Howeson, 68, denies 12 charges against nine males dating back to the 1980s and 1990s.

One of the alleged offences took place on board a Devonport-based frigate.

Mr Howeson was second-in-command of HMS Cleopatra in 1985 when he was accused of indecent assault by a young sailor.

Bristol Crown Court was told that, when questioned by a navy inquiry in 1985, Mr Howeson said: "I can't believe it. I can't understand why he would want to say it. I completely refute it."

He described inquiry to the court as "very thorough". It decided no further action would be taken.

Mr Howeson spent the next five years on shore duties, including a promotion.

The trial continues.

Hamish Marshall
BBC Spotlight

Great Western, the rail franchise that runs the majority of services in Devon and Cornwall, could be split up under new government proposals.

The government is consulting on the proposals.

The Great Western Railway services stretches from London to the likes of Worcester, Swansea and into Devon and Cornwall. So, it is large and how it could be broken up is complicated.

In 2015, when he was chancellor, George Osborne floated the idea of a separate Devon and Cornwall franchise. However, that led to concerns that this would stop any cross-subsidy from the more profitable parts of the franchise which are closer to London.

Other options include splitting the inter-city services from the branch lines.

But passengers will ask will it mean more services, more reliable services cheaper tickets, or an end to overcrowding. Those will be questions raised during the consultation.

A road rage van driver who pointed a gun through his passenger window at another driver and then tried to blame his dog has been branded as "remarkably stupid" by a judge.

At Exeter Crown Court, Joseph McNally claimed his dog jumped into the front seat of his van and knocked the legally-held air rifle into the driver's foot well during the incident.

The 26-year-old, of Bilbie Close, Cullompton, said he had been moving it to a safer place and not pointing it when the weapon was seen by a passenger in another car, who was frightened he would shoot.

The incident on the A361 North Devon Link Road in February occurred after McNally and a Honda sports car driver had been involved in a "cat and mouse" overtaking game on the M5, the court heard.

McNally's excuse was dismissed as "almost laughable" by Judge Graham Cottle after he was found guilty by a jury of possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.

His case was adjourned for a probation report.

Devon Live

A Devon teenager has been thrown into the cells, external for sending a rape victim a message via Facebook during a criminal trial.

Andrew Segal
BBC Local Live

Staff at the Donkey Sanctuary in Sidmouth say they are "incredibly sad" after the charity has had one of its tractors stolen.

Police are investigating the theft of the John Deere vehicle, registration WA06 FVO, which is believed to have been taken between 15:30 on Saturday and 09:00 on Sunday.

The tractor has a bucket on the front and a new scraper on the back.

Annie Brown, from the charity, said: "We will ensure that the welfare of our donkeys is not affected by this theft.

"But it does mean that our teams will be under a great deal of unexpected pressure to keep the farm running smoothly, especially at this time of the year when we're using the tractor to transport the donkeys' feed and bedding to them every day."

BBC Radio Cornwall

Image source, Mark Milburn

A suspected World War Two bomb has been discovered by local divers off a beach near Falmouth.

The object was found near Maenporth beach last week.

Those who found it said Royal Navy bomb squad divers had been informed and were on the way to assess it.

Diver Mark Milburn - who has found similar objects during expeditions - said that, if it was ordnance, it was estimated it could contain up to 700kg of explosives.

Bomb squad staff told him they would "deal with it today" if it was safe to do so, he added.

Neil Gallacher, Business & Industry Correspondent
BBC Spotlight

Railway lines closed in the 1960s could be reopened if they boost the economy, the government has said.

The plan forms part of a wider rail strategy under which the government will consider splitting up two of the biggest train operators. The move would affect Great Western, which operates routes in the South West.

However, the government appears to think it's more important to restore disused rail capacity in the Exeter area than to reconnect Tavistock to the rail network, as has been long hoped by many.

Ministers have today said that Beeching cuts - where some 4,000 miles of rail routes were closed in the 1960s, mainly in rural areas - could be reversed around Exeter, which may indicate the possibility of more capacity in the Exmouth junction area.

They're also talking about splitting up the huge GWR franchise, although fears that small local lines might have to end up in a franchise all of their own seem to have receded.

BBC Weather

It's another cold feeling day, with dry with spells of sunshine to the east, but showers across west Cornwall and Scilly.

Some showers will be heavy and may be wintry over higher ground. Moderate or fresh northerly winds will also be stronger towards the far west and Scilly.

Maximum temperature: 9C (48F).

BBC Radio Devon

Got any pictures that you want to share with us? Just email them in.

Plymouth Herald

A shameless addict stole from a member of hospital staff treating him after he swallowed heroin, a court heard, external.

Rob England
BBC News Online

A man has been arrested following a "serious assault" in which two people were injured in Exeter, police have said.

It happened on Saturday at about 03:20 on the Western Way inner bypass, near the Kingfisher pub.

Officers said a man, who was known to the victims, attacked and injured them in the shoulder and arm with "a bladed article".

A 20-year-old man was later arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and released under investigation.

BBC Radio Cornwall

Rail services between Truro and Falmouth Docks will suffer disruption until about 15:00, National Rail Enquiries says, external.

Services are being delayed by up to 30 minutes or cancelled because of a broken-down train.