The Headless Man

The case of the Headless man was a high society divorce scandal that happened around 1963/64.  The Duke of Argyll was divorcing his wife after a scandalous photograph was taken of her with an unknown male.  The Duchess was naked except for a necklace around her neck, and she was on her knees in front of this man, giving him a blow-job.  For many years, the arguments raged as to just who the naked man was.  The photograph cut off his head so his identity was unknown, hence the Headless Man.  Candidates who emerged included the grandson of Winston Churchill, the Duke of Edinburgh, but eventually his identity was revealed about 15 years ago.  It transpired that the romeo was none other than actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr.

Cases From The Past

Today I wish to travel back in time to some cases from when I was growing up.  First off, a case that grew into a cause celebre`.  In 1972, a fire broke out in a london flat, and the emergency services discovered the body of a man, named Maxwell Confait. It emerged that Confait was a male prostitute, who was also a transvestite and called himself Michelle.  The original prime suspect was the property landlord, Winston Goode.  It transpired that they had a close friendship though Goode denied any homosexual relationship.  However, during questioning, he let slip that he knew Confait was planning to move out and this upset him.  

    There were a number of conflicting conclusions with the autopsy, with some distinguished pathologists on both sides of the divide.  Goode was released, took an overdose and was admitted to hospital, suffering memory loss.  Soon afterwards, he committed suicide.  There were then a spate of fires being set and Police arrested three teenagers aged 18, 15 & 14.  The eldest had a mental age of just 8, but all were questioned intensively without any adult presence.  All claimed that they were beaten by Police and confessed to the crime.  At trial, all three were convicted, with one being sent to Rampton Psychiatric Hospital.  The families of the boys fought the convictions, and eventually, Home Secretary Roy Jenkins referred it back to the Court of Appeal.  The resulting enquiry cleared the three boys and a new case investigation pointed the finger at somebody else.  The new suspect later committed suicide before charges could be brought.

    How about the great corruption trial in 1972 of a number of high ranking Metropolitan Police Officers, including Wallace Virgo, head of C1 department which incorporated a number of specialist police squads, including the Porn Squad, and Bill Moody, the head of the Porn Squad.  It seemed that they operated the most lucrative protection racket in London, with pornographers paying huge sums of money to them for a licence to trade.  No payments meant anybody plying their trade without the okay of Virgo & Moody was closed down and prosecuted.  They and a number of junior officers were convicted, though Virgo`s was overturned on appeal, if I recall correctly.

    Another Police trial concerned members of the Drugs Squad, with some going to prison.  The head of the squad, Vic Kellaher, resigned from his job amidst the scandal.  The most notorious member of the squad was Sgt Pilcher, who garnered a reputation for busting rock stars.  It was said that if no drugs were found on the premises raided, then drugs mysteriously appeared, and we all know that Police Officers did not plant drugs or do anything untoward.  Pilcher`s first celebrity arrest was folk singer Donovan, then he got Lennon & Harrison, then Jagger & Brian Jones.  Others followed but what comes around, comes around.  Pilcher was sent down.

Video Nasties Myth Pt 2

In this spot, I wish to correct some of the myths about some of these films.  The most notorious film was the film known as "Snuff".  Now for the truth.  It was NOT a snuff film.  In reality, it was a 1971 Argentinian Zombie film entitled "Slaughter", and it had come to the attention of a film distributor in 1975.  There was talk of "Snuff" films being around, so he decided to get in on the action.  He hired an independent horror/ porno film director named Michael Findlay to film "An ending to the ending".  He used a lookalike actress to be the woman "Murdered for real".  Rock star Alice Cooper knows the woman despite the "fact" she was "murdered".  In fact, it has been said that you can tell the two women are different, if you are prepared to use your eyes.

    The next step was promoting the film and retitling it.  However, when it went on release in New York, outraged citizens picketed the film.  The trouble was, they were NOT outraged citizens.  They had been hired by the film distributor to picket his own film, generating plenty of publicity.  Enough for the Federal authorities to question people who went in to see the film; why did they wish to see it?  Did they know anything about it?  Twist number two, they were NOT FBI agents.  They were actors hired by, Guess who!!!  When it came some years later to releasing it on video, he went about the same cheap publicity stunts to get media attention.  He could not have imagined the publicity it received over here, with hysterical tabloid coverage, and judges banning reporting of the "horrific" details in this film.  All this information can be found in a book entitled "Video Nasties" and through horror film expert Kim Newman.

    "I Spit on Your Grave" has recently been remade, but the original was made way back in 1975, and was called "Day of The Woman".  What was unique about it was, despite the graphic rape scenes, which I hated, the director was a woman.  The star, Camille Keaton, was the Grand Niece of silent star, Buster.

    "Driller Killer" was made by and starred Abel Ferrera.  I thought it descended into very black comedy with him running up to his victims and drilling them.  He went on to make "King of New York" with Christopher Walkden and the grim classic "Bad Lieutenant" with Harvey Keitel.  This was recently remade with Nicholas Cage.

    "Night of The Demon" was a creature feature with over the top horror effects, and as for the acting, let me reassure you, it was far better in "Thunderbirds".  Many others suddenly appeared in video stores, and if you dig enough, you will find that many were very low budget films made way back in the seventies, by directors now regarded as schlock masters!  The cannibal films that emerged were mainly made by Italians and very poorly.  Again, extremely unpleasant scenes were trowelled up solely for shock effect.  Many of the zombie films were Italian also, with British stars such as Richard Johnson, Ian McCullough and (I think British) Tisa Farrow being in "Zombie Flesh Eaters", made by Italian horror master Lucio Fulci.  All these films have been shown on the Horror Channel , on satellite.

The Video Nasties Myth

Why this choice of subject for a crime blog?  The answer is simple if you remember the furore was used by the Tories as a Law & Order issue.  This all began when Conservative MP Graham Bright wished to introduce a Bill banning a certain number of films that had been issued on video and had not been classified.  Mr Bright said that it only concerned about thirty films, including Driller Killer, I Spit On Your Grave, Night of The Demon(Not the classic!), some cannibal films.  A report on the subject was being sponsored by an all-church coalition, in which some guy in charge, would work with a university team of researchers.  Eventually, a rough draft was readied, and was waiting to be properly written and presented, when the university team had a break.  This is where the deceit came into play.

    After the break, it was being presented to the media, and the university team leader was approached by some senior Tories saying, "Well done.  Exactly what we are looking for".  he thought the comments a bit strange.  He then received a massive shock, as the man in overall charge started going on about how many children were being subjected to these films by their parents, and what they were watching.  This bore absolutely no resemblance to the rough draft they had worked on.  After the press conference, he asked the team leader how he came by these facts as his research team had no knowledge of this, whatsoever.

    He received total silence.  Shortly afterwards, this team leader entered the university, with others, and took all the files and data that had been worked on.  They also wiped all the computers.  The university team had no back-up proof about their research.  And as for the "films" that children had allegedly watched, all the titles had simply been made up.  The whole project had been hijacked by some Conservatives to be used as a Law & Order issue.

    The tabloid explosion was predictable.  Screaming headlines and hysterical editorials ignored the facts.  Truth is the enemy of the liar, the bullshit merchant, tabloid newspapers, et al.  One major point that the newspapers ignored was that two churches distanced themselves from the report, very unhappy about how the data was allegedly collected.  These were the Catholic and Methodist churches.  I do not believe Mr Bright was involved in this, but his Bill was undoubtedly hijacked for political purposes.

Death of The Sixties Pt 2

Part two of the tales of 1969 is all about that master manipulator, Charlie Manson.  What truly made this stand out was the horrific murder of actress Sharon Tate and her unborn baby.  Also murdered was celebrity hairdresser Jay Sebring and three others.  Was it a racially motivated act, as the evidence tried to make out?  No, it was an act of a man spitting out his dummy, and five people being in the wrong place at the wrong time.  The real target was record producer Terry Melcher.  Why was Melcher the target?  Simple.  He had the audacity to reject the music of Charles Manson, and as Manson had a camp of followers who hung on his every word, and would do anything he told them to do, it was easy to send them out, kill everybody that was there and stage the crime scene. Melcher would pay the ultimate price for rejecting Manson and his music.  However, they did not know that Melcher had rented his house out to film director Roman Polanski and his pregnant wife, Sharon Tate.

    The next set of murders were the Lobiancos, prominent local business people whose home was simply selected as the target, by chance.  Their brutal murders were part of an elaborate scheme by Manson to draw attention away from him and his followers, and to try and start a race war, in which Manson envisaged himself as emerging to a destroyed world and taking control with his clan.  Delusional or what?  However, they were all apprehended and Manson and four others received the Death Penalty, which was repealed in California, and they all received life sentences.  What was remarkable about the trial was the antics of Mansons` followers.  Shaving their heads, tattooing crosses on their foreheads, like their guru, and spouting the usual bullshit of how innocent he was.  In a documentary on the case, they interviewed the three women who originally received the Death Penalty.  Two expressed remorse for their crimes but as usual, there has to be one who still believes in the bollocks of Manson.  No sympathy for them from me.

    

Death of The Sixties

By 1969 there had been a significant change in the attitudes of the so-called "Counter-Culture."    Two events happened in that year changed the face of the 60`s in the eyes of the world.  One was the killing of a black man, Meredith Hunter, by a group of Hells Angels, at a huge outdoor concert of the Rolling Stones.  The other incident, which was far more hideous, was the slaughter of seven people by a group of so-called children of the counter- culture.

    The concert by the Stones, was held at a disused speedway stadium at Altamont, in California.  Originally, it was supposed to have been a free concert in San Francisco Park but was over-ruled by local government.  To save the show, a stadium was found at Altamont, and preparations began.  Two other groups were on the bill as support; the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane.  But in what turned out to be a monumental error of judgement, the Stones management hired local Hells Angels as security.  They reasoned that it would be okay, as just before, they used British bikers as security in the free show in Hyde Park.  They did not envisage the complete difference in the way American bikers acted to the British bikers.

    Trouble broke out whilst the Airplane were on stage.  Every time the crowd surged towards the stage, the Angels beat them back with pool cues and other weapons.  Eventually, the Stones hit the stage, and trouble kept breaking out between the crowd and the Angels, with Mick Jagger constantly pleading with the crowd to try and keep it in order.  During one incident, a black man named Meredith Hunter pulled a gun, and on seeing this, the Angels moved in and attacked him with weapons and one stabbed him to death.  The Stones were performing "Under My Thumb" at this point.  Later, the repercussions were felt, mainly by the Stones, and to some, it signalled the end of the so-called "Peace Decade."  In a documentary about the concert, a local radio station had a phone-in, and some bikers called in, blaming the Stones for everything, and tried to say that they were upset at people touching their bikes.  It has been claimed that the Stones` management paid out a significant bribe to prevent a contract being taken out on Jagger.  Jagger was also allegedly blamed by the Angels for not publicly supporting them.  It should be noted that they are virtual white supremacists, with a taboo being black members.  Strange though, that in 1986, Ralph "Sonny" Barger, presented a plaque to an all black outlaw club, the East Bay Dragons, commemorating their twenty five years as an active club.

    Part two to follow.

"Warrior. Your Cell is .....Ready!"

Thinking of the case of former Gladiator Mike Ahearne and the Liverpool cop Elmore "Fuck 'Em" Davies, reminded me of the time Ahearne brought his car into the accident repair centre, in Ellesmere Port, where I worked for more than ten years.  He drove in behind the wheel of a red Trans-Am Pontiac, and a Passat that was brought in by his bodyguard.  Strange that a man of the physique of Ahearne needed a minder, and that Ahearne worked as a doorman at a club on the Bromborough Industrial Estate.  I think it was at Fifth Avenue, or was at the Ritzy.  They are only about fifty yards apart.

    The minder was as big as Ahearne, but where as Ahearne was pumped up muscle, the minder was just bulk.  When he came to pick up his Passat, I drove it down to him.  Because of his size, the seat was lowered, and as I am not tall, I could just about see over the steering wheel.  A few years later, when the case broke about Ahearne , Davies & Curtis Warren, and the subsequent TV show "Mersey Blues" and the infamous outburst over Davies' rejection for promotion, brought a new catchphrase.  At this depot, I worked with a good few lads from Birkenhead, where Ahearne & Davies shared a flat, and every time one walked past you, there came the infamous Davies phrase of "Fuck 'Em!"  I heard from a couple of lads that Ahearne was useless as a doorman and was merely employed for his size.

Joyce McKinney

Recently, on the front page of the Bradford Telegraph & Argus, was a headline about a Dutch born Mormon Missionary being jailed for grooming a young for sex.  This immediately brought back memories of that juicy scandal that the tabloid press just loved, The Manacled Mormon. This was back around 1977, and a blonde American woman, Joyce McKinney, had an obsession about an American Mormon missionary, Kirk Anderson. 

    It seems that she followed him to these shores from the States, and she managed to entice him into a room and she chained him to a bed.  She eventually was arrested, tried and convicted,  The press had a field day with the story.  I was always asking people if they remembered the case.  Most did not.  Some recalled the essential element; the chains.  It is nice to see a story in the press and it sets off memories of similar cases.

Back To The Port Again

Time to travel back to Ellesmere Port and incidents in the past.  Back in the late 70`s, a huge gang fight took place in the town centre, involving around 150 youths and young men.  The Police simply could not cope and had to bring in reinforcements from Chester & Runcorn.  In the following court case, one name was there, and his popped up over the next number of years in the local rag involving various crimes.  One was a money snatch from the back of a motorcycle. Back in 1992, I got to know one woman, who named her ex-husband, and it was this man.  I recalled these two incidents, which she confirmed.  "You don`t know him do you?" she asked.  I did n t, but again recalled where he lived at those times, which was a couple of streets away from where I lived.

    Another big incident, happened in the early 70`s.  There was bad feeling and aggravation between two groups of men, and after some skirmishes, one group recruited a huge number of youths & men and went to the social club, down in the Stanney area of the town, where they drank.  This crowd surrounded the club making lots of noise and threats, to draw this group out, but very wisely, they stayed inside.  Many Police converged on the scene, and this crowd quickly dispersed.  The point, apparently, had been made.

    One incident which was very big, was when a Police Officer was beaten over the head, and left in a serious condition.  The Officer did make a full recovery and later returned to duty.  As to be expected, many Police were drafted in and were taking no shit off anybody. The assailant was captured, prosecuted and jailed.  The man responsible was Graham Irving, and after he was released from prison, he was monitored by the Police.  Whilst in jail, he bulked himself up on the weights, and this came to use a few years later with a violent incident down the street where I lived.  A party took place, and inevitably, a fight broke out.  It seems that a few guys attacked the host, and Irving jumped in to protect him, knocking one through a plate glass door, and hammering two more in the street.  Police arrived quickly, and I remember seeing an ambulance pass carrying a man covered in blood.  I was informed years after this, that Irving had died, no doubt the Police rejoiced.

    Another two men whose passing was not missed by many, were David Shorey and Jimmy Dore.  Shorey was a drug addict, constantly in court for various offences, mainly for theft.  He needed the money for the pusher.  One attempted theft resulted in it needing six officers to restrain him and get the cuffs on him.  His Solicitor was at his funeral.  The other, Dore, was a violent man.  One friend, a guitarist, was beaten up by three lads, so his younger brother, whom I went to school with, told me that his brother & Dore went and sorted them out.  Another tale was that in a pub, Dore was having a heavy blow-up with a smaller guy.  Somebody said that he should pick on somebody his own size.  Dore`s response was to turn around, grab the guy next to him and viciously butt him.  I read about his demise in the local rag and one person, on hearing of his death, said that it was good and that nobody will miss him.  

    There are many more tales from the Naked City.  Stay tuned.

People Not Fitting Their Image

Today I put an account about a man spoken of as some kind of hero, when the truth of the matter is the complete opposite of what is spoken of.  This man was given a "Heroic" image by that hero of the Prison system, Michael Peterson, or Bronson, as he is better known as.  The man in question Peterson refers to as a "Top Legend" & "Proper Hardman."  Of course in Ellesmere Port, this has produced howls of laughter. The man in question has a notorious reputation as a police informer, and has been hammered many times over the years, by the real tough nuts of the town.

    What can drive the police to speak up for a well-known hooligan & troublemaker?  Why do crimes committed by him suddenly cease to be crimes?  Why do they go to such lengths to protect him?  Why can he beat a man half to death with a baseball bat and the cowards in uniform refuse to arrest him for three days?  Why can he threaten a woman with a knife and a uniform turns up and basically intimidates her?  I can go on and on about this "Top Legend" but now I diversify into the "Proper Hardman" claim.  One day, this "Top Legend" wanted to attack my elderly father but before he could try anything, he spotted one of my elder brothers, who is the hardman in my family.  This "Proper Hardman" suddenly decided not to do anything.  No weapons, no Police protectors, all of a sudden, his bottle went.  One day, my brother-in-law stopped his truck, jumped out and confronted this "Top Legend" who did not have any weapons and no coppers to threaten for him, his response was to COWER!

    The elder brother of my B-I-L had once had a go at the "Top Legend" whom was begged not to beat him up!  Mick walked away in disgust at this so-called "Hardman."  The next time they clashed, Mick hit him and put him down, he stood back, let him get up and then promptly put him down again, where he chose to stay.  Mick did years later, get a grip of this "Legend" and warned him that if he ever went near my father again, he was going to put him in the ground.  No need to guess how he responded to that.  The eldest brother, Bill, has hammered this "Hardman" more than ten times, over the years.  He once growled at him in a chippie and this "Legend" literally ran out!  How did Bill react to this claim about the "Legend?"

    "He`s no fucking legend & he`s not even a hardman.  Does this man (Bronson) mention John Ackers?"  "No," I said, "Not even Terry Swan."  "Well," Bill said, "You can forget about anything he says.  HE KNOWS NOTHING.  When you talk about hardmen in this town, you START with John Ackers."  A real hard nut hammered the "Legend" all over a pub carpark after this hooligan made threats to this man and his father.  No reason.  Just because of the reputations they had.  Another very seriously hard man put him in hospital, after him and some of his mates wanted to jump this tough nut, and then the "legend" getting the opportunity to put a knife into him.  This "Legend" is also the most notorious knife merchant in the Port, yet for years he has walked around unmolested by the Police, most of the time he is tooled up.  However, this tough nut was prosecuted for putting the "Legend" in hospital.  No doubt the Police believed every lie from their top grass.  Somebody having the audacity to really harm their top man.  We cannot have that, can we?

Snapped - Women Who Kill

An interesting series on the Crime & Investigation Network is "Snapped - Women who Kill."  Most episodes feature the usual motives of getting rid of the husband simply to get their hands on the spouse`s life insurance.  Having a loving husband is not enough for some women and they obviously view a working man as not rich enough for they want a lavish lifestyle. Other women seem to have tired of the man in their life and instead of ending the relationship, it is much easier to kill them or have them killed.

    It beggars belief the lengths they will go to, and the bare-faced lies they tell to the documentary makers.  Even their lawyers come up with unbelievable excuses and manage to say them with a straight face.  One woman tried to recover a murder weapon, a gun, from a large pond, and was covertly filmed by the Police, who had already found the weapon.  Subterfuge was used to get her to try and recover it, to prevent the Police from pointing the finger at her, and she walked right into a sting operation.  Even in court, she came up with an excuse that she heard that it was in the pond and she wanted to recover it, to help the Police.  She spent her time actually in the pond, using a stick to try and find it, completely in the area of the pond that she had dumped it.  All caught on camera.

    One case that really sticks out for sheer greed was an arson that claimed the life of a man.  The Fire Chief could not find any trace of arson, so the cops brought in a highly experienced Fire Investigator who had incidentally written SIX books on arson investigation.  He discovered two fire start points, one effectively cutting off the victim`s escape.  His evidence sealed her fate despite all claims that she was a victim of the Police and the Fire Investigator.  What the dead man did not know was the number of different life insurance policies that his wife had taken out on him.  Within hours of the blaze, she was on the phone to them asking for payment on the policies.  One company asked her about how he had died; she replied that he was probably still smouldering.  Boys beware!

Louis Theroux Law & Disorder

The new programme hosted by Louis Theroux in which he travels to the hotspots of the world.  In his first show, Louis travelled to Philadelphia, going out on patrol with the cops, and talking to the people they deal with.  One little area drug lord did not fit the Hollywood stereotype.  Apart from the obligatory expensive chains, he was fat, heavily tattooed, and did not look anything remotely like a casting couch extra.  It was alleged that he was responsible for two murders, but the cops could not anything as they continually ran into a wall of silence and obvious fear.  Louis  asked him how he made a living. "I am a property developer" he grandly announced, though it was difficult to see just who would have been interested in any properties in this run-down area. He also claimed to make money by selling cars!

    Louis was out on patrol with a detective, and the cop was talking as he drove, when suddenly a young guy was in front of him.  The lad had what looked like a gun tucked into his waistband.  "Don`t fucking move!" he screamed repeatedly as he jumped out of the car, as he and his partner wrestled the lad to the floor.  The gun turned out to be an imitation.  "You stupid motherfucker!" he screamed at the lad.  "I could have shot you you stupid fuck!"  They took the lad`s details and let him go.  At another incident, a crowd gathered and started arguing with the cops.  Suddenly a squad car roared up and two huge, veteran cops climbed out brandishing big clubs.  The crowd quickly dispersed.

    This cop introduced Louis to the victim of a shooting.  A drug pusher shot a woman, then shot her sister and best friend dead.  The first victim was left for dead, but survived, despite being critically wounded.  The gunman was arrested and is awaiting trial.  Louis asked the girl if she is going to testify in court.  She said she was because of her injuries, the guy also killed her sister and best friend, and she was not going to let him get away with it.  

    It was very eye-opening and is probably a blueprint for what is down the line for us over here.

Who Killed Clara Cropper?

A murder case that I am interested in, happened in my home town of Ellesmere Port, in July 1948.  The victim was forty four year old Clara Cropper, a mother of two grown daughters, but separated from her husband.  Originally from Hull, Mrs Cropper had lived in the town for a number of years.  The tale started when she met a sailor from Norway, Olaf Andreas Flaathe.  She had a drink with him in a local pub, The Canal Inn, known locally as The Boathouse.  With her was a friend Edith Gill, and after buying some bottles of beer, they went back to the home of Edith Gill. 

    Whilst they were there, a man came to the door and had a violent argument with Mrs Gill.  A neighbour intervened and led the man away.  Mrs Cropper and Flaathe left the house through the back door.  This was witnessed by a neighbour.  However, after subsequent events, this was denied by Flaathe.  Some time later, a man walking home passed a man standing near a woman, who lay unmoving and whose clothes were in disarray.  This witness later identified the man as Flaathe, but this evidence was strongly countered by his defence barrister.  Mrs Cropper was reported missing by her daughters, and Police had full co-operation from Flaathe, whose ship was still berthed at the Bowaters Paper Mill.  

    Six weeks later, two young lads looking for scrap metal, found her decomposed body near the Shropshire Union Canal.  The Police went looking for Flaathe again, whose ship was moored by now, in Gravesend, and arrested Flaathe.  The Chief of Police stated to the local newspaper that this was an absolutely straight forward case, and in November of 1948, Flaathe went on trial at Chester Assizes for the murder of Mrs Cropper, and a guilty verdict brought an automatic death sentence.  What the Police had not counted on was just how quickly the Jury threw the case out.  So who did kill Mrs Cropper?  I will be sharing my views with you, over time.

Triple Murder

A truly horrific triple murder occurred off Florida in the mid - 80`s.  A man by the name of Chandler was convicted for the murders of a mother and her two teenage daughters.  he had them captive on a boat, tied up, sexually assaulted them and then attached weights with rope, around their necks and then threw them overboard.  This, as you would agree, is an extremely brutal and cold-blooded act that only a psychopath or psychotic could unflinchingly execute.  However, the Police carried out a thorough and unrelenting investigation into this slaughter of a family from Detroit.

    The suspect, Chandler, was convicted and sentenced to death.  He maintained his innocence throughout his incarceration on Death Row.  His final words before his sentence was carried out were, "You`re killing an innocent man!"  His son and daughter steadfastly maintained that their father was innocent.  They even appeared on the Maury Povich show on US TV, along with the husband and father of the victims.  What is strange, is that though they stated their father was innocent, not once did they ever visit their "innocent" father!  Indeed, throughout his time in prison, he never received one visit at all!  

    Supporters of this man say, "How could he have controlled three women?"  Simple. If he had a gun, then control was not a problem.  If he had a knife, all he had to do was keep it at the throat of one woman, and the others would comply.  It is quite simple to come up with different scenarios of how they ended up bound.  What I find horrifying, is that in turn, each woman was thrown overboard with a weight attached around their necks.  No doubt in my mind, Chandler deserved to die.

OMGs PT 2

Further to my last post, the world of the OMG is vastly different from the horror stories of the 60`s and early 70`s.  These biker organisations have seriously changed the mode of operation, many are involved in serious crime.  The Big Four - Angels, Outlaws, Bandidos & Pagans are involved in serious crime, but the other clubs are not being too far behind them.  The drug trade & in particular, methamphetamine, are the mainstays of biker crime, along with bike thefts & anything else they can turn to a profit.  However, not all back patch clubs are villains, but serious bikers who want to do and live they want, without stepping over the mark into serious crime.

    Our homegrown clubs that have expanded are the Satan`s Slaves, with a number of chapters, and also The Outcasts.  The Outcasts were featured in a BBC documentary in the mid 80`s, but it has been claimed in the media that they have developed more chapters.  I once spotted in Manchester a lad with a top rocker on the back of his jacket saying "Jesus & Lords" who walked into a McDonalds and sat with some biker types.  This must have been a christian back patch club - They do exist - and this lad must have been a prospect.  The oldest established British club is The Blue Angels, formed in 1963 in Scotland and now have a couple of chapters in Yorkshire.  The first official Hells Angel chapter here, could have been the Wessex Freewheelers, chartered around 1969.

    Scandinavia had the worst biker wars, along with Canada, and another stronghold for OMGs is Germany.  The main three have a strong presence there along with numerous other clubs, such as the Gypsy Jokers, and I believe the Sons of Silence or the Mongols.  German OMGs have a long history of extreme violence, going back to the 60`s.  At the 1970 Isle of Fehmarn rock festival, the festival was marred by continuing violence from bikers, who were firing guns indiscriminately.  One roadie for Jimi Hendrix was wounded with a bullet in his leg.

    Next stop-off is Australia & New Zealand.  NZ had the fist Angel chapter outside of the USA, indeed, it was the first outside of California.  Formed in Auckland in 1961, it was many years before the other big clubs set up there.  Their own big homegrown gang is called Highway 61.  In Australia, the big three are firmly established there, with the Outlaws having a chapter in Tasmania.  The big Australian gang, The Rebels, have around 60 chapters throughout the continent.  Other mobs, in particularly in Melbourne, are the Coffin Cheaters, Satan`s Slaves, The Black Uhlans and a religious group, The God Squad, headed by John Smith.  Smith is a preacher, who conducts marriages, funerals and christenings for the biker world in Melbourne.  The Gypsy Jokers are also in OZ, and were involved in the murder of a top cop.

Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs

Motorcycle gangs.  The phrase conjures up images of Mongolian - like hordes of neanderthals on bikes raping and pillaging their way across the continents.  The first and most famous outbreak of these "hordes on the rampage" was a holiday weekend in the sleepy town of Hollister in 1947.  A large contingent of riders converged on the town and seemed to take over it.  The whole incident was the basis of the film "The Wild One" made in 1953 with Marlon Brando and Lee Marvin.  The film caused such a fuss in this country that it was banned until 1967.  

    In the USA, there are said to be over one thousand OMGs.  However, there evolved what became known as The Big Four.  These four clubs were The Hells Angels, The Outlaws, The Bandidos and The Pagans.  Since the 1960`s, there has been a gradual expansion of these clubs around the States, then worldwide, with the exception of the Pagans.  The Pagans operate down the East Coast.  The Angels, Bandidos and Outlaws have warred with each other over the years and with other growing clubs.  The Angels have 255 plus clubs throughout more than thirty countries.  The Outlaws and Bandidos have 210 plus.  In the British Isles the Angels have reputedly have 17 chapters, the Outlaws 28 - with 8 in the Republic of Ireland - and the Bandidos have just two, in the Channel Isles.  However, the Big Three are spread heavily over Europe and Australia.  

    Other clubs that have expanded are the Gypsy Jokers, a club with 35 chapters in the States, Scandinavia, Germany and Australia.  It is said that the Gypsy jokers were involved in the murder of a top Australian cop, Don Hancock.  The Warlocks, hailing from Florida, have around twenty chapters, with two here in East Lincolnshire.  The Sons of Silence consist of around thirty plus chapters, with one in Germany.  The most violent club to emerge over the last two decades is the Mongols.  This club hails from California, the traditional Angel stronghold, and the cause of the long running war between the two clubs.  The Angels state that only they can wear the California bottom rocker on their colours.  The Mongols ignored this and hence the war. The most infamous incident was a shootout and brawl between the clubs at a casino in Laughlin, Nevada, which left a couple of bikers dead and many more injured.  Another club with a number of chapters is known as The Galloping Gooses, based around Missouri and Kansas, I believe.
This club was formed in the 1960`s like the Bandidos, Warlocks, Gypsy Jokers and an all black club The East Bay Dragons.  The Mongols formed in 1971.

The Savile Affair Pt 2

More and more "revelations" keep emerging about alleged abuse by celebrities.  Glitter had been arrested and questioned, Freddie Starr has been arrested twice, but as there has been no trial or charges, you cannot comment.  As we do not know the truth of the allegation against Starr, I will say that he has publicly denied the allegation and obviously has not gone running to bullshit merchant Max Clifford, so he could be an innocent man, like Matthew Kelly.  Could be.

    Now the latest exclusive is against long deceased comedy actor, Leonard Rossitter.  The headline in the Sun, is actually misleading.  Rossitter was not accused of the abuse of a teenage extra, but as witnessing it, and allegedly enjoying watching it.  The alleged victim stated that three BBC staff tried to homosexually rape him and Rossitter, next to him, was having sex with someone, then it happened again, with Rossitter allegedly enjoying the spectacle.  This happened during a BBC play made back in 1968.  Why did the victim not go to the Police?  Was everything to do with the BBC deemed "too powerful" to go to the Police?  The victim says that he decided to come forward after the storm following the revelations of Savile.  I still believe he could have reported it to the authorities and even gone to the News of The World.  They would not have hesitated to investigate.  The victim said that the BBC was a "cesspool of depravity."  I wonder how much depravity has long been carried out by rings of pedophiles.  Maybe they being ordinary people is not headline enough?

    Talking amongst friends & colleagues, it is wondered just how many of these claims are true, and how many are false.  Exaggeration of situations, twisting the truth of a situation due to the current climate, did some willing get involved with these people, or are some claims pure invention?  Let us be honest, many women and girls will do anything to be with a "Celebrity"  Their public status does make them a magnet for women.  Look at how many murderers on Death Row get love letters.  Read the boasts of film and pop stars as to how many females they have bedded.  Having said that, this most certainly does not apply to all women.  

    The allegations against Savile were supposed to be well-known, as the recent revelations about the deceased former MP Cyril Smith, were public knowledge.  I cannot help but feel undecided about Leonard Rossitter, as he died in 1984, a long time ago, yet it takes all this time for an allegation to surface, and the article does not tell of Rossitter being the assailant, despite the headline.

Awaiting New Trials

One notorious case from the U.S. that  I am waiting to hear about is the retrial of three men and a woman, in the city of Knoxville, in Tennessee.  They were convicted for the abduction, rape and horrific murder of a young couple, Chris and Channon.  The quartet were apprehended and put on trial.  It was sickening to hear the Defense lawyer give unbelievable reasons as to why the murdered couple were found in the area they were; they went looking for drugs and the girl was willing to give sex in return for drugs!  Despite this claim, he did not give a reason for the homosexual rape of the young man, and why he was sadistically beaten, had fuel poured on him and set ablaze.  The girl was gang-raped, then shoved inside a bin where she suffocated.

     During the trial, the father of the girl, was like a bomb about to explode, on hearing these claims by the Defense.  When the Jury came back in, Police stood around the father, in case he attacked the accused.  Two men and the woman were given life sentences, she - 70 years, they - no parole.  The ringleader received the Death Sentence.  however, they successfully appealed and received a ruling for a new trial.  Not hearing anything, I sent an email to the reporter who appeared in documentaries on the case.  Her name is Jamie Satterfield, a major crime reporter in East Tennessee.  She replied the next day, saying that the woman, Vanessa Coleman, has her trial on the 13th November, the others have not had a new date yet.  Miss Satterfield said that I can contact her anytime, for news on the case.  That is very good of her, and I will give an update when Iknow more.

Bradford s ` Infamous

Bradford.  The name usually brought up mental images of a city full of different cultures, most particularly, Asian.  What is not generally known, is that the first influx of people from the continent, were refugees from the Soviet Union.  This happened during the 1950`s.  So having such a completely diverse mix of cultures, it is inevitable that the dark side of these cultures emerges.  Prostitution, a profession once culturally controlled by West Indians, is now controlled by Asians.  This change is not widely known outside Bradford, as people still believed West Indians were the principal pimps, alongside their long history of involvement in drugs.  This I know through where I come from, Ellesmere Port, as numerous people I knew, thought that all pimps were West Indians.  Asians are very prominent in the drugs trade, very prominent.

    Yet when we look at the murderous side of Bradford, the most infamous are white.  The most infamous is Peter Sutcliffe, the Ripper, hailing from the Heaton area.  Suffice to say, much has been written about him, so we will by-pass him.  We then had "The Black Panther," multiple murderer and kidnapper, Donald Neilson.  He hailed from the Thornbury district, and carried out numerous burglaries and armed robberies, always alone.  He brutally shot dead three sub-postmasters during botched raids, during the night, holding them at gunpoint, in their homes above the shops.  In one attack, he cold-bloodedly shot one dead, and then almost beat his victims` wife to death with his gun.  He then kidnapped a teenage girl, Lesley Whittle, and murdered her when his plans went wrong.

    Next on the list is murderer and kidnapper Michael Sams.  He hailed from Keighley, just outside Bradford. He murdered a prostitute that he kidnapped, Julie Dart, then kidnapped an estate agent, Stephanie Slater, who survived.  Sams had tried some extortion demands, at first, against British Rail, by threatening to derail passenger trains.  This failed, so he resorted to kidnapping, ultimately leading to murder and his eventual downfall.

    Over the last couple of years, we have had two notorious cases.  One is the so-called "Crossbow Cannibal" Stephen Griffiths.  He murdered and dismembered three prostitutes, and is thought to have consumed part of one of his victims.  His last killing, he carried out in full view of CCTV, doing nothing to hide his identity.  Griffiths was an obvious narcissist, wanting his piece of "fame."  Up next, is probably the oldest convicted killer to be given a whole life tariff.  Ernest Wright was a criminal originally from the Shipley district.  He had already served a very long sentence for a gruesome murder in 1971(roundabout), down south.  His murder here, was a brutal shotgun killing of a gay man, and the attempted murder of his partner.  The Police launched a manhunt, and arrested him.  They quickly disproved the alibi he had carefully constructed for himself.  Despite his age, 68, the Judge stated that he was far too dangerous to be ever released, and imposed a whole life sentence.

Psychic Detectives PT2

Continuing my theme on what I call con-artists, is the case of the New York Zodiac.  This was a man called Heriberto Seda.  Seda had an unhealthy obsession with serial killers such as Ted Bundy and  the San Francisco Zodiac.  He had a well-thumbed book on the Zodiac by Robert Graysmith, a book regarded by some as the "definitive " book on the killer.  Well, this had drawn laughter in many quarters, as it has been shown that Graysmith used half-truths, rumours, innuendo and allegedly out-and -out lies to point the finger at the man, Arthur Allen.  There has not been one shred of evidence to indicate Allen was the killer, a claim Allen angrily denied right up to his death.

    One episode of Psychic Detectives claimed that Noreen Ranier helped solve the mystery of the NY Zodiac.  If you read all you can on the internet about the NY Zodiac, you will not see anything about her alleged role in helping the NYPD apprehend Seda.  What is mentioned is that publicity hungry psychics were offering their assistance to the Police.  Good Police work brought this killer to justice, not some conwoman claiming her "gifts" helped.

    

Psychic Detectives

A popular show from Court TV is Psychic Detectives, in which it is claimed that so-called psychics have helped the Police in the States "Solve hundreds of cases."  It is remarkable that these people seem to solve many more cases than the BAU in the TV series "Criminal Minds"  The current superstars of this genre are Noreen Ranier, Phil Jordan and Carol Pate.  It is amazing that their names do not appear in the case files, telling all how they were able to use their "special powers" to crack the case.  One case in particular is Florida serial killer David Gore.  Caught by diligent Police work, it was later claimed that Phil Jordan helped bring it to a conclusion.  Strange, how in a documentary giving a thorough rundown  on how Gore was apprehended, there was no mention of a psychic "being consulted."

    It is also claimed that Ranier had given a lecture at the FBI Academy.  I do not know if this is true, but I would have thought that the Bureau, which provides all the best training, all the best facilities, would give the time of day to an alleged psychic.  One claim made by these people in the States and here in the UK, is that they have helped the Police in "hundreds of cases."  The Police here certainly do not corroborate these claims and usually treat these with disdain.

    The best site to truly understand these people was "Bad Psychics" but unfortunately the site host has shut it down, due to constant abuse and indeed death threats, from these people who prey upon the lonely, bereaved and vulnerable.  This man was costing them money, because it taught the unsuspecting what the game is all about, and the tricks they use to fool and con the public out of money.

The Savile Affair

Everyday brings an apparent new "revelation" about the actions of one Jimmy Saville.  It seems that he did face a number of probes into allegations about his behaviour, but they never went any further.  Allegations were made in the media that Saville paid off Police to drop their investigations.  He certainly had the money to do that.  Then came the usual garbage that "He was too powerful to touch." 

    This is the line spouted about people like celebrities, or criminals like The Krays.  The reason, I believe, that it was said that The Krays "were too powerful" was the protection they received from bent Police and politicians like Boothby and Driberg.  It is very fanciful to make somebody "above the law" when they are paying people to protect their interests, and it really shows just "how powerful" they were.  If no Police were on the payroll, how long would they have been at liberty?  No tip-offs, no warnings, no taking villains off the streets with unimpeachable information, they being constantly under surveillance and raided often.  It is amazing what conclusions you can come to, when you take off the rose-tinted glasses!

    Now we have PR bullshit merchant Max Clifford, claiming celebrities are flocking to him, afraid of being "caught up" in the Saville scandal.  Hmmm!  Seems like a whole lot of guilty consciences.    "How can you expect them to remember things they did forty years ago?"  Well, if they cannot "remember what they did forty years ago" how do they know they were screwing underage girls?  What was allegedly acceptable all those years back, is certainly not now, hence the panic.  Scared celebrities?  At the end of the day, the law is the law, no matter who you are.

A Dead Genre

One area of crime that has virtually bitten the dust, and that has been the the "Criminal Autobiography."  Back in the beginning of the millennium  numerous books appeared on the market with various former villains "Telling All" of their supposed prolific careers of crime.  Many hit on the same formula, i.e. they were major players in the underworld, they never lost a fight, they never grassed on anybody, hated bullies, and showed nothing but the highest respect for women and children. Ad Nauseum.  

    A frequent feature was the disagreement with everybody else`s tales of events.  Some of these books were nothing but out and out lies.  The king of these is Dave Courtney, a man who needs publicity like oxygen, and has plenty of morons ready to swallow all the bullshit he spouts.  It was claimed to me that Courtney has made mega-bucks for his publisher, Virgin.  The fact is that these books do not have great sales figures, and a number of Courtney's ` have bombed.  The last one I seen on the market, it ended up being sold off to the cheap book shop chains, such as "The Works"   So much for a "Mega-seller!"  The truth is, books sold in the supermarkets at less than half price, usually paperbacks, have exceeded sales predictions and have gone into profit for the publisher, so they can off-load them cheaply.  With hardbacks, there is usually discount agreements between the supermarkets and publishers.  With "The Works" and other shops like "County Books" these get the very poor sellers that publishers and distributors can get rid of, even for a very small amount, and saves them having loads pulped for no returns.

    The market had dropped out some years ago, and the publishing companies, by and large, were simply not interested.  It no longer works that somebody claims he was an associate of The Krays, as they are regarded in a lot of circles as old hat, and many people simply are not interested in them anymore.  The occasional tome breaks through such as "Bringing Down The Krays," a tale I regard as being more than it was.  My opinion!  

    A couple of years back, I was put forward as a possible candidate to "Ghost" a memoir of a former London villain.  The man originally approached, turned it down and put my name forward to the man who was acting as a go-between for the villain.  I was never told whom it was, though I did have a guess.  The go-between would not confirm his identity to me, unfortunately.  I was also sent a rough copy of part of a manuscript about a guy smuggling drugs in the States.  It seemed that he was in jail over here, and his story was being handled by a firm of solicitors, whom knocked me back when I made some inquiries.

A Touch of Class

When you peruse the annals of historical crime, one thing that is clear to see is that class, for many years, played apart in British Justice.  If you had plenty of money or privilege  you were virtually above the law.  Let us examine a couple of controversial examples.  How about the trial and execution in 1922 of pantry boy Henry Jacoby. He battered to death a wealthy woman in a hotel where he worked.  Despite his young age - 18 - and a recommendation for mercy from the Jury, he was hanged.  Now, we look at the case of Ronald True.  Convicted for a brutal murder in 1923, in this case, it was the JUDGE who asked for a psychiatric evaluation of True.  Indeed, three psychiatrists all concluded that True was insane and therefore not responsible for his actions, and so he was committed an asylum, where not surprisingly, he was a model patient.  True was the illegitimate son of an Army Officer, where the class structure was still rife. This brought accusations that laws differed for the rich and poor. True was the product of a privileged background and Jacoby was working class.

    We now turn to the case of Edith Thompson, hanged in 1923 for murder, an act carried out by her lover, Fred Bywaters.  Mrs Thompson did attempt to stop Bywaters killing her husband, but what did for her, was letters found in the possession of Bywaters.  Certain sections were put forward as evidence, that Mrs Thompson planned the murder with her lover.  What was not used by the prosecution, for obvious reasons, were the whole of the letters.  Certain sections of the letters may indicate intent, but in what context was it meant?  The judge in the case, certainly did not like the fact that a man of Mr Thompson s ` social standing, had a cheating wife, and cheating with a man many years younger than herself.  The general consensus was that she was hanged for her morals.  The letters she received from Bywaters, she destroyed, he kept hers, ultimately leading to their collected doom.  Her execution was said to have been an horrific event, in which she collapsed in the Death Cell and had to be held up on the scaffold, unconscious.  This in turn, had a huge effect on the hangman, Rochdale man, John Ellis, leading to his resignation.  Some years later, he committed suicide.

Serial Killers

I am coming to the conclusion that the accepted method of profiling, whether it is the American or the British way, has kept the blinkers on when it comes to the Serial Killer.  The FBI conducted a series of interviews with thirty six serial murders and rapists, asking about how and why they did their crimes, the MO they used, basically, everything to do with the crime.  The British way is different, but I believe whatever method is used, the ultimate aim is to catch the perpetrator.  Geographical Profiling is also used, in which all facts relating to the location of the crimes, says something about the unsub.  

    It has emerged that in the case of "The Night Stalker" the Police never considered that the violent and depraved sexual attacks and murders, were NOT the work of a serial killer.  Richard Ramirez, the killer, did not fit the profile of a serial offender, as he used different methods of attack, breaking & entering, and what he put his victims through.  Have people not come to a very real conclusion that killers do not have to stick to a particular MO?  My belief that the "signature" in Ramirez`s crimes, was the sheer sexual violence he inflicted.  I also do not believe in the adage that these killers have "an urge" to kill.  My belief is that they have a "desire" which is completely different, and a desire is easier to control and conceal than an "urge" which could expose unsound actions and/or body language, leading to awkward questions.  An example was an attack carried out by Sutcliffe, in Halifax, when he was with Trevor Birdsall.  He asked him to stop the car so he could go for a piss.  Whilst he was out of sight, he attacked a woman.  Was this a man driven by rage, or an overwhelming urge to attack, or a man using an opportunity that presented itself.  A lone woman walking and nobody around.  Of course it was "The Voices" in his head, ordering him to carry out the attack!

    A killer will not commit all his offences to a strict pattern.  Some will use whatever means that come to them, and as in the case of Jessie Earl, a bra works as a convenient bond.  Killers will use anything that comes to hand, but to say that certain aspects must fit a particular killer, otherwise he is not guilty,I feel, is absurd.  Another example is the unsolved disappearance in 1969 of April Fabb, in Norfolk.  She disappeared in a country lane and her bicycle lay on a grass verge, just off the road.  This fitted the MO of notorious child killer Robert Black, the prime suspect in the disappearance of Genette Tate in 1978.  It is difficult to place Black in Norfolk at that time, but that does NOT mean he is innocent.  A lot more research into Black needs undertaking.

Bringing Down The Krays

I had just acquired a new book (From a charity shop) about those heroes to the mentally deranged, The Krays.  Written by three brothers who were associates of them, one of them claims that he was the one that "Brought them down".  Bobby Teale states that he worked as an informer for Tommy Butler, after the George Cornell murder, because he felt they had gone too far and that "He was the man to bring them to book".  Delusions of grandeur seem to be the immediate response to this claim.  It seems that the barmaid who witnessed the shooting and pointed the finger at Ronnie Kray & John Barrie, was like a sideshow, and John Dickson, who drove them both to the Blind Beggar pub, to commit the crime, his evidence was merely secondary.  It seems that Teale believes that the whole case was built upon him.

    The murder of Jack McVitie that put Reggie away, the story does have a number of different versions.  Ronnie is supposed to have held McVitie whilst his brother stabbed him.  Dickson, in his memoirs said thathe heard that Reggie and Ronnie Hart had done it.  Hart was a cousin of the Krays. Lennie Hamilton, a villain tortured by Ronnie Kray, states that he was told by Ronnie Bender, a driver who was present at the scene, that McVitie was held by Hart and Tony Lambrianou, and the window was broken in the struggle with these two.  The murder of Frank Mitchell was carried out by Freddie Foreman & Alfie Gerrard, witnessed by Albert Donoghue.  Foreman later confessed to the murder in print and television, and confirmed that the evidence of Donoghue in court was true.  Despite the change to the Double Jeopardy Law in 1998, Foreman has never been arrested and charged over the Mitchell and Marks murders.  As for other murders, "Frosty" Bill Frost, not David, was a driver, and supposedly murdered.  Yet, he popped up alive and well some years ago and gave interviews for documentaries.  As for "Mad " Teddy Smith, former storng man villain, Henry "Buller" Ward, claims he ran into Smith, some years after his alleged murder, in London.  Ward says that it was not hard to get away from the Krays, if you wanted to.

    Teale may have been an informer for the Yard, but they already had a man on the inside.  This was Alan Bruce Cooper, an American, who it later emerged, was an agent for John Du Rose, head of the Murder Squad.  Lennie Hamilton admits to giving Read statements.  Billy Webb, another villain says that he made statements to the Police.  One woman, whose evidence was very minimal in the McVitie case, says that Reggie Kray threatened to kill her children.  (Cues cries from the fan club "Good ole Reg would never do that")  After they went down, Albert Donoghue never went into hiding.  He stayed with his family in Bow.  And why would Teale deem to think that by coming back to this country, the Police would be waiting for him at Heathrow Airport?  The Krays went down in 1969, and he was talking about the last couple of years!  Did he seriously think that he was SO important, and that they would be there saying, "Cor blimey, Bob, we`ve got you now, for skipping our protection"?  After forty years?  Don`t you think that the Police have more pressing Law & Order issues to deal with, than a guy still concerned over events in the sixties?

   As for the continued "They were too powerful" claims, what about the time they were told to get out of Manchester by the Police?  What about their trip to Liverpool and where Reg had a gun put under his chin by a DI and told to leave and not come back?  What about the family in the East End that they never bothered? The Tibbs family?  What about the time, just before their arrest, when thay attempted to muscle in on the rackets being run by the Dixon Brothers and their boys?  The Dixon mob stood up to them apparently, so it seems logical that they would have been mysteriously arrested by East End cops with  immaculate information, shortly afterwards.  Everybody knows that "Ole Ron & Reg never grassed anybody".  Of course you can believe that.  If you want to.

Peter Tobin

The subject today is that of Scottish serial killer Peter Tobin, killer of three known victims.  The question being asked by Professor David Wilson, criminologist at Birmingham University, is that have serial killers committed more murders than they have been convicted for.  Prof. Wilson has written a book about his conviction that the unsolved Glasgow murders attributed to "Bible John" were in fact, committed by a young Tobin.

    Tobin is alleged to have told his prison psychiatrist that he had committed forty eight murders during his life.  Whether this is true or not, would require a massive amount of detailed research by the Police into the life of Peter Tobin.  I believe that Tobin has committed many more serious offences than is credited to him.  He has a very serious issue with women standing up to him.  Plus, his violence and sadism has no boundaries.

    Prof. Wilson had highlighted the case of Jessie Earl, a Brighton girl who vanished in 1980, and whose skeleton was found, purely by chance, in 1989. The body was found deep in a copse.  Prof. Wilson established through his own investigation, that Tobin was living in the area at the the time Jessie disappeared.  She also fitted the criteria of what Tobins` later victims were, in looks and physical shape.  She had her hands bound with her brasserie.  Yet, astonishingly, this was not labelled a homicide by the Brighton Police, at the time.  It was only years later that it was reopened, but all the evidence had been destroyed.  God knows what people must think when they find a corpse, bound, and carefully hidden in a copse.  Obviously, it was a case of suicide or a natural death!!!

   Prof. Wilson presented his findings to his students, and one who was not convinced was a serving Police Officer.  He believed that the MO did not fit Tobin, in that the killer used a bra as a bind, and the body was not buried.  He did not consider that a bra can be a very handy tourniquet or bind, and that although the body was not buried, it was not discovered for NINE years, and only then, it was by sheer luck.  In that respect, it was as good as burial, and in retrospect, it remained hidden longer than the victims that Tobin buried in his Margate garden.

Criminal Minds

How many of you tune to the TV show Criminal Minds?  This fast paced show provides an insight into the world of profiling.  How they whip up an uncannily accurate profile so quickly, provide breakthroughs in the case that the slow, thick and moronic local cops simply cannot do.  Then the ultimate solving of the case.  Great!

    The reality is much, much slower, the case is solved by the local cops, and the BAU do not take active part in the hunt, they are only in an advisory role.  There are so many factors to be taken into consideration; the autopsy report, the crime scene, the geography of the scene, evidence at the crime scene, etc, etc.  All different details need to be taken into consideration, and I also believe a lot of common sense comes into it.  All this takes time, and as top men like John Douglas, Robert Ressler, Roy Hazelwood and Marl Safarik have pointed out, these profiles are only another tool in the detectives bag.  They are not proof of anything.  An example being that of The Green River Killer.  Douglas provided a profile and it perfectly fitted a man who was at first, the prime suspect.  This man was Melvyn Foster, a taxi driver, who seemed to put himself right into the investigation, an action that a number of killers seem unable to resist.  Many years later, DNA revealed the killer to be a truck sprayer called Gary Ridgway, who pleaded guilty to forty eight murders.

The Water Street Job

The Water Street Job was a unique crime in the annals of British criminal history.  It was the tunneling into and gaining entry to the bank vault, escaping with a reputed £140,000.  This crime took place over the Bank Holiday weekend in August 1969.  Why have I put this on?  simple.  There was an issue very close to home.  My father received a visit from Police officers whom had received an anonymous tip that my father owned a thermal lance.  The villains burned their way into the bank vault with such apparatus.  

    My father opened his shed and showed them his cutting gear;  An oxyacetylene torch, just you find in any garage or workshop.  "Where`s your lance?" was the first question upon entering the shed.  Dad explained that this was the only gear he had and how had they come up with this ridiculous scenario.  They said it was an anonymous tip.  Dad pointed to the next door neighbors ` house saying, "that`s the bastard who phoned you.  He`s only done that because I would n t do a welding job on his car".  This guy was a petty thief, always braking into peoples` sheds and garages.  Dad told the Police whom he bought his cutting gear off, a prominent local businessman and off they went to see him.  Dad phoned him to warn him, to which he thought Dad was trying to take the piss.  Eventually, he convinced him, and soon a return call came.  The guy said he told everything to the plods and then they wanted to know if Dad was a villain, or mixed with heavy villains.  Dad said he should have told them that Ronnie & Reggie were regular visitors!

    The truth was that the villains who did pull the job, were all apprehended and jailed.  The mastermind was said to have been Tommy Comerford, who received ten years.  He was also said to have been Britain's first drugs baron, again receiving a substantial jail sentence later on.

More Undercover stories

If anybody follows what I write, it is all a bit haphazard.  I simply write about whatever I feel on different criminal subjects.  So it does not follow any pattern.  In my last piece, I wrote about some undercover stories that have hit the big time.  There is one story that I came across on the Crime & Investigation Network, on satellite.  This involved an amazing U/C agent in the States.  He was getting the confidence of major drug pushers and was getting them sent down for very heavy sentences.  The Judge that the defendants appeared in front of, was a "Maximum John" style of Judge, in which he handed down the maximum sentence he was allowed to do by state or federal law.  People with small amounts of drugs were receiving sentences of twenty and thirty years plus.  But all this came tumbling down, when it was discovered that the people being sent to prison were barely scratching a living.  One aging man was living in a ramshackle house, yet he was portrayed as the "Local Mr Big" living in squalor to fool the authorities!

    An investigation was launched and it was soon established that these people were poor people and that they had been set-up by the U/C agent.  He was passing drugs to them, only small amounts, but it was enough for him to claim that these were major criminals in the area, and they were soon being arrested and sent to jail for a very long time.  His excuse for his actions was that he wanted to show his bosses, "just how good he was!"  

    One former U/C agent who has shunned anonymity is Peter Bleksey, a man who did go after major villains and did get them.  He has not shirked from showing his face to anybody and has featured in numerous TV documentaries and radio interviews.  He went after villains with intent to get real solid evidence to ensure the convicted stayed convicted.

Undercover Operatives

One area of Police work I have never touched upon and that is the role of the undercover cop.  These have operated for decades in the USA, but only over the last forty years or more in this country.  In this country, the cases I want to write about are the Colin Stagg saga and the case of a woman who"solicited" a murder.

    As this case was been extensively covered, I will be brief.  The Police used a woman agent to ensnare Stagg into confessing he murdered Rachel Nickell.  The judge threw it out, calling it "Entrapment of the most reprehensible kind"  This was not "Establishing his innocence or guilt" as the Police claimed but their attempt to get Stagg to say "I did it" no matter what.  Some years later, the real murderer, Robert Napper was convicted, and it transpired that they had evidence that would have made him a strong suspect.  Since his conviction, there had been silence from the Police and Paul Britton, the Psychologist who drew up the profile and helped with briefing the undercover agent, named "Lizzie James".

    Next, comes the woman who was lucky not to be arrested and charged with Conspiracy to Murder.  The truth was, she never solicited a murder.  This was a set-up by a Police informer.  The woman said something that thousands of women over the last 40 or 50 years, in violent and abusive marriages and relationships have said.  That she would have her husband killed if she could get away with it.  This was said to a taxi driver, who was the said informer.  Astonishingly, he went to the Police who set up a sting with an undercover operative.  HE went back to the woman stating, "Remember what you said about getting rid of your husband?  I can get you a hitman!"  She NEVER asked for a killer.  HE brought it up.  Amazingly, the agent, in his memoirs said that they were trained not to entrap people.  Then what was this case?  The murder plot was set in motion by the informer!  The agent met with the woman who, not surprisingly, dithered.  The agent was pushing for an answer.  She said no, but could quite easily have said yes, but having no intention of going through with it.  All the Police wanted to hear was "Yes".  As I said, the informer, not the woman, set this in motion.  Be warned!

Unsolved Murder

A part of crime that fascinates me is the solving of long forgotten cases.  In the USA, many Police forces have what are known as "Cold Case" squads, who investigate long dead cases,. Just like the TV show "New Tricks"  One case in this country which I can find no information about, is the murder of a garage owner in Birmingham, around 1978.  He was found in a burnt out garage, but it was only when a post- mortem discovered that he had been shot through the forehead.  This was then regarded as a gangland hit.  The newspaper reports at the time said that the Police were investigating the deceased's ` background for any possible criminal links.  All I remember is that the deceased garage owner was named Fred, but do not know if the crime was ever solved.

    Locally, there were four unsolved murders in Bradford, up to the 60`s.  One was a young girl in 1938 in Little Horton Green, Taxi driver Harry Graham, murdered outside Bierley Church in his cab, in 1944, Garner Street in 1955, and a woman in Bowling Park in 1963. The Harry Graham murder was featured in a true crime magazine.

The Bank Job Film

It is remarkable that certain elements in films based on true events, are broadcast as fact.  One recent film that is based on a true crime with elements of it peddled as fact is "The Bank Job"  This was a raid on a bank in London in 1971, where the villains tunneled into it over a weekend, and a story sprung out, that the villains found highly compromising photographs of Princess Margaret were found.  The film portrays the villains as being allowed to get away Scot-free, in order to avoid a huge scandal.  I regard this as total bullshit.

    Let us start with a few facts.  Firstly, the robbers DID NOT get away with it.  They were quickly apprehended and all were jailed. That destroys that tale.  In the film, a Jamaican called Michael X somehow comes into possession of the photos, and Michael X is portrayed as a gangster.  Again, this is totally untrue.  As John O`Connor, the head of the Flying Squad at the time, said, that Michael X was never more than a small-time drug pusher and hustler.  He also stated that X never had a safety deposit box at that bank.  Why would he? He was strictly a nobody.  The only claim to fame he had was that in 1975, he was back in Jamaica, committed a murder and was subsequently hanged for it.  Jamaica still had the death penalty at that time.  No doubt this was another subversion of the truth by the Government.  Sure!  Four years after the job.

    Let us continue.  George Mcindoe, the film`s producer, claimed that a "D" notice was served on the press to gag them.  What is a "D" Notice?  It is NOT a government order.  It is simply a request to keep things quiet, particularly in sensitive Police operations.  Certainly, there has been a flood of old journalists coming forward to state that the Government and the Police issued an official warning of silence over this affair.  Actually, there has n `t. 

    Now we turn our attention to Mcindoe himself and his claims.  He claims that he was introduced to the actual robbers, through criminal acquaintances, and that they showed him the photos.  Now, do you believe that villains who pulled a highly elaborate and lucrative robbery, are simply going to say to a total stranger, "Hi there.  We pulled off this blag and look at these pictures of Margaret being shagged!"  Of course you are free to believe this, and that all and sundry knew who pulled the job, which would naturally come to the attention of informers, who would immediately pass this on to their Police handlers,because this would boost their credibility skywards.  And then, what about the rest of the Underworld?  Would they simply stand by and allow others with highly incriminating and profitable photos?  Would they be moving in on the robbers, take the photos, and then carry out the next logical step?  That is, to eliminate these people.  Two gangs of villains can keep a secret if one is wiped out.  

    It was claimed that the robbers "Did not know what to do" with these pictures.  Really?  The best "Get out of jail" card you could possibly possess?  Photos that could net you fortune sold around the continent and the USA!  There is actually a reasonable explanation for alleged photos.  At the time, blackmail was a highly profitable business, and where else could blackmailers leave their wares in safety!  That`s right.  A safety deposit box!  To finish off, John O`Connor interviewed the men and asked about any supposed photos, as this was being spoken about a lot.  The villains denied all knowledge of them, stating that it was a made up story.  So much for the best "Get out of jail free" cards.  What do you think?

The Blogging Game

Whilst we are all going mad on our own personal blogspots, it is sobering to think that it can be viewed as more than a hobby or past-time.  One of the most popular Police blogs was "Coppersblog" which has now closed down.  It was not very well received by the hierarchy of the Police because it unfortunately told the truth about Law and Order.  Another popular blog was "Nightjack"  This was witten by a ranking officer.  But, lo and behold, a heroic journalist set out to expose this heinous officer.  He relentlessly delved until he unearthed the name and rank of "Nightjack"  It turned out that it was a DI from a Lancashire Force.  He was hauled across the coals and the site shut down.  Wow!!  What a hero!  He really showed his true journalistic skills by almost losing a dedicated cop his job and pension.  He must be so proud!!

    I am not sure if this was the same journalist who uncovered, through blackmail, itself a sickening and illegal measure, just who the "Girl with the one track mind" was.  This anonymous blog and book was written by "Abby Lee"  The blog was a no holds barred account of her sex life.   Just who was this liberated woman?  Our hero had to find out.  He "acquired" her "co-operation" by threatening to reveal all to her mother and having her mothers` photo splashed all over his newspaper.  This kind of blackmail was not a crime because it did not involve money.  Again, what a hero!  The identity of the "Girl with the one track mind" was revealed as one Zoe Margolis.

Gone but will never be forgotten - unfortunately!

Recently, there was the passing of a very notorious Bradford criminal.  This was none other than Donald Neilson, otherwise known as "The Black Panther"  Back in the mid-70`s, he was committing many burglaries and also a number of armed robberies.  He then went on to cold-bloodedly murder three men during the course of his robberies.  He also brutally pistol-whipped the wife of one of his victims, almost beating her to death.  He then committed the crime that shook the nation.  He kidnapped a teenage girl and held her to ransom.  His plot fell apart and he murdered his helpless victim.  He claimed it was an accident.  Neilson spent thirty five years in jail for the crimes he perpetrated.

    The sickening thing was that some people campaigned for his release, saying that he had served more than enough time for his crimes.  Obviously, to these fucknuts, his victims did not amount to much.  But fate came to the rescue and Neilson died behind bars.  One of the Police Officers who arrested Neilson, during an attempt by Neilson to kill him and his partner, did have something to say about him.  He described him as the most dangerous man he has ever faced in his whole life.  This would not mean much to the professional apologists, whom only have one goal in life, and this is to excuse the actions of vicious scum.

Dreamworld Pt 2

Welcome to part two of "Dreamworld"  Let us start this piece with a switch in continents.  We now go to Australia, and that "King of the Underworld" Mark Brandon Read, or as he is better known, "Chopper."  Read is credited in his books as committing 19 murders.  This would make him a mass murderer, but, alas, this is not true.  He has been involved in some murders.  It seems to be four, which is bad enough, but the claim of 19 has apparently been shot down, it seems from his own mouth.  Underworld people in Melbourne have also rubbished many of his claims, and it has been said that he has simply immersed himself into other people`s stories.

    Another feature of Reads` stories is that every villain in Australia is a complete wanker in comparison to him and his cronies.  Read made a reputation as a "Standover Man."  What this meant is that Read never committed robberies and the like, he robbed the villains of their ill-gotten gains.  In Britain, this would have earned him the monicker of "A Thief`s Ponce."  Well known thieves ponces here included, The Krays, Brian Cockerill, Lee Duffy & Stephen French.

Dreamworld

When one has read a number of the fanciful "true" stories of various villains, usually from London, it seems that just when will somebody be completely truthful, no matter what.  Let us start with that old gang boss, Jack Spot.  He claimed that he led the "Battle of Cable Street" with the Blackshirts of Oswald Mosley in the East End of London in 1936.  The truth is, this battle never took place.  The only film footage you will see, is small skirmishes between Police and left-wing agitators.  Many other tales have been contradicted by others.  Author Wensley Clarkson, in his biography of Spot, gives a detailed account of this "battle."  This showed, unfortunately, how little research he did, giving the view that James Morton's ` biog of Spot gave specific attempts to find evidence of this "battle."


    How about the fantasy world of "Kray gang boss" Tony Lambrianou?  The tales he told of how he and his brother "with the Kray name behind us" were going to "take over" a number of major cities in England.  he mentions Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, Leicester, Stoke, Bristol and Plymouth.  "We were connected to London teams.  Who was going to stand up to us," he boasted.  It seems that outside London, nothing existed.  I could just imagine if at that particular time, huge and tough doormen like Dennis and Ted Turner would have been gnashing their nails in sheer terror, "Oh my god, it`s the Lambrianou Brothers with the Kray name behind them.  Who is going to stand up to them?  We are so frightened and helpless."  Yeah right.  Plus, all the other villains and tough nuts, would they have crumbled so easily?  you guessed it.  Considering he thought he was such a big villain, it comes as no surprise to know that when he and his brother were arrested over the Mcvitie murder, in Birmingham in 1968, he went along very quietly.  How do I know?  I have seen covertly taken photos of the two of them being brought out of the hotel by seven CID officers.  And they were not all young bruisers!  The photos now belong to an author that I have acquaintance with.  As they say about "The X-Files" the truth is out there.

Historical Crime

There are quite a number of historical crime books that provide much information about what life was like in the "Good old days".  There is a long running series about foul deeds in all major cities and towns, but now books have emerged about the scuttling gangs in Liverpool, Manchester, and other cities.

    Gangs of Liverpool, Tearaways (About Liverpool), Gangs of Manchester, Gangs of Birmingham, Nottingham, etc.  Choc full of info on the various gangs and the areas they operated, all well worth the read.

Bobby Critchley

A new book has just come out , the autobiography of Jimmy Donnelly, or Jimmy the Weed, a leading face in the so-called Quality Street Gang.  He mentions Bobby Critchley, who it transpires that he was the big man in Manchester during te 40`s and 50`s.  He also gives mention to many of the faces of Manchester.  Now I know about a man whom information has been very thin on the ground.  I believed his name was Tainey, but in fact it is Tierney.  Mick Tierney was known as "The Terror", lived in Moss Side, and provided protection for some of the shebeens or illegal drinking dens.  This, apparently, was his main source of income.  Makes a nonsense of the talk of a "Criminal Organisation"

    There is no mention of Critchley having a brother.  It alo seems that Tierney was to have ahd a straightener with Jimmy Swords, the pivotal figure in the QSG.  Tierney, it appears, "did not fancy it".

    Let us hope that it promps more books about the other major cities that have their own underworlds, and get away from London.