A fugitive alleged to be part of the Basque separatist group, Eta, has been arrested in the Leith area – more than 10 years after he went on the run. Lothian and Borders Police arrested Benat Atorrasagasti Ordonez – who has been on Spain’s ‘most wanted’ list since 2008 – in a Friday night raid.
A spokesman for Lothian and Borders Police said: “A 36-year-old man has been arrested in Edinburgh on two European warrants, in connection with historical crimes committed in Spain and France.
“We can confirm that no armed officers were involved and at no time was any member of the public at risk. The man will appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Monday under the terms of the Extradition Act.”
The Basque separatist organisation ETA was formed in 1959, waging a campaign of terror that has included bombings, shootings and kidnappings costing hundreds of lives. The group declared a ‘permanent ceasefire’ in October last year – but it’s only the latest of many.
A THIEF caught using a pensioner’s bus pass to travel to court the morning after she was brutally assaulted and left for dead has been jailed for a year.
Police cordon off the area around the entrance to Ferryhill primary School where Mrs Crawford was attached. (Picture: Thomas Brown)
Alexander DeVries was accused of attacking 75-year-old church elder Evelyn Crawford in Drylaw after detectives found him with her property, including the pass.
However, a sheriff has ruled that there was not enough evidence linking the 36-year-old – who has previous convictions for theft, wilful fire-raising and assault – to the crime.
Instead, DeVries has pleaded guilty to charges of “theft by finding” and fraudulent use of the pass.
A trial at Edinburgh Sheriff Court heard that Mrs Crawford’s mobile phone was used to call DeVries’ ex-partner three hours after the robbery on January 15. DeVries admitted using Mrs Crawford’s pensioner’s bus pass the next day to travel to the court for a hearing.
Following the ruling, police chiefs said they were “not looking for anyone else in connection” with the robbery.
Mrs Crawford was unable to identify the man who tore her handbag from her grip, sending her sprawling to the ground and suffering from injuries to her head, broken fingers and broken ribs, which punctured her lung. She needed an operation to remove fluid from her lung.
The court heard detectives recovered CCTV footage from a Lothian bus in the days after the attack, which showed a man using Mrs Crawford’s bus pass. Detectives were able to trace the man as DeVries and a search of his home recovered the victim’s mobile phone, bus pass, wallet and her glasses and case.
Interviewed by officers on January 26, DeVries claimed he had found the mobile phone on a bus while the other items were lying on the ground in West Pilton Rise.
During the interview, which was played to the jury, one of the detectives said: “Everything you found in the last few days belonged to the elderly victim of a robbery. What are the chances of that?”
DeVries replied: “I didn’t rob anyone. It’s not in my nature to rob or steal from anyone. You can say what you want, but I didn’t rob anyone.” DeVries also told the officers: “I really, really sincerely didn’t rob the old lady. Picking up stuff from the ground, I’ll do. Robbery, theft, not my cup of tea.”
Detective Constable James Philp, one of the detectives on the inquiry, said that Mrs Crawford’s phone showed a call to DeVries’ ex-partner at 9.48pm on January 15. Mrs Crawford was attacked and robbed at around 6pm.
DeVries had claimed to police that the phone, which he said he found on a number 37 Lothian bus, was out of battery and he was unable to use it.
Told during the interview that the phone was taken during the robbery, DeVries said: “No danger. Check the cameras on the bus and you’ll see.”
Sheriff Paul Arthurson QC ruled yesterday that the charge of assault and robbery against DeVries – who has been on remand since his arrest on January 26 – could not be heard by the jury. he sheriff said: “There was not sufficient identification of the accused as being the robber. The overwhelming evidence of possession could not correct that defect in the case”.
A police spokesman said: “While we recognise the decision, we are not looking for anyone else in connection with this crime.”
In July 2010, DeVries – a father-of-one – was left with a ten-centimetre scar across his face after being slashed with a knife by two muggers in West Pilton Park.
A TEENAGER today admitted raping and killing a frail pensioner who regarded him as a grandson.
Jay Soso, 19, pleaded guilty to carrying out the horrific sex attack on 63-year-old Marie Reid at her home in Easter Drylaw Way, Edinburgh on November 11, 2010.
Jay Soso admits having sex with the pensioner.
Mrs Reid’s body was discovered four days later after family and neighbours became worried because they hadn’t heard from her.
She was found lying in the living room in a bloodstained nightie. Pathologists say that the trauma of the rape contributedd to Mrs Reid death.
Initially, police thought that Mrs Reid’s death was not suspicious, but her son Paul, 31, and step-daughter Jacqueline pressed for further investigations to be made.
At this point it was discovered that someone had had sex with Mrs Reid just before her death.
The cause of death was unascertained, but pathologists said that the rape would have put an additional strain on her heart and lungs and could predispose her to sudden death
Prosecutor Leanne Cross told the High Court in Glasgow: “The deceased was raped on the evening of November 11, 2010. She had died at that time and the rape had made, at the least, a material contribution to the death.
Police contacted everyone who knew Mrs Reid and when interviewed Soso said he had not seen her for a couple of months.
However he gave a mouth swab which was a match for DNA found on Mrs Reid.
The court heard Soso and his mother lived next door to Mrs Reid for five years between 2003 and 2008.
He helped Mrs Reid by running errands for her and she was described by Soso’s mother Sharon as treating him “like a grandson.”
Soso’s family moved to England, but he didn’t like it there and moved back to Edinburgh.
By 2010 he had a job in a fishmongers in the city and lived close to Mrs Reid.
He visited her occasionally claiming he was checking to see how she was.
Speaking outside the court, Mrs Reid’s son Paul said he became worried that something terrible had happened to his mother when he noticed the pre-paid meter for her television was missing along with a tin she collecting loose change in and her purse was empty.
Paul and his step-sister Jacqueline Sanderson, 38, and her husband Gordon, 54, asked for the matter to be thoroughly investigated.
He said: “If it wasn’t for us and our persistence it could have been recorded as a natural death.”
Judge Lady Dorrian deferred sentence on Soso of Spring Gardens, Edinburgh, for background reports and an assessment of the risk he poses to the public until later this month and remanded him in custody.
A man was punched to the ground and kicked after questioning a group that were drinking in his close.
The 62-year-old went into the common stair in Ferry Road Drive at around 7.30am on Sunday.
He found a group of three men and a woman sat in the close drinking and asked them what they were doing there.
One of the men punched him in the face and the victim fell to the ground before another man started kicking him. The group then left the close.
The victim went to St John’s Hospital where he was treated for a broken jaw and reported the attack to the police on Tuesday.
Lothian and Borders Police are appealing for witnesses as they try and find the men responsible.
The first suspect is described as a white man aged around 20, around 5ft 10in tall and well built with short, fair hair. He was wearing a sweatshirt and grey jogging bottoms at the time of the attack.
The second man is also white and around 20 years old. He is around 5ft 8in tall with a slim build and dark brown or black hair.
A police spokesman said: “This was an unprovoked and vicious assault that resulted in a man suffering a painful and serious facial injury.
“Given the time of day, there may have been a number of people in the streets on their way to work and anyone who remembers seeing anything suspicious in the Ferry Road Drive area on Sunday morning is asked to contact police immediately.
“Similarly, if anyone can assist in identifying those responsible for this attack, they are also asked to get in touch.”
Anyone with any information can contact Lothian and Borders Police on 0131 311 3131, or the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
A fugitive alleged to be part of the Basque separatist group, Eta, has been arrested in the Leith area – more than 10 years after he went on the run. Lothian and Borders Police arrested Benat Atorrasagasti Ordonez – who has been on Spain’s ‘most wanted’ list since 2008 – in a Friday night raid.
