11/05/2017 South Today - Oxford

A life sentence for a rapist who was caught thanks to in part

On the election trail with the Chancellor,

but his staff aren't impressed by our reporter's questioning.

We work very closely together on these things. I am afraid the media

I am afraid the media is making up stories.

A rapist, who attacked a woman at knife-point in Oxford,

The victim was approached as she walked Harcourt Hill.

Mark Pearton pleaded guilty to rape, assault and possession

He'd previously been jailed for raping a 13-year-old.

This is Mark Pearton's car captured on CCTV.

He used the vehicle to watch and stalk a lone female jogger

in Harcourt Hill in Oxford last January.

Wearing a balaclava and carrying a knife, he attacked and then

This type of offence is rare on a national scale.

Normally, there's a link between the victim,

But we can't find a link to anything for Mark Pearton at all.

DNA evidence helped identify him within 36 hours.

He denied the offence and said the pair had had consensual sex

But overwhelming evidence saw him plead guilty to rape,

We've got two witnesses that drove past and they recall seeing a female

fitting the victim's description and seeing a male

44-year-old Mark Pearton from Eastbourne in Sussex

He was jailed for five years in 1994 for armed robbery and then given

a life term in 1999 for the rape of a 13-year-old girl.

He was only released from prison two years ago.

The officer in this case hopes today's sentence will help

I really hope that she doesn't let this event define her life.

That she finds a way of putting this, keeping this as what it was.

Which is a horrendous, significant event in her life,

but not making it become what she becomes.

Sentencing Mark Pearton to a life sentence with a minimum term

of 7.5 years, Judge Ian Pringle QC said that

Pearton's victim had been permanently scarred by what he'd

done, that Mark Pearton remained a danger to the public

and that he may never be released until he could prove

A court has heard how a man beat his former partner with an iron

before setting her alight in her own home in Swindon.

32-year-old Anthony Porter has been jailed for life -

after admitting murdering Andraya Lyons in December.

A fun-loving and bubbly mother, someone who saw the good

Andraya Lyons was a mother of two sons.

The only good fortune is - they were not at home in Rodbourne

in everyone, so say the family of Andraya Lyons.

They expressed their grief outside court today.

We miss her so much and our lives have been completely devastated

by the act of one evil, vicious, selfish, manipulative

Her partner, Anthony Porter, had a problem with drink and drugs

and a history of violence towards women, including Andraya.

The court heard that on the 9th of December the two went

to her work's Christmas party at a hotel in Swindon.

Porter became aggressive and Andraya left with friends,

But Porter returned to her house in the early hours -

He beat Andraya with an iron, broke her nose, stamped on her,

before dousing her with white spirit, setting the house

Postmortem examinations show Andraya was unconscious but still breathing

Porter gave himself up to the police, saying

But the judge didn't accept that, saying Porter clearly

intended to kill Andraya, and jailed him for life.

Andraya had tried to separate from Porter but he was still living

with her because she didn't want him to become homeless.

I recognise the difficulties in terms of reporting domestic abuse

but I would simply say to people they can come forward and speak

to the police with the confidence that they will be treated

sensitively and if they can't speak to the police,

alternatively there are other agencies, such as Swindon Women's

Aid, who will provide the help and support they require.

Porter is to serve 17.5 years in jail before being considered

for parole and will remain under licence for life after release.

It's believed a cyclist who died on Botley Road in Oxford on Tuesday

fell from her bike moments before she was involved in a collision

Investigations are continuing but police don't

think it was as a result of any interaction with

The 31-year-old woman, named locally as Claudia Comberti,

The force say her family's being supported by specialist officers.

An inquest into the death of a nine-year-old Oxfordshire girl,

who died when she was kicked by a horse during a hunt meeting,

has heard how she was on a simulated fox hunt when the accident happened.

Bonnie Armitage, a pupil at St Hughs prep

school in Faringdon, died from a kick to the chest.

A health and safety expert told the hearing the level

of supervision was, "far short of what could be

Bonnie died last April at the event near Stroud.

and the Conservatives have been out in force in Abingdon today.

Tory candidate Nicola Blackwood has been discussing transport issues

and has been accompanied by the Chancellor Philip Hammond,

who's denied national newspaper reports of a "growing rift"

Side by side, showing his support for the local

Conservative candidate, the Chancellor Philip Hammond spent

One of the issues high on their agenda was transport,

particularly one of Oxfordshire's busiest roads - the A34.

What we need is a long-term solution would put a stop to this problem

once and for all and that's why I was really pleased to hear

the Chancellor announced in his Autumn Statement 27 million

for a feasibility study for the Oxford-Cambridge Expressway,

which will either divert the A34, put three lanes in or something

which will mean we put an end to the misery of residents once

The A34 is one of the main routes across the south,

linking Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Hampshire.

But congestion is an ongoing problem.

I think opening up the north exit is a big priority for most

There is a big building development going on the south side of the town

and the roundabout at the top there, Tesco's end, it's just

The Government promised ?50 million for improvements

to the A34 in 2014 - something the Lib Dems claim hasn't

The Conservatives broke that promise, they said that money had

been secured and what we now know is that it has not.

In north Abingdon, we've got a development of 600 houses

that was meant to have not been built unless that

The houses are now about to be built and there's still no money.

As a campaign, that is my top priority for the area.

Without it, we can't solve the congestion

And Labour has also voiced its concerns.

The A34 really needs to be upgraded and redesigned in order to fit

local needs and purpose, particularly around

As a Labour Party, we have committed to invest in long-term

infrastructure, spending on our roads, essential for the A34.

Away from local politics, the Chancellor today made front-page

news in one of the national papers, which claims his relationship

with the Prime Minister is growing more and more tense.

We were initially invited to join the Chancellor and Nicola Blackwood

By bringing one of the Conservative Party's most senior figures

to the heart of the constituency, Nicola Blackwood is hoping

But because of one of the questions I asked earlier, this was as far

A national newspaper is claiming that the relationship between you

We are in complete agreement on policies around energy

We work very closely together on these things.

I'm afraid the media is making up stories.

He answered but his staff are not happy.

We were stopped from joining the walkabout that we were initially

Oxford West and Abingdon has been in the hands

But before that, it'd been under Lib Dem rule for more than a decade.

And with Labour also contesting this seat,

The weather's next starting with the regional forecast from Alexis.

For many of us today, it was a lovely warm day, with lots

of sunshine and a high of 21 Celsius.

But for others, we saw some heavy thundery downpours.

And there is still the risk of one or two

Maybe some misty patches during the early hours of

the morning, and temperatures will fall away to a mild

Quite a muggy night to come with light winds.

Tomorrow is quite a cloudy day in general, but the cloud

At times, to allow for some sunny spells.

But there is that risk with the cloud is thickest

we could have the odd heavy, even thundery shower, with hail.

Temperatures tomorrow will be up to around 17,

maybe 18 or 19 Celsius where we have prolonged periods of

Now the showers will eventually clear tomorrow evening

and Saturday should be a mainly dry day.

Although there is still the risk of the odd scattered shower in

Ahead of this weather front, which will start

moving into Saturday evening and overnight into Sunday.

Now, the air ahead of the weather front is fairly

mild, but the behind it will be slightly fresher.

So, Sunday will feel fresher than Saturday.

And Saturday will have that brisk wind

moving through with the rain from the south-west.

So, mild conditions tomorrow and mild conditions to

There may be the odd isolated thunder storm here and there.

There will also be some brighter spells.

Over the weekend, Saturday is the driest day.

Still the risk of a shower here and there.

Sunday, the chance of a thunderstorm, but now here's

We want to see the economy work for everybody, not

Now the weather. , yes a humid dead. We have had

photographs of the Now, humid air is coming in hyped.

This cloud will be spreading