:00:00. > :00:00.combat for the first time. That's all from the BBC News.
:00:00. > :00:09.Welcome to South East Today, I'm Polly Evans.
:00:10. > :00:18.And I'm Rob Smith. Tonight's top stories: smiling for the camera is
:00:19. > :00:26.why a woman's body lay in the body of the shop.
:00:27. > :00:29.Two shop workers are found guilty of of killing her in a Chatham shop.
:00:30. > :00:31.We'll have the latest live from court.
:00:32. > :00:33.The family who took in a foreign language student only to discover he
:00:34. > :00:41.had it makes me feel sick to the stomach
:00:42. > :00:44.that somebody has managed to get into my home and be what they are.
:00:45. > :00:47.Also coming up: A very special homecoming for the
:00:48. > :00:58.Kent mother who woke from a coma after hearing her wedding song.
:00:59. > :01:03.The forgotten orchards and the company with a grand plan to plant
:01:04. > :01:07.250,000 new apple trees. And Britain go for glory in the big
:01:08. > :01:18.match that could secure promotion to the premiership. `` bright.
:01:19. > :01:20.Good evening. Two men have been found guilty of murdering a Kent
:01:21. > :01:25.grandmother, whose badly decomposed body was found in the basement of
:01:26. > :01:28.their shop. Mohammed Islam and Murshed Miah killed 69`year`old
:01:29. > :01:33.Harjit Chaggar at the Sani Globe store, near her home in Chatham.
:01:34. > :01:37.They've also been found guilty of preventing her lawful burial, along
:01:38. > :01:42.with two other men. Tonight, her son has condemned them as cowards who
:01:43. > :01:47.picked on a frail old woman. Chrissie Reidy joins us from
:01:48. > :01:59.Canterbury Crown Court. The judge praised the dignity of Mrs Chaggar's
:02:00. > :02:02.family. If the judge praised the family and said it has been an
:02:03. > :02:08.incredibly difficult time for them, these last few months. As the
:02:09. > :02:13.verdicts were read out, the son of Elena Baltacha broke down in tears.
:02:14. > :02:17.One of the defendants shook its head and a woman from up in the public
:02:18. > :02:24.gallery shouted, " this is not just, my husband is innocent."
:02:25. > :02:28.Mails for the camera as a staff show of their giant catfish. They have a
:02:29. > :02:33.secret. As they chat to our reporter, the body of Elena Baltacha
:02:34. > :02:40.is hidden beneath the floorboards. Today, two of the shop workers were
:02:41. > :02:44.found guilty of murder. No matter what the verdict, it does not bring
:02:45. > :02:51.her back. We have just got to be grateful that we can now put this
:02:52. > :02:59.matter to rest. Although we will never get over what has happened, we
:03:00. > :03:04.now have a chance to try to move on. Elena Baltacha disappeared while out
:03:05. > :03:10.shopping last September. As she walked along this road, and was
:03:11. > :03:17.standing at the back of the food store. As she approached, CCTV shows
:03:18. > :03:22.Mohamed beckoning her towards the back of the shop. This is the last
:03:23. > :03:27.known sighting of her life. 12 days later, with her decomposing body
:03:28. > :03:40.concealed in the cellar, shop staff finally called police.
:03:41. > :03:48.She had been beaten around the head and was alive when she was thrown
:03:49. > :03:53.into the cellar. That was a stage, finding the body. They knew full
:03:54. > :03:57.well that she was there because of the part that they played in the
:03:58. > :04:01.murder and also from not notifying the police and hiding the facts
:04:02. > :04:05.until they get to a stage where they did not feel like they had any
:04:06. > :04:10.alternative. Elena Baltacha had lived in the area 40 years. He
:04:11. > :04:14.mother and grandmother, she was well`known in the community. She my
:04:15. > :04:21.best friend. She was friends with everybody. She is a very nice lady.
:04:22. > :04:25.I don't know why they done these things. During the seven`week trial,
:04:26. > :04:31.only one of the defendants gave evidence. For the family, they say
:04:32. > :04:36.it means pieces are still missing. Throughout, we have not known the
:04:37. > :04:40.reason why and they chose not to give evidence and none of them have
:04:41. > :04:45.told us why. They have all denied it. It is only through the
:04:46. > :04:51.painstaking work of the police, forensic and the legal team that we
:04:52. > :04:57.have come to this excellent result. The two defendants were convicted of
:04:58. > :05:01.murder, all four were found guilty of preventing a lawful burial. They
:05:02. > :05:05.will be sentenced at the end of May. What has made this difficult for the
:05:06. > :05:08.family is that throughout the investigation the motive has been
:05:09. > :05:12.unclear. We know that her dad was missing and some of her jewellery
:05:13. > :05:17.was fine. Kent Police have said that they cannot be absolutely clear on
:05:18. > :05:20.the motive. Of course, for the family, they still have questions
:05:21. > :05:22.that they will never get the answers to.
:05:23. > :05:25.A family from Sussex say they were sickened and disgusted to find out
:05:26. > :05:28.that a foreign student who'd been living in their home for three
:05:29. > :05:31.months was a convicted sex offender. 32`year`old Zdenek Junek, from the
:05:32. > :05:34.Czech Republic, was staying with Wayne and Sharon Beavill and their
:05:35. > :05:39.young children in Brighton, while he studied at a local language school.
:05:40. > :05:42.But he's now been jailed, after police were tipped off that he'd
:05:43. > :05:48.been photographing children in a local park and discovered a cache of
:05:49. > :05:57.indecent images on his computer. Juliette Parkin reports.
:05:58. > :06:03.This single piece of paper, the only information the family received. It
:06:04. > :06:08.was ahead of the arrival of a student from the Czech Republic with
:06:09. > :06:12.the history of sex offences. Zdenek Junek arrived in January. Unaware of
:06:13. > :06:17.this background, the language school placed him in a family home.
:06:18. > :06:23.Personally, I feel second and disgusted. The way this skill have
:06:24. > :06:28.reacted at what has happened. As far as I am concerned, the school is but
:06:29. > :06:34.my family at risk for a reason that should not have happened. As I say,
:06:35. > :06:38.we have to be checked for a criminal background and as far as I'm
:06:39. > :06:43.concerned, they should be also. It was here that Sussex police
:06:44. > :06:50.became aware of the student. He was filming children and was arrested.
:06:51. > :06:56.The family's host was searched and Zdenek Junek's belongings seized. In
:06:57. > :07:01.a home he shared with boys aged nine and 13, he had been making indecent
:07:02. > :07:07.images of children. It made me feel that my house was not my own for a
:07:08. > :07:10.month. It was in my mind that I was not sleeping. I wonder if my boys
:07:11. > :07:15.had been at risk with him, even though they did not interact much
:07:16. > :07:19.with them. But was he is going into their room at night? Nobody wanted
:07:20. > :07:22.to speak on camera from the language school but they told us they were
:07:23. > :07:30.extremely shocked to hear of this case. They added that there were no
:07:31. > :07:34.standards requirements from for baiting visitors who stay in private
:07:35. > :07:39.accommodation and apologise for any distress caused. Language skills are
:07:40. > :07:42.not legally obliged to check the background of overseas students but
:07:43. > :07:48.any city that welcomes thousands every year, the family's MP says it
:07:49. > :07:52.is time for a rethink. For most young people, it is not required but
:07:53. > :08:00.if there is a mature student staying any family home then I think it
:08:01. > :08:05.might be required beneficial. They have posted students for 14 years
:08:06. > :08:07.but now they will only consider it again if the company changes their
:08:08. > :08:09.vetting policy. In a moment:
:08:10. > :08:18.Anger from fundraisers as the Pilgrims Hospice announces its to
:08:19. > :08:25.close its Canterbury centre. This is despite a ?250,000 refurbishment.
:08:26. > :08:33.A mother of four has amazed doctors by waking from a coma after hearing
:08:34. > :08:36.her wedding song. Maria Neal from Chalk, near Gravesend, suffered a
:08:37. > :08:40.severe stroke seven weeks ago, at the age of just 48, and her family
:08:41. > :08:43.was told she would not survive. But they never gave up hope, and
:08:44. > :08:46.tried everything to make her respond. Against all odds, it worked
:08:47. > :09:02.and today she's returned home. Miranda Schunke has the story.
:09:03. > :09:10.UNCHAINED MELODY PLAYS Dancing On Ice there `` dancing on
:09:11. > :09:15.their wedding day all those years ago, little did they know the song
:09:16. > :09:18.would be a life`saver. The mother of four suffered a massive lead to the
:09:19. > :09:23.brain in March and doctors told the family there was nothing more that
:09:24. > :09:29.they could do. But her husband play her the wedding song as she lay in a
:09:30. > :09:35.corner. Brilliant idea because nothing else... I was responding to
:09:36. > :09:41.nothing else. Obviously little bit and pieces but to come up with that,
:09:42. > :09:51.it is really, really hit me, it was so beautiful.
:09:52. > :09:56.UNCHAINED MELODY CONTINUES The joy that came across, just from
:09:57. > :10:00.a twitch or movement anything like that. When I got a response and
:10:01. > :10:05.asked her what she knew what it was and she nodded, it was absolutely
:10:06. > :10:08.fantastic. The couple's daughter was also at
:10:09. > :10:15.her bedside and described the emotional moment. He stood by her
:10:16. > :10:21.side with his head onto hers. She was just crying as they played the
:10:22. > :10:27.song. It broke my heart. It was horrible but to know that she then
:10:28. > :10:30.responded the day after was absolutely amazing. It is so
:10:31. > :10:38.overwhelming, so lovely to be at home. I was away for so, so long. To
:10:39. > :10:44.be with my family and my husband, he has been my rock and I love him.
:10:45. > :10:51.Clearly, in Maria's is, love and music really has been the best
:10:52. > :10:55.medicine. `` in the case of Maria. The UKIP leader Nigel Farage says he
:10:56. > :10:58.has a short list of about five potential seats he is considering
:10:59. > :11:01.standing in, in next year's General Election.
:11:02. > :11:04.The South East MEP, who lives in Westerham, says he'll stand
:11:05. > :11:10.somewhere in Kent, East Sussex or Hampshire. Last week he ruled out
:11:11. > :11:13.standing in the Newark by`election in Nottinghamshire, saying he had no
:11:14. > :11:17.links with the local area. The people behind a rejected bid to
:11:18. > :11:22.buy Manston Airport say they haven't given up hope. It was announced on
:11:23. > :11:26.Tuesday that the site in Thanet would close next week. But the
:11:27. > :11:28.company trying to buy Manston, American`based investment firm
:11:29. > :11:32.Riveroak, say confidential negotiations are continuing with the
:11:33. > :11:36.airport's owners. It's exactly two weeks until polls
:11:37. > :11:39.open for the European Elections and across the South East political
:11:40. > :11:42.parties are trying to win your vote. And today it's the turn of the
:11:43. > :11:47.English Democrats to say what they have to offer the electorate. We
:11:48. > :11:52.wish to have a referendum on English independence. Also a referendum on
:11:53. > :11:55.coming out of the European Union. We are also very concerned about the
:11:56. > :12:05.rise of extreme Islam and we would say no to Sharia law in England.
:12:06. > :12:08.English law in England. We'll be bringing you more details
:12:09. > :12:11.of the main parties' campaigns, plus information about all the other
:12:12. > :12:16.political parties. And there's in`depth coverage on our website,
:12:17. > :12:20.bbc.co.uk/news. Plus BBC Radio Kent, BBC Sussex and
:12:21. > :12:22.BBC Surrey are giving you the chance to question key politicians
:12:23. > :12:27.campaigning at this month's European elections. Tickets are available for
:12:28. > :12:31.the event in Dover on the evening of Friday the 16th of May. Call 01892
:12:32. > :12:33.675550 or email southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk, including
:12:34. > :12:41.your name and a daytime contact number.
:12:42. > :12:46.There's been an angry reaction from relatives and volunteers to the news
:12:47. > :12:49.that one of the South East's largest hospices, Pilgrims House in
:12:50. > :12:53.Canterbury, is to close. The charity that runs the hospice
:12:54. > :12:56.says the decision is part of a wider restructuring programme, which they
:12:57. > :13:05.say will enable it to provide more care for terminally ill patients, in
:13:06. > :13:11.their own homes. Fiona Irving has the details.
:13:12. > :13:20.It is for many who use it a place of sanctuary, a calm, caring community.
:13:21. > :13:27.Today, the hospice and announced it was closing its Canterbury ward in
:13:28. > :13:34.2016. We want to provide more care for more people and the demands are
:13:35. > :13:42.increasing. People are ageing and carrying more complex M conditions.
:13:43. > :13:49.People want to be cured in their own communities and we want to take the
:13:50. > :13:55.care to wherever it is needed. The ward has 16 bed and caused of
:13:56. > :14:00.pounds a year to run. For those patients and families who use it, it
:14:01. > :14:06.is an invaluable service. Michael stayed at the water before passing
:14:07. > :14:10.away from a range in my March. Spending time here and getting to
:14:11. > :14:13.know the staff, and aerosol welcoming, and even when my
:14:14. > :14:25.daughters come to visit, what they have enabled me to do is spend more
:14:26. > :14:30.quality time with my family. The hospice is currently currently
:14:31. > :14:38.refurbishing the ward after receiving a government grant, it
:14:39. > :14:40.will be mothballed in 2016. It is 6:40pm.
:14:41. > :14:43.This is our top story tonight: Two men have been found guilty of
:14:44. > :14:46.murdering Kent grandmother Harjit Chaggar, whose badly decomposed body
:14:47. > :14:49.was found in the basement of the Sani Globe store in Chatham last
:14:50. > :14:52.september. Mohammed Islam and Murshed Miah were also found guilty
:14:53. > :14:54.of preventing her lawful burial, along with two other men. They
:14:55. > :14:58.smiled for the television cameras while her badly decomposed body was
:14:59. > :15:01.found in the basement of a store last September.
:15:02. > :15:07.Also coming up: It was Ken's worst ever road crash.
:15:08. > :15:17.Members of the emergency services are honoured for helping.
:15:18. > :15:23.And join me in Brighton we are optimistic fans are on the way to a
:15:24. > :15:26.showdown. Once, Kent was universally known as
:15:27. > :15:30.the garden of England, famous for its fruit. But since the World War
:15:31. > :15:34.II, 90% of its orchards have been grubbed up. However, there are signs
:15:35. > :15:48.of change with major expansion plans announced by local firm AC Goatham
:15:49. > :16:02.and Son. In preparation for the pack house, these apples are in pristine
:16:03. > :16:06.condition. But it is more than six months since they were picked. New
:16:07. > :16:12.technology is revolutionising our fruit industry. Here we have our
:16:13. > :16:18.grading equipment. The apples pass down here, all shapes and sizes.
:16:19. > :16:21.They pass under a series of cameras. What is exciting here is we have
:16:22. > :16:25.infrared cameras so we can actually see inside the apple. Here on the
:16:26. > :16:27.screen we have our series of photographs. From that, we can
:16:28. > :16:31.detect size, weight and obviously the internal defects, so they can be
:16:32. > :16:35.downgraded, so they do not pass on to customers. It is a ?10 million
:16:36. > :16:39.new pack house at this farm, part of a 20 year expansion plan to increase
:16:40. > :16:46.fruit growing in Kent and rely less on imports from abroad. Key to
:16:47. > :16:50.winning the competition is being able to supply the supermarkets for
:16:51. > :16:54.as many months as possible. This is one of our cold stores. It holds 250
:16:55. > :16:58.tonnes of apples. It is really just a giant fridge. The difference with
:16:59. > :17:02.this fridge is we actually control the atmosphere within it. The
:17:03. > :17:05.temperature we would get down to 1.5 degrees. Then we would control
:17:06. > :17:09.carbon dioxide and the oxygen within it to enable us to keep the fruit
:17:10. > :17:14.from November right around until now. More than 250,000 new trees
:17:15. > :17:19.will be planted over the next two years, as part of a plan involving a
:17:20. > :17:23.total of 34 farms across the county. Ultimately, the aim is to raise the
:17:24. > :17:30.proportion of fruit grown and eaten in the UK from 37% to 50% in the
:17:31. > :17:34.next 20 years. The aim for the English fruit industry is that we
:17:35. > :17:37.take more of the market share. We are working very hard to increase
:17:38. > :17:41.the volume of fruit people eat but by changing the range of varieties
:17:42. > :17:44.that we grow and then extending the season, so we have apples available
:17:45. > :17:47.in August but now actually really great eating apples available in
:17:48. > :17:51.May, it means that a greater proportion of the fruit available to
:17:52. > :17:54.the public comes from home. There are just a few more weeks' supply
:17:55. > :17:58.left in storage of English dessert apples but these days we do not have
:17:59. > :18:00.to wait long for the new season's crop.
:18:01. > :18:09.Based near Rochester, they already account for one in six of all
:18:10. > :18:12.British grown apples sold in the UK. It was Kent's worst ever road crash,
:18:13. > :18:16.a huge pile`up that involved 150 vehicles.
:18:17. > :18:19.35 people had to be taken to hospital, some with serious injuries
:18:20. > :18:23.as a result of the incident, which happened in thick fog on the Sheppey
:18:24. > :18:26.Crossing last September. But miraculously, no`one was killed
:18:27. > :18:29.thanks to the swift response of the ambulance and air ambulance teams
:18:30. > :18:30.sent to the scene to treat the injured.
:18:31. > :18:34.Today, they've been honoured for their work in a ceremony at the
:18:35. > :18:37.House of Lords and we're joined live from Westminster by ambulance
:18:38. > :18:40.technician Craig Stoneman, who was one of the first emergency workers
:18:41. > :18:42.involved. Thank you for being with us.
:18:43. > :18:46.You weren't actually on duty when the crash took place but you were
:18:47. > :18:54.caught up in it yourself, weren't you? That is right. I was heading to
:18:55. > :18:58.work because I work on the ambulance station and was driving over the
:18:59. > :19:03.bridge and so it all unfolding in front of me. Do you have any idea
:19:04. > :19:08.initially just how big this was? Not at the time. Where I had parked, I
:19:09. > :19:14.just went over the barrier and so the little doubt that I was standing
:19:15. > :19:17.in front of. I did not know that it was everywhere all the other side of
:19:18. > :19:23.the bridge. It only became apparent in the morning how big the incident
:19:24. > :19:29.was. What did you do? With 150 odd cars involved, we are to start? I
:19:30. > :19:33.did not know where to start. I have no equipment with me because I was
:19:34. > :19:36.on the way to work. I was reassuring all of the people that I came across
:19:37. > :19:40.to stay there and that we would get to them as soon as we could. Just
:19:41. > :19:46.checking all of the people in my immediate vicinity. How does it fail
:19:47. > :19:51.to get official recognition for the work of that day? It is always nice.
:19:52. > :19:55.It is our job but it is always humbled to be recognised for the
:19:56. > :19:58.team effort. It was such a big incident that nobody has had the
:19:59. > :20:04.experience of dealing with that. It is very nice to get the award. It
:20:05. > :20:06.was quite a big team. The air ambulance was involved, as well as
:20:07. > :20:12.the other emergency services. It was huge. We have everybody that could
:20:13. > :20:17.go to it, from managers right the way down to St John's ambulance
:20:18. > :20:20.staff and the Red Cross. It was a big joint effort. Thank you ever so
:20:21. > :20:27.much for being with us. Well done to everyone involved.
:20:28. > :20:31.Tonight, Brighton and Hove Albion are just three games away from the
:20:32. > :20:34.Premier League as they take on Derby County in the first leg of their
:20:35. > :20:38.Championship play`off semi final at the Amex Stadium. And it's a big
:20:39. > :20:42.deal. If the Albion can secure promotion,
:20:43. > :20:45.it's worth ?120 million to the club. But the Seagulls go into tonight's
:20:46. > :20:48.match as underdogs, Derby have already beaten them at home and away
:20:49. > :20:50.this season. The visitors are also the
:20:51. > :20:56.Championship's top scorers, with 84 league goals. Let's cross live to
:20:57. > :21:00.Brighton and our reporter Neil Bell. The home side are the underdogs, but
:21:01. > :21:06.fans heading to the Amex Stadium believe they can upset the odds,
:21:07. > :21:11.don't they? The magic of the play`offs is that
:21:12. > :21:14.it all counts for very little. Thousands of Brighton fans have
:21:15. > :21:19.passed me in the past are full of possibility. `` positivity. They had
:21:20. > :21:25.a great win on Saturday, eight now undefeated. They believe the
:21:26. > :21:28.momentum is behind them. Even by Brighton's recent
:21:29. > :21:32.standards, this has been unpredictable as a season. Slowly
:21:33. > :21:38.but surely, the boss has found his feet and almost unnoticed guided the
:21:39. > :21:45.club into the play`offs. We are not the favourite, we are the underdogs.
:21:46. > :21:51.They finished third. They are the top scoring team in the league. They
:21:52. > :21:57.beat us at home and away. But in football, everything can happen.
:21:58. > :22:01.Tonight's game is seen by many as an unexpected one is but one that they
:22:02. > :22:05.are determined to enjoy. It will be really tough but look at Palace last
:22:06. > :22:09.year. I don't think anybody expects us to win the play`offs so hopefully
:22:10. > :22:16.we sneak up on everyone. I think we will win. We are going to go 2`0 and
:22:17. > :22:22.get into the Premiership. The Albion's recent record may not be
:22:23. > :22:24.encouraging but a number of Brighton players have enjoyed success against
:22:25. > :22:30.them in the past and have nothing to fear. Last year, in the first game,
:22:31. > :22:34.we played well and were unlucky. But on the home game, when we went one
:22:35. > :22:39.goal down, we had to push everything to try to get back in the game. It
:22:40. > :22:44.was not meant to be. As he said, we will use that disappointment and
:22:45. > :22:47.hopefully can do it this year. With the euphoria of the victory still
:22:48. > :22:52.fresh, players and supporters believe anything is possible.
:22:53. > :22:55.Could both logistics can be misleading but the side finishing
:22:56. > :23:06.third in the Championship, Asda be dead, do well in the play`offs. ``
:23:07. > :23:10.as Derby dead. A good result tonight and Brighton to be on their way.
:23:11. > :23:13.Those statistics always make it more nerve`wracking!
:23:14. > :23:16.And if you can't make it to the Amex tonight, BBC Radio Sussex have a
:23:17. > :23:23.special live programme starting at 7pm from the stadium, with full live
:23:24. > :23:29.commentary from 7:45. It is very exciting. I hope the fans
:23:30. > :23:32.have packed their jackets because it is pretty wet.
:23:33. > :23:37.Fingers crossed it will be dry for the match. The day in finishing
:23:38. > :23:42.better than it started. We have had lots of rain around. Around about
:23:43. > :23:47.8am in the morning, rain came in. We have said all afternoon but it has
:23:48. > :23:52.been clearing eastwards on some brisk winds. They have been picking
:23:53. > :24:03.up. Much stronger than that in costs. `` in the gusts. Feeling much
:24:04. > :24:06.cooler than the temperature. We should be increasingly dry through
:24:07. > :24:09.the evening. Still plenty of cloud around and weather those fairly
:24:10. > :24:15.brisk winds, temperatures stay pretty mild. Double figures. The
:24:16. > :24:19.chance that you could catch a shower, particularly through the
:24:20. > :24:22.first part of tomorrow morning. That sets the tone for the day. We have
:24:23. > :24:26.these blustery showers around but there should also be some sunshine,
:24:27. > :24:30.certainly more than today. By the afternoon, the best of any
:24:31. > :24:36.brightness should see temperatures creeping up. We're you do see those
:24:37. > :24:40.showers, they could be pretty heavy with the odd rumble of thunder also.
:24:41. > :24:45.Through tomorrow night, initially mostly dry. We are staying well. It
:24:46. > :24:51.is all those risk with. As we get to about 4pm, we will see some rain
:24:52. > :24:54.pushing in from the West. It will be increasingly unsettled and that
:24:55. > :24:59.means it will turn wet as we go into Saturday. We will see some rain at
:25:00. > :25:03.times at the weekend, some friend Jane through Saturday afternoon but
:25:04. > :25:07.it will say breezy. `` some sunshine through Saturday. Through the
:25:08. > :25:12.afternoon, slowly the rain clears and we will see some sunshine behind
:25:13. > :25:16.it. It is going to be breezy as we go into Sunday. Showers at times.
:25:17. > :25:19.The area of low pressure stays with us. Lots of rain but some sunshine
:25:20. > :25:27.also. Thank you. That is it from us. We
:25:28. > :25:31.will be back at EPM and 10:25pm. Goodbye.