22/08/2014 East Midlands Today

coming up shortly, after this bulletin. I think that really is

With your news now for the East Midlands, I'm Maurice Flynn.

Members of a drug gang from Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire

were jailed today for 100 years between them.

They'd used a health food shop as a front for

Our social affairs correspondent, Jeremy Ball, saw them sentenced

The judge said the men in the dock were trading

in pernicious drugs that destroyed families and blighted lives.

At the heart of it all was this innocuous`looking health food shop

at Sutton`in`Ashfield in Nottinghamshire, where

Inside, the police found this mixing equipment and these tubs

of sulphuric acid, ready to mix with amphetamine oil.

Elsewhere, these drugs were found in three vehicle checks

Drugs valued by the police at well over ?2 million.

It was one of those finds that prompted detectives to

On entering the shop, we discovered individuals trying to describe

They were destroying them by putting them down the drains etc.

And the amount of drugs there and the amount

of drugs recovered clearly identify to us that these were major players

in the distribution of drugs in the East Midlands.

Most of the men sentenced today come from Derbyshire or Nottinghamshire.

We heard the gang's leader was a man who owned the shop in Sutton.

He has been jailed for 12 years for supplying amphetamines.

Donnelly is one of ten men beginning prison sentences tonight

The judge said the gang were peddling misery.

A young gay woman from Oakham has been beaten unconscious

by thugs who taunted her about her sexuality before attacking her.

The police are treating the attack on supermarket worker

I headed towards home and that's when I saw two guys

You know, it was just two more people walking home.

Obviously, as they got nearer, I heard them say, that's the lesbian.

And then all I remember was a fist in my face

And everything else after that is just one big blur.

These are dark times for Kerry Byrnes.

Photographs show her injuries just hours after the assault.

I haven't left the house since it happened.

It is just fear at the minute that they will come back.

The police are treating it as a hate crime and are urging anyone

It feels like it was a homophobic attack just

You know, they didn't steal anything.

I had my phone on me, I had money on me.

If it was obviously a robbery or mugging, they would

It was just the comment and then obviously I hit the floor.

It has had a massive impact on my life.

I've never, never had anything like this happen to me before.

You know, you just don't expect homophobic crime 21st century.

All I had running through my head at time was,

The day`to`day running of two of the region's most popular

council`run visitor destinations could be changing hands.

Sherwood Forest Visitor Centre looks set to be run by a private company,

and nearby Rufford Abbey park could be run by an independent trust.

As our political editor John Hess reports, it is to do with pressure

Tourists visiting Sherwood Forest today.

Last year, almost 345,000 visitors came here.

But Nottinghamshire County Council, which runs the attraction,

says it cannot afford the ?300,000 annual cost

Council leader Alan Rhodes wants a private firm to do it instead.

It gives us an opportunity to reduce our costs

whilst at the same time providing the public of Nottinghamshire and

visitors into the county with a much more positive visitors' attraction

Nearby Rufford Abbey last year attracted almost half

It is also run by the County Council and could end up being taken over

by an independent trust to take the pressure off council budgets.

Alan Rhodes accepts these proposals may be controversial.

He now has his party and the public to win over.

It possibly could be better but we do not want to turn it

It needs some money putting into it, definitely.

Yeah, it needs money putting into it.

Well, we're not necessarily talking about a sell`off here.

Rufford and Sherwood Forest last year generated almost ?3

But that is no longer enough to balance the County Hall books.

East Midlands Airport is expecting its busiest weekend of the year

as families jet off for the Bank Holiday.

Bosses predict an 8% increase in passenger numbers on last year.

Over 80,000 people will use the airport, with many choosing

It is easy to get into, easy to get out of, the staff are always great.

We have indeed come to East Midlands because it is slightly cheaper than

flying out of Manchester, which was our nearest airport.

Sport, and Derby swimmer Adam Peaty continues to make a name

After two golds and a silver at the Commonwealth Games, this

evening he set a new world record for the 50 metres breaststroke

Once he gets over the apparent shock,

That's it from me, I'll have more for you across the weekend.

But here's Anna now with your weather.

The bank holiday weekend is with us and I am sure you want to know what

the forecast is looking like. It isn't looking too bad. 20 of dry

weather on Saturday and Sunday. There could be windy conditions at

times on bank holiday Monday itself. If you was this `` a view shows this

evening. One to pushing into the Peak District. A largely dry night.

Chilly, with temperatures of nine in towns and cities and law in rural

areas. Tomorrow, showers continuing to feed him but it looks mostly dry

in the morning with broken clouds and sunny spells. Showers becoming

more widespread in the afternoon. A lot of dry weather in between where

we have this sunshine and highs of 17 Celsius. Sunday is not too bad, a

dry, bright and find fine day. Here is your outlook for the next

cloudier with outbreaks of rain on Bank Holiday Monday.

Good evening. The weekend is upon us. For many, it is an extended

weekend w a bank holiday on Monday. The weekend itself not looking too

bad weather wieds. A good deal of -- weather wise. A good deal of dry