At least 14 people died when a pickup truck was driven into a crowd in the US cityA British man is among those who were killed in an attack in New Orleans on New Year’s Day.
In the first hours of 2025, a pickup truck was driven through crowds of people celebrating the incoming year, with initial projections suggesting that at least 10 people had died and over 30 had been injured.
At time of writing, there are now at least 14 people who have died and 35 injured, and among the dead is 31-year-old Briton Edward Pettifer.
Metropolitan Police confirmed that they were supporting the family of the Chelsea man, who a New Orleans coroner said had died from ‘blunt force injuries’.
The Met Police and the Foreign Office are helping the family through this difficult time, including with the arrangements to return Edward’s body to the UK.
British man Edward Pettifer has been named among the victims of the New Year’s Day attack in New Orleans (Family Handout/PA)
In a statement, Edward’s family said: “The entire family are devastated at the tragic news of Ed‘s death in New Orleans. He was a wonderful son, brother, grandson, nephew and a friend to so many.
“We will all miss him terribly. Our thoughts are with the other families who have lost their family members due to this terrible attack.
“We request that we can grieve the loss of Ed as a family in private. Thank you.”
The attack took place at around 3:15am local time on New Orleans’ Bourbon Street and of the identified victims, the youngest is aged 18 and the oldest is 63.
The suspect in the attack is 42-year-old Texas resident Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a US citizen and army veteran, who allegedly drove the pickup truck into a crowd of revellers celebrating the New Year before getting out and firing a gun.
42-year-old US citizen Shamsud-Din Jabbar was named as the suspect, and was shot dead by police at the scene. (AFP PHOTO /FBI)
He was then shot dead by police, with the FBI saying that a search of his car discovered an Islamic State flag while explosive devices were recovered nearby.
Investigators believe that the man acted alone in committing a ‘premeditated and evil act’.
US president Joe Biden said that the attacker had posted a video indicating he had been inspired by Islamic State, saying he had been briefed by the FBI that videos had been uploaded ‘mere hours before the attack’.
British prime minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “The shockingly violent attack in New Orleans is horrific. My thoughts are with the victims, their families, the emergency responders and the people of the United States at this tragic time.”
Some of the people who were hospitalised by the New Orleans attack have since been discharged, but others remain in intensive care and continue to receive treatment.
A woman who was allegedly stabbed 20 times has spoken out after the man charged with attempting to murder her appeared in court.
Nick Pasqual, an actor who has had minor roles in the likes of sitcom How I Met Your Mother and the film Rebel Moon, was arrested in May this year on the border between the US and Mexico.
He was charged with attempted murder of the woman, who US media identified as makeup artist and Pasqual’s ex girlfriend Allie Shehorn.
In the release they claimed that Pasqual had allegedly broken into the victim’s home in Sunland, LA, at around 4.30am local time and ‘proceeded to stab the victim multiple times’.
It also noted that before the alleged attack the woman had filed a restraining order against Pasqual.
Nick Pasqual pictured in 2011, the year he appeared in How I Met Your Mother. (Maury Phillips/WireImage)
Pasqual was extradited from Texas to California, and pleaded not guilty to attempted murder.
He appeared before a court in San Bernadino, California, yesterday (12 August) to tell a judge he understood he was waiving his right to a quick trial.
The hearing was attended by Shehorn, who told the Daily Mail that she would attend all of his court hearings so ‘he knows I’m still here’.
Shehorn said: “I just hope that there’s justice served.
“People should know that this shouldn’t happen and he can’t get away with it.
“I’ll be at every court hearing, even if I don’t have to be, just to show him that I’m still here.”
They report that she was covered in ‘vivid scarring’ from the numerous wounds she sustained, including scars across her throat.
Shehorn told the Mail that she had not fully recovered feeling in her hands and had sustained a partial loss of vision, having been hospitalised by the attack.
“Every day is different and it’s a struggle, and just dealing with the permanent damage is really hard. I can’t go back completely to how I was,” she said of the damage her injuries caused.
Makeup artist Allie Shehorn, pictured attending the premiere for A Halloween Feast on 8 August. (Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty Images for Breaking Glass Pictures)
A GoFundMe set up to help pay for Allie’s hospital bills said she had been ‘fighting for her life’ in the days following the alleged attack.
Speaking after the charges were first brought against Pasqual, LA District Attorney George Gascón said: “My thoughts and heartfelt sympathies are with the victim in this horrific incident
“Our office, including our Bureau of Victim Services, extends our support and resources to her as she embarks on the long and difficult journey of healing from both the physical and emotional trauma inflicted upon her.
“This heinous incident is a stark reminder of the dangers of domestic violence. “We will ensure that the individual responsible for this egregious act is held accountable for their actions.”
If Pasqual was convicted of the crimes with which he has been charged then he could face spending the rest of his life in prison.
Warning: This article contains discussion of domestic violence which some readers may find distressing.
A domestic violence surivor has explained why he chose to speak out about the harrowing treatment he received at the hands of his wife, as a documentary on his story lands on Netflix.
For a decade, Richard Spencer was subjected to physical, emotional and financial abuse at the hands of his wife, Sheree, with his ordeal only being uncovered after a friend saw footage of the abuse on a nanny cam and forwarded it to the police.
Watch the trailer here:
Richard shared his experience in heartbreaking documentary My Wife, My Abuser, which has now been added to Netflix months after its original broadcast on Channel 5.
By time police were involved in the case, Richard had amassed evidence of his abuse and injuries, which included 43 photographs, 36 video clips, and nine mobile recordings. Sheree would ultimately be sentenced to four years in prison for her abuse, with judge Kate Rayfield calling the case ‘the worst incidence of controlling and coercive behaviour [she had ever] seen’.
Following Sheree’s arrest, Richard decided to make the brave decision to share his story with the public in order to raise awareness about domestic violence against men. According to statistics published by the National Centre for Domestic Violence, around one in six to seven men will experience abuse from a partner during their lifetime.
Sheree’s abuse was revealed after a friend witnessed footage recorded on nanny cams in the house (Channel 5)
“The reasons for making the documentary are hopefully to have a positive impact on other people who could be going through something similar,” Richard explained during an interview with The Sun earlier in the year, adding that he has since become ’emotionally detached’ from the footage.
Richard went on to explain how the abuse came about, explaining that Sheree had started with ‘pushing, shoving and slapping’ him. This then escalate into increased violence, as well as financial abuse and coercive control. Richard also explained that he had tried to ‘restrain’ her during an assault, but added ‘she’d get angry and what came next would be ten times worse’.
Even more sinister was the fact that HM Prison and Probation Service project manager Sheree would also threaten to frame Richard for abuse, leaving him terrified to speak out about his ordeal.
.webp)
Nanny cam footage picked up harrowing moments, such as Sheree brandishing a knife in their home (Channel 5)
This led to him beginning to save footage recorded on nanny cams around the house, as an ‘insurance’ to prevent Sheree from blocking access to his children.
Richard would eventually open up about his ordeal to a friend, who reported Sheree to the police. She was ultimately admitted to charges of controlling and coercive behaviour, along with three counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm and received a four year custodial sentence.
My Wife, My Abuser is available to watch on Netflix now.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, please know that you are not alone. ManKind offers confidential support for men experiencing domestic violence on 0808 800 1170 (Freephone – which will not show on your bills) or 01823 334 244. The helpline is open weekdays 10am to 4pm (excluding bank holidays). More information is available here.
You can also talk in confidence to the national domestic violence helpline Refuge on 0808 2000 247, available 24/7, or via live chat, available 10am-10pm, Monday to Friday.
Netflix documentaries often explore gruesome crimes, but this one has left viewers relieved to know what really happened in an infamous Seattle case.
Along the shores of Alki Beach, three teenagers set up their cameras to film a TikTok video after finding a random suitcase on the shore.
After hoisting it up from the water to take a peek inside, the trio were horrified to find that instead of something of monetary value, they found cut up human remains.
This story was followed in Netflix’s true crime series Worst Roommate Ever.
Having released its second season, it explored the case of Michael Lee Dudley in the final episode.
The 66-year-old was a Washington Airbnb owner who appeared to be a kind man, who had even driven a renter to a job interview and looked after another’s pets.
Michael Dudley appeared to be a kind man upon first glance. King 5 News
But what Dudley was hiding was murderous rage.
Dubbed ‘The Lethal Landlord’, Dudley went on to murder Jessica Lewis, 35 and her boyfriend, Austin Wenner, 27 after they rented one of his rooms in 2019.
When the couple seemingly vanished without a trace, a neighbour recalled hearing a man pleading for his life before a gun shot rang out in 2020.
Court documents found that when police arrived at the scene, Dudley wouldn’t open the door for them.
According to reports, the couple had been getting into an argument with the landlord over unpaid rent, and their bodies were found in the suitcase ten days later.
After the teens reported their findings, police searched where the couple had been living through a warrant and found traces of blood and bullet holes which had been covered.
This led to Dudley being arrested on August 19, 2020, on suspicion of murder, and it only took five days for him to be charged with their murders.
The couple were reportedly behind on rent. King 5 News
As it turns out, this case was something that a lot of locals had been curious about and were ultimately relieved when Netflix explained who killed the couple and the events leading up to the suitcase being found.
A neighbour of the couple wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “Holy sh*t, well, if you wait long enough…
“Currently watching ‘Worst Roommate Ever’ on netflix, a true crime series, & finally, the dismembered bodies that washed up a few blocks from me during the pandemic in Seattle, is being covered.
This article will contain references to animal abuse that some may find distressing.
Two Brits have been charged as part of the exposure of a global monkey torture ring.
Last year the BBC reported that a year-long investigation had uncovered a ‘sadistic’ monkey torture ring from Indonesia to the US.
They found hundreds of customers in the UK, US and other locations around the world had been paying people in Indonesia to make videos where they tortured and killed baby long-tailed macaques.
The videos were originally circulated on YouTube before the global torture ring moved to messaging platform Telegram.
Agoes Rudianto/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Buyers created scenarios where the baby monkeys were abused, tortured and sometimes killed on film.
The BBC spoke to a man in the US called Mike Macartney, who went by the name ‘The Torture King’, who said there was a poll set up asking people to suggest various methods of torture to be inflicted upon the monkeys.
“Do you want a hammer involved? Do you want pliers involved? Do you want a screwdriver?” he said of the poll asking for options and said the resulting video was ‘the most grotesque thing I have ever seen’.
Undercover footage filmed by the BBC showed a torturer striking a monkey against a wall and describing it as ‘so cool’ when the blood started pouring from the animal’s mouth.
Now the BBC has reported that Macartney was charged with conspiracy to create and distribute animal-crushing videos.
They have also reported that two women in the UK have been charged in connection with the monkey torture ring.
BBC
The torture ring involved videos where monkeys were set on fire, tortured with tools and in one video a monkey was put in a blender.
The British women charged were 37-year-old Kidderminster resident Holly LeGresley and 55-year-old Upton-upon-Severn woman Adriana Orme.
They were charged with publishing an obscene article and causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, and a third woman in the UK has also been arrested.
Two Indonesian torturers have been arrested and jailed in connection to the torture ring, while two other people in the US besides Macartney have been charged.
48-year-old former US Air Force officer David Christopher Noble and 35-year-old Nicole Devilbiss are both facing up to five years in prison.
