The gang, described as "chilling in their mercilessness", forced victims to live in squalor.

Emmanuel Dos Santos has been cleared of unlawfully killing Samuel Harrison at Lincoln jail.

As the Universal Credit benefit system is rolled out across the country today, there are concerns it has caused claimants in Boston to slide deeper into debt.

Boston moved onto the service three months ago but BBC figures show that, on average, claimants owe more than £500 each in unpaid rent.

Boston and Sutterton Food Bank says demand has quadrupled since the system was brought in.

The government says problems with enrollment have been fixed.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Handcuffs are among items worth £10,000 which thieves have stolen from Humberside Police in the past three years.

Image source, Science Photo Library

Drills, mountain bikes and a hammer are also included in the list of items taken from the force between Feburary 2016 and September 2018.

A Freedom of Information Act request revealed that, out of the 35 police items recorded as stolen, 15 have never been recovered.

In a statement, Humberside Police said: "We take all reports of theft seriously including items that are stolen from police."

Three camels are set to feature in the Lincoln Lantern Parade this evening, and will lead crowds through the city centre to Castle Hill.

The parade begins at City Square at 17:00, when families are encouraged to light their paper lanterns and follow the camels – accompanied by a marching band – up the hill.

It will conclude with a nativity service from St Mary Magdalene's Church at Castle Hill.

The evening also marks late-night shopping across the Bailgate and Steep Hill areas of Lincoln, with free parking also on offer.

A Lincolnshire MP has begged for more money to go towards the county's police.

The government's announced new funding plans - including the possibility of households paying more towards local forces.

Image source, Getty Images

But the Conservative MP for Gainsborough - Sir Edward Leigh - says Lincolnshire remains the lowest funded force in the country.

The Policing Minister Nick Hurd says today's announcement means extra money will now be available for for Lincolnshire.

Theresa May might have made it through last night's vote of no confidence but the divisions in the Conservative Party are by no means over.

Some of her MPs are still demanding that she step aside today - even as she arrives at an EU summit to try and get more concessions for her unpopular Brexit Withdrawal deal.

However Matt Warman, the MP for Boston and Skegness, says last night represents the high-water mark of internal dissent:

Work is taking place to help protect the 400-year-old Grantham Oak tree in Lincolnshire.

The Woodland Trust has raised concerns that the roots of the oak might have been damaged by vehicles parking too close.

Image source, Woodland Trust

A radar survey has already been carried out to map the roots, and plans are coming together for a protection zone around the tree to protect it for future generations.

Lincolnshire Echo

For those who find the traditional Christmas dinner a bit boring, there is one Lincolnshire chip shop that has an alternative., external

Image source, Kate Chapman

Police in New Zealand investigating the murder of the University of Lincoln graduate Grace Milane, say they have recovered the shovel they were looking for after an appeal.

The 22-year-old disappeared in Auckland on 1 December. Police ended their search on Sunday after finding a body on the outskirts of the city.

Image source, HAGEN HOPKINS/GETTY IMAGES

A 26-year-old man has appeared in court in New Zealand charged with Miss Millane's murder.

A Lincoln chartered surveyor has been accepted into the prestigious international Explorers Club.

Andrew Pearce, who's taken part in expeditions to the South Pole and was the first to take the Lincolnshire flag to the North Pole, is one of only a handful of people granted membership in the last year.

The club was established in 1904 and is based in New York and to be successful in a membership application, individuals must demonstrate contribution to the cause of exploration, as well as promoting development of scientific knowledge of the world.

A 70-year-old man has died in hospital after being hit by a car in Grimsby.

It happened on Victor Street on Tuesday 20 November at about 09:45.

Police say they want to speak to the woman in the picture below who was in the area at the time of the collision and was caught on CCTV:

Image source, Humberside Police

Police believe she may have important information about the incident.

No-one has been arrested in connection with the crash.

Two Lincolnshire railway stations were among the 20 least used in Britain between 2017 and 2018, new statistics show.

Image source, Geograph

The statistics, published by the Office of Rail and Road, places Havenhouse (pictured) and Thorpe Culvert as the 11th and 9th least used stations in the country respectively.

Both are on the Skegness to Grantham route.

The East Midlands region also had the lowest general station usage in Britain, with Lincoln Central recording about 1.8 million entries and exits over the last year.

Waterloo Station, meanwhile, boasted more than 94 million entries and exits between 2017 and 2018.

Organisers of a Lincolnshire music festival say they're "very pleased" they've been allowed to keep their licence following a review triggered by noise complaints.

Image source, Lost Village Festival

The Lost Village music festival is held near Norton Disney over four days in the summer.

A total of 13 complaints were lodged with North Kesteven District Council by residents who said they were being kept awake by the sound of the bass even after shutting their windows and doors.

However, councillors have ruled in the festival's favour.

Organisers say they'll continue to "go to great lengths" to engage with the local community, "building relationships, working with local charities and raising money for local community projects".

Every year Norway sends a proper Christmas Tree over to Grimsby.

However this year there was a problem... it died on the way.

So a temporary replacement was quickly rustled up. It just happened to be a little smaller than normal:

The picture quickly picked up attention on social media for obvious reasons. Leading some people to try and spruce it up a bit:

This morning the proper replacement tree arrived and the centre is looking suitably festive once more:

I think it's fair to say that we all end up putting on a few pounds over the festive period.

But this chap might have to make a New Year's resolution to lay off the nuts for a while:

Image source, Tony Cooper

He was spotted by Tony Cooper in Hartsholme Country Park in Lincoln - though to be honest he's not exactly hard to miss.

Money, drugs and an axe were seized by police as they arrested an 18-year-old man from Sheffield during a suspected drug deal.

Image source, Humberside Police

The weapon was found by plainclothes officers during the arrest in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire.

More than £1,000 of cash and 60 wraps of crack cocaine and heroin were also seized, according to Humberside Police.

The teenager is currently in police custody on suspicion of money laundering, possession of drugs with intent to supply and possession of an offensive weapon.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Health scrutiny bosses in Lincolnshire say they have "no confidence" in the county's patient transport service and could revoke the operator's contract.

Officials from Thames Ambulance Service have updated councillors on its progress over the past year, including staff changes and a new booking system.

But, despite the changes, the chairman of the panel, Councillor Carl Macey, said performance was at the "lowest point" it had "ever been" and he felt "no confidence" in the service.

Officials from the Thames Ambulance Service responded by saying there was "much more to do" and that it was confident of hitting eight of the 18 performance targets by April 2019.

Despite the assurances, the committee will now write to the Lincolnshire West Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) to ask them to exit the contract as soon as possible.

In March, North Lincolnshire CCG agreed to cancel the firm's contract after multiple failings were found in a Care Quality Commission report.

The Conservative MP for Cleethorpes, Martin Vickers, is one of those calling for the Prime Minister to step down despite surviving a bruising vote of no confidence last night.

Theresa May won the vote by 200 to 117 and is immune to another internal leadership challenge for a year as a result.

However, it seems the rift in her party over Mrs May's Brexit Withdrawal Agreement is far from over, with a number of MPs saying her position is no longer tenable.

Martin Vickers says it's time for Mrs May to go "in the best interests of the country":

Eleven Members of a Lincolnshire Family jailed for keeping and exploiting slaves are due to appear before the High Court later to appeal against their convictions and sentences.

Image source, Lincolnshire Police

The Rooney family were convicted last year in what was deemed the biggest slavery case in British legal history.

Over a number of years, the family enslaved 19 men, many of which vulnerable or homeless, and forced them to work while living in squalid conditions.

One victim, whose ordeal spanned more than 25 years, was made to dig his own grave.

The family's initial appeal failed and today's hearing will see a final decision made.