25/11/2011 East Midlands Today

This is East Midlands Today with Dominic Heale and Anne Davies. Our

top story tonight, jail for a gang that manufactured bootleg vodka.

The potentially lethal fake booze was mass-produced at a remote farm

in Leicestershire. This was a highly sophisticated operation. A

major breakthrough for us at the end of a five-month long

surveillance operation. Or so tonight, a former top

footballer tells us that racism is rife and the clubs are hiding it.

Players have had gagging orders and had to sign certain agreements so

that things do not come out in the press. Plus how a brief appearance

on our programme landed young Aimie a job. They offered me an interview

and on the Monday, I got the job. And put clubbers queue up to bag a

best seller but who is the author? -- book lovers. Hi, I'm Katie Price

and boy, have I got news for you in Good evening and welcome to

Friday's programme. First tonight, a criminal gang producing vast

quantities of potentially fatal counterfeit vodka in Leicestershire

has been jailed. The five men were sent to prison for a total of

almost 18 years for failing to pay �1.5 million in alcohol duty. The

ring leader, Kevin Eddishaw from Southwell in Nottinghamshire, was

sentenced to seven years. A sixth man from Poland will be sentenced

next month. They made the fake vodka at a remote rented unit at

the appropriately named Moscow Farm near Great Dalby. Sarah Sturdey

looks at the scale of the gang's Hidden away from prying eyes,

organised crime. So secluded, customs officers used a helicopter

to track them down. We have found the subject you are looking for. We

can see the pirates, they have opened the rear of the lorry. They

are not paying attention to us whatsoever. We are about two miles

away. We are going nice and steady. The gang had remained undetected in

this remote corner of Leicestershire for one whole year

but 100 officers raided the farm unit and found a makeshift factory

producing potentially lethal illicit vodka on a massive scale.

The seized enough industrial alcohol unfit for human consumption

to manufacture thousands of bottles of vodka.

The scores highly sophisticated and a huge breakthrough for us. -- this

was a highly sophisticated. Kevin Eddishaw was the mastermind but the

Chemist, the man who knew how to turn methylated spirits into

something resembling vodka, was a man from Poland. The methylated

spirits came from Poland. From the factory at Moscow Farm, it was

transferred by the lorry-load and went to East Bridgford near

Nottingham. 5,000 litres was seized in Blackpool. It was also found on

sale in small off-licences around the country, in Salford, South

Wales and London. The price is the giveaway. This fake bottle retail

for around �8. The real thing is normally �3 more. Some times the

only way you can tell it is genuine it is if the duty stamp light up

with a ultraviolet stamp and this one does not. The use of this is

increasing. There may be serious health risks. It contains

industrial and not agricultural alcohol. The things you would find

in bleaches and paint strippers. These can cause nausea, dizziness

and even blindness in extreme cases. It is a dangerous business all

round. In July, five Lithuanian men were killed in an explosion in a

small unit in Lincolnshire where fake vodka was produced. In

Leicestershire, Polish migrant workers were employed at the

factory described as a time bomb by an industry expert. The factory may

have been dismantled and the gang convicted but some of the thousands

of bottles distributed could still Conditions inside the bottling

plant horrified investigators. Ed Binstead is the President of the

British Bottlers' Institute and also the Editor of Drinks Journal

Publications. He described what he saw. There are no obvious signs of

air ventilation. It was a very low ceiling and lots of alcohol for a

per would have been getting up towards the ceiling -- lot of

alcohol vapour. Also I noticed there were a lot of electrical

cables with light bulbs missing, clearly people had been smoking in

the premises. At any one time, a spark could have just ignited the

whole thing and it would not have been... All fires are dangerous but

this would have been an explosion and I don't think anybody would

have had a chance of getting out of. And not just dangerous for people

getting and working there but people buying it? Well, it was not

vodka. It was basically industrial alcohol. People were buying it in

good faith thinking it was genuine but what they were drinking was a

fairly full fee concoction of industrial alcohol that had been

scrubbed down with bleach to turn it into a clear,. It was an awful

mixture. The worrying thing is that some of those bottles could still

be out there? They could well be. I am not entirely sure how long it

had been going on for, clearly some time. It is possible, I know we

tend to think it is the young people who will drink a bottle of

vodka or over a weekend or even an evening. It is possible that people

may have bought a bottle in time for Christmas. If you think you

have got it, what should you do? would advise anybody if they taste

something odd, to take it to a local police station if they can or

telephone Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs and then inform them were

they purchased it as quickly as possible. Thank you for speaking to

us. It is a great pleasure, thank you.

A former top footballer has told BBC East Midlands Today that racism

is widespread in the sport, and victims have been paid off by their

clubs to keep quiet. Michael Johnson played more than 600

matches in the top flight for clubs including Derby County and Notts

County. With an exclusive report, After 20 years in football, Michael

Johnson has seen the highs and lows but now believes it is time to blow

the whistle on racism blighting the game. There have always been

covered ups. Whether it is players having gagging orders on them,

whether they have had to sign certain agreements so that things

do not come out in the press, players who have basically been

frightened by managers to say nothing. FIFA President Sepp

Blatter brought the issue recently in to sharp focus and it was him

that brought Michael Johnson to speak out. I know players who have

had certain situations where a football club will pay them off and

they have got to sign an agreement to save that whatever has happened

will not go out there. They are then in a position to sue. Players

will then go away and continue with their football. Can you appreciate

why some players would want to keep quiet? Is it because of fear?

dread to think that if you say something, it could be the end of

your career. Will I be labelled a trouble caused a? But I feel so

strongly about what is happening now but I have to speak out. I know

there are players up and down the country going through the same

experience for top there have been high-profile campaigns against

racism that Johnson believes people do not know the full extent. So

much has been swept under the carpet and it has been there

simmering away. Whether that has been cut by fans or other players,

people who have worked with higher up in the club, and if you do not

come out and say something, then the situation will continue to

fester. Currently looking for work as a coach, he knows he is taking a

risk but for the good of the game he loves, it is a price he is

willing to pay. Angela is with us now.

These are very serious allegations. What have the footballing

authorities said? Well, it's a difficult subject for the Football

Association as they are currently investigating the England captain

John Terry over allegations of racism. They wouldn't comment on

Johnson's claims but did release a What do campaigners against racism

think of what Michael Johnson has An organisation called Kick It Out

have been campaigning for years and they admitted that they weren't

surprised by what he's said and added that sadly racism is still a

big problem in the game. We get reports from all parts of the

country. Racism in football comes from different forms, on the pitch,

from the dug-out, and we can see that the issue is still there are

we are working hard with other organisations, the PFA, the Premier

League and the Football Association and grass roots associations to

stamp it out. Sadly it seems there is still a

long way to go. Still to come on the programme, the

menace of uninsured motorists. The driver of this van wasn't covered,

Police are waiting to speak to a Leicester teenager who's seriously

ill in hospital, to try and find out how he was injured. The 18-

year-old was discovered shortly after 11pm on Wednesday night in

Humberstone Gate. He was taken to the Leicester Royal Infirmary where

his condition is described as serious but stable. The police are

Nottinghamshire Police are trying to trace the whereabouts of a young

man from Cyprus. Images his services were called to a hall of

residence because he was having difficulty breathing. Officers are

not treating the death as Next tonight, the menace on our

roads posed by uninsured drivers. It's thought there are as many as

41,000 motorists in the East Midlands who don't have the correct

cover. And when they're involved in an accident, the results can be

devastating. So today, Derbyshire Police went after them. Simon Hare

In pursuit of an uninsured driver, the police and insurance company

databases show that this car's policy ran out in September. And

the MOT expired way back in June. He has been up front with us, he

has not tried to hide anything. We will be taking him off the motor

way to a place of safety with a fine. Several vehicles were seized

today. They will be taken away until members of the public can get

themselves in short, and paid for the recovery. It is a costly

process. If people do not end up insuring their vehicles, what

happens? The vehicle will stay with us and ultimately be crushed.

thought there are as many as 41,000 and insured drivers in the East

Midlands. Nationally, the figure is as high as 1.4 million. That

equates to about 4% of motorists. One such driver collided with this

furniture shop at chill well in Nottingham last year. The whole of

the roof has moved to one side. So it is not actually where it is

supposed to be. Almost 12 months on, and the damage still has not been

repaired. The stress has been unbelievable. You don't stop

thinking about it. You think about it every morning, every night. When

you are working, you cannot plan anything. We cannot move forward

with our business because this is holding us back. The driver

received a two week driving ban and a �25 fine. It makes you wonder

what Valley our business has. What value it has to the court. Officers

say the crackdown should have hit uninsured drivers much harder in

the pocket. On the day the Government announced

its plans to combat youth unemployment, we've some good news

about 17-year-old Aimie Murfin, who we featured last week. You may

recall, we saw the teenager from Ashfield telling senior politicians

about the heartache and difficulties involved in trying to

find work. She was so persuasive and engaging that Aimie has now

been offered a job by one of our viewers. Here's our political

Aimie pat a pet labrador and heads for work. The 17-year-old from

Kevin Ashfield had spent months trying to get a job. Last week at

Connections, and Employment Centre, Aimie was among a group of

teenagers telling Labour politicians of the difficulties of

getting work. I have been looking for about six weeks for any work.

Anything. There is nothing. Little did she know that the TV interview

would help land her a job. She it came across very positively how

positive she was. That was the particular issue that caught my

wife's eye. I trust her judgement. It was the positivity having met

Aimie at the interview, that came across to the whole team. Where do

you have your instructors? Her new job is based at new offices in

Mansfield. Driving schools get back up from this business. She cannot

believe her luck. Wow! Oh, my gosh. I did not know what to think. I was

so shocked. Tell me what happened, did you get a telephone call?

day after I was on television, the agency got a call and then they got

in touch with me. And then I rang Mark and then they offered me an

interview and on the Monday, I got the job.

It is amazing how quick it has all happened. It does get you down when

you have not got a job to support you or anything. Aimie will be

doing clerical duties and she officially starts her new job in

just over one week's time. For her, All thanks to a bit of political

reporting! And don't forget The Politics Show

this Sunday at midday. It'll be taking a closer look at the big

public sector strike next Wednesday. Still to come on the programme, the

weekend weather with Anna. It is a breeze this weekend. It is all

about the wind. With one of these in place for part of the East

Unusually, no hot air from: With the sport!

-- from Colin. To come, Nigel Pearson on new life

at Leicester and Marcus Tudgay on new life at Forest. But first

confirmation that Derby County's new loan signing from Ipswich Tamas

Priskin is set to go straight into action. With injuries to Steven

Davies, Nathan Tyson and Theo Robinson, Priskin will lead the

Rams' attack in tomorrow's game at high-flying West Ham. The I am very

pleased to join this great club. It is a great opportunity to play a

few games and hopefully I can help B-team. We are delighted he has

agreed to join us for six weeks -- help the team.

Elsewhere, clubs have been happy to live with the squads they have.

Certainly not surprising in Leicester's case, where manager

Nigel Pearson arrived to work with an expensively assembled, if not

perfectly balanced, squad. Jeremy Nicholas went to see how he's been

settling back in. There has been a great sense of

optimism here training at Leicester City after the great start for the

returning, nearly new manager. A 3-0 win over Crystal Palace as

the fans' talking about promotion and the players are smiling again.

I am always smiling myself. I think everybody is really looking forward

to the game. If the fans are optimistic, that is great. We have

to deliver on the pitch, that is the bottom line. My job as manager

is to facilitate that. It has taken their time for him to settle in

because he knows his way round. does not seem like it is too

different. It is like he has not been away. Obviously there have

been different managers and staff but everybody already knows what

his style is about and the way he walks into a room. Everybody

straight away listens to him. He has got that aura. Leicester fans

will have dreadful memories of last season's games when they got

thrashed 6-1. We need to try to forget that and the only way to do

that is to try to get a positive result this weekend. David Nugent

scored for Portsmouth that day and now he is a Leicester player.

looking forward to it. Hopefully the result will be different.

are just two points off the play- off place, but fully they will get

a good result. That's Leicester. No players in at

Forest either. But it feels like they've had a couple of new faces

since Steve Cotterill arrived. In reality though it's old faces like

Joel Lynch and, especially, Marcus Tudgay being given a chance to

shine. And taking it. Under Steve McClaren, Marcus Tudgay

was told he had no place in the starting line-up. Steve Cotterill's

point of view has had a different pay-off. It was a great feeling for

the team. It is a great buzz. is very much tailored towards Steve.

Steve McClaren obviously thought I could not do a job for him. In my

career so far, I have never been told by a manager that I would not

feature. And the new boss, Steve controls -- Steve Cotterill turns

out to be very different. I got a goal and it went from there. He is

a fantastic team player. I told him he has got to be a bit more selfish.

I do not want him to do all the team work and then go off the pitch

and not get a reward for himself. It could make every different in

this tightest of divisions. You can miss a handful of chances, your

confidence can go down that if you get involved, you have got to

steady yourself and enjoy the goals and the moment and as a team, enjoy

that as and enjoyment. The only team at home this weekend

is Notts County. They play Scunthorpe at Meadow Lane. As ever,

full match commentary is on your BBC local radio station, and your

first sight of the goals is right here on BBC One over the weekend.

Also in action this weekend, Leicester Tigers back in the

Premiership playing away at Gloucester. Nottingham Rugby are

home to Moseley on Sunday. Nottingham Panthers are home to

Hull tomorrow night. And in basketball, Leicester Riders have

the first leg of their BBC Cup semi-final against Newcastle Eagles

tomorrow night at the John Sandford Centre. -- the BBL Cup. The Riders

have made a terrific start to the season and they're hoping it might

see them win silverware for the first time in ten years. If we beat

Newcastle, it will be going up against one of the better teams

that the League has seen in a long time. They are a class the

organisation with guys who have been there before so the challenge

is La Mac. But I believe in our She's rarely out of the news, in

fact this morning she was on the front page of The Sun. So where

Katie Price goes, crowds follow. And today they flocked to a

supermarket in Forest Town near Mansfield to get her to sign copies

her new book, her seventh. We joined the queue to meet Miss Price

as she faced the flashlights once more. They queued around the inside

and outside of as the from 7 o'clock this morning. An estimated

700 fans prepared to wait five hours to meet her for a few seconds.

We just love her, she is amazing. Why? I know everything about her.

Everything she does, she is amazing. I am a big farm. This is my 5th

time meeting her. I have been all a bit of the country. You are in a

minority, why are you here? Love. Love was back my current wife!

sent me down here. -- love? Might I don't know why I am here. But I

think she is adorable. Katie Price is in the building today.

And then she appeared to a familiar barrage of flashlights with the

lady millionaire chatting that she would rather be going to the toilet.

I am bursting for the tour that! Her books have sold 7.5 million

copies. Katie puts the popularity down to them being a good read.

This is not my favourite cover and I know that my publisher will hate

me saying that. When I am on the bookshelf, I know that people like

to have them in order and I think that it looks out of order. But I

am not complaining. The character is happily married and a child but

there is a kidnap threat. Only this week, Katie Price reported a second

kidnap fear through her as well. The I know that Scotland Yard

mentioned it, they found a device on my Range Rover, my white one.

message about Peter Andre has caused some controversy. Just

because I mention him on Twitter,... Quentin did his best with those

piercing questions but they bounced off her.

You have got to hand it to her, she is absolutely honest. She says it

as it is and she is incredibly successful. She is a role model, a

We have had a fairly mild November but we will have some strong winds

over the weekend. But tonight, we have got clear skies and if you are

heading to any of the lights being switched on across the region, you

need to wrap up warm because it will be fairly chilly. The key to

Andy for this photograph of a sunset across Matlock. -- thank you

to Andy. If you have any weather photographs, in Melbourne to us at

the address on your screen. -- e- mail them to us. We do have a

weather warning for Derbyshire and wind and we can expect gusts of up

to 65 mph. It is from 9:00am tomorrow and tell 9:00am on Sunday.

An area of low pressure has been sitting across the north of the UK

and Scotland and that gradually lose its way in with the

strengthening winds. Tomorrow will be particularly blustery but should

be mostly dry. At the moment, we have seen the end of that cloud and

showers we had earlier on push away to the south-east and that the

moment it is dry out there and we have got clear skies and that means

temperatures dropping a lot this evening. You need to wrap up warm.

As the cloud starting to creep in, it should be milder by the start of

tomorrow morning. Possibly a few spots of rain across Derbyshire but

generally tomorrow a dry day and temperatures reaching a high of

around 11 Celsius. With those winds, it will feel cooler than that.

Sunday though, the rain clears and why are in for a beautiful day. The

winds will try down but it will We have got a bit of something to

show you. This is Quentin's magic moment! He is still going upstairs