Steve Scalise: Republican House whip shot and wounded

A top congressman was among five people wounded as a gunman sprayed bullets at Republican lawmakers during baseball practice in a Washington DC suburb.

House of Representatives Majority Whip Steve Scalise was expected to survive after the early morning attack at a park in Alexandria, Virginia.

Two police officers suffered non-life threatening bullet wounds as they fired back at the attacker.

Police said the gunman was among five people taken to hospital.

Latest updates

Alexandria police tweeted: "Suspect is in custody and not a threat."

The lawmakers were practising for the annual congressional ballgame scheduled to be played on Thursday at Nationals Park, home of Major League Baseball team the Washington Nationals.

Alexandria police said the FBI was taking over the investigation into the shooting, which began shortly after 07:00 (11:00 GMT) on Wednesday morning at Eugene Simpson Stadium Park.

'Killing field'

President Donald Trump said in a statement: "We are deeply saddened by this tragedy.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the members of Congress, their staffs, Capitol Police, first responders, and all others affected."

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Who is Steve Scalise?

• House Majority Whip, the number three Republican in Congress, responsible for vote gathering
• Elected to Congress in 2008 having previously served in the Louisiana state legislature
• He apologised for speaking to a white supremacist group during a campaign event in 2002
• Former leader of the ultraconservative Republican Study Group, which clashed frequently with party leadership
• He married his wife Jennifer in 2005 and they have two young children. They live in Jefferson, Louisiana

Mr Scalise was shot in the hip was said to be in a stable condition and "good spirits" as he was taken for surgery.

Senator Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, said someone had used a belt as a tourniquet on Mr Scalise.

Texas congressman Roger Williams' office said he himself was not shot, though one of his staff, legislative correspondent Zack Barth, was wounded in the attack.

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul told Fox News: "I do believe without the Capitol Hill police it would have been a massacre.

"We had no defence at all. The field was basically a killing field."

He said they were lucky that Mr Scalise was present because he has a security detail owing to his congressional seniority.

Mo Brooks, an Alabama Republican, told CNN he was on third base during the baseball game when he saw Mr Scalise, who was on second base, shot.

He said Mr Scalise had a bullet hole in his leg, but was saying: "I'm OK, I'm OK."

Mr Brooks said everyone on the field scattered as 50 to 100 shots were fired.

He said a gunfight had ensued between the shooter and the congressmen's police security detail, who were armed with pistols.

Mr Brooks said the gunman was armed with a rifle and was "blasting away" from behind the dugout, using it for protection.

The congressman, who said he took refuge behind a batting cage, described the attacker as a middle-aged white male, "a little on the chubby side".

Mr Brooks said congressmen Chuck Fleischmann, of Tennessee, Ron DeSantis, of Florida, and Jeff Duncan, of South Carolina, were among 15-25 lawmakers at the game.

Asked by a CNN host if the attack was deliberate, Mr Brooks replied: "Well, it sure as heck wasn't an accident!

"He was going after elected officials, congressmen."

Mr Brooks continued: "The only weapon I had was a baseball bat and that's not the kind of fight you want to engage in."

Ohio congressman Brad Wenstrup, who served in Iraq as a combat surgeon from 2005-06, provided medical care at the scene.

He told CNN the shooter eventually resorted to a pistol, having apparently used up all his rifle ammunition.

'A lot of ammo'

Arizona Senator Jeff Flake told reporters he was at bat during the shooting and the victims were "sitting ducks".

He said the attack had lasted for at least 10 minutes, adding: "He had a lot of ammo."

Mr Flake added: "There are two of his [Mr Scalise's security] detail were shot, one African-American gentleman shot in the leg and I believe he's the one that brought the shooter down.

"He ran around for quite a while with a leg wound, returning fire."

Alexandria Police Chief Michael Brown said his officers had responded and engaged the shooter within three minutes.

The last member of Congress to be targeted by a gunman was Democrat Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot in the head as she met constituents in Tucson, Arizona, in January 2011. She survived, but six others died in that incident.

Ms Giffords‏ tweeted on Wednesday: "My heart is with my former colleagues, their families & staff, and the US Capitol Police- public servants and heroes today and every day."

The top Republican in the House of Representatives, Speaker Paul Ryan, said "the hearts of the whole House" were with the victims.

One eyewitness was outraged that the gunman should have targeted a game known as the nation's pastime.

Noah Nathan told NBC News: "Baseball is America's game! You don't mess with baseball."

 BBC NEWS

London fire: Six killed as Grenfell Tower engulfed

At least six people have died after a huge fire raged through the night at a west London 24-storey tower block, and police expect that number to rise.

Eyewitnesses described people trapped in the burning Grenfell Tower, in north Kensington, screaming for help and yelling for their children to be saved.

Firefighters, who rescued many people, were called at 00:54 BST and are still trying to put out the fire.

Police say there may still be people in the building who are unaccounted for.

During the night, eyewitnesses said they saw lights - thought to be mobile phones or torches - flashing at the top of the block of flats, and trapped residents coming to their windows - some holding children.

It is understood that "several hundred" people would have been in the block when the fire broke out shortly after midnight, most of them sleeping.

Commander Stuart Cundy, of the Metropolitan Police, said the recovery operation would be "complex and lengthy", and the number of fatalities was expected to rise.

He declined to give any details of the number of people who may be missing.

He said it was likely to be some time before police could identify the victims, adding that it was too early to speculate on the cause of the fire.

An emergency number - 0800 0961 233 - has been set up for anyone concerned about friends or family.

More than 70 people have received treatment in hospital. At least 20 are known to be in a critical condition.

At 13:00 BST, Fire Commissioner Dany Cotton said firefighters expected to be on the scene for at least another 24 hours and she would not speculate about the cause of the blaze.

She said there were concerns that people were still inside the tower and she urged all residents to make sure they had reported themselves to police so that the authorities know they are safe.

Prime Minister Theresa May is "deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life", said Downing Street.

Meanwhile, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is to demand a government statement in Parliament on Thursday on the tragedy, the BBC understands.

Later, police and fire minister Nick Hurd will chair a cross-party meeting to look at how the government can assist the emergency services and local authorities.

Paul Munakr, who lives on the seventh floor, managed to escape.

"As I was going down the stairs, there were firefighters, truly amazing firefighters that were actually going upstairs, to the fire, trying to get as many people out the building as possible," he told the BBC.

He said he was alerted to the fire not by fire alarms but by people on the street below, shouting "don't jump, don't jump".

Eyewitness Jody Martin said: "I watched one person falling out, I watched another woman holding her baby out the window... hearing screams.

"I was yelling at everyone to get down and they were saying 'We can't leave our apartments, the smoke is too bad on the corridors.'"

• What we know so far
• Baby caught after being 'dropped to safety from tower'
• Latest updates as crews work on building
• Pictures from the scene
• Residents raised fire risk fears

Michael Paramasivan, who lives on the seventh floor with his girlfriend and young daughter, said he ignored official advice to stay in your home.

"If we had stayed in that flat, we would've perished. My gut instinct told me just to get the girls out. I wrapped the little one up because of the smoke and I just got them out."

Another resident, Zoe, who lives on the fourth floor, said she was woken by a neighbour banging on her door.

"The whole landing was thick with smoke. The smoke alarms weren't going off but the way it spread so quickly from the fourth floor, all the way up to the 23rd floor was scary."

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At the scene

 

By Lucy Manning, BBC News

They have lost their homes and for some, tragically their relatives.

At times there is the sound of sobbing as the word goes round that someone is missing, someone is feared dead.

I've spent the day inside the community centre where survivors have gathered.

Downstairs in the hall families sit at tables and wait for news.

One family told me they hadn't heard from their brother, sister and three children - Mirna, Fatima and Zainnb. Other relatives were out searching hospitals. There was still no news.

Outside the centre, Sawsan was with a group of women. For one it was too much, she was on the floor crying. Sawsan hasn't heard from her mum, sister, brother-in-law and nieces. She spoke to them when the fire started but nothing since.

Inside the centre, families are being helped with food, housing and medical treatment. It's busy and everyone is helping. Just not with the one thing they need - information about whether their relatives are safe.

Christabel told me how lucky her father had been. He tried to fight the fire but made it out alive.

Ed was saved when a friend called him to tell him to get out the building. "I'm lucky" he says. But they have lost everything.

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Grenfell Tower, built in 1974, is part of the Lancaster West Estate, a sprawling inner-city social housing complex of almost 1,000 homes.

Robert Black, chief executive of the tower's management company, the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation, said: "The fire at Grenfell Tower is devastating and the reports of injury and losses of life absolutely heartbreaking.

"Along with my colleagues, I have been supporting residents since the early hours, working with the emergency services and the community."

The BBC's Andy Moore, who was at the scene through the night, described watching debris falling from the building, and hearing explosions and breaking glass.

Grenfell Tower, North Kensington

• 120 flats
  
• 24 storeys
  
• 20 residential levels
  
• 4 community/podium levels
  
• 2016 refurbishment completed 
  
  
  
  
  The London Fire Brigade said a structural engineer had checked the building and determined it was not in danger of collapse and that rescue teams were safe to be inside.
  Initially, it was feared that the building, which appears to be gutted, could collapse.
  Mayor Sadiq Khan said he was devastated by the horrific scenes, attended by more than 250 firefighters and 100 ambulance medics.
  Questions will need to be answered over the safety of tower blocks, he told BBC Radio.
  "We can't have a situation where people's safety is put at risk because of bad advice being given or if it is the case, as has been alleged, of tower blocks not being properly serviced or maintained," he said.
  Matt Wrack, of the Fire Brigades Union said something had clearly gone badly wrong with fire prevention procedures at the building.
  Firefighters would normally fight a fire in a tower block from the inside, going up the fire escape, and fighting using the internal dry-rising mains, he said, but that's not been possible in this case.
  Construction firm Rydon said recent building work which it carried out on the block "met all required building control, fire regulation and health and safety standards".
  
  
  
  
  Appeals are being made on social media for news of missing friends and relatives, who might have been caught in the blaze.
  Emergency rest centres have opened for those now homeless at Latymer Community Centre, St Clement's Church, Harrow Club and Rugby Portobello Trust. There are also local collections under way for spare clothes, toys, blankets and toiletries.
  People are being advised by police to stay away from the area, where roads remain closed and nearby residents have been evacuated as a precaution.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

BBC NEWS

Otto Warmbier 'was brutalised by pariah N Korea', parents say

The parents of Otto Warmbier, the US student who is in a coma after being freed this week by North Korea, say he was "brutalised" by a "pariah regime".

The 22-year-old is now being treated in hospital after the flight carrying him landed in Ohio on Tuesday.

Mr Warmbier was sentenced to 15 years of hard labour for attempting to steal a propaganda sign from a hotel.

He was given a sleeping pill after becoming ill after his trial last year and did not wake up, North Korea said.

He is now being treated at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center.
How harsh is prison in North Korea?
"We want the world to know how we and our son have been brutalised and terrorised by the pariah regime," his parents, Fred and Cindy, said.
Former US ambassador and New Mexico governor Bill Richardson, who has previously served as special envoy to North Korea and in 2016 attempted to negotiate the release of the student, said the Warmbiers had updated him on their son's condition.
"In no uncertain terms, North Korea must explain the causes of his coma," Mr Richardson said.

The BBC's Stephen Evans in Seoul says it remains to be seen if Mr Warmbier's illness is the direct result of brutality in prison.
If it were, there might be pressure on President Trump to take action against Kim Jong-un's regime, he says.

Who is Otto Warmbier?

Otto Warmbier is an economics student from the University of Virginia, originally from Cincinnati, Ohio.
He was in North Korea as a tourist with Young Pioneer Tours when he was arrested on 2 January 2016.
He appeared emotional at a news conference a month later, in which he tearfully confessed to trying to take the sign as a "trophy" for a US church, adding: "The aim of my task was to harm the motivation and work ethic of the Korean people."
Foreign detainees in North Korea have previously recanted confessions, saying they were made under pressure.

After a short trial on 16 March, Mr Warmbier was given a 15-year prison sentence for crimes against the state.
His parents told CNN in early May that they had had no contact with their son for more than a year.

What is his condition now?

In a statement on Tuesday, Mr and Mrs Warmbier said: "Sadly, he is in a coma and we have been told he has been in that condition since March 2016. We learned of this only one week ago."

They were quoted by the Washington Post as saying they had been told Otto had contracted botulism, a rare illness that causes paralysis, soon after his trial in March 2016.
He was given a sleeping pill and had been in a coma ever since, the newspaper said.
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson made no mention of Mr Warmbier's condition in a statement, saying only that he was on his way home to be reunited with his family and would not make any further comment, out of respect for the privacy of the family.

Who else is detained in North Korea?

There are reported to be three other US citizens in custody in North Korea. They are:

• Kim Dong-chul, a 62-year-old naturalised US citizen born in South Korea, who was sentenced to 10 years hard labour in April 2016 for spying
• Korean-American professor Kim Sang-duk (or Tony Kim) who was detained in April 2017. The reasons for his arrest are not yet clear
• Kim Hak-song, like Kim Sang-duk, worked at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST) and was detained in May 2017 on suspicion of "hostile acts" against the state

The US has in the past accused North Korea of detaining its citizens to use them as pawns in negotiations over its nuclear weapons programme.


The arrests have come at a time of heightened tension between North Korea and the US and its regional neighbours.

Why is Dennis Rodman in Pyongyang?

Mr Warmbier's release comes hours after US basketball star Dennis Rodman arrived in North Korea.
Mr Rodman is a friend of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and has made several visits to the country in recent years.

There was some speculation that he might plead the case for the American detainees, but en route to North Korea he told reporters "my purpose is to actually see if I can keep bringing sports to North Korea".

E3 2017: Mario caps Nintendo's triumphant comeback

The return of Super Mario is set to be the crowning achievement in what’s already been a remarkable year of recovery for Nintendo.

The loyal (and I mean loyal) fans weren’t worried, but rewind a year and many people - myself included - were questioning Nintendo’s ability to compete realistically with Sony and Microsoft in the console market.

The Wii U - a follow-on to the wildly successful Wii - had tanked, and the new console, Switch, seemed like it would be just too basic to make an impact.

Yet at E3 this year, the company is brimming with confidence. Its strategy has paid off.

"It seems to have brought back Nintendo’s mojo,” says Tom Phillips, news editor at Eurogamer.

"You look at where Nintendo are now compared to 12 months ago, it’s really night and day. They really turned things around.”

Eyeing the Wii

The Switch got off to a blistering start when it came out in March. It sold almost three million units in the first month, making it the company’s fastest-selling console. The first big release - Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild - is now considered to be one of the best games created, with several million copies sold.

And so it serves as a timely reminder that to judge games consoles on processing power, or true-to-life graphics capability, would be like reviewing a film based solely on the quality of its CGI. What Nintendo continually delivers is creativity other publishers can’t match.

Make no mistake, the enduring appeal of titles like Mario (or Zelda) isn’t nostalgia, but reinvention.

• Super Mario readies for October release
• Sony teases virtual reality games at E3
• Microsoft unveils Xbox One X
• Xbox's vanishing virtual reality strategy

The Switch surpassed the company’s early expectations, so now the ambition is grander. The Wii sold more than 100 million units in its eight-year life. Can that be repeated?

“I’m not going to lie to you, the Wii is something that we’re looking at,” said Nicolas Wegnez, general manager for Nintendo in the UK, told the BBC.

"We would really love to go back to that growing path of really making many more people smile playing Nintendo products.”

Chubby plumber

To help in that aim, Nintendo will once again turn to its biggest star.

Super Mario Odyssey - whose October release date was announced on Tuesday - includes the chubby plumber's first foray into the “real” world as he, in at least one level, spends some time in what resembles a real city, modelled on New York.

You’re free to roam around and do tasks on your own - press on with the main story, or distract yourself with other missions. It’s just like Grand Theft Auto, but you’re helping people instead of shooting them in the face.

There’s a new gameplay mechanic that makes use of the Switch’s dual-motion controllers; a flick of the wrists flings Mario’s new hat - called Cappy - in any given direction as a way of defeating enemies or interacting with objects.

It’s impossible to get a real feel for the quality of a game in a noisy convention centre, so I’ll leave those more qualified than me to offer the true verdict of the game when it is released.

Until then, Nintendo will release Arms - a fighting game that had people flailing their arms all around us here - and Splatoon 2, a competitive paintball shooter featuring squids, which Nintendo is positioning as its e-sports headliner.

OK without 4K?

But Nintendo’s problem is one it has faced for over a decade now. Its console relies heavily on the games made by the geniuses within its own company. Third-party games, while growing in number, often feel like second-class citizens on Nintendo's platforms when compared to the treatment on the Xbox and PlayStation. As those consoles begin to offer full 4K visuals, that gap in quality will feel even wider.

“The [4K] resolution is one thing which is part of the project but for us there is a lot of innovation when you think about it in Switch," said Mr Wegnez.

"We’re going one way which is focused on new ways of playing, new gameplay experiences."

The gameplay experience on the Switch is innovative, but it’s not the dramatic shift we saw when the Wii came out, where games went from being about pressing buttons in your bedroom to waving swords in the living room with your nan.

That leap alone was enough to propel the Wii to incredible sales, but it’s unlikely the Switch can gather that much momentum with clever hardware alone - and without more third-party titles, there is arguably a ceiling to how successful the Switch can be.

"We are not such a big company as our competitors,” acknowledged Mr Wegnez.

"We need to do things differently. We really put a lot of love in our products."

BBC NEWS

Trump travel ban suffers new court defeat

A US appeals court has upheld a decision blocking President Donald Trump's revised "travel ban" on people from six mainly Muslim nations.

Ruling on a case brought by the state of Hawaii, the appeal judges found that the executive order violated existing immigration legislation

It is a further legal setback for the president's efforts to get the ban he promised his supporters.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions said he disagreed with the ruling.

"President Trump's executive order is well within his lawful authority to keep the nation safe."

He added: "Recent attacks confirm that the threat to our nation is immediate and real."

The dispute may end up being decided in the US Supreme Court.

Mr Trump's own tweet from 5 June was cited in the judges' ruling.

An earlier version of the travel ban, issued by Mr Trump just days after taking office, sparked confusion at airports and protests.

In the revised executive order, the 90-day ban was to apply to people from Iran, Libya, Syria, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. It also called for a 120-day ban on all refugees, but removed references to religious minorities.

During his election campaign, Mr Trump called for a "total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States".

Reacting to the latest ruling, White House spokesman Sean Spicer defended the executive order, saying "we need every available tool at our disposal to prevent terrorists entering the United States and committing acts of bloodshed and violence".

"We continue to be confident that the president's executive order to protect this country is fully lawful and ultimately will be upheld by the Supreme Court," Mr Spicer added.

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Trump's travel ban - the story so far

They said Mr Trump had failed to show that the entry of people from the six countries mentioned in the ban, as well as the refugees, would be detrimental to US interests.

• Five questions about the revised executive order
• WATCH: Why did a US veteran give a stranger his Purple Heart?

But the judges said the government was allowed to review the vetting process for people entering the US - something the earlier Hawaii ruling had blocked.

Mr Trump has repeatedly said that the ban is necessary to protect Americans from terrorism.

Significant recent attacks in the US were not committed by citizens of any other of the six countries named in the order.

The legal ruling comes on the first anniversary of the Orlando nightclub shooting, in which a US citizen shot dead 49 people at a Florida nightclub. It was the worst mass shooting in US history.GHG

May tells MPs: I got us into this mess and I will get us out

Theresa May has apologised to Tory MPs for the party's election performance, telling them "I got us into this mess I'll get us out of it."

Addressing a meeting of backbenchers, the PM reportedly said she would serve as "long as you want me to do".

One senior backbencher told the BBC that she had appeared "contrite and genuine but not on her knees".

It comes amid confusion over whether the Queen's Speech will be delayed as talks continue to form a government.

A senior minister has said he was "optimistic" that the Conservatives and Democratic Unionists will reach an agreement in the coming days to allow a proposed Tory minority government get its plans for the year ahead through the Commons, possibly as early as next Monday.

But First Secretary of State Damian Green said he could not confirm the Queen's Speech will proceed as planned on 19 June.

Labour said the government was "in chaos" and continued to be "in denial" about the message voters had sent about their opposition to an "extreme Brexit".

• PM survives first bout of battle for control
• Election fallout: May addresses MPs
• May stays in No 10: What you need to know
• Theresa May: The prisoner of No 10

Mrs May addressed a packed meeting of the 1922 Committee for 90 minutes after her failure to win the election outright prompted days of speculation about her future.

According to reports of the meeting, she accepted personal responsibility for calling the snap election and for the result, which saw her party lose its overall majority and have to rely on the support of others.

'DUP veto'

Mrs May, who earlier chaired a two-hour cabinet meeting, reportedly told the committee, a group of backbench MPs, that the DUP would not have a "veto" on the government's agenda, and there would be no watering down of equalities laws over which the two parties disagree.

The BBC's political editor Laura Kuenssberg said the PM's "colleagues were demanding contrition and sounds like they got it".

While calls for Mrs May to go had "faded", she said her authority was "extremely fractured" and had acknowledged she was not "calling the shots" any more.

Reacting to the meeting, Tory MP Julian Knight said that the prime minister had been "humble and steadfast and certain that we have to get on with the job of government and negotiating Brexit".

His colleague Sarah Wollaston tweeted: "Conservative MPs all said they were standing with TM. As far as I'm concerned that hasn't changed."

One Conservative ex-minister told the BBC that Theresa May "did brilliantly", suggesting that "the "Maybot" disappeared and we got a real leader back".

In the wake of Friday's setback, Conservative figures have said the party needs to learn the lessons of its failure to win an overall majority and change direction in some key areas.

Gavin Barwell, who lost his seat but has since been appointed Mrs May's chief of staff, said Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn had "tapped into" public anger over Brexit and austerity, saying some voters were dismayed about the prospect of years of future public sector pay freezes.

• May's cabinet: Who's in and who's out?
• Immigration - the Brexit dividing line
• Did Gove really try to stop teaching climate change?

He told the BBC's Panorama his party had to listen to Remain voters about their concerns. Meanwhile his colleague George Freeman said it was time for the government to "drop a hard Brexit" message and return to a "message of hope" he said Mrs May articulated when she first became prime minister.

Meanwhile, the Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson has said the priority of Brexit talks should be the economy and free trade and that other parties should be involved in negotiations.

After attending Monday's meeting of senior ministers and Tory officials, she said: "We do have to make sure that we invite other people in now. This isn't just going to be a Tory Brexit, this is going to have to involve the whole country."

Queen's Speech

Passing the Queen's Speech - which is written by ministers and presents an outline of its planned legislation for the next Parliamentary session - will be the first major test of Theresa May's proposed minority government.

If the government was defeated, it would be tantamount to a vote of no confidence.

• Tory-DUP deal 'a tremendous opportunity'
• Brexit offer 'could change' - Davidson

Mr Green cited the ongoing negotiations with the DUP when he was asked if next Monday's speech had been delayed.

"I can't confirm anything yet until we know the final details of the agreement," he said. "We know those talks are going well and also we know that, at this very important time, we want to produce a substantial Queen's Speech."

One of the reasons for the delay is also believed to be because the speech has to be written on goat's skin parchment, which takes a few days to dry - and the Tory negotiations with the DUP mean it cannot be ready in time.

BBC assistant political editor Norman Smith said there was an "ambiguity" about both what would go in it - with several manifesto pledges expected to be watered down or dropped - but also the need for the Tories to "nail down" DUP support.

The first formal meeting of UK and EU officials since the election has concluded without a date being officially set for the start of Brexit talks. The negotiations were due to start on 19 June but Brexit Secretary David Davis has indicated this timetable could slip by a few days amid events in Westminster.

The prime minister is continuing to reshuffle her government at middle-ranking level after Sunday saw only modest changes in the cabinet. Nick Hurd has become policing minister while Dominic Raab joins the Ministry for Justice and Mel Stride becomes financial secretary to the Treasury.

Mike Penning, Robert Halfon, Oliver Heald and David Jones have all left the government.

BBC NEWS

Man jailed for 'brutal' jogger murder in Preston

A man who admitted murdering a 67-year-old jogger in a "brutal and cruel" attack has been jailed for life.Nathan Richardson, 19, attacked Wenqing Xu on New Year's Day in Preston, Lancashire, after taking a cocktail of drink and drugs at a house party.Mr Xu, who was found near Plungington Community Centre, had been in "the wrong place at the wrong time", Judge Mark Brown told Preston Crown Court.Richardson, of no fixed address, must serve a minimum of 19 years.

Mr Xu, who was from China but had been staying with his daughter Diana, was left with 28 injuries to his head and neck as well as a laceration and bruising to his genital area, the court heard. Richardson was seen dragging Mr Xu along the street but ran off when he was disturbed by witnesses shortly before 08:30 GMT.Mr Xu was found wearing only a T-shirt and died in hospital.Francis McEntee, prosecuting, said the motive for the assault remained a mystery.Judge Brown said Mr Xu had been attacked "in a brutal, vicious and very cruel way.""I am satisfied he suffered additional degradation when you removed his lower clothing and dragged him along the street," he said.He said Richardson, who had been at a New Year's Eve house party, left his victim "dying in the gutter".

The court heard after the attack Richardson went to the house of friend Luke Jenkinson, 22, in nearby De Lacy Street, where he changed and washed his clothes.Mr McEntee said friends had reported Richardson telling them he had "kicked and stamped" on Mr Xu's head.

The court heard Mr Xu's wife and daughter were unable to complete a victim statement as they were too distressed.

John Jones QC, representing Richardson, said he was "a young man with the most disadvantaged background and upbringing" who had been diagnosed with a personality disorder and learning difficulties.

Jenkinson was sentenced to two years and nine months after earlier admitting assisting an offender.The court heard he did not know Richardson had murdered Mr Xu when he helped him.

BBC NEWS