A dealer caught with a stash of drugs at a Lincolnshire music festival claimed he was simply trying to make people happy, Lincoln Crown Court was told.

Image source, Lincolnshire police

Daniel Edun, from north London, travelled to the Equinox Festival at Chalk Farm near Louth in Lincolnshire, in September 2019.

Lincoln Crown Court heard he made the comments after being challenged and later detained by security staff.

Edun, 39, of Camden, was jailed for three years and four months.

The defendant, who the court was told had no previous convictions, admitted six charges of possession of drugs with intent to supply and a further four charges of possession.

The court heard he was caught with a stash of drugs, including LSD, ecstasy, ketamine, cocaine and magic mushrooms as he tried to enter the main arena on 23 September, the final day of the three-day festival.

Daniel Edun made the comments after being stopped from entering a music festival, a court hears.

The traditional Boxing Day fixture at Market Rasen Racecourse will instead take place on Wednesday 30 December due to the coronavirus pandemic, officials have confirmed.

The annual Boxing Day races usually draws in crowds of over 9,000 people every year.

With the sport continuing behind closed doors for the foreseeable future, fixtures over the festive period are being rescheduled in the hope to generate more betting-related revenue for the industry.

Anyone with tickets or hospitality for this year’s Boxing Day fixture will be contacted by the racecourse via email, officials say.

Lincoln's Drill Hall won't benefit from a new cultural arts fund aimed at helping support venues through the coronavirus pandemic because it was "asked to withdraw" its funding bid, the trust which runs it says.

Image source, Google

A total of 18 arts venues in Lincolnshire were awarded nearly £3m in funding yesterday as part of the government's Cultural Arts Fund.

But Lincoln Drill Hall, which closed in early October with a loss of 19 jobs, wasn't on the list of beneficiaries.

Phil Hamlyn Williams, chairman of Lincoln Arts Trust, which runs the Drill Hall, says it was asked to withdraw its funding bid because the venue has no funding beyond March next year.

Mr Hamlyn Williams says the government grants are to help arts venues through the pandemic, but after City of Lincoln Council withdrew its funding for the venue, the trust doesn't have enough money to sustain itself next year.

A new pilot has taken over the role of leading the world famous Lincolnshire-based aerobatics team the Red Arrows.

Image source, MOD

Tom Bould, who's replaced Martin Pert as "Red 1", steps into the cockpit of the famous Hawk Jets for the first time as leader today.

The pilots of the famous team, based at RAF Scampton, usually rotate every three years and three leave the team annually.

This year, the other pilots will remain the same because the coronavirus lockdown has meant most of their displays have been cancelled.

A new arts grant will ensure some of Lincolnshire's theatres will be able to survive after the pandemic, according to trustees at Blackfriar's Theatre in Boston.

Image source, Blackfriars Theatre and Arts Centre

The government has released £157m in funding to help struggling arts venues across the country. In Lincolnshire, a total of 18 venues have been given a share of nearly £3m.

Among those benefiting are Lincoln's New Theatre Royal, Spalding's South Holland Centre and Blackfriar's Theatre in Boston.

Organisers of the Lost Village music festival, Lincoln's Engine Shed and Music Lincs are also being awarded funds.

Nigel Wright is sentenced to 14 years after putting metal shards into food and demanding £1.4m.

A Lincolnshire farmer has been jailed for a total of 14 years after attempting to blackmail Tesco by putting knife blades in baby food.

Image source, Hertfordshire Constabulary

Nigel Wright, 45, who's from Market Rasen, attempted to swindle the supermarket out of £1.4m in the plot.

The Old Bailey heard that he sent dozens of letters to the retail giant between May 2018 and February 2020.

He was sentenced today to 11 years in jail after being convicted earlier this year of three counts of blackmail and two charges of contaminating goods.

That sentence will be served consecutively with a three-year sentence for a charge of blackmail against a driver with whom he had had a road rage altercation.

Passing sentence, Mr Justice Warby said: "You were under no pressure from others, or from circumstances.

A Lincolnshire Conservative MP has hit out at his own party for a curfew which closes pubs and restaurants at 22:00.

Karl McCartney, MP for Lincoln, said the rule, introduced in a bid to cut the number of coronavirus infections, "might not be achieving what it set out to achieve".

He says the curfew is "not helpful" to the industry and suggests the rule fails to take into account "how young people operate these days".

Mr McCartney said he would "potentially" vote against the government if the 22:00 curfew is up for a vote in parliament:

Two women have been seriously injured in a crash near Market Deeping at the weekend.

Image source, Google

The crash happened at about 14:50 on Sunday on the A1175 at Tallington.

A motorbike collided with a Citroen C1 which then hit a Ford Ranger, police say.

The motorcyclist, a woman in her 50s, and the driver of the Citroen, a woman in her 20s, were both badly hurt.

Police are appealing for anyone who saw what happened, or who has dash cam footage, to get in touch.

A Lincolnshire farmer is due to be sentenced later after contaminating baby food with metal shards and attempting to blackmail the Tesco supermarket chain.

Image source, Hertfordshire Constabulary

Nigel Wright, 45, who farmed near Market Rasen, was found guilty at the Old Bailey in August.

The court heard how two mothers were moments away from feeding their infants when they spotted the shards.

Jurors were told Wright sent dozens of letters and emails to the supermarket giant between May 2018 and February 2020.

He demanded £1.4m was paid via the online currency Bitcoin.

Wright was convicted of three counts of blackmail and two charges of contaminating goods.

He was also convicted of a further charge of blackmail for demanding £150,000 worth of Bitcoin from a driver with whom he had a road rage altercation.

Lincoln see their perfect start to the season ended by Bristol Rovers, who fight back to win at Sincil Bank.

Police say the weapons seized included machetes, air weapons, a hammer and a crowbar.

Traffic lights, barriers, a bike rack and more from the recent £1.5bn rebuild are being auctioned.

Ashleigh Linsdell is behind 'For the Love of Scrubs' which started during the coronavirus pandemic.

Zane Powles is among several people from Lincolnshire named in the Queen's Birthday Honours list.

Lincoln City manager Michael Appleton speaks to Football Focus' Mark Clemmit about the risks taken by the club in January and being top of League One - while the Red Arrows make a surprise appearance.

Anyone in Lincolnshire who possess a weapon can hand it in without fear of prosecution as part of a weapons amnesty, police say.

Image source, Lincolnshire Police

The amnesty is part of Operation Raptor, which aims to cut the number of offences involving weapons in the west of the county.

Secure bins have been placed at police stations in Lincoln, Grantham, Boston, Skegness and Spalding and will remain in place until 18 December.

Image source, Lincolnshire Police

People can deposit weapons or imitations in these bins and remain completely anonymous – there will be no questions asked or repercussions, officers say.

The amnesty doesn’t apply to firearms, though, as checks need to be made to ensure they were legitimately held.

Det Insp Dave Harrop said: "Lincolnshire is an incredibly safe place, but we still take every opportunity to reduce the number of weapons in the county.

"We hope this amnesty will take even more out of circulation that could have otherwise been used in violence or to intimidate."

A Lincolnshire woman says she's still determined to carry out a special run in memory of a friend who died earlier this year, even though the official City of Lincoln 10k race has been cancelled.

Image source, St Barnabas Hospice

Fiona Brown, from Sturton by Stow, signed up to run in the Lincoln 10k to raise money for St Barnabas Hospice in tribute to 47-year-old Karen Chambers, who died in July after being diagnosed with Glioblastoma.

Despite the race's subsequent postponement, Fiona says she's instead aiming to complete her own 10km run around Lincoln on 1 November.

She says: "I am a similar age to Karen, and we are both mothers, so I found this news particularly difficult.

“Karen’s wish for me was to continue raising money for St Barnabas in her memory and I know she is watching over us as the fundraising total continues to climb.

"She will be with me on 1 November and she is my motivation to complete the 10k this year.

"Karen knew I would be running on this date before she passed away. I won’t let her down."

Fiona adds that her friend was "a truly special lady and my life is much better for knowing her".

A pub in Grantham has been closed after it was found still to be trading after the 22:00 curfew brought in to help prevent the spread of coronavirus, according to Lincolnshire Police.

Image source, Google

The Priory, on Dysart Road, has been voluntarily closed with immediate effect by the licence holder Ei Group after police visited the premises last week, the force says.

Sgt Kimble Enderby said: "Officers visited the pub at 22:35 on Friday 2 October and found it was still open and trading. The front door was open, the lights were on and customers were sat inside drinking alcohol.

"Staff claimed they weren’t aware of the new closing time, despite it being in place for over a week."

The Priory will remain closed while the company finds a replacement Designated Premises Supervisor, which is someone with day-to-day responsibility for the running of the business, police say.

Sgt Enderby added: "Any licensed premises trading during the current pandemic must ensure they operate lawfully and follow the government guidance.

"Any licensed venue found to be breaching the regulations or operating unsafely will have robust action taken against them."