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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
National
Ellen Kirwin

Monster rapist, plot to 'kill' enemies mum and Brookside throwback

These are the latest ECHO headlines on Monday, April 11

Monster raped woman in her own bed just metres from her children

Kelly* (not her real name), from Liverpool, penned a devastating statement ahead of the sentencing of John Wood - her ex-partner and the man who almost destroyed her life. Wood, 38, was jailed for six years at the Scottish High Court yesterday after being convicted of raping Kelly, and another woman from Glasgow.

The pair had met at a conference when Wood was living in Glasgow, and after some time chatting online he eventually moved to Merseyside to live with her. However Kelly had unwittingly invited a sexual predator into her home.

READ MORE: Alleged gunman was 'sniffing ketamine in back garden at time of murder'

In the statement, Kelly wrote of the final time she was raped by Wood, who worked in care. At the time she had ended their three-year relationship after finding he had been using dating apps to meet men for sex, although she allowed him to stay in her Liverpool home as he had nowhere else to go.

Kelly wrote: "The last time I saw John Wood....he raped me for the last time. In that moment he stole a piece of me that I will never get back, the previous times John raped me I never understood what it was. I was conditioned to think rape was only perpetuated by strangers, and I naively believed that rape usually happened to drunken women on nights out and was committed by strangers. I now know differently."

Read the full story here.

Underworld plot to 'carve up' enemy criminal and 'kill his mum'

Criminals from Liverpool and Manchester conspired to have an enemy slashed inside the prison system.

Lewis Fitzpatrick was jailed yesterday (Monday) for 26 years after Liverpool Crown Court heard he was involved in the shooting of a 56-year-old man on his own doorstep. Fitzpatrick, 25, drove gunman Aaron Bretherton to carry out a shooting on Poplars Avenue in Warrington.

Bretherton fired three rounds at innocent David Barnes, causing him life changing injuries. Anthony Morris, aged 24, drove the van back to Liverpool.

READ MORE : EncroChat thug 'LimeEagle' set up pizza delivery driver shooting

Yesterday the court heard how Fitzpatrick, Bretherton and Morris followed the orders of a Manchester based gang boss. Liverpool drug dealers Alan and John Tobin also helped organise the violence.

The prosecution also revealed a separate plot to attack a man who was serving out a prison sentence. Alan Tobin asked a Manchester gang boss to organise an attack on a man named Alvin who was inside the prison system.

Phil Barnes, prosecuting, said the Manchester man asked Alan Tobin which jail Alvin was in. Alan replied: "He's put me and our kid in this f****** hole were in and caused us so much shit. I will owe you the world bro carve the c*** up."

Read the full report here.

On set of 1980s Brookside - 19 throwback photos of the Scouse soap's cast and crew

It's been 40 years since Brookside, one of the most iconic soaps on British TV, first hit our screens.

Affectionately known as Brookie, the show first launched in 1982 on Channel 4 and hit viewing figures of more than 6m by the time 1991 rolled around. For millions of people, life on Brookside Close was as much a part of their daily routine as what was happening outside their own front door.

Filled to the brim with over-the-top drama and wild storylines, it broke ground across the British TV landscape. Some of the most remembered story-lines include that kiss between Beth Jordache and Margaret Clemence, the incestuous love affair between brother and sister Nat and Georgia Simpson, and young lovebirds Damon Grant and Debbie McGrath.

READ MORE: City's 'last closed door' club where the 'who's who' of Liverpool partied

In 2003, the Liverpool-based soap was axed, seeing some of its stars go on to have glowing careers and others leave the limelight.

For beautiful, historic images from the past have a look at memorylane.co.uk/ and see what you can discover.

But these images, unearthed from our archives Mirrorpix and beyond, offer a glimpse into life on the set of the popular soap for TV fans.

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