Man suspected of trying to poison school soup

AN investigation has begun at one of Britain’s most prestigious private schools after a member of staff was arrested on suspicion of trying to poison the pupils’ soup, police said yesterday.

Detectives were called to Stowe School, whose former pupils include billionaire Virgin Group founder Richard Branson, after other members of staff raised the alarm about strange smells in the food last Friday.

“During routine checks, school staff became suspicious that foodstuffs had been tampered with and the police were alerted,” said a spokesman for Stowe, set in 750 acres of impressive grounds near Buckingham, 90 kilometres northwest of London.