2 Arrested in Joss Stone Murder Plot

Two men have been arrested near the rural home of singer Joss Stone on suspicion of conspiracy to rob and murder, police said today. The men, aged 30 and 33, were arrested Monday morning near Stone's house in southwest England after residents reported a suspicious-looking vehicle. Police would not confirm a media report that the men had swords, rope, and a body bag, as well as maps and aerial photos of Stone's secluded property, but did say the pair "had in their possession information relating to an individual in the Cullompton area and items which lead us to suspect that they may have intended to commit a criminal offense."

Stone's London publicists would not say whether the 24-year-old was at home when the men were arrested. The men are being questioned today at a police station and have not been charged. With a fortune estimated last month by the Sunday Times Rich List at $14.6 million, Stone still lives in the southwestern county of Devon where she was raised. Stone came to fame in 2003 as a small-town teenager with a big, soulful voice, showcased on her best-selling debut album The Soul Sessions. (More England stories.)