Crime & Safety
‘A red kite stole my mother-in-law’s sausage rolls’
John Oxenham saw the widely shared photos of the bird of prey clutching the baked snack and knew immediately where they’d come from.
The 67-year-old explained that he often leaves food scraps in his and wife Samantha Frewin’s garden in South Newington, and recognised the kite that took them.
Having visited Mrs Frewin’s mother, June, at her home in Kent on Mother’s Day, they returned home with a tub of her homemade sausage rolls.
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Two days later, Mr Oxenham left some of the baked goods out in the garden for the birds.
Then, after arriving in Cornwall for a getaway the following day, the couple came across photos of the kite clutching a snack that looked ever-so-familiar.
Mr Oxenham, a retired commercial pilot, said: “I’m the culprit who put out the sausage rolls.
“We went down to see Sam’s mum in Kent for Mother’s Day, and she gave us a tub of sausage rolls.
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“I put some out for the birds, and that’s when the kite took the sausage roll.
“My wife showed me the pictures and said: ‘This story about the kite is going mad!’.
“You can see it was my mother-in-law’s – they’re pale in colour.”
Mrs Frewin, 47, said she first noticed the photo being shared on Instagram.
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“As soon as I saw the photo, I thought: ‘Oh no… That’s one of my mum’s sausage rolls’,” the retired HMRC worker said.
“Sam showed me the picture,” Mr Oxenham added.
“It was instantly recognisable. I said: ‘That’s our kite with your mum’s sausage roll’.
“I thought I would put the world right on where it came from.
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“I’m just glad he wasn’t photographed with some naan bread in its talons… The ravens love their curry!
“At least the red kite found a nice source of food… What would she rather have, a manky mouse or a nice sausage roll?”
Amateur photographer Mark Hopkins snapped the hungry bird of prey in his garden in Ruscote, in Banbury, when the giant bird soared overhead.
Mark, 57, a welder, said: “There are often kites flying over us, but I’ve never seen this before.
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“There was one huge red kite that banked up in front of me, and it was clearly holding something in its talons.
“I wasn’t sure what it was at first, but looking at the pictures on my camera, it was obvious it was a sausage roll.
“Whether it had snatched it out of someone’s hand or picked it up off the floor, I don’t know, but it did look fresh.
“It was a remarkable thing to see, and I’m just so happy I had my camera ready at the right time.”
There are an estimated 4,000 to 6,000 breeding pairs of red kites in the UK, with increasing numbers living in urban areas.
Oxford Stand Up To Racism has accused Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, of inciting the ‘awful violent scenes’ in Southampton on Tuesday night (June 2).
The city where 18-year-old Henry Nowak died and where his killer, Vickrum Digwa, lived became a scene of destruction after hundreds descended to smash car windows, hurl bricks and cause eleven officers and a police dog to be injured.
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Following the disorder, the chief of Hampshire police said those involved were ‘determined to spark fear and division’.
Yaxley-Lennon, who has been jailed multiple times for a variety of offences including when he was imprisoned in October 2024 for contempt of caught, addressed the crowd at the riot.
He said: “I heard someone say this wasn’t about race, this is about race.
“A white boy who done nothing was handcuffed, a murderer in possession of a knife who stabbed someone five times isn’t.”
Oxford Stand Up to Racism is now renewing its call for the Oxford Union to withdraw its invitation for the ‘riot agitator’ to speak on June 17 on the subject of Islam.
He was originally due to speak at the historic debating society on Thursday, May 28 before his appearance was postponed over security concerns and after massive backlash.
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Ian McKendrick, a member of the anti-racism group, said: “Despite Henry Nowak’s family clearly requesting that his death should not be used to promote further hatred, Robinson was at the centre of protests in Southampton last night and clearly inciting violence.
“Giving him a televised platform at the Oxford Union legitimises hate and violence, and gives him the opportunity to incite violence to an audience of millions.
“It does not promote free speech – instead, it promotes fear and intimidation among minoritised communities.
“Already we have seen Oxford fascists alongside Robinson in Southampton and now mobilising to bring more hate onto Oxford’s streets.”
Members of Raise the Colours: Oxfordshire were called to attend the Southampton protest on Tuesday night, with the leader of the group posting on Facebook to ask followers to join the ‘justice for Henry Nowak’ protest.
Mr McKendrick added: “There is a concerted effort by far right leaders and fascist groups to incite outrage and bring people on to the streets to riot.
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“We risk an explosion of violence similar to what we saw around the Southport murders across the UK.
“We’re calling on Oxford to say a clear ‘no’ to this hate and division by protesting against Yaxley-Lennon’s appearance at the Oxford Union.”
Faith and civic leaders of Oxford already wrote to the Oxford Union asking it to rescind the controversial figure’s invitation, and hundreds have signed an open letter calling for the same.
A reported incident at a junction in Witney is causing traffic chaos in the town, with drivers coming off the A40 and elsewhere stuck in long queues.
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An incident occurred in St Aldate’s, outside the entrance to Christ Church Meadows, at about 4pm on Tuesday, June 2.
At least three ambulances were responding to what appeared to be a medical emergency on the pavement.
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An individual was scene on a stretcher being cared for by paramedics.
An eyewitness said the incident occurred opposite the Alice Shop, and the medical teams ‘evacuated’ the person.
Apart from the pavement briefly being blocked while the first responders dealt with the emergency, it did not appear to affect traffic or block the road in busy St Aldate’s.
South Central Ambulance Service has been contacted for comment.
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