Thread: tony blairs id card scheme for the uk

maybe the uk aint so good afterall

By ALEX PEAKE

A DEVOTED dad collapsed and died after confronting yobs who laid siege to his home.
Yet two hours after a brain haemorrhage killed 56-year-old Terry Barrett, the gang was back outside his home, hurling insults at his devastated family.

Ex-builder Terry — registered disabled after injuring his back — stood firm against the louts during a sustained early-hours attack in which stones, eggs and a roadworks sign were thrown at his house.

He was the only man in his street to defy them. And his son Sam, 18, had become a target for their thuggery.

Yesterday his grieving daughter Kira, 17, described a tragic sequence of events in which:

TERRY chased the gang away several times from his home in Saltash, Cornwall.

POLICE were alerted three times between midnight and 2am — but failed to respond to the first call and were ineffective when they did turn up.

THE dad was found unconscious at the foot of the stairs as he continued to guard the semi-detached property.

Father-of-five Terry, who suffered from high blood pressure, was rushed to hospital but died at 3PM on Saturday. Doctors said his condition had been aggravated by the thugs’ siege, causing a blood vessel in his brain to burst.

At 5PM the gang returned to the Barretts’ home to shout abuse at the family.

This time three youths, two aged 14 and a 15-year-old, were arrested by cops on suspicion of affray.


But the younger pair were released without charge. The third was bailed until August.

Terry’s wife Jane, 52, said yobs had caused “hassle” in the neighbourhood for years.

She added: “If there was ever any trouble, Terry always went out and dealt with it. He would say, ‘Leave these people alone — they’re not hurting you.’ It’s always very noisy here. Kids get drunk and cause trouble.

“Terry was very strong. He’d help anybody and defended his family to the last.”

Jane blasted the police response, saying: “If they’d come on that first call it might have been enough for those boys to stay away from here.

“They came on the second call but didn’t come into the house. They just spoke to Terry outside and the kids ran away and hid in gardens. The police couldn’t find them.”

Kira told how big trouble erupted a fortnight ago.

She said: “A group of lads gave Sam a real kicking for no reason in our garden. He had his glasses kicked off and got cut and bruised.”

The daughter said the yobs returned just after midnight on Saturday — and launched their assault by cracking the front door with the road sign.

Despite Terry’s sporadic pursuits, the gang kept up the attack until 2.30am.

Kira said: “The last time he walked slowly towards them. They were walking backwards, shouting and swearing and saying they were going to kick Sam’s head in.”

The daughter added: “Dad sent my mum and brother to bed. He asked Mum if she was all right and said he loved her.

“Then he told my brother he loved him. Then he went downstairs to make sure those boys didn’t come back.

“After about five minutes there was a big bang on the floor and my brother found him collapsed on the floor.

“He was taken to hospital. I watched him die.”

Elderly neighbour Ray Standlick told how Terry always supported him when he had arguments with thugs.

Mr Standlick said: “The behaviour of those kids was disgusting. I wanted to hit them with my walking stick but my wife wouldn’t let me.”

Police said: “The circumstances of this tragedy illustrate the unforeseen consequences which can arise from acts of anti-social behaviour.”