Court Case About Fires at Prime Minister's Properties

Introduction

Three men are in court. The police say they started fires at buildings and a car. These things belong to Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Main Body

The men started fires in May 2025. They burned a car and two buildings in North London. One building was a business. One building was a house for the Prime Minister's family. One man, Roman, says a person on Telegram told him to do it. This person is called 'El Money'. Roman says he needed money for his father's doctor in Ukraine. He says 'El Money' threatened him. 'El Money' wanted the news to talk about the fires. He promised Roman 3,000 pounds in digital money. But Roman says he never got the money. 'El Money' told Roman to leave the city after the last fire.

Conclusion

The men say they did not do it. The trial is still happening.

Learning

📌 The 'Action' Word Shift

In this story, we see how words change when something already happened. This is the key to moving from A1 to A2 English.

The Pattern: Now \rightarrow Then

Now (Present)Then (Past)Example from Story
saysaidThe police say (now) \rightarrow Roman says (now)
startstartedThey started fires.
burnburnedThey burned a car.
telltoldA person told him to do it.
needneededHe needed money.

💡 Simple Rule: Most of the time, just add -ed to the end of the word to talk about the past.

  • Start \rightarrow Started
  • Burn \rightarrow Burned

⚠️ The 'Rule Breakers' (Irregular): Some words change completely. You must memorize these:

  • Tell becomes Told
  • Get becomes Got

Quick Summary for A2 Learners: If you want to tell a story about yesterday or last year, look for the -ed ending or the 'Rule Breaker' words.

Vocabulary Learning

court
a place where judges hear cases
Example:The court will decide the case.
police
people who keep law and order
Example:The police stopped the car.
fires
burning that can destroy things
Example:The fires caused damage.
building
a structure with walls and a roof
Example:The building was damaged.
car
a vehicle that people drive
Example:The car was on fire.
family
a group of related people
Example:The family lives in the house.
money
cash or coins used to buy things
Example:She needs money for medicine.
doctor
a person who treats sick people
Example:The doctor helped the patient.
promised
said you would do something
Example:He promised to give money.
city
a large town
Example:They live in the city.
trial
a legal test to find out if someone did something
Example:The trial will last for weeks.
still
not yet finished
Example:The trial is still happening.
leave
to go away
Example:He told him to leave the city.
last
the final one
Example:It was the last fire.
told
said something to someone
Example:He told her the truth.
never
not at all
Example:He never got the money.
business
a place where people work
Example:The business was damaged.
house
a building for people to live in
Example:The house is for the family.
threatened
said or did something to scare
Example:He threatened him.
news
information about events
Example:The news is on TV.
talk
to speak
Example:They will talk about the fires.
digital
using computers
Example:Digital money is online.
pounds
a unit of money in the UK
Example:He promised 3,000 pounds.