In The News

Former British government minister Ann Widdecombe (78) was found dead at her home in rural southwest England last Thursday with what police described as “serious injuries”.

On Friday, local police gave a press conference laying out what they knew noting they did not suspect a political motive for her death. By Monday all that had changed. British counter-terrorism police officers are now leading the investigation.

Late on Saturday they arrested a white British man in Rotherham, northern England, on suspicion of her murder. He was then rearrested under anti-terrorism legislation although how a terrorism link was established has yet to be revealed.

Widdecombe, as well has being a politician was a British celebrity having appeared on blockbuster TV shows including Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Big Brother.
She was a prominent and active member of Nigel Farage’s populist Reform UK, having left the Conservatives after she stood down from ​parliament in 2010.

As a socially conservative, devout Catholic, what were her political beliefs and why she was a divisive figure?

And with her violent death now being treated as politically motivated, security for UK politicians is under increased scrutiny.

Irish Times London correspondent Mark Paul reports.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.
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After three days of deliberations, the jury in the inquest into the death of Belfast teenager Noah Donohoe could not reach a verdict. They had sat in court hearing evidence for six months.

His death six years ago has been one of the most high-profile cases in Northern Ireland in recent years, with conspiracy theories swirling on social media driving controversy and speculation.

How did Noah die? What were the jurors tasked with deciding? How did the PSNI describe their search for the teenager, whose body was found six days after he went missing? And what happens now in an inquest many have repeatedly called “unprecedented”?

Seanín Graham, Irish Times Northern correspondent, was at Belfast Coroner’s Court for the verdict.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan, with research by Ellen Clusker.
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Online gambling on black-market betting sites is big business. One company, Soft2Bet, which has been licensed in Ireland since 2022, and its related entities received €600 million from dozens of offshore casinos that regulators in Europe had blacklisted or fined.

For gamblers using some of these sites, it means few rules apply. Unauthorised betting sites deliberately target people with gambling addictions and ignore local gambling regulations, including age limits to protect young people.

While working on an investigation with cross-border journalism group Investigate Europe, Irish Times investigative reporter with The Irish Times, Mark Tighe discovered that Irish authorities granted gambling licences to six companies at the heart of this global network of black-market betting and casino websites.

One of the scheme’s newest websites, OnlySpins, a bookmaker and casino with pornographic content targeting Europeans, does not verify whether Irish users are over the age of 18 or provide checks on a customer’s identity.

He also discovered that two Irish companies were processing payments for Soft2Bet-linked unlicensed gambling sites operating in Europe.

Soft2Bet is led by Ukrainian-Israeli millionaire Uri Poliavich.

He joins In the News to explain how this investigation unfolded, what the activities of black market sites mean for vulnerable users and what the Irish authorities had to say.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and John Casey.
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The details presented in court in the trial of a Dublin man for the killing of Mackenzie Michalski (31) were harrowing.

The American nurse was travelling around Europe with friends and was on her last night in Budapest when, on November 4th, 2024, she met the 37-year-old man from Dublin in a bar.

Later they went back to his apartment where he killed her. The judge rejected his defence that Mackenzie had died during consensual “rough” sex.

Budapest-based journalist Bálint Dömötör has been in court for the trial and the verdict and he explains why, when the man has been found guilty, he still cannot be named.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan with research by Ellen Clusker.
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Hard-right leader Marine Le Pen announced her candidacy in France’s 2027 presidential campaign in typically dramatic fashion on French TV this week.

It came after an appeal court shortened her sentence for misappropriating European Parliament funds that had previously barred her from running. The court reduced the five-year ban on holding office to 45 months with 30 suspended, meaning that the suspension has already been served.

A four-year prison sentence was reduced to two years suspended and one year served outside prison with an electronic bracelet, while imposing a fine of €100,000.

Le Pen also announced that she would initiate another appeal, this time to France’s higher Court of Cassation, and that her sentence would not begin until after this final appeal is heard. Pending this appeal she is free to campaign without the electronic tag.

If Le Pen’s legal troubles had ruled her out of the presidential race, her party had a backup plan in 30-year-old MEP Jordan Bardella.

This will be her fourth run at the presidency. With France moving to the right, has her time finally come? Or will her legal difficulties ultimately mean that the charismatic Bardella will be the National Rally Party’s candidate?

Paris-based Irish Times Europe Correspondent Naomi O’Leary explains who Le Pen is and how her campaign will unfold in the coming months.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.
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