Updates for Essex Live have finished for today - thanks for joining us. 

We'll be back tomorrow with the latest news for the county.

Have a great evening.

Alex Dolan
BBC Look East weather

A prolonged dry spell of weather on the way, making it feel a little milder. 

It will stay dry this evening and overnight, with the chance of a frost and some mist and fog patches developing towards the end of the night. 

Lows of -1C (30F)

Patrick Byrne
BBC News

Stansted Airport has a new boss to replace Andrew Harrison, who is moving to a new post within the parent company, Manchester Airports Group (MAG).

Image source, Stansted Airport

Andrew Cowan, currently chief strategy officer at MAG, has been appointed chief executive of the north Essex airport and is swapping his role with Mr Harrison who will move to Manchester. 

During the past three years, £80m has been spent on the terminal and the airport has attracted five million more passengers, a spokesman said.

Nick Alliker
BBC Essex

Here are your top stories this evening:

• Two police officers who were first on the scene when notorious criminal John Palmer was killed have been disciplined for failing to spot he had been shot
• An investigation's under way after an elderly woman was manhandled by a burglar near Southend
• Police are describing the assault of a female pensioner, while she was walking her dog near Chelmsford, as "unprovoked"

Patrick Byrne
BBC News

An 85-year-old woman has been left "very distressed" after waking up in the middle of the night to find a burglar in her bedroom.

He put his hand over her mouth to stop her calling out and stole a laptop, a black handbag containing a small amount of cash and bank cards, and a jewellery box from her property in Little Wakering in the early hours of this morning, police said.

The suspect is described as white, aged about 18 to 20, 5ft 6ins tall and of slim build.

Charlie Jones
BBC Local Live

John Palmer, who is said to have been murdered by a professional hitman, had several criminal friends.

• M25 road rage killer Kenneth Noye: Noye was convicted of involvement in 1983's Brink's-Mat robbery, which Mr Palmer was also connected to. In 1996, Noye murdered a motorist in a road rage incident. Within days Mr Palmer arranged for him to be flown to Spain in his jet, where he remained on the run for two years.

Image source, PA

• Hatton Garden ringleader Brian Reader:Nicknamed The Governor, Reader (above left) was also convicted for his role in the Brink's-Mat raid. He pleaded guilty to his role in masterminding the £14m Hatton Garden heist but was too ill to be sentenced with his associates. 

Ben Fryer
BBC Essex Sport

Southend United boss Phil Brown has bemoaned the lack of "a clean-sheet mentality" at Southend United this season.

Image source, Getty

The Shrimpers, who sit 10th in League One, have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last six league fixtures.

"Last year, I think I said the league was a 1-0 kind of league and this year it's more like 2-1," Brown told BBC Essex.

The police officers called to the scene when John "Goldfinger" Palmer was shot at his home in South Weald did not check his criminal history or realise his high profile, it has emerged.

An Essex Police spokesman said the pair "did not call an inspector to the scene to confirm their assessment or check Mr Palmer's antecedents on the police national computer" when called to the property last June.

"Given the full circumstances of the information they were presented with at the time it was judged that this did not amount to gross misconduct," the spokesman added.

Essex Police has confirmed two officers who were first on the scene when John "Goldfinger" Palmer was killed did not fully comply with the force's policy on dealing with sudden deaths.

Image source, PA

Mr Palmer, a 65-year-old conman, was found at his home in South Weald, Essex, in June.

Officers and paramedics initially thought he had died from natural causes, having recently had chest surgery, and so did not carry out a full examination of the body. Essex Police said the officers' actions did not amount to gross misconduct.

Two police officers who were first on the scene when notorious criminal John "Goldfinger" Palmer was killed have been disciplined for failing to spot he had been shot.  

More to follow.

BBC Travel

A lane is still closed on the clockwise M25 and there are also delays on the anticlockwise side between junction 26 for Waltham Abbey and junction 27 for the M11 after a lorry overturned and spilled sand on the carriageway earlier.

Follow the latest updates here.

A Labrador has died after being injured on the A120 when it escaped from home, external with three other dogs.

Charlie Jones
BBC Local Live

John Palmer, whose murder will appear on Crimewatch this evening, was worth an estimated £300m at one time, making him 105th on the Sunday Times Rich List.

He owned a mansion, a jet, two helicopters, a classic car collection and a yacht called the Brave Goose of Essex.  

Image source, www.normandythenandnow.com

He also bought a chateau with its own golf course in Normandy, external, which has been abandoned and now lies in a state of disrepair.

Elizabeth Rizzini
BBC Look East weather

It will be brighter through the afternoon with sunny spells developing in places but will feel chilly in northeasterly winds.

Maximum Temperature: 10 C (50F)  

Evening Outlook: Dry with clear periods allowing temperatures to fall with patches of frost or fog likely by dawn. Check the forecast here for your part of Essex.

Andrew Sinclair
BBC Look East political correspondent

The head of the ambulance service which covers Essex has told MPs the trust is facing a "perfect storm" but was making progress.

Image source, EEAS

Robert Morton, head of the East of England Ambulance Service, said it was struggling to cope with an increase in call-outs, staff shortages and hospital delays. 

He outlined some of the operational changes to deal with growing problems he is making during a private meeting at Westminster with East Anglian MPs who felt Mr Morton was making progress.

Nick Alliker
BBC Essex

Here are the top stories we've been covering today:

• The murder of notorious criminal John 'Goldfinger' Palmer in South Weald will feature on Crimewatch tonight
• A 70-year-old woman has been hurt following an unprovoked attack near Chelmsford
• The head of the ambulance service which covers Essex has told MPs that the trust is facing a "perfect storm"

BBC Travel

A lorry has overturned on the anti-clockwise M25, closing two lanes and causing serious disruption between J27, for the M11, and J26, for the A121 (Waltham Abbey).

Laura Devlin
BBC News

John 'Goldfinger' Palmer, whose murder features on the BBC's Crimewatch programme tonight, had recently turned his life around according to his partner, Christina Ketley.

"He had made mistakes in his life but he had paid for those mistakes," she said. "I was incredibly proud of the way he had readjusted to a very, very normal life."

Image source, BBC Crimewatch

Detectives found a hole in the fence surrounding Mr Palmer's sprawling grounds which they believe the gunman used to watch his movements.

A 70-year-old woman has been hurt following an unprovoked attack near Chelmsford, police say.

Image source, Google

The victim was walking her dog in The Street in Little Waltham last week when a man punched her in the head. 

When she asked why he'd assaulted her, the suspect then hit her twice more. He's described as being about 30 to 40 years old, white, about 5ft 9in tall with a wispy beard.

Patrick Byrne
BBC News

Essex Police must improve its performance in protecting vulnerable individuals including missing young people, domestic abuse and child sex victims, the force's police and crime commissioner, external says.

In his latest quarterly report into the conduct and discipline matters for the period October to December 2015, Nick Alston said there were too many cases "where Essex Police hadn't got it right". 

"The force is carrying out extensive work to improve performance, learning and to drive change in these areas. The chief constable is also deeply committed to this work," he said.