New Milton Advertiser 16th Oct 2020

Friday 16th October 2020 · 7 News

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‘Super relieved and happy’ as special bike recovered

Wheelchair cycle stolen in raid found after social media appeal

Pilot injured in plane crash Contact the Hampshire force on 101, quoting crime reference number 44200395723, or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. A PILOT from New Milton was badly hurt after his light aircraft crashed in a field in Romsey. It is understood the man, who is in his 60s, had been flying to Sandown on the Isle of Wight when the plane came down off Gardeners Lane around 4.20pm last Wednesday. Paramedics, including a haz- ardous area response team and the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance critical care car, rushed to the scene. The casualty suffered multi- ple injuries and was taken by ambulance to Southampton General Hospital. His condition was described by a South Cen- tral Ambulance Service spokes- person as “serious but stable”. A spokesperson for the Air Accidents Investigation Branch confirmed the crash had been reported to the authority which was now looking into the cir- cumstances. “The report will be published in the next few months,” the spokesperson said. A Hampshire police spokes- person said: “It was reported that a light aircraft had crashed in a field close to Gardeners Lane, Romsey. The pilot, a man in his 60s from New Milton, suf- fered serious but not life-threat- ening injuries and was taken to hospital.” them is based in Liverpool so to traipse up there is quite a journey, and under the current circumstances we probably wouldn’t be able to do that an- yway.” She added: “It’s his absolute lifeline. He goes out on it most days. It’s his exercise, it’s his freedom, and it’s us going out together. It’s a huge part of his life.” Mr Copp, who has been dis- abled since being hit by a car when he was 20, purchased the electronic and manual hand- bike about two-and-a-half years ago. It has provided more inde- pendence as previous purely manual ones meant his wife’s bicycle was often attached to the rear of his wheelchair by an aluminium bar so she could help push him along. Referring to its recovery, Mrs Copp said: “My husband’s su- per relieved and happy. “The handbike means a great deal to him. Without that, he’s completely lost.” Police are investigating the burglary, and people are urged to come forward if they saw any suspicious activity.

Major overhaul plan for petrol station site Shell has applied to upgrade the Pennington Cross petrol station

BY CHRIS MARCH

A CYCLIST has praised a lo- cal resident who helped her recover a valuable attachment for her quadriplegic husband’s wheelchair which was stolen in a raid on the couple’s garage. Rhona and Mike Copp were devastated when they discov- ered the specialist handbike had been taken by thieves who forced entry to the outbuilding at their home in Gainsborough Avenue, New Milton, during Sunday night. Custom-made to 68-year-old Mr Copp’s measurements and worth around £3,000, the ap- paratus allows him to regularly join his wife on long cycle rides. Mrs Copp (58) called it “his absolute lifeline”. She recovered it undamaged from a road by the nearby Fern- dale Post Office on Monday fol - lowing a tip-off from a woman who responded to her appeal on Facebook. The offenders also escaped with two of Mrs Copp’s bicy- cles – a Giant Liv Avail Pro race bike, with a carbon frame in black with gold writing; and a ONLINE daters are being warned by Hampshire and Dor- set police to guard against “ro- mance fraud” after scams rose by 26% in a year. The two constabularies is- sued the alert as part of a na- tional police campaign which revealed how in the 12 months to August, Action Fraud re- ceived 222 reports from resi- dents just in Hampshire who were fleeced for a combined £2m – an average loss of just over £9,000 each. Det. Insp. Sue Orr, of Hamp- shire’s economic crime unit, said: “Romance fraud occurs when you think you’ve met the perfect partner online but they are using a fake profile to form a relationship with you. “You can meet them via an online dating website or app, social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, or gaming sites. “They gain your trust over a number of weeks or months and have you believe you are in a loving and caring relation- ship. However, the criminal’s end goal is only ever to get your money or personal informa- tion.” There have also been worry- ing signs the problem worsened during lockdown, the force said, CHRISTCHURCH councillors have opposed potential plans for BCP Council to provide stopping places for travellers. The council’s cabinet gave the green light for a cross-party group of councillors to look at ways of reducing the number of unauthorised encampments, writes Josh Wright of the Local Democracy Reporting Service. This was given despite its two Christchurch Independent members opposing the move over fears it would “bring issues to Christchurch that we don’t have”. Across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole an av- erage of 50 unauthorised en- campments are reported each year which cost the council about £100,000 to manage. A review of the council’s pol- icies is being carried out by the cross-party working group which has already recommend- ed a series of measures. These include only “limit- ed” work to install obstacles preventing access to spaces frequently targeted, providing alternative stopping places for travellers, and considering pre-emptive injunctions in ‘hot spot’ locations. But concerns have been raised that providing perma- nent sites could create prob- lems in areas less affected by the unauthorised encamp- ments. Speaking at the cabinetmeet- ing, Christchurch Independent councillor Margaret Phipps, cabinet member for planning, said the council should consid- er other initiatives. “Christchurch, historically, does not have a big problem with unauthorised encamp- ments and they have been suc- cessfully managed when we

A BUSY petrol station on the edge of Lymington could be demolished and replaced with a modern facility under plans submitted to New Forest Dis- trict Council. Shell has applied to trans- form its garage at Pennington Cross, near the roundabout on the main A337 Milford Road in Pennington, which it says is in need of an upgrade. It wants to demolish all the buildings on the site, including the former Thorp Motors car sales premises next door. As reported in the A&T, the car sales business closed in February after owner Anthony Thorp, who had run it for 20 years, was told his lease would not be renewed. The application states the redevelopment would include a new sales building with an ATM, office and store, as well as 14 parking spaces. The underground petrol tanks would be removed and new ones installed to meet en- vironmental standards. New jet washing equipment would also be put in. Although the application stated the redevelopment would create new jobs, it does not specify how many. It added: “The positioning of the new sales building will bring overall improvements to the site layout. The design of the

replacement sales building re- flects the existing use of the site as a petrol station, whilst cre- ating an attractive shopfront of a high quality with inviting interior. “While the fuel stations and canopy will be broadly in the same position, the sales build- ing will move further in to the site, towards the south bound- ary. While access and egress will not change overall, it is expect- ed there will be an improve- ment in the vehicular circula- tion across the site.” The application has attract- ed one letter of objection, say- ing: “My property backs on to this site. I have had continu- ing issues with waste being blown into my garden – plastic gloves, paper towels, food wrap- pers – for much of this year. A potential health hazard with Covid-19. “There is also considerable noise from the jet washers clos- est to my home and loud speak- ers from the shop area. “Sitting in the garden is an unpleasant experience when vehicles are being washed in the open air. “I am also concerned with the safety aspect of fuel being so close to a residential area.” The consultation period ends on 30th October and NFDC is expected to make a decision by 19th November.

Mike Copp uses the bike on outings with his wife Rhona

white Giant mountain bike. Val- ued at around £2,500 in total, these are still missing. Mrs Copp told the A&T on Monday she discovered the

theft when she went out to the garage around 9am and saw the electronic door was part open. “My husband was devastat-

ed and absolutely heartbroken. It’s such a difficult thing to re - place. I felt so gutted for him, really,” she said. “The company which makes

Warning over £2m ‘romance fraud’

just under £5,500 per victim. The force’s Acting Det. Sgt Will Burnett said: “This type of fraud is devastating for the vic- tim, both financially and emo - tionally. Scammers work out who is lonely and very slowly start to creep into their lives, promising love and companion- ship – it is very cruel.” He continued: “There are plenty of ways to protect your- self – if you are on a dating site, stay on the site messaging sys- tem. Too often the criminal will want to switch to another platform that is less regulated soon after first establishing contact. “If someone asks for financial help, you should report them.” The top five sites targeted by scammers were Facebook, Plenty of Fish, Instagram, Tin- der and Match.com. As part of the campaign, the Match Group, which owns OK Cupid, Plenty of Fish, Tinder and Match.com, is running ro- mance fraud protection adverts throughout October to inform users how to protect them- selves online. Those who believe they have been a victim of romance fraud should call ActionFraudon 0300 123 2040 or go to www.actionfra ud.police.uk

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More than £2.3m has been conned fromHampshire and Dorset daters

someone that they are not. “If in doubt, challenge that person – it’s okay to reject, re- fuse or ignore any requests for your financial or personal de - tails. Only criminals will try to rush or pressure you into mak- ing a decision.” Between the same period, 70 people fromDorset were duped, with losses totalling £384,400 –

with an almost two-fold rise in reported incidents in July compared with the previous month. The most at-risk were those between the ages of 40 and 59, accounting for 42% of cases. Det. Insp. Orr continued: “It is always worth taking a moment to stop and think if the person could be

Councillors opposed to traveller sites

have had them,” she said. “I have heard it said that we hadn’t had a problem because there was a site in Dorset when we were part of the county council but that has only been in existence for a couple of years. “In the last six years, Christchurch has had some- thing like only 12 incursions – it is not very many – whereas Bournemouth and Poole have had a whole lot more.” Cllr Phipps added: “I keep hearing it said that in the in- terest of fairness there should be stopping places across the whole area but this could be seen as bringing issues to Christchurch that we don’t have.” Dorset County Council had a transit site since inherited by Dorset Council, which meant it could legally force unauthor- ised encampments to move on. However, BCP Council does not, meaning evictions are slower. Despite the opposition of Cllr Phipps and her fellow Christchurch Independent, Cllr Lesley Dedman, the cabi- net agreed the working group consider the measures, includ- ing new stopping places, before agreeing to any final approvals at a later date. Cabinet member for the envi- ronment, Cllr Felicity Rice, said the council should not “pass off” work to look at ways of reducing the number of unau- thorised encampments being set up in the area. “This was a difficult piece of work and all of the recommen- dations were thought about in- credibly deeply with the equiva- lent of 56 hours put into it,” she said. “In years gone by this work

has been shied away from but it’s incredibly important for many of our residents and the travelling community.” As a result of the cabinet’s

approval of the report, the working party will meet again to explore in more detail the feasibility of the measures it had put forward.