Connah's Quay soldier Peter McFerran included in national memorial

Peter McFerran

THE family of an RAF officer killed in Iraq have spoken of their pride at seeing him included in a national memorial opened yesterday.

Senior aircraftman Peter McFerran, 24, died in July 2007 in Basra when a rocket killed him and two colleagues assigned to protecting the city’s airport.

His parents Ann and Bob McFerran, of Fron Road, Connah’s Quay, and sister Elaine Fairley were invited to the opening of a remembrance garden at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.

They joined Prime Minister Gordon Brown at a service of re-dedication to The Basra Memorial Wall, which marks the 178 UK service personnel and one MoD civilian killed serving on Operation Telic – Britain’s six year operation in Iraq following the 2003 invasion.

A55 roadworks could blight start of Easter holiday

A55 traffic

ROADWORKS on the A55 could blight the start of the Easter holidays with lane closures and diversions planned.

Road chiefs plan to carry out repair work on a westbound stretch of the A55 between Abergele and Llanddulas during March, with schools due to break up for Easter on Friday March 26.

They have announced a diversion around Junction 24 at Abergele, sliproad closures at Llanddulas, and single lanes closures. The road prohibitions run from today until March 30 but the A55 route manager said the actual works would only cause delays on three or four days when the repairs were being carried out.

North Wales woman in court accused of stealing identity of dead baby

Georgina Murphy

A WOMAN has been accused of stealing a dead baby’s identity to get a false passport and claim benefits.

Georgina Sharon Murphy, 52, is alleged to have taken on the identity of Gail Jones, who died nearly 60 years ago.

Ms Murphy, of Pen y Waun, Chirk, heard that there were nine charges against her, stretching over three-and-a-half years, when she appeared has appeared before magistrates yesterday.

It was alleged that on August 21 2006 she “falsified accounting documents, namely a National Insurance number, that showed she was Gail Jones, date of birth 10 May 1957, who was in fact deceased”.