Protection Racket in Saint Junien

The future of the 'Sunny Bar' in Saint Junien, Haute Vienne is in doubt. The Sunny Bar (formerly the Fifties Spirit Bar) is situated close to the Salle de Fetes in the heart of the town. Jean Claude Rufin is the proprietor. For 3 weeks he has been unable to sleep and his wife Lisa is on the verge of a nervous breakdown. The couple's lives started to fall apart on Saturday 25th August when four men interrupted a concert evening being held at the bar. Mr Rufin still trembles as he recounts the events of that evening. The patron was confronted by the men who held a knife to his throat and told him that from now on he would be required to pay €300/month and slapped him repeatedly around the face. Police finally arrived at the scene and the men fled. Jean Claude and Lisa decided to close the bar for a week hoping that things would return to normal and to give them time to get over the terror of that night. The bar reopened but on Sunday 9th September just after mid day Mr Rufin received a call at his home from his bartender to tell him that two of the men had returned to the bar and were demanding that he attended immediately. Mr Rufin went to the bar taking with him a security guard he had employed. An exchange took place between the men who had with them a hunting gun, baseball bat and a knife, happily none of the weapons were used in the altercation. The men left before the police arrived but not before issuing a string of vicious threats. Mr Rufin is now in complete despair, he is worried for his family and is not allowing his daughter to sleep at the family home. The Rufin family arrived in St Junien in December 2006 having previously managed the Casino supermarket in Rhilac Rancon, where he had saved for a number of years to enable him to start his own bar. The complaint is currently being investigated by the police who say they are keeping the bar under surveillance. The towns maire is also watching developments as similar acts of violence have taken place at 'night bars' in the town in the past.

Run Rabbit Run

Hunting in the UK is now seen by many as a socially unacceptable sport but not here in France. Sunday the 9th of September saw the start of this years hunting season. The normal tranquility of the countryside resonated to the sounds of the chasseurs shots as they rang out across the valleys and hillsides of the region. For the next few months burly men carrying an assortment of firearms accompanied by baying hounds become the norm. Hunting here is a way of life for much of the rural community with 30,000 hunters in the Limousin and 1,600 separate hunting associations. (550 Correze, 540 Haute Vienne and 500 Creuse). Deer, wild boar, pheasants, rabbits, in fact some would say anything that moves are all fair game. On this point it is worth noting that there are several deaths and injuries each year as a result of hunting accidents so if you see Chasse warning signs take them seriously and do not let your pets wander in to areas used by hunters.

Scrap It

If you live in the region and have an old vehicle lying around the yard that no longer moves, the solution may now be at hand. Since the 1st July the council general has set up a new free vehicle recovery scheme. To arrange the removal of your unwanted car you need to attend your local mairie with your carte grise and complete a form (probably in triplicate if my past experiences are anything to go by). The mairie will forward the file to the council general who will contact the recovery team closest to you who will attend and remove the vehicle. A total of 24 vehicles have been removed since the start of the scheme. The project is one of a package of new schemes being introduced by the council in a drive towards more ecologically sound policies. The only downside to the scheme is that vehicles without a carte grise are not eligible. This means that if there was an old vehicle on site when you bought your property or someone abandons one on your land you will have to arrange your own removal.

Wine Bargains

All of the major supermarkets are currently holding their foire de vin. So, now is the time to bag a bargain. If you are not sure sure what to buy ,follow the French shoppers down the isles as they are sure to have a good eye for a bargain.

Celebrity Campsite

The Etang de Saint- Estephe in the Parc National regional Limousin Perigord is to be the star of a new TV programme. The site is close to the Dordogne town of Nontron has been used for filming between the 30th August and 12th September. The programme is to be the second episode of the programme 'camping paradise' whose pilot episode was aired last year with over 9 million viewers tuning in.

Pot Potager

A man from Mezieres sur Issoire has been given a community service order. On the 3rd September last year police from Bussiere Poitevine raided the vegetable garden of 42 year old resident. Police found 109 cannabis plants thriving with some over 2 metres high. Sentencing the judge requested that all of the plants be destroyed.

Season of the Cepes

The first Cepes of the season have been found in Correze. Some of the region's professional mushroom men have already opened for business. The big question is will 2007 prove as fabulous for Fungi as 2006?. No doubt we will be reporting on the foragers finds over the next few months as the season gets fully underway. Look out for furtive behaviour near isolated woodlands as the locals try to keep their favourite spots secret.

Working on the Black

We regularly hear the warnings of the stiff penalties applied for those working on the black and also for employing unregistered workers. Courts in the region have this week handed down sentences to show they mean business. Two men who were found guilty of working on the roads illegally each received a 1 month custodial sentence as well as €7000 fines. The men had been working in the communes of Saint Fiel and Genouillac. In another case Mathias Timmerman (63) originally from Holland was found guilty of employing illegal labour. Mr Timmerman was convicted of employing 2 Lithuanians to help renovate his property in the Creuse. Mr Timmerman told the judge he had employed the men as a last resort after failing to get French registered tradesmen to provide Devis. The judge dismissed his arguments and fined him a total of €18,000. You have been warned.

Bricolage Boom

Many Brits have long since seen visiting DIY stores as a form of leisure activity with the car parks of such shops packed on bank holiday weekends. It seems the French are now following in this trend. DIY businesses across France reported an incredible 62% hike in business since 2004. In 2006 the market was worth around 20 billion euros with an extra 6 if you include the gardening side of the business. The stores are hoping to see an even bigger growth as they increasingly concentrate on attracting more females in to their stores by stocking more decorating and 'finishing items'.

New Jobs at Airport

It is hoped that 25 new jobs will be created at Limoges airport over the next three years. Airlinair, an airline maintenance company have set up a new base at the airport. The company have taken over a 1335m2 hangar on the site.

Lorry driver jailed for drink-driving after fellow truckers shop him

A Polish lorry driver has been jailed for two months just three days after being arrested for dangerous driving on the RN10 at Saint-Yrieix near Angoulême. Wieslaw Gluszczyck, a 51- year-old former policeman who became a lorry driver to earn a better living, was found to have had 2.62g/l of alcohol in his blood. The legal limit in France is 0.5g/l (0.8g/l in the UK). Gluszczyck had been arrested on Friday 14 September thanks to fellow lorry drivers who had spotted him driving erratically on the RN10 between Ruffec and Angoulême and alerted the police. Until the police could arrive some lorry drivers also used their vehicles to box in the Polish driver’s lorry, to reduce the potential damage it could do to other motorists as it zigzagged along the road. The severe punishment handed out to Gluszczyck followed a week of four accidents and incidents involving lorries on the Charente’s main roads, caused by speeding, tiredness or alcohol.

Tobacconists buy gold from customers

Some tobacconists in the Charente have been trying to diversify their business by buying precious metals from customers. The rising cost of cigarettes and the ban on smoking in public – soon to be extended to bars and restaurants – has forced the shopkeepers to seek other business. Already the number of tobacconists in the Charente has shrunk by a third in the past decade to just 215