Friday brief: Harshita Brella seen at Corby lake with suspected killer
It's the end of the working week - here's our news round up
Harshita Brella was seen with her abusive husband at Corby boating lake on the suspected night of her murder, Northants Police has revealed.
The force released more information yesterday evening, with new CCTV images of Harshita and her suspected killer Pankaj Lamba, 23, at the boating lake on Cottingham Road, Corby on the evening of Sunday, November 10. The lake is opposite Corby’s urgent care centre and is a busy route close to the town centre.
Police are appealing for anyone who may have been in the area in a three hour time window between 6pm and 9pm and possibly saw the pair or have dashcam footage to get in touch.
Searches have taken place in the area as part of the investigation.
The force, which has referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct due to its interactions with Harshita before her death, also gave out more information about her life before she was killed.
Assistant Chief Constable Emma James said:
“Following Harshita’s death, Northamptonshire Police reviewed the Force’s handling of an investigation which was launched following a domestic abuse allegation by Harshita Brella on August 29. The investigation was owned by a specialist detective from within the Domestic Abuse Investigation Team.
“Harshita was identified as being at high risk of domestic abuse and was immediately assigned an Independent Domestic Violence Advisor (IDVA). A referral was also made to the MARAC (Multi-Agency Risk Assessment Conference), sharing information with partners and collectively formulating a safety plan. Harshita was placed in a refuge and visited and contacted by officers on a number of occasions throughout the investigation.
“The alleged perpetrator was identified, quickly arrested and bailed with conditions.
“Northamptonshire Police actively sought and obtained a Domestic Violence Protection Notice (DVPN) and a Domestic Violence Protection Order was authorised at Northampton Magistrates Court on September 5 which remained in place for 28 days whilst the investigations continued against the alleged perpetrator.
“This case has been referred for a Domestic Homicide Review which will seek to identify any learning.”
Northants Police believe Harshita, who is from Delhi and moved to England with her husband in April following an arranged marriage, was killed on Sunday November 10 and her dead body transported by her killer to East London. The car was found on Thursday morning, although it was not until two days later that police released any details.
The force has had a tight control on the information it has released and has not been answering questions from journalists, citing operational reasons. NN Journal has asked how detectives think Lamba left the country and where he has fled to, but has not had an answer. An international manhunt is taking place.
Anyone with information can contact the incident room by calling 101, quoting Operation Westcott. Alternatively, information can be submitted via our online public portal at www.mipp.police.uk, where dashcam or other camera footage can also be uploaded. People can also call Crimestoppers, in confidence, on 0800 555111.
News in brief
West Northamptonshire Council may have to write off £2m due to scrapped building projects run by its failing housing company. A report by its auditors Grant Thornton says:
“There is an emerging financial pressure in the Housing Revenue Account in Northamptonshire Partnership Homes have advised the council that the 0.4m pressure previously reported is more likely to be nearer to £2m, due mainly to increased repairs and maintenance costs. The council also anticipates having to write off £2m of costs incurred on capital projects which were managed by NPH, but which will now not proceed and cannot be capitalised.”
NN Journal has asked the council for full details of the cancelled projects. The projects were scrapped due to a lack of expertise in NPH and the council will now take over any new house building schemes.
A council has backed plans to build a new 73-bed care home within a large residential extension to a Northamptonshire town.
Towcester Care Limited applied for permission to build the facility, which will be principally used for dementia care, as part of the 3,000-home residential development to the south of the market town. The care home site will be located on a prominent corner of Redcar Road and Long Morris, which is next to the new primary school and mixed-use centre.
The plans went to West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) on Tuesday (November 19) for approval. Blueprints indicate the care facility will be three storeys tall, with an outdoor residents’ garden, ambulance drop off area and car parking.
Each of the 74 resident rooms will have their own ensuite bathrooms and a communal lounge and dining facility will be located on each floor to create smaller homely groups.
Speaking on behalf of the applicant, planning agent Bob Woollard said:
“This project represents a significant step forward towards delivering a much-needed care and support for some of the most vulnerable members of our community.
“This facility’s more than just a building, it’s designed to be a true home for its residents. It aims to provide a safe, comfortable and dignified environment for elderly residents, ensuring they receive the best possible care in later life.”
In total, the home will provide 27 parking spaces, including 3 EV charging bays, 3 disabled bays and an ambulance bay. Towcester Town Council lodged an objection to the project on the basis that the parking provision was “nowhere near sufficient” for the care home, resulting in potential traffic congestion and on street-parking.
The council’s highways department reported that the provision was at the rate of other similar-sized developments and said that calculations showed it would have sufficient space, particularly as residents wouldn’t have their own vehicles.
In addition to providing care home spaces for elderly residents, the facility will also create around 75 full-time equivalent jobs for people moving into the new residential extension. The plans were unanimously approved by the WNC strategic planning panel.
Report by Nadia Lincoln, local democracy reporter
A former care home, a pocket park and several unused buildings will all be sold off by WNC as it looks to shrink its estate and raise funds.
The authority said it would be “beneficial” to dispose of the seven sites to reduce maintenance costs and secure better uses of land for local communities. It explains that there is a risk of vandalism and financial impacts of holding a property empty if nothing is done.
The sites that are on the chopping block include former care home Ridgway House in Towcester, seven acres of land in Dallington Grange earmarked for 100 affordable homes, and a brownfield site directly behind the Mereway Ambulance Station which used to house a base for the Museum of London Archaeology.
Cabinet member for finance, Cllr Malcolm Longley described the disposals as a “tidying up of the portfolio”.
The report outlines proposals to dispose of a number of non-operational buildings and small parcels of land that have no identified use by the authority. Where capital receipts would be generated, these would aid the WNC’s ability to fund capital works or transformational revenue work.
The Riverside Resource Centre in Towcester won’t be sold on by the council despite it pulling its adult day care facilities from the building. Instead, it will be classified as a building for community use for groups such as the Community Larder and only a small detached building on the site will be thrown out of the portfolio.
WNC also went into private session to discuss the sale of a brownfield site which is currently in its ownership. The exact location of this has been kept confidential within council documents, but members did reveal that the land is in Daventry.
Cllr Adam Brown, Leader of WNC, said:
“We’re always reviewing what assets are best had by the council and what can be better managed by parish or town councils. It’s not a responsible approach to taxpayers’ money just to sit on an asset, particularly if it costs money to maintain it, if it could be realised for a better purpose.”
Report by Nadia Lincoln
Northampton Town Council has moved the Christmas lights switch on back a week due to the weather. The town centre lights will now be started up on Saturday, November 30 instead of tomorrow. The event will be held between midday and 6pm.
A Reclaim the Night march is taking place tonight in Northampton. The meet time is 6pm at the Coop in Barry Road and will head to the Market Square for a vigil.
Would be helpful if the sub-editor clarifys which council is being referred to when multiple councils involved.
Towcester Care Homes : Planning for one being contested and the WNC disposing of a redundant one. Makes sense, perhaps ?
It is disappointing that WNC cannot do what was intended for the land at Dallington Grange and actually build the affordable homes.
There is a massive demand for such homes which it seems the private sector developers cannot or will not build as it is far more profitable to construct 4 and 5 bedroom homes instead.
As there is an election due next year for the council surely this should be an issue that one party could decide to stand on and if elected go ahead and build.