Episode 7 Crimewatch Roadshow


Episode 7

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Travelling the length and breadth of the country helping police

:00:00.:00:09.

The terrifying attack on a man and his pregnant

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I could have lost the baby, we nearly lost Tony,

:00:15.:00:17.

And I'll be looking into exotic wildlife crime -

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and finding out why having these guys as pets can be a very bad idea.

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You're watching Crimewatch Roadshow.

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Hello and welcome to Crimewatch Roadshow,

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the programme that really does help police nick the bad guys.

:00:58.:01:00.

The young woman, followed home and mugged for her engagement ring.

:01:01.:01:14.

I gave them everything they wanted so I could get away, and it

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escalated quickly. And Michelle's out on the road

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with the RSPCA. In a skip and he had been

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coloured in by children. Today the Roadshow has

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reached Chester Zoo, and Michelle is getting up close

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and personal with some What are you up to? I'm at the rhino

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enclosure. This is one of eight rhinos here.

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Later, I'll be finding out why these guys are being kept under 24

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But now, to our first appeal of the morning.

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A horrendous attack in Rochdale on an man and his pregnant partner.

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And just to warn you, this is a nasty one.

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I met Nikki three years ago. At a local pub. Planned to get married in

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the future. The main thing is the baby at the moment. To me it is

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everything I have always wanted, to be honest, to settle down and have a

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family of my own and finally be happy in life. It was only a month

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before I found out I was pregnant that I lost my dad. Basically it was

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like a gift from my dad. He's actually named after my dad. The

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street that it was, and the area, it was just so lovely, there. We'd been

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there two weeks, everything seemed perfect. We'd started to get the

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baby's room ready, we had lots of plans. Just didn't happen.

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We were just sat watching TV. And there was a knock at the door. I

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looked through the curtain and seen two gentleman stood outside. And

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then I just went to open the door. And as I opened the door one of the

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gentleman started to come at me. The thinner one managed to get past me

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and went into the front room. One of the males grabbed me, spun me around

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so that I was facing the wall. He had his hands over my face. It was

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just the most horrible feeling in the whole world. Ellie the big guy

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got hold the big guy got hold of me, he had

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something in his hand and started hitting me round the head. I thought

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they must have the wrong people, they can't be looking for me. I

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could feel myself going into unconsciousness, going dizzy. Tied

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my face up with a hoodie. Tied my hands up. They didn't care that I

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was pregnant. I could just hear the duct tape, they were taping Tony up.

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I just lay there and I was crying. I could feel a piercing which I now

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know is where I was being stabbed in the legs and the arm. The other one

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came over to me, jumped on my face, had a Hammer in his hand. The bigger

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one of the two sat above me and just started launching punches. I could

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literally hear every hit that he was taking. I could hear somebody tried

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the front door, a couple of seconds later I heard a car screech off. So

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I knew then that they were gone. I managed to get up and I went

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straight for the house phone, phoned the police.

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Could have lost the baby. We nearly lost Tony, ourselves. And they

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didn't care. I received a broken jaw, injuries to the head where

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they'd hit me with the hammer. They'd stabbed me in the arm. Broken

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one of my ribs. Which actually punctured a lung. I received five

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stab wounds to the bottom part of the legs. And one to the top part of

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the lake. I was nine days in intensive care. For something I've

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never done. And I still don't know to this day why. That's the last

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thing you expect. Somebody to knock on your door and do that. Such a

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horrific attack. Well joining me now

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is DC Russ Clarke from Greater Manchester Police,

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who is leading the investigation Firstly, I think the viewers

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will want to know how I'm happy to say they are doing

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well. Tony has made a great recovery from his injuries. Unfortunately

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they have had to move out of the family home. What do we know about

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the people that did this? One is described as a white male, stocky

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build, short dark hair, five feet four, to five feet six. He spoke in

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Eastern European language, possibly Polish. The second description,

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white, skinny build, and again, speaking in an Eastern European

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language, possibly Polish. CCTV is of particular importance here? We

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know the offenders arrived on the street in a silver Mercedes,

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old-style, possibly see Alcaide model, possibly with foreign

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registration plates. Vehicle was driven around, given at speed on to

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Manchester Road, possibly to the West Yorkshire area. You are

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appealing for information? Anybody with information regarding these two

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individuals, anybody involved and this silver Mercedes vehicle, please

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come forward to help with our enquiries.

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Next, it's time for today's CCTV round-up.

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This shop worker is about to get a nasty surprise. A man walks in brand

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issue a silver and black handgun. Of course he goes straight for the till

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and grabs the takings. But that's not enough for this crash helmet

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crook. Just before he leaves he snatches the phone and wallet of the

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shop assistant. He got away with around 200 quid. But that wasn't the

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last of it. Police believe the same man robbed a second store just over

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a week later. Look, Saint helmet, same gun. But now with an added

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jazzy jumper. In this one he gets away with about 300 quid and only

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gives up when he is interrupted by the next customer. Witnesses say he

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ran away and jumped into the passenger seat of a dark hatchback.

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Detectives need to know who's behind the visor before he tries again. A

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blue Mitsubishi charisma on cloned plates pulls into the driveway of

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this house in Lancashire. But this visitor certainly hasn't been

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invited. Take a good look at his trendy jacket. Do you recognise it?

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He is careful not to leave any prints as he rings the bell. He is

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in luck. Minutes later he's in the back garden with mates in tow. One

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of them is also sporting a rather distinctive checked jacket. At his

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friends keep watch, the first guy climbs onto the roof. What's he up

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to? He seems to have found something that's taken his fancy and throws it

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down to his mates. Before they will scarper. A box containing hundreds

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of pounds worth of jewellery was later found to be missing. Who are

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these unwanted house guests? You know what to do.

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If you recognised anyone, get on the phone now.

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Calls are free from landlines and mobile phones.

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Text CW, space, and then your message.

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Texts will be charged at your standard message rate.

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Now, here in the zoo one of the main attractions

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are the black rhinos you can see behind me.

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Mark Pilgrim is the director general of Chester Zoo and runs the European

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Tell me more about them. These animals are incredibly special. They

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are incredibly sensitive animals with wonderful personalities, all

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very different. They are critically endangered, on the brink of

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extinction. These animals in the zoo, we currently have ten, part of

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the European breeding programme, 80 animals moved around to make sure

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they are healthy, and many of these animals are second, third, fourth

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generation bred in zoos. Why are rhinos targeted so much and why are

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they becoming extinct? International wildlife trade, illegal wildlife

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trade, is the fourth biggest illegal trade globally, only fourth two

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drugs, arms, human trafficking. Enormous scale. These animals

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particularly are targeted for their horn. This is rhino horn, made of

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the same material as our hair and fingernails, but it is believed,

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particularly in China and Vietnam, to have special properties. These

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animals are being killed, rhinos across Africa, about one every eight

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hours. There is a risk to rhinos in this country as well, being stolen

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from museums? Yes, there have been a number of thefts by organised gangs

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from museums and other institutions. Of course there is a concern for the

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live animals, too. So here we have a great deal of security measures in

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place to protect them. Thank you. Added security is really important.

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Stephanie Davies, what have you got here?

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This is a collection of animal parts which have been confiscated.

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Often from people trying to bring them into the country illegally. We

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have received them from customs. The added CCTV protects these items as

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well as the live animals. What exactly have we got? Just like the

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rhino horn, we have a total shell used for medicinal purposes in

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traditional medicines and health foods. And more decorative items

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like an elephant foot used as an umbrella stand. We also have teeth,

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ivory carvings, quite intricate. Examples of carved jewellery and

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trinkets targeting the tourist trade. Right here we have a horn

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from an oryx, listed as extinct in the wild. It is really shocking to

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see this. Unfortunately it is not just exotic animals like these at

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risk. Some exotic pets right here in Cheshire are being targeted, too.

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Paul Osborne and his family have had tortoises for more than 30 years.

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You do become attached to them. They are family members. We take them to

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local schools to show the children the tortoises and how to look after

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them. I have characters and one of them used to climb the step into the

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kitchen and then park itself in front of a fire if it was a bit

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cooler outside. They were once common family pets but now many are

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endangered. Paul was thrilled when ten days ago a pair of his tortoise

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mated and laid eggs. Absolutely amazing to see the small tortoise

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hatching breaking through the side of the shell and they are perfectly

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formed, miniature tortoises. They were a rare and valuable species,

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which needs specialist care. We're talking about ten years and every

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morning and every evening of effort. I was hoping, at some point in the

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future, I might be able to pass them onto the grandchildren for them look

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after. I'm getting a bit upset now. It turned out somebody else have

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their eye on this prized pet. One evening, shortly before Christmas,

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Paul locked them in the shed as usual. During the night, thieves

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broke in. And helped themselves to the animals.

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Paul was horrified by what he saw when he went to feed them the

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following morning. When I checked them, I realised that we'd had a

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burglary. I'll be honest, I was actually in tears. I didn't know

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what to do. Fortunately, three tortoises were hibernating and were

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not taken, another was too heavy to steal. But the seven red tortoise is

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that Paul had nurtured from birth had gone. I am emotional about it

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because I spent so much time, so much of my life looking after them,

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and I would be absolutely destroyed to think that they were just not

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being looked after and died. Paul reported the incident to the police

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and to John Hayward from the national theft register for exotic

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animals. There's no doubt they were those particular species of red

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tortoise. They can fetch a couple of hundred pounds or so, depending on

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the tortoise's age and condition. This species a few years ago were

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entered into the most endangered species list and you cannot legally

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buy or sell them or trade them in any aspect at all without a licence

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and, if you do, both the vendor and the purchaser committing a very

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serious criminal offence. They must be pretty heartless, really. It's

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not the money that matters to me but the fact I can't replace them. I'm

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just hoping that somebody has some knowledge and can pass information

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on so they can actually be found. Really awful, isn't it?

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With me now is John Hayward from the National Theft Register

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for Exotic Animals who we saw in the film.

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John, do you think this was a targeted attack?

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I have no doubt about it, they went there for those tortoises and knew

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they were there. Nothing else was stolen apart from a box very similar

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to this with a rectangular hole cut out. That was taken from the shed no

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doubt to carry the tortoises away and if anybody has been offered any

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small tortoises in a container like this, we need to know. What do the

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tortoises look like? They are about ten years old. They would fit into

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the palm of your hand. Quite small, 8-12 centimetres, light coloured

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shell. Distinctive, and we can positively identify them. This is a

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serious crime, isn't it? The trade in all endangered species is, and in

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fact, anybody buying or selling without a licence carries upwards of

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five years in prison. You run a register for stolen exotic animals,

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don't you? Yes, we work closely with the police and many other animal

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related agencies. Tortoises I'm afraid figure in it and are very

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often stolen alongside other species like exotic birds, parrots,

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cockatoos and other animals, as well. Thank you very much. If you

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have any information at all, get in touch. Rav, back to you in the

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studio. Here's what's still to

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come this morning. Help us find out who killed

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a much loved brother, It's just destroyed everybody's

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lives at the moment, And, the illegal trade

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in designer dogs, like these But first, every week in the UK,

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4,000 people are reported missing. Many return home, but for the loved

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ones of those who don't, In a moment, we'll hear

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from the family of Lorraine Ridout from Cardiff who hasn't been seen

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for almost six months. I'm joined in studio

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by Detective Inspector Mark O'Shea. Lorraine is 57, she's

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a loving mum and grandmother who's well known in

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her local community. She was last seen on 31st

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January this year. Sometime between 7 and 9pm,

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she left her home in Aberporth Road Gabalfa,

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on her way to visit a friend who lived a few minutes away in Heol

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Amlwch. Sadly she never arrived. That was

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the last sighting of her. We spoke to had two daughters about what it's

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been like since their mother went missing? I think it's more like

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somebody could new size -- know something about holding information.

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If it's the worst case, and she's not here any more, then we need to

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know. For me, it's painful. It's broken my heart. It's hard to watch,

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isn't it? You can see the pain on her daughters' faces. Any clues as

:20:27.:20:33.

to why she disappeared? It's out of character for Lorraine and I'm

:20:34.:20:35.

concerned for her welfare for that we've conducted an extensive

:20:36.:20:40.

investigation over the last six months and have an incident room in

:20:41.:20:45.

Cardiff. We've also conducted extensive searches in and around

:20:46.:20:51.

north Cardiff in Gabalfa. This is one of our searches. We've searched

:20:52.:20:56.

the canals and rivers across that area of North Cardiff but sadly, at

:20:57.:21:00.

the moment we can't explain her disappearance. Where do you think

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the answers to the disappearance like? I feel the and certain live in

:21:05.:21:11.

North Cardiff, around Gabalfa and I ask anybody to contact us in with

:21:12.:21:15.

any information at Cardiff Central police station. It's worth saying

:21:16.:21:18.

you've spoken to the daughters and this is the most recent picture that

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they have provided for Lorraine and say this is what she looked like at

:21:24.:21:27.

the time of her disappearance. Thank you the joining us.

:21:28.:21:30.

Well, if you have any information about Lorraine please do

:21:31.:21:32.

get in touch using the numbers on screen.

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Next, we're back in Cheshire, where two men carried

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out a cowardly attack on a woman as she walked home from the pub.

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It meant more than pretty much more than any other piece of jewellery I

:21:50.:21:59.

don't. When you have that ring, it's your ringer. For it to be gone, it

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just feels like it's taken so much away with it. It changes everything.

:22:05.:22:12.

Victoria and her partner David live in Nantwich in Cheshire. After three

:22:13.:22:19.

years together, the couple recently got engaged. Proposed last August.

:22:20.:22:27.

While we were away at a hotel. We got most of it sorted out, few

:22:28.:22:33.

things still trying to decide on, obviously exciting bit nervous at

:22:34.:22:37.

the same time. On the 27th of March, the couple went out for a few drinks

:22:38.:22:41.

to make the most of the bank holiday weekend. It was a nice day. We

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managed to get out, have a little bit of time together. Without having

:22:52.:22:57.

other things to do. David decided to head home early. Whilst Victoria

:22:58.:23:06.

stayed for one last rink. About 11:30pm, I decided it was time to

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walk home. The exact same route I walk home any other time. Which is

:23:13.:23:17.

along Queens Drive, which is fairly well lit. Halfway along, I noticed

:23:18.:23:23.

someone else walking along the other side of the road. I didn't really

:23:24.:23:31.

think too much of it other than he just kind of appeared. Which made me

:23:32.:23:36.

feel a little bit uncomfortable so I tried phoning David couple of times

:23:37.:23:40.

and tried phoning another friend obviously, would it being quite

:23:41.:23:44.

late, nobody answered. I got to the field opposite Meanee Drive and

:23:45.:23:48.

decided to cross over there. And just on that corner, he caught up

:23:49.:23:55.

with me. Another man just appeared out of nowhere. That actually

:23:56.:24:00.

grabbed hold of my shoulder. One of them said, "We want money." I

:24:01.:24:07.

thought if I give them what they want, they will go away. The

:24:08.:24:12.

bracelet I was wearing was snatched off my wrist, grabbed and pulled.

:24:13.:24:17.

And the same with my necklace. One of them said, what about the ring? I

:24:18.:24:21.

didn't want that to be forcibly taken off my hand. So I took it off

:24:22.:24:28.

myself and handed it over. I was trying to give them everything I

:24:29.:24:31.

wanted so I could get away and then it just escalated. Very quickly. I

:24:32.:24:37.

got punched in the face. Pretty much as hard as he could.

:24:38.:24:48.

It just got to the point where the stress of it, the walking down that

:24:49.:24:57.

particular road just got too much. I actually said I was going to move

:24:58.:25:00.

back to where I used to live, which is not something I want to do. Now

:25:01.:25:06.

that the ring is not there, whenever we are trying to plan anything to do

:25:07.:25:10.

with the wedding, it doesn't feel the same any more. It has been

:25:11.:25:15.

horrendous. It has absolutely tore me apart.

:25:16.:25:19.

I'm joined here by PC Tom Vass who is leading this investigation.

:25:20.:25:23.

Tom, Victoria did everything they asked

:25:24.:25:25.

What do we know about the people who did this?

:25:26.:25:33.

Yes, it seems like there was some unnecessary violence there. She has

:25:34.:25:39.

been able to give the e-fit of the first man described as white, in his

:25:40.:25:45.

early to mid 20s, with dark hair that was jailed to the front and his

:25:46.:25:50.

around five foot ten. The second man is white, in his early 20s, with

:25:51.:25:54.

dark hair, around five the date and was wearing a dark coloured jumper.

:25:55.:25:59.

Talk me through the route she took when she first saw them? She left

:26:00.:26:06.

the pub at around 11:30pm on Sunday the 27th of March and walked along

:26:07.:26:12.

Queens drive in the direction of their home address. Halfway down

:26:13.:26:15.

Queens Drive she noticed she was being followed by one man but didn't

:26:16.:26:20.

think too much of it at that time. As she turned onto Meanee Drive,

:26:21.:26:24.

this man, followed by another man, approached her and demanded

:26:25.:26:28.

jewellery and cash from her which she handed over. But they still

:26:29.:26:32.

punched her and pushed it to the ground before making off. Talking

:26:33.:26:36.

about the jewellery stolen, it was priceless to Victoria. Yes, three

:26:37.:26:41.

items. A necklace that had quite a distinctive square blue jam on it.

:26:42.:26:48.

It was a ring, which had a single diamond on it, and other gems on the

:26:49.:26:53.

band and there was also a bracelet which had sex heart shaped gems on

:26:54.:26:56.

it so we are appealing but anybody but may have seen this jewellery to

:26:57.:27:01.

come forward. Tom, thank you very much. Rav.

:27:02.:27:03.

Now it's time for a look at today's Wanted Faces.

:27:04.:27:06.

Police forces around the country are asking for your

:27:07.:27:08.

First up is this man Matthew Sammon, or he also calls himself

:27:09.:27:12.

Matthew Cassidy or Matthew O'Braiden.

:27:13.:27:13.

Detectives want to question him in relation to a number

:27:14.:27:16.

He has links to London, in particular Mitcham

:27:17.:27:19.

and also Liverpool, Ireland and across Europe.

:27:20.:27:21.

Police believe the 45 year old may be living in a camper van.

:27:22.:27:26.

This is 51 year old Stanley Brian Wilkinson.

:27:27.:27:29.

He was jailed for seven years nine months in Scotland for drug dealing

:27:30.:27:32.

But he's failed to stick to his conditions and is now

:27:33.:27:36.

Wilkinson is described as chubby and has a Liverpudlian accent.

:27:37.:27:40.

He has links to Merseyside, Lancashire, North Wales

:27:41.:27:42.

Third is 32 year old Paul James Brashaw.

:27:43.:27:49.

He was due to appear before Preston crown court on wounding and assault

:27:50.:27:52.

charges but didn't turn up and a warrant has now been

:27:53.:27:55.

Brashaw has a scar between his eyes and another on his wrist.

:27:56.:28:01.

And finally for today we have Jake Woodward.

:28:02.:28:06.

Detectives in South Wales want to question him in connection

:28:07.:28:09.

with a conspiracy to supply more than 180 kilos of a class B drug.

:28:10.:28:15.

He's 24 and has a Liverpudlian accent.

:28:16.:28:18.

He has friends and family in Merseyside,

:28:19.:28:20.

If you know where any of these faces are please call and text

:28:21.:28:27.

Now to an emotional appeal from the family of a man

:28:28.:28:36.

Liam was very friendly, family oriented. Just loved life, even

:28:37.:28:55.

though he lived on his own, he loved the family being together. On the

:28:56.:29:00.

8th of January this year collect received a phone call she will never

:29:01.:29:04.

forget. Her brother had been found dead at her flat. I was at work the

:29:05.:29:13.

day Liam was found and my husband rang me. I didn't think I'd heard it

:29:14.:29:18.

right. When we got in there he was lying on the floor. We just sat and

:29:19.:29:23.

we stroked his hair, gave him a kiss. The police came out and said

:29:24.:29:30.

that the postmortem had indicated that he'd been murdered. We didn't

:29:31.:29:35.

know how. It's just destroyed everybody's lives at the moment. You

:29:36.:29:42.

can't move on. You tried day-to-day to get on with your life but it is

:29:43.:29:47.

there all the time. You just want the pain to go away.

:29:48.:29:51.

Clearly very distressing time for his family.

:29:52.:29:53.

I'm joined by Detective Superintendent Mark Chesters

:29:54.:29:54.

A mysterious case, but one thing you are clear on,

:29:55.:29:59.

That's correct, yes. Liam suffered significant injuries to his head,

:30:00.:30:10.

chest and red area. We are treating this as a homicide investigation.

:30:11.:30:20.

Liam was last seen alive on January six, 2016. His mother called him on

:30:21.:30:23.

the 8th of January, he was not making a lot of sense on the

:30:24.:30:27.

telephone. Unfortunately she then found him dead after 1pm that

:30:28.:30:31.

afternoon. Do we know any reasons why somebody would want to harm him?

:30:32.:30:37.

No, not at all. We are considering a number of hypotheses but I cannot

:30:38.:30:41.

find anything to tell me why somebody would want to murder Liam.

:30:42.:30:45.

He was well liked and loved by his family and friends and nothing was

:30:46.:30:49.

stolen at the time. You have been trolling through CCTV footage to

:30:50.:30:57.

pinpoint his movements? Yes, he left this far on the 6th of January,

:30:58.:31:03.

walked to water Street, and onto West Parade to his home address. He

:31:04.:31:10.

gets there around 7pm. He is seen but unfortunately we do not see him

:31:11.:31:13.

thereafter coming out of the flat. And there is a reward? Yes, ?10,000

:31:14.:31:19.

through Crimestoppers for any arrest that leads to the charge and

:31:20.:31:22.

conviction of the murder of Liam. Thank you.

:31:23.:31:25.

Now contnuing our animal theme this morning,

:31:26.:31:27.

But it seems we're getting pickier about our pooches

:31:28.:31:31.

There's a growing demand for designer dogs,

:31:32.:31:33.

But sadly, that's fuelling an illegal trade in puppies.

:31:34.:31:41.

Sian Edwards from Dogs Trust is here to tell us more.

:31:42.:31:43.

Hi Rav, this is Mowgli and Baloo, they're brothers.

:31:44.:31:49.

They are from a reputable breeder. We brought them here to show how

:31:50.:32:14.

popular these breeds are getting. Lots of celebrities are buying them

:32:15.:32:16.

and having them on their social media accounts. They can be very

:32:17.:32:18.

expensive. Because of this unfortunately it means hundreds of

:32:19.:32:20.

dogs are being brought in every month from overseas illegal imports.

:32:21.:32:23.

We can see some footage you have given on this. This is the boot of a

:32:24.:32:26.

car, would you believe, with live dogs in the back. It is just

:32:27.:32:29.

horrendous to think these dogs are being driven in from as far afield

:32:30.:32:35.

as Lithuania and Hungary. The back of a van here completely

:32:36.:32:39.

overcrowded, and shut inside. Absolutely heartbreaking to think of

:32:40.:32:43.

these dogs. This march cause so much problems for the dogs being brought

:32:44.:32:48.

in this way? Absolutely, they are far too young and often have a legal

:32:49.:32:55.

passport or no paperwork, lots of diseases, and they've posed a risk

:32:56.:32:58.

of disease is being brought into this country and they can have

:32:59.:33:04.

ongoing health problems. We can see some in quarantine where you have

:33:05.:33:07.

intervened and rescued some. We can see the age of these ones, these are

:33:08.:33:12.

tiny? Far too young, very malnourished, skin conditions and

:33:13.:33:16.

other issues. We are concerned about these puppies and their welfare but

:33:17.:33:19.

obviously the state of their parents in the home country. If these are

:33:20.:33:23.

this bad you can imagine how things must be for the breeding dogs as

:33:24.:33:28.

well. It's a big problem, isn't it? What advice would you give to

:33:29.:33:31.

anybody thinking of owning a dog like this type? Take some time,

:33:32.:33:38.

don't respond instinctively to an advert. Obviously dogs trust has

:33:39.:33:41.

hundreds of dogs looking for homes every week. But if you really would

:33:42.:33:46.

like a puppy, still come to the dogs trust website, click on our link

:33:47.:33:51.

about buying a puppy, and we list all the ways you can avoid the

:33:52.:33:54.

pitfalls so you end up getting a healthy puppy from a reputable

:33:55.:33:59.

breeder and not buying an illegal, imported dog. And you want to stress

:34:00.:34:03.

the point that dogs are for life, they are not toys or trophies, it

:34:04.:34:08.

should not be a decision you make lightly? Exactly, take a bit of

:34:09.:34:12.

time, come and talk to us and we will make sure they have the right

:34:13.:34:15.

information to make the proper choice. And you have appeals for

:34:16.:34:18.

some of these dogs that need rehousing? Delighted to say these

:34:19.:34:23.

two lovely puppies have homes but because we have seized around 200

:34:24.:34:28.

dogs in the last month that the borders, we have lots of puppies

:34:29.:34:32.

looking for homes. So if people are interested in this type of dog,

:34:33.:34:36.

French Bulldogs, pugs, those type of dogs, please get in touch for

:34:37.:34:38.

re-homing. Radiant. Sian thank you - go

:34:39.:34:42.

to Dogs Trust website As we've seen this morning exotic

:34:43.:34:44.

animals need specialist attention But sadly, many kept as pets don't

:34:45.:34:51.

receive the care they need. Mel Furia has been an RSPCA

:34:52.:35:05.

inspector in the north-west of England for the last 11 years. Her

:35:06.:35:10.

job covers everything from educating owners to prosecuting them if they

:35:11.:35:17.

break the law. In recent years she is specialised in rescuing exotic

:35:18.:35:21.

animals and I'm about to spend the day with her. What kind of animals

:35:22.:35:26.

do you encounter? All different kinds. Anything from dogs, cats,

:35:27.:35:31.

horse, sheep, tarantula, lizard, you never know what you will come

:35:32.:35:36.

across. That does sound exciting. Shall we go? Let's go. I would say

:35:37.:35:45.

we get calls to domesticated pets daily, and exotic pets probably

:35:46.:35:50.

weekly. They are definitely becoming part of our throwaway society.

:35:51.:35:53.

People do not realise how much dedication and commitment is needed

:35:54.:35:56.

when taking one of these animals on board. Failing to give your pet the

:35:57.:36:01.

correct diet and environment isn't just cruel, it can be a criminal

:36:02.:36:08.

offence. Hello? Mel often investigates complaints from members

:36:09.:36:12.

of the public. Go-ahead. Soon she gets her first call of the day. But

:36:13.:36:19.

these aren't quite exotic animals. We just received a call about some

:36:20.:36:24.

pigs in a pub, complaining about dirty conditions. Pigs in a pub

:36:25.:36:28.

seems quite random in itself. Very random. I can't see any pigs. We had

:36:29.:36:39.

inside the pub for a closer look. This is where they can live, they

:36:40.:36:42.

can get all the way up to the other side. No sharp objects as described

:36:43.:36:46.

in the call, there was metal pins and things like that. They've got

:36:47.:36:53.

shelter from the extremes. It seems like a pretty nice settlement for

:36:54.:36:58.

them. They've got a big run, let's go and check it out. Doesn't look

:36:59.:37:04.

anything wrong with that. They are fine. Mel is happy that the pigs

:37:05.:37:09.

have everything they need. But over the years she's helped plenty of

:37:10.:37:13.

animals who were in trouble. She is taking me to a re-homing centre to

:37:14.:37:18.

meet some of the more exotic ones. As many as 75% of reptiles bought as

:37:19.:37:25.

domestic pets die within their first year. These are some of the lucky

:37:26.:37:33.

ones. We have spiked, our bearded dragon. He was found in a microwave.

:37:34.:37:39.

A microwave? A microwave in a skip and he'd been coloured in by

:37:40.:37:46.

children. Oh my gosh. Here he is. How could anybody do that to a

:37:47.:37:51.

defenceless animal? Unfortunately no owners were found. But we are happy

:37:52.:37:55.

to see that he is fit and healthy. Snakes are some of the most commonly

:37:56.:38:00.

rescued exotic pets, like this baby Bernie 's-. I'll be honest, I am

:38:01.:38:07.

nervous about this one. Would you believe this is one of the world's

:38:08.:38:11.

largest species of snake and people can buy them from the pet shop. No!

:38:12.:38:18.

This one was bought for a five-year-old child. What happened

:38:19.:38:22.

to it? Mum and dad took it back to the pet shop and said we don't want

:38:23.:38:26.

it any more, we realised what we bought. Then we got the phone call.

:38:27.:38:31.

Sadly when pets are an wanted it can lead to serious neglect. Last year

:38:32.:38:37.

81 people in the UK were convicted of crimes relating to the animals.

:38:38.:38:41.

Mel tells me about one case she's dealt with. This is a reticulated

:38:42.:38:49.

Python, an albino. This was a serious case. 25 reticulated- is

:38:50.:38:52.

kept in the most horrendous conditions. These snakes were

:38:53.:38:59.

stacked up on boxes with no water, lying in their own faeces and you're

:39:00.:39:04.

in. Abscesses in their mouths. Their faces all smashed up. It was really,

:39:05.:39:09.

really sad. What happened to the owners? The owner was banned from

:39:10.:39:15.

keeping animals for ten years and received a fine. Mel's dedication to

:39:16.:39:23.

these animals is impressive. But the message to exotic pet owners is

:39:24.:39:27.

clear: look after them properly or face prosecution.

:39:28.:39:31.

The law is pretty clear but as James from Chester Zoo can testify

:39:32.:39:34.

there are still many cases of animals not

:39:35.:39:36.

James, you've found this with meerkats.

:39:37.:39:39.

Tell me more about them. We have a group of 14 at the moment. They do

:39:40.:39:48.

well in groups, they don't do so well on their own. You can have

:39:49.:39:53.

behavioural problems when on their own and they end up harming

:39:54.:39:58.

themselves and so on. What is the ideal type of environment and

:39:59.:40:02.

lifestyle for meerkats, then? We've got lots of sand, they like to dig

:40:03.:40:06.

in. You can see where they have pitted and by road this. We have a

:40:07.:40:14.

burrow system that they use. Having got all that night you also need to

:40:15.:40:18.

get the diet right. They are carnivores and have very sharp

:40:19.:40:22.

teeth. You need to give them all the right kinds of foods. I must be

:40:23.:40:26.

honest, they look pretty cute and they are very friendly. But you need

:40:27.:40:31.

to know who's boss in this kind of situation. They are after your

:40:32.:40:36.

socks! Yes, they can be very forward. If you let them get away

:40:37.:40:43.

with something, they tried to get away with more next time, and it is

:40:44.:40:48.

a recipe for being bitten, which is not nice. They have very sharp

:40:49.:40:52.

teeth. You have been bitten before? More than once, not nice.

:40:53.:40:56.

Kim Greaves, you're an Animal Welfare Officer who also

:40:57.:40:58.

Do the RSPCA get calls about meerkats?

:40:59.:41:01.

Yes we do. Since the recent meerkat campaign on TV we've actually seen a

:41:02.:41:13.

treble in phone calls. So it's not illegal to keep meerkats as pets? It

:41:14.:41:18.

is not, unfortunately. People have been keeping them, we've found

:41:19.:41:23.

people to be keeping them in cages which are unsuitable, rabbit and

:41:24.:41:28.

chinchilla cages, things like that. What has happened to the owners in

:41:29.:41:33.

shocking cases like this? We had a case recently where a couple were

:41:34.:41:36.

found to be keeping over 70 animals, some of which were meerkats, in a

:41:37.:41:41.

poor and squalid condition. Some of them were in very unsuitable

:41:42.:41:45.

carriers and rabbit cages, that sort of thing. And not just meerkats? It

:41:46.:41:52.

isn't, unfortunately. We had a case recently with Mikey the marmoset

:41:53.:41:58.

monkey. He were sold, a couple bought him, and he had not been

:41:59.:42:01.

cared for correctly and given the correct diet. And unfortunately he

:42:02.:42:07.

had to be humanely euthanised. And very quickly, what would be wanted

:42:08.:42:13.

you would give to someone? I would always say, whatever pet, especially

:42:14.:42:19.

exotic species, you must research. If you don't you can get prosecuted

:42:20.:42:22.

on the animal welfare act. Thank you.

:42:23.:42:24.

Just time for an update on what's come in on the phones.

:42:25.:42:28.

Baek lots of you about those valuable Tote is -- torta says.

:42:29.:42:40.

We showed you this wanted face yesterday, Lee Kelly, charged with

:42:41.:42:48.

number of drug offences, failed to turn up at court. Officers now have

:42:49.:42:50.

a number of sightings for him. Great work, please do keep those

:42:51.:42:52.

calls, texts and emails coming in. Now Michelle where

:42:53.:42:55.

will you be tomorrow? where I'll be meeting their amazing

:42:56.:42:56.

fire and rescue teams. Also, it's been banned

:42:57.:43:00.

for more than a decade, so why are so many people

:43:01.:43:02.

still using their mobile phones We'll be out with Cheshire Police

:43:03.:43:05.

who are clamping down For more details about the crimes

:43:06.:43:08.

on today's programme, Before we go, here's another look

:43:09.:43:15.

at this morning's wanted faces. If any of them look familiar,

:43:16.:43:21.

pick up the phone and tell We'll be back tomorrow morning,

:43:22.:43:24.

until then, take care. MUSIC: Send My Love

:43:25.:44:05.

(To Your New Lover) by Adele # We've gotta let go

:44:06.:44:09.

of all of our ghosts

:44:10.:44:18.

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