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Local News
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Local News in English is researched, written and read by Mark Weedon.
ARA City Radio is not a news gathering service, but gets its local news from various legitimate sources.
If you have a news story worth reporting then send the story to us at aracity@pt.lu
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Tuesday 9th February 2010
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LISTEN TO
THE LOCAL NEWS
POST OFFICE ROW
Post
office management and unions are at loggerheads of plans to reform the
organisation. Negotiations broke down
yesterday nearly as soon as they started, with unions saying that management
are proposing a salary structure which starts barely above the minimum
wage. Management representatives walked
out of the talks after the unions made their proposals. The talks are taking place against the
backdrop of a planned privatisation of the post office.
BERLIN WALL
A
part of the former Berlin
wall has gone on exhibition in Schengen.
It was donated by the Sony center in Berlin and will stand in front of the
European Information Centre in the heart of the village. One side of the concrete block carries a
mural of a woman painted on the West German side of the wall at some time in
the 1960s. The other side, which was
originally on the East German side, carries graffiti added after the end of
communist rule there in 1989. Schengen
is celebrating the 25th anniversary this year of the treaty signed
there to remove border controls in Europe with
a series of events themed around frontiers.
BODY FOUND IN ESCH
A
36 year old woman was discovered dead in a house in Esch on Sunday night. An autopsy is being carried out to determine
the cause of her death. A major forensic
investigation is also underway in the house on the Boulevard JF Kennedy where
her body was found. Investigators say
they will await the outcome of the post-mortem before commenting further on the
case.
GUNS STOLEN
Two
handguns have been stolen from a house in Bridel. The burglars struck on Sunday, getting in by
forcing open a terrace door. They then
forced open a security cupboard where the guns were stored. The stolen guns are a Walther P99 and a P38.
DMITRI SKOTNIKOV
A
sixteen year old from Esch who went missing over a week ago has been
found. Police gave no details as to
where Dmitri Skotnikov turned up, saying
simply that he was now at home with his family again.
BILTGEN SEEKS TO REASSURE PUBLIC
SECTOR
Francois
Biltgen says public sector salary reforms will not be on the agenda at this
year’s tripartite negotiations. This
year, the tripartite negotiations will focus on competitiveness, the job market
and reducing the government defecit. The minister of justice and head of the
CSV said the process of public sector reform would run in parallel,
however. Mr Biltgen said any salary
reforms for public employees would be at the level of starting salaries and
career progressions. Public sector
unions have recently voiced concerns that their members could be the ones who
now bear the brunt of the government’s economies.
DOG RESCUE
The
fire service rescued a stranded dog at the week-end. It had got stuck half way down a cliff in the
Rollingergrund, and had ended up taking refuge in a small cave. Walkers noticed at and called the fire
service, who were able to reach the dog with their ladders. The dog was unharmed by its ordeal.
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Monday 8th February 2010
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LISTEN TO
THE LOCAL NEWS
AUTOFESTIVAL
Garage
owners say they saw no hangover from last year’s recession in this year’s
Autofestival. Demand was particularly
stronger for smaller greener cars, but the president of the local car dealers
association, Ernst Pirsch, says sales in all sectors were satisfactory. He added that cheap financing terms from the
banks created some of the best conditions ever for buying a new car. Last year, new car registrations fell by 9%
in the Grand Duchy, but Mr Pirsch says that this year’s provisional sales
figures are comfortably above last years.
ANIMAL ABUSER IN TETANGE
For
the second time in a matter of weeks a cat has been attacked in Tetange. Yesterday morning the cat was found after
being shot with an air gun. It is now
recovering after treatment at a vet. Two
weeks ago another cat had to be treated after being beaten with a stick. Police are appealing for information to find
the perpetrator.
GERMAN ATTACK ON BANKING SECRECY
German
magazine Der Spiegel says German Tax authorities have recently been offered
lists of German citizens keeping secret bank accounts here in Luxembourg. Germany
and Switzerland
are currently at loggerheads after German authorities said they would consider
paying for stolen client details from Swiss banks. Now there are reports that tax investigators
in Bavaria
may have been offered client details from here.
Tax inspectors would neither confirm or deny the reports.
RAILWAY DEATH
The
railway line between Ettelbruck and Mersch had to be closed on Saturday morning
following an accident. A train ran over
a man who was on the track around 300m from the level crossing at Essen. The man, who was a local, died on the
spot.
KNIFE ATTACK
A
knife-wielding robber attacked a delivery truck driver in the early hours of
Saturday morning in Esch. He climbed
into the cab of the vehicle and tried, but failed to steal the driver’s coat
before fleeing. The driver got out and
gave chase, but the robber turned back and stabbed him in the stomach. The attacker is described as being young,
tall, of African heritage and dressed like a rapper.
ROAD SAFETY VIGILANTES
Three
men beat up a motorist on the A13 motorway late on Saturday. They forced him to stop near Bascharage by
overtaking him and blocking him. They
then wrenched his car door open and pulled him out, beating him up and leaving
him on the verge. The victim told the
police they seemed to be upset about something wrong with his brake
lights. The police have not been able to
trace the attackers.
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Friday 5th February 2010
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LISTEN TO
THE LOCAL NEWS
CHILD RESCUES POISONED RESIDENTS
8
residents of Eishcen can thank an 8 year old girl for saving their lives. They had been poisoned by a carbon monoxide
leak, thought to have been caused by a faulty gas oven. The girl called the rescue services late on
Wednesday night when 6 people in the house fell unconscious. 3 of the victims are in a critical condition
in hospital in Esch, with one’s life still in danger.
ABUSER JAILED
A
48 year old man has been sentenced to 13 years in prison, of which 7
suspended, for sexually abusing a young
girl. He abused the daughter of his
ex-girlfriend over a number of years.
During the trial, both the accused and the victim gave contradictory
evidence. In sentencing the man, judge Prosper Klein granted the wishes of the
prosecution fully.
NO FLOODS
Water
levels have been going up in the rivers of the Grand Duchy thanks to the recent
thaw. But experts say there is no cause
for alarm, despite the River Mosel near Stadtbredimus rising at a rate of 6cm
an hour yesterday. It’s thought the
rivers have now peaked, and there is no risk of any towns being flooded. But a couple of places did have a close
shave, with levels peaking less than ½ meter below the critical level.
COUNCIL WIELDS AXE AT CATHEDRAL
The
city council has started to cut back its spending. This week it’s postponed planned renovations
to the cathedral. The choir room was
scheduled for a make-over this year right after the National Day
celebrations. But the council probably
won’t be able to take a decision on financing the work until after this year’s
local elections.
FARM FIRE AT CHRISTNACH
A
huge fire at a farm in Christnach has destroyed a barn full of hay and several
surrounding buildings. Over 40 firemen
and women were needed to get it under control.
No one was hurt in the blaze. The
fire started early yesterday afternoon, and the cause of it is as yet not
known.
WHEN COWS ATTACK…..
And
in a bad week of farmers, a woman had to be treated for injuries to her chest
and shoulder caused by one of her cows.
The 600kg beast panicked and ran over the top of her as she was trying
to back it into a stall. The cow took
leave of its senses at around midnight on Wednesday in Eshdorf.
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Thursday 4th February 2010
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LISTEN TO
THE LOCAL NEWS
MISSING GIRL FOUND
Mandy
Lamesch, the girl from Esch who’s been missing since Friday has turned up. She walked into the police station next to
the station in the capital. Police now
say they don’t think she was accompanied by another missing teenager, Dmitri
Skot-nik-ov, who is also from Esch. The
search for him is continuing.
POSSIBLE CARJACKERS ARRESTED
Police
say they have caught two men in connection with a carjacking in Bascharage last
week. They took the car from a woman in
a supermarket carpark by threatening her with a gun. The stolen car was spotted in Esch yesterday,
but failed to stop for the police. They
had to chase it for a distance, during which it collided with two other
vehicles. A third man is still being
sought in connection with the crime.
RONALD JANSSEN
Trier
police say they have been unable to find any connection between the
disapperarnce of student Tanya Graeff in 2007 and a man held in Belgium on
suspicion of committing a series of murders.
There had been rumours that Ronald Janssen might have been responsible
for Tanja’s disappearance, so the Belgium and German police co-operated to see
if it could be proved. Janssen is
suspected of committing a string of murders and rapes in Belgium and
neighbouring countries, possibly dating back to the 1990s.
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Wendesday 3rd February 2010
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LISTEN TO
THE LOCAL NEWS
MISSING MAN’S BODY FOUND
The
body of a man who was reported missing on Monday has been found. Alain Wagner was lying dead in the woods near
Kirchberg and his discovery followed an intensive search of the area by the
police. Police say they can already rule
out foul play, but an autopsy will now be conducted to determine exactly why he
died.
TRAIN STRIKE TODAY
A
strike by French Railway employees means that some trains between Luxembourg
and France will be disrupted today.
Trains to and from Metz, Nancy and Longwy are the most likely to be
affected. The TGV trains to Paris are
not affected by the industrial action.
LUXAIR CRASH INVESTIGATION
CONCLUDES AFTER 7 YEARS
8
former and current employees of Luxair could now face charges stemming from a
plane crash in 2002. The pilot, who was
only one of two survivors of the crash, and 7 colleagues have been investigated
by magistrates examining the case. State
prosecutors will now decide if they should face charges. The investigation has been plagued by delays
caused by its technical nature and even disagreements between the
investigators. The crash of a Luxair
Fokker 50 on its approach to Findel Airport claimed the lives of 20 passengers
and crew back in November 2002.
PECHERTEN SUPPORT NEW LEGISLATIVE
PROPOSALS
The
trade union representing traffic wardens, or Pecherten as they are known here,
says its members could play a vital broader role in policing. The government has wanted to extend their
powers to cover minor criminality such as vandalism for some time. But the council of state recently rejected
the government’s proposals. Pecherten
representatives from the FGFC public sector workers union yesterday urged the
government to continue to push the legislation through. They pointed to the success of legislation
extending the powers of traffic wardens in Switzerland, freeing up the police
to deal with more serious crime.
FORGED CREDIT CARD HAUL
Police
found a pile of forged credit cards in a car at the Aire de Berchem on
Monday. They’d stopped the car initially
to check for drugs. The two occupants of
the car, which was registered in italy, have been taken into custody. Police said all the fake credit cards were
capable of use immediately by the thieves.
FIRE IN THE PALACE
The
was a fire in the Royal Palace yesterday afternoon. Part of the building had to be evacuated
while the fire brigade tackled the blaze.
The cause of it was a broken washing machine in the basement of the
building. The fire caused little damage
but heavy clouds of smoke meant the fire brigade had to use breathing apparatus
to get into the cellar.
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Tuesday 2nd February 2010
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LISTEN TO
THE LOCAL NEWS
NUCLEAR WASTE PROBLEM
A
consignment of radioactive waste from the power station at Cattenom has been
seized by the authorities. It has been
impounded in the French town of Aube
while it is made safe. The authorities
said there was no health risk to the public from the incident.
MARTELANGE EVACUATED
Residents
of Martelange had to evacuate their homes yesterday afternoon while
investigators searched for a gas leak.
Staff in a local bank noticed the smell of gas at around luchtime and
called in the gas company. The source of
the leak was eventually located near the main road, but only after a 4 hour
search. The main road through Martelange
was closed during the search and drivers faced lengthy detours via Arlon and Bastogne.
WE WILL NEVER KNOW
The
Police say their helicopter was not called to track down a man who stole a
shell suit in Ingeldorf at the week-end.
Reports in the media caused uproar at the cost of using a helicopter for
such a small theft. According to the
police, the helicopter was in the area anyway on other business so they
deployed it at only a marginal cost. The
police did not however reveal why they had the helicopter out in the area in
the first place however.
MANDY AND DMITRI
It’s
now been revealed that the 12 year old girl from Esch who went missing on
Friday may have run off with a friend.
As of yesterday there was still no trace of 12 year old Many
Lamesch. It’s thought she may have run
off with 16 year old Dmitri Skot-Nik-Ov, also from Esch, who went missing at
around the same time. Mandy is about
1.55m tall with brown shoulder length hair.
She’s wearing a dark hooded jacket and dark trousers. Dmitri is about 1.80 tall and slim. He is wearing a blue hooded jacket and baseball
cap and dark trousers. He may well be
carrying a sports bag. If you come
across either of these two young people, please contact the police.
And
police are also looking for a 35 year old man who has gone missing, Alain Wagner has close cropped brown hair and
is about 1.72m tall. He was last seen
wearing a brown tracksuit in the area around Kirchberg and Grunewald.
RESCUE SERVICES GOING PROFESSIONAL
Work
started full-time yesterday for 13 rescue service personnel attached to the
ambulance service. This is the first
stage of the move to a semi-professional ambulance and fire service throughout
the country. All those starting work
have been in the ambulance service for some time. It’s hoped that the rescue services will from
now on be a mixture of senior professionals and volunteers.
LIICHTEN
It’s
the feast of St Blaise today or Candelmas. There’s a local tradition that
children go out with lanterns this evening and sing songs on doorsteps. The point is that they are wishing you good
health for the rest of the year and you are supposed to reciprocate with sweets
or money. Modern children are likely to
be rather disappointed if you hand out bacon and peas, which is actually what
their asking for in the song.
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Monday 1st February 2010
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LISTEN TO
THE LOCAL NEWS
CROSS COUNTRY SKIING
Cross
country ski pistes have been opened in the north of the county. There’s been as much as 30cm of snow up there
over the week-end. There are several
tracks prepared around the lake at Weiswampach, and they’re open from 10 in the
morning. The pistes start next to the
town hall car park. There is also a
piste in Hosingen, starting at the Ardennes
camp site. The only problem if there’s
more snow this week might be getting to them.
HOLLERICH ACCIDENT
There
will be no trial arising from a fatal accident in Hollerich a year ago. A four year old boy died when a driver ran
him down on a pedestrian crossing after going through a red light. The reason for the cancellation of the trial
is that the driver involved has now died from leukaemia.
TRACK UPGRADE
Reports
in the Belgian media say an accord has been signed to upgrade the rail link
between Brussels and Luxembourg. The aim is to allow Pendolino tilting trains
to run along the line, bringing the journey time between the two capitals down
to just over 2 hours. Eventually its
hope the trains will run all the way through to Strasbourg.
The reports didn’t give any hint as to the time frame for the project.
12 YEAR OLD MISSING
The
police would like to hear from anyone who has seen a 12 year old girl from Esch
who’s been missing since Friday. Mandy
Lamesch is about 1m55 tall with shoulder length brown hair. She was last seen wearing a dark track suit
bottoms, a white hoody and training shoes.
ZOUFFTGEN RAIL DISASTER
The
constitutional court says it will announce its verdict in March on the appeal
of the railway employees convicted over the Zoufftgen rail disaster. Six people died and 16 were injured in
October 2006 when a passenger train from Luxembourg
crashed head-on into a goods train from France. The convicted men say it is unconstitutional
that railway employees face stiffer penalties for negligence than other
workers. The state has argued that the
increased danger of operating a railway justifies the longer sentences.
HELICOPTER NAILS SHOPLIFTER
The
police helicopter was in action in Ingeldorf on Saturday afternoon. It was hunting down a man who’d stolen a
shell suit from a local shop. He had run
off after staff noticed him trying to smuggle the stolen gear out of the shop
in a black bag. He was eventually
tracked down hiding behind a hedge in a barnyard, and has facing charges of
shoplifting.
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Friday 29th January 2010
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LISTEN TO
THE LOCAL NEWS
CHILDREN ABUSED IN BONNEVOIE SCHOOL
State
prosecutors have started an investigation into child abuse at a school in
Bonnevoie. It’s alleged that children
were tied to their chairs by teachers at the Jean-Baptiste Gellé school last
year. The incidents took place in the
first part of last year, and the alleged abuse only came to light when a
whistleblower informed the council about it in October. The accused teachers have been banned from
looking after children on their own while the investigations are underway. The number of children involved and the
frequency of the abuse have not been revealed by the council or investigators.
BANK RAID IN STRASSEN
Two
robbers got away with a large sum of cash in Strassen yesterday. They raided a bank in Strassen and forced
customers to hand over money they had just withdrawn. The robbers fled in a dark green Citroen registered in France.
ASSELBORN AND ISRAEL
The
Israeli government has issued a response to Luxembourg foreign minister Jean
Asselborn. Mr Asselborn, at a meeting of
EU foreign ministers on Monday accused the Isreali Prime Minister of claiming
the West Bank for Israel in
perpetuity Mr Asselborn also said that
the West Bank was not part of Israel,
and that settlement construction there was the main obstacle to peace. Yesterday, the Israeli embassy here issued a statement
to the effect that the status of the occupied West Bank was not finalised, and
calling Mr Asselborn’s comments unhelpful.
MENINGITIS CASE
A
pupil at a school in Dudelange was diagnosed with meningitis on Wednesday
afternoon. Classmates at the primary
schools and their families have already been informed and given preventative
medicine. Meningitis is the inflammation
of the membrane around the brain and can be fatal if not treated promptly.
NEW HEALTH ARBITRATION SCHEME
The
National Ombudsman says he wants to set up an independent panel to arbitrate on
disputes between health service providers and patients. Marc Biwer said the new body could help
advise patients of their rights too. His
proposal is based on a system currently in operation in France. It would be legally incorporated so as to be
completely independent of the health service and patients rights groups.
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Thursday 28th January 2010
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LISTEN TO
THE LOCAL NEWS
VAN ROMPUY IN TOWN
Herman
van Rompuy, the new president of the European Council was here on an official
visit yesterday. He held meetings with
Mr Juncker to discuss the next meeting of EU heads of state on 11th
February. The two men have known each
other for over 20 years and the atmosphere at a press conference in the
afternoon was very friendly.
HUNT FOR DACOUGNA
The
police here say nothing from their investigations leads them to suspect that
the man wanted in connection with two murders in Hollerich on New Years Eve is
in Germany. According to the German press, the search for
Simon Rene Dacougna is focussed on the area around Wiesbaden.
Police here say they have no further information about his whereabouts
since he abandoned a green Dutch registered Jaguar here just after the
killings.
DECEMBER UNEMPLOYMENT REPORT
The
unemployment rate rose to 6.3% in December.
Nearly 15 000 people are out of work at the moment, an increase of
around 500 over the month. It’s also the
highest number of unemployed that has ever been recorded here. Over 3 300 people lost their jobs in 2009,
and if the number of people on job creations schemes is added in, over 18 000
are without proper jobs. 7000 workers at
112 companies are working short shifts at the moment, although this is a slight
drop from the previous month.
DROWNING TRIAL
The
prosecution in the case against 4 supervisors at a holiday camp in Belgium has
asked for an unusual judicial move. The
4 are accused of causing death by negligence when an 8 year old boy drowned on
a beach in Belgium last year.
Prosecutors have asked the court to reserve sentencing the accused, if they
are thought to be guilty, for 5 years.
The unusual move will allow the accused to be sentenced in five years
time, possibly even without punishment if convicted. They will also not have criminal records for
the moment. Observers say the move is
because all the accused are currently students or teachers.
FAKE OFFICIALS IN ESCH
Police
in Esch are warning residents to be on their guard against people impersonating
council officials. They’ve already tried
to get into several houses on the pretext of reading their water meters. They are asking householders to ask any
council officers who appear at their doors to show their official
identification, which by law they are all required to carry.
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Wednesday 27th January 2010
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THE LOCAL NEWS
PERCHERTEN LEGISLATION TO BE
REDRAFTED
Contrary
to reports earlier this week, the government is not going to back down over its
plans to giver greater powers to traffic wardens, or Pecherten as they are
known here. Interior minister Jean Marie
Halsdorf, and former justice minister Luc Frieden say they will redraft the
bill. The council of state raised 6
formal objections to the legislation when it was first presented to them. The government says it may now propose
incorporating the Pecherten into the police force to resolve some of the
objections raised by the Council of State.
CAR STOLEN AT GUNPOINT
A
man stole a car at gunpoint in Bascharage yesterday evening. The woman owner of the car handed it over
immediately when the robber pulled out a handgun. He drove the car off in the direction of
Schouweiler. The car is a black
Volkswagen golf registered as 69922.
HOLIDAY CAMP DEATH TRIAL
The
four supervisors charged in connection with the death of an 8 year old boy on a
holiday camp in Belgium
last year have pleaded not guilty. They
are accused of causing death through negligence. All four are young adults under the age of
25. Some were close to tears as they
gave their pleas to the court. The
prosecution alleges they took the children into the sea in dangerous weather
conditions. They also say the association
who organised the trip, Spyrolux, were irresponsible in allowing such young
people to look after children. Defence
lawyers said the supervisors had given up their holidays for only 290 euros in
pay and that Spirolux was not in a position to pay for professionally trained
staff.
CAPELLEN POWER CUT
Residents
of Capellen found themselves without electricity yesterday morning. Supplies were cut off at around 9 o’clock and
were not reconnected until after midday.
Yesterday, Enovos said they had not been able to isolate the cause of
the power failure yet. Around 1 300
people’s homes were affected.
DRUNK ARSONIST ARRESTED
A
man was arrested on Monday trying to set fire to a builders suppliers in
Ingeldorf. He was caught setting a stack
of newspapers in the toilet on fire with a tea light. According to the police, the man had been
drinking heavily.
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Tuesday 26th January 2010
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LISTEN TO
THE LOCAL NEWS
HOLIDAY CAMP DEATH CHARGES
4
supervisors have been charged in connection with the death of an eight year old
boy on holdiday in Belgium
last year. 5 supervisors were looking
after 24 children on a beach near Zeebrugge.
They let the boy out of their sight and he went into the sea and
drowned. The four supervisors face
charges of causing death through negligence.
PENSION REFORM ON THE CARDS
Social
security minister Mars di Bartolomeo says reform of the national pension system
is unavoidable. The minister says
changes in the population and economy are the driving forces for change. He proposes raising the levels of
contributions and requiring 40 years of work before pension eligibility
DIEKIRCH SAGA
An
online petition has started to try and block the closure of the Diekirch
brewery. By yesterday 700 people had signed
it. The petition is demanding a
parliamentary enquiry into the closure.
They want parliament to decide if the closure really is economically
necessary. .
THIEF CAUGHT RED HANDED
A
family from Esch captured a burglar they found in their apartment on Sunday
evening. The thief got into the house
through the front door, which had been left open. But the family returned to the apartment and
held him down unitl the police arrived.
The burglar was under the influence of drugs and didn’t put up a fight. He is now under arrest.
DOCTOR BEATS OFF ATTACKER
A
doctor in Schifflange managed to drive an armed robber from his surgery
yesterday. The attacker, who was in his
20s and armed with a baseball bat came into the surgery in the afternoon. He demanded the doctor hand over any cash he
had. But the doctor grabbed his baseball
bat and chased him out. The police are
still searching for the robber.
TROUBLE AT CLL
Huge
queues built up yesterday as students attempted to enrol in the next term of
language courses. Staff reported people
starting lining up at 7.30am. Tempers
frayed as people waited hours for an appointment to enrol on a course. Two men actually came to blows, and had to
be removed by the police. Several
people were in tears after being turned away.
The majority of the applicants were trying to get onto Luxembourgish
courses.
DACOUGNA IN GERMANY?
The
man being sought in connection with the double murder in Hollerich on New Years
Eve is now thought to be in Germany. Police in Wiesbaden have put up wanted posters for
Simon René Dacougna. It’s now thought
Dacougna fled from the scene of the crime in a green Jaguar registered in Holland. Dacougna is originally from the Paris area and an
international warrant for his arrest has been issued. It’s thought the motive for the killings was
a dispute over a drug deal.
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