BREAKING: 24-year-old man kidnapped from inner city area, held hostage for several days inside city address and dumped in roadside with injuries to his hands, head and feet
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Stephanie Balloo
@JournoBalloo
Real Life Editor at & Birmingham Mail. Specific interest in DV, RTCs, crime & injustice. DMs open/stephanie.balloo@reachplc.com. Views my own.
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Four men have been arrested for kidnap. They have been bailed by police while investigations continue
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BCC has vowed to help family after mum spoke out on struggles in mouldy, damp home
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Gangs loiter in large groups on residents' gardens, verbally abuse them and trash their ornaments. Here, locals prepare for the worst, with CCTV and weapons in their doorways. This is the bleak reality in crime hotspot of Birmingham's most deprived area
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Her story came as NHS England revealed 4.6million women aged 25 - 64 have never been screened for cervical cancer or are not up to date with tests. Since Danielle's diagnosis, she has launched a petition to lower the age of smears in the UK -
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Danielle shared "raw" photos just two weeks after having part of her vagina, womb, cervix and tubes removed. She opened up on the two tragic miscarriages that led to her smear tests - and subsequent cancer diagnosis
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The escort opened up on how a childhood trauma left her craving control back as a 17-year-old illegally selling sex to 'Sugar Daddies'. She also spoke of her spiralling drug addiction, the dehumanisation of sex workers and what it's like to work in B'ham
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Diane Cash still has the tinned Cod Roe they were due to eat the night he was killed in April 2019. "It never came out the cupboard, I couldn't use it and I couldn't throw it away either"
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So heart-breaking to hear of Barry's tragic death on a "dangerous" road. Kettle on & dinner planned, the mum expected her 'soul mate' back from work any minute on the fateful day. Sadly, he died instantly as he was thrown under a lorry on his way home... birminghammail.co.uk/black-country/
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As I visited the city's 'gang border' where a boy, 13, was shot, I was told "round here, it's a whole different ball game". One local said gangs have "one rule for one person and another for everyone else and if you don't stick by it, you're f*****"
birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-
Campaigners have been pressing for the city council to declare a housing emergency for months - now they have. Next step is to find out what this really means & what urgent action can be done by right now to help anxious tenants
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Well-known cut through plagued by violence and sexual offences, robberies, drugs and possession of weapons - according to latest stats
Pain so severe the skin cannot be touched, the feeling of walking on nails and a burning sensation likened to a lighter held to the foot. This is the reality of a dangerous trend medics say is 'plaguing' Birmingham
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Two men have been remanded in custody after their court appearance
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A sex attack was reported in May...police have now issued an appeal
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Lucy Harrison woke up one Christmas morning with her brother Peter in a morgue after he was killed by a speeding motorist. I can only hope these harrowing stories serve as a warning to drivers to slow down. This could be your brother, daughter, dad...
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Mandy Gayle's father Hopton was killed crossing the street. A speeding driver ploughed into him, leaving him "dead before he hit the road", his daughter told me in a heart-breaking interview. This tragedy, she warned, could have happened to anyone
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Among those was Clare Rice, who joined after her 'caring and sociable' daughter Paige was fatally injured in a head-on collision. This was the 21-year-old on her final Christmas before she sadly died in the 98mph crash...
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Over the Christmas period, I spoke to four bereaved families who had lost loved ones in road crash tragedies. As the NY comes in, they will still be in their thoughts, never to be forgotten
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Exclusive: Our freedom of information request uncovered the number of paramedic callouts to female assault victims in 'red light strip' dubbed a 'risky area for women'. A student, who lives in City Rd, previously told how she was harassed & stalked there
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He is fighting for his life in hospital after being struck by a Mercedes driver late on New Year's Eve. Our thoughts are with him and his family at this very difficult time
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I'm very excited about this newsletter and incredibly proud to be part of this amazing team. Please have a read and find out more about what we do here: shorturl.at/mowzI
Featuring foreword by and some words from and I 💙
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Krystian Debski died after a fatal stabbing in Handsworth - a man has now been charged with his murder
Police warned the disturbing case was not an easy read, but necessary to make the public aware of the "lengths predators will go to"
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Her heartbroken mum warned of more deaths from addiction if nothing is done to address the stigma - and improve mental health services. She told us: "Nobody chooses to be an addict, nobody chooses that lifestyle. Addiction shows no discrimination to class, colour or creed"
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Much-loved Hannah Hathaway sadly died after struggling to access mental health support during the pandemic. Both 'beautiful and intelligent', the young personal trainer suffered in a vicious circle of addiction...
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Inside house branded 'danger to life' as mum begs for help
Josh and have been everything a local journalist should be since tragedy struck Solihull - thorough and hard-working but moreover caring and empathetic. Still heartbroken by it but I’m proud of literally every second my staff have spent on this.
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Flowers, prayers and a community in mourning - my final dispatch on a horrific day none of us will ever forget @birmingham_live @my_solihull birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-
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Utterly heart-breaking tribute from the family here - there are no words. RIP boys💙
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There doesn’t feel like a good time to share this given the story we’ve all been covering this week, but I’m so pleased to have been shortlisted for Young Journalist of the Year at The Regional Press Awards #RegionalPressAwards [1/2]
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Every parent should "be aware", watch out for the symptoms of Strep A and scarlet fever and know whether to call 111, their GP, 999 or take their child to A&E, Dr Cleary told us
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Our is nominated for Young Journalist of the Year. I think it is safe to say everyone in my newsroom thinks he deserves this. He's blown us all away with his talent and dedication since joining - not least his coverage of the Solihull lake tragedy.
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So proud of my colleagues, especially who works tirelessly, and genuinely cares so much, for those in his community. So well deserved, wishing everyone the best of luck for the day
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Just going through this but loads of @birmingham_live nominations in what is the Oscars for the news industry. Not least the magnificent @joshsandiford_ and @JournoBalloo and @JaneRockHouse for her campaigning.
thepressawards.com/shortlist-regi
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There's a couple of days left to buy something from our #brumwish list in time for us to get it delivered to a little one who might otherwise wake up on Christmas day to nothing.
If you can, help, here's the link...
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Our final thoughts as we leave the cordon at Babbs Mill tonight awaiting news of fourth little boy🙏🏽
Credit also to and my brilliant colleagues on a tough day
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"It may take her a day, it may take two days, but this is it now, it's time up for Marwah."
it's always a true privilege to attend a wish, but this one was particularly special. thank you so much for covering marwah's magical day 💙✨
birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-
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