Traveller family who held entire picturesque village to ransom for £600K in a 'land grab scam' now apply to house their caravans on the site after their 'blackmail' backfired

Published: 11:16, 23 August 2026 | Updated: 11:16, 23 August 2026 Travellers who held an entire village to ransom for £600,000 in a land grab scam have applied to officially house caravans on the site after their 'blackmail attempt' backfired, we can reveal. The family bought the greenfield site, which is the size of a tennis court, just outside the Buckinghamshire village of Dinton in February – and immediately drove three caravans and a mobile home onto the plot. In a carefully orchestrated operation, diggers and lorries moved onto a quarter-of-an-acre plot off to lay hardstanding rubble and position caravans in the designated conservation area. Horrified villagers, who protested against what they call an illegal land grab, say they were approached by two men who said that if they wanted them to leave the area, they could buy back the land for more than £600,000 – forty times the £15,000 they are believed to have paid for it. Now, after the 800 people living in Dinton refused to bend to the travellers' demands, the family's patriarch Jimmy Doran has officially applied to the council to turn it into a permanent residence. Buckinghamshire County Council is now considering the Doran family's application to station two mobile homes, two touring caravans and a 'day room for traveller occupation' on the site overlooking the picturesque Chiltern Hills. It comes seven years after other members of the notorious Doran traveller clan demanded the same figure from residents in Dough Bank, Worcestershire, to leave a pitch the size of a tennis court in 2019. Travellers who held an entire village to ransom for £600,000 in a land grab scam have applied to officially house caravans the site after their 'blackmail attempt' backfired, we can reveal Buckinghamshire County Council is now considering the Doran family's application to station two mobile homes, two touring caravans and a 'day room for traveller occupation' on the site overlooking the picturesque Chiltern Hills Horrified villagers, who protested against what they call an illegal land grab, say they were approached by two men who said that if they wanted them to leave the area, they could buy back the land for more than £600,000 Caroline Bevan (pictured) says she has been subjected to a vile campaign of abuse following her opposition to the site Villagers living nearby are furious at what has unfolded in their hitherto quiet community. Caroline Bevan, whose newly renovated home lies opposite the site, says her bedroom is overlooked – and she will 'become a prisoner in her own house'. Ms Bevan says she has been subjected to a vile campaign of abuse following her opposition to the site. She has received death threats and been branded a 'racist Karen' in a TikTok video posted online. She reported it to police – and the film has since been taken down. Speaking to the Daily Mail, Mrs Bevan said: 'If this is approved, I will live in constant fear. Michael Cook, 54, still owns half of the site but had sold the other half before it was broken down into smaller plots at auction 'Given the harassment and death threats I have experienced, I am concerned that the caravans will be able to look directly into my property. 'I have recently rebuilt my house, as per the agreed planning permission, and it is very exposed with huge expanses of glass throughout. I feel my personal safety is at risk especially as I live alone at my property. She added: 'When I wake up in the morning, my bedroom is to the front of the house, and I am looking directly at the site.' Ms Bevan is one of 128 residents objecting to the proposal on grounds of change of use to residential plus noise, privacy and traffic. 'The site has a restrictive covenant from the Church of England that it must remain in agricultural use and is an area of outstanding natural beauty, she said. 'It will be exceptionally hard for the villages to accept these people. They tried to extort us, and have threatened me with physical violence.' She added: 'I can clearly see into the site and their caravans, so they can see into my property. I will have to have my blinds closed at all times. 'They have disrespected the planning law so why should I trust them to be respectful to me when they lie and promote hate against me.' The land was sold last year by Michael Cook, who described the situation as a 'nightmare come true' as the field is under a covenant and can only be used for agriculture. Mr Cook, 54, still owns half of the site but had sold the other half before it was broken down into smaller plots at auction. 'This is an emergency for people in the village,' said Mr Cook. 'It seems absolutely ridiculous in this day and age that everything seems to be reactive than proactive.' A bold green Planning Site Notice hangs on the metal gate with an application for change of use of the land at Plots A and B in the name of Mr Doran. On the site sits three caravans and the burnt out shell of a static mobile home that was destroyed by fire in a suspected arson attack some months ago. Villagers living nearby are furious at what has unfolded in their hitherto quiet community, saying they will now be overlooked As yet no decision has been made for the controversial change to land in the desirable village which features the historic Dinton Hall, a Grade-II listed country manor. Residents were 'encouraged' to raise any objections during a public consultation period, which would be 'taken into consideration' and has now ended. Steve Bambrick, the council's Corporate Director of Planning Growth and sustainability, stated on the notice dated June 9: 'Once the decision is issued it will be published online.' A Buckinghamshire County Council spokesman said: 'This application is still under consideration and no recommendation has yet been made.' But residents fear the worst after the Government this week softened planning rules for traveller sites, giving councils fewer ways to block them. Housing Secretary Angela Rayner has removed two key rules that local authorities and residents have used to oppose unauthorised traveller camps. She made the changes in an update to England's planning rules on Monday (Aug 17) which also paved the way for more development of green belt land. There has been a 73 per cent rise in the number of unauthorised traveller caravans across England since January 2020, up from 2,860 to 4,950. New guidance will make it harder for locals to oppose planning applications.