A man has been found guilty of a series of sex attacks on elderly people in south London. Dubbed the Night Stalker, Delroy Grant, 53, carried out a series of rapes and sex assaults on 18 victims over 17 years. Police have apologised for missed chances to stop Grant. They said he was responsible for some of the most “awful and disturbing crimes” in the history of Scotland Yard. Commander Simon Foy, head of the Metropolitan Police’s homicide and serious crime command, said: “We are deeply sorry for the trauma suffered by all those victims and our failure to bring Grant to justice earlier.”

Tens of thousands of jobs in the UK will go as a result of a windfall tax on North Sea oil producers announced in the Budget, the industry has warned. Mike Tholen, economics director of Oil and Gas UK, said the change would also damage long-term energy security. The £2bn tax will fund a fuel duty cut, after a surge in global oil prices. Chancellor George Osborne said he would watch fuel prices “like a hawk” to make sure the oil tax was not passed on to drivers.

Fighting between rebels and forces loyal to Libyan leader Col Muammar Gaddafi has been continuing in key cities after a fifth consecutive night of air strikes by international forces. Overnight, several loud explosions were heard in Tripoli In Misrata, a rebel-held city east of the capital, government tanks have been shelling the area near the hospital. There have also been reports of fierce fighting between rebels and pro-Gaddafi forces in strategic Ajdabiya. Residents fleeing the town described shelling, gunfire and houses on fire.

A man has been jailed for a total of six years for carrying out a violent sexual assault on a woman in a Bournemouth hotel room and seriously injuring a stranger outside his own home. A jury at Bournemouth Crown Court found 24-year-old Matthew Moran guilty of trying to rape the 21-year-old woman and causing her actual bodily harm at the Premier Inn in Westover Road.

Dorset-based actor Martin Clunes and his TV producer wife Phillipa Braithwaite have adopted two rescued ponies from the RSPCA. The animal-loving couple responded to a national appeal to find new homes for 37 horses saved from appalling conditions at a farm near Amersham, Buckinghamshire in January 2008. More than 1,500 people applied to adopt them, and as a result homes were found for a further 80 other rescued horses and ponies in the charity’s care. Mr and Mrs Clunes, who have a home in the Beaminster area, have now rehomed mini-Shetland pony Oliver and New Forest pony Connor. Although not part of the Amersham rescue, the young horses had been signed over to the RSPCA during an investigation into their neglect.

Gareth Bale is out of Wales’ Euro 2012 qualifier against England at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday after suffering a hamstring injury. The Football Association of Wales says in a statement the injury was suffered before Bale joined the Wales squad. The 21-year-old Tottenham Hotspur winger did not train on Wednesday. “Due to a hamstring problem, Gareth Bale has had to withdraw from the Wales squad to face England,” a Football Association of Wales statement said.

Boss Lee Bradbury last night remained determined to keep hold of Rhoys Wiggins after Cherries rejected the defender’s transfer request. The left-back yesterday formally declared his desire to leave Dean Court. Bradbury revealed the club had turned down Wiggins’s request and that he was keen to retain the services of the former Welsh youth international, who joined Cherries on a two-year contract in July. Wiggins’s decision came after Cherries declined bids from Watford for the Londoner. The offers were described as “miles away from our valuation” by chairman Eddie Mitchell.