Fire 'attack' inquiry called off

Police have called off their inquiry into allegations that a man set fire to a seven-year-old boy's face because they no longer believe the attack took place. They reached the conclusion after hearing witness accounts of the alleged attack on Derek Cripps on Wednesday. Derek and his friend Paul Guglieri, aged eight, claimed they were attacked while they were playing in King George's Park, Wandsworth, south London. Derek is still undergoing treatment in the burns unit of Queen Mary's Hospital, Roehampton, south London.