OUR review of 2014 in Croydon continues with a look at what was making the headlines in June...
A TEENAGE boy died after taking drugs at a rave held next to East Croydon Station.
Rio Andrew, 15, a talented young athlete, was believed to have drank from a bottle containing the party drug ketamine.
He became the second Croydon teenager to die this year from taking drugs at a rave, after Daniel Spargo-Mabbs' death in January.
Fourteen people were arrested in the aftermath of the illegal rave on June 14, which was held in the disused Royal Mail building.
A YOUNG mother told the Advertiser of her distress at being called a "slut" while breast-feeding her infant son in a cafe.
Rhea Holley, 27, said she was in "floods of tears" after the verbal abuse from a couple sitting nearby in Costa Coffee in Purley High Street, Purley.
She said: "A couple were on a table that was facing in such a way that they did not have to look at me. I heard one of them say 'it is disgusting', that I know what time babies should be fed and should stay at home then, and that I was a 'slut'."
A PUB company apologised after one of its staff refused to serve a group of elderly Ukip members and branded them "disgusting".
Six campaigners – including five pensioners – hoped for a spot of refreshment at The Rectory in Brighton Road, Purley, after a hard day canvassing. But instead of winding down, the group were wound up by a member of bar staff, who refused to serve them because of their affiliation to Nigel Farage's party.
The angry barman did not stop there – going on to tell the campaigners they were "disgusting". Kathleen Garner, the party's Croham candidate who was among the group, said the treatment was "discriminatory" and compared it to the "thought police".
A PUB in Addiscombe which has served more than a million pints of the same bitter was voted Croydon real ale drinkers' boozer of the year.
The Claret Free House, in Lower Addiscombe Road, was named the 2014 Croydon Camra Pub of the Year – its sixth time of holding the title.
General manager Don Burton put the success down to a simple formula – cheap, tasty beer.
He added: "We try and keep our customers happy by keeping the price down and by keeping everything in good condition."
CAMPAIGNERS celebrated after unpopular plans for a Lidl supermarket were rejected by the Government planning inspector following a two-year battle.
The German chain's appeal to develop the site of the former Good Companions pub in Limpsfield Road, Sanderstead, was thrown out, amid fears about traffic and congestion. Campaigner Paul Redington said: "It's an astounding result given we were up against the financial might of Lidl, their planning experts, and even a QC."
