Local News
Issue 1088
Call 0114 283 1100
21st November 2019
www.looklocal.org.uk
3
Trio jailed for Fox Hill shooting
Pictured L-R: Benjamin Zvekare, Henry Besong, Yakeef Murphy
THREE men are now serving over 30 years behind bars for their part in a shooting, which left a man requiring reconstructive surgery. Just after 11pm on Tuesday February 26, Benjamin Zvekare, Henry Besong, and Yakeef Murphy, all 21, travelled to Fox Hill Road, Sheffield, with a view to executing a planned, targeted attack against a man at his home address. The victim, a 54-year-old man, was at home with his partner at the time, when he answered the door to Zvekare and Besong. Besong was carrying a sawn-off shotgun, which had he been hiding in his clothing. He pointed the gun at the victim,
firing toward him at close range, leaving him with a shotgun wound to his right arm. The two men then fled, leaving in a car parked nearby, with Murphy as the driver. The victim was taken to hospital where he underwent reconstructive surgery and it still remains unclear as to where he will ever regain full use of his arm. An investigation was immediately launched, which ultimately led to the three suspects being identified and a firearm and large quantities of drugs being removed from the streets of Sheffield.
Detective Inspector Lee Nesbeth, investigating, said: “Within just two days we had identified the three men as suspects and put plans in place to arrest them. “On Friday March 1, firearms officers executed a warrant at a house in the Broom area of Rotherham, in connection to the incident, and where we believed the three offenders would be. “Zvekare, Besong and Murphy were all arrested after they tried to flee the premises. A search of the house saw officers recover a bloodied sawn-off shotgun, ammunition and a quanitiy of Class A and B drugs valued at over £35,000.”
The three men appeared before Sheffield Crown Court on Friday 8 November where pleaded guilty to the following offences, and jailed. Besong, of Cromarty Close, Sinfin, Derby, was sentenced to 13 years imprisonment for possession of a firearm and causing grevious bodily harm. Zvekare, of St John’s Road, Edlington, Doncaster, was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment for possession with intent to supply cocaine, heroin and cannabis. Murphy, of Cockayne Street, Derby, was sentenced to 6 years for posses-
sion of a firearm and possession with intent to supply cannabis. DI Nesbeth added: “I personally welcome the custodial sentence given to all three offenders by the judge and I hope that through this result, local communities can be rest assured that South Yorkshire Police will relentlessly pursue those criminals who arm themselves to commit offences. “The investigation also resulted in a firearm and ammunition, as well as a large quantity of Class A drugs being taken off the streets, a hugely positive outcome for the investigative team and the public of Sheffield.”
DIG UNCOVERS VILLAGE’S HIDDEN HERITAGE AN archaeological dig at Elsecar this summer has uncovered a forgotten and major part of the Elsecar New Colliery and its Newcomen Engine, the world’s oldest surviving steam engine in its original location.
The globally significant engine was built by the Earl Fitzwilliam of Wentworth Woodhouse in the 1790s, to pump water out of the Elsecar New Colliery, Elsecar’s first deep coal mine. The community dig, which took place in July as part of the Festival of British Archaeology, aimed to find anything that might be left of the engine’s former power house, thought to have been demolished in the 1930s. The results are astounding.
An early Victorian boilerhouse was discovered hidden underground, and a deep stoking hole where generations of villagers shovelled coal, day and night. Forty local volunteers and 125 students from local schools worked to make the exciting discovery over two weeks, with the support of professional archaeologists from ArcHeritage and staff from Barnsley Museums. The dig was carried out as part of the Elsecar Heritage Action Zone and the Wentworth & Elsecar Great Place project. Special permission for the dig was needed from Historic England, as the Elsecar Newcomen Engine is a scheduled ancient monument.
A public event is being held at the Elsecar Heritage Centre on Thursday November 21, between 6pm and 8pm, to reveal much more about what was found during the dig, as well as showcasing new art work created during the excavation. The event is free, but tickets need to be booked in advance via Eventbrite. Lynn Dunning, Head of Barnsley Museums, said: “We’re so pleased that so many local people have been involved in these exciting new discoveries, which have transformed how we understand Elsecar’s Great Engine, not just as a feat of engineering, but also in terms of what it was like for the people who worked here.”
