Ernest Wright - Double Killer

Ernie Wright is one of a small select group of people that have been deemed to die in prison, because they are far too dangerous to ever contemplate releasing. Brady, Sutcliffe, Rose West, Neilsen, Hardy, Roy Jackson, Tony Arkwright, Colin Ireland, David Copeland, Bellfield, and the newest recruit, Mark Bridger.  Ernie Wright committed murders more than thirty years apart, but despite his age, he is now 72, he is extremely dangerous, and proved it so cold-bloodedly, with a sadistic murder and an attempted murder.

    He was an habitual criminal right from an early age, encouraged by his parents, and gradually as he grew older, it was approved schools, borstal and prison, for him.  He was born in Shipley, just outside Bradford, in 1941.  His first murder happened down south in 1971, he murdered a guy in front of his spouse and then set fire to the body.  He wanted her for him self.  He was arrested but escaped from the officers, but was eventually captured and put on trial.  He went away for twenty years.  It was around 2007, that in the outer regions of Bradford, he befriended an elderly woman and manipulated her for his own ends.  But somebody tried to put a stop to him.  The old ladys` son.

    He was gay and lived with his boyfriend(one of my work colleagues lives a number of houses down from the following scene) but one day, a man working fatigues and wearing a balaclava, clutching a shotgun, burst into their home.  He shot the son, severely wounding him, then shot the other man, wounding him.  He escaped into the bathroom and managed, despite appalling injuries, to leap from the window, damaging his legs.  He crawled away to safety, but his partner did not.  The gunmam slowly stalked him as he tried to crawl away, but he shot him twice more, taking his time.  Then he escaped.  When Police and ambulances arrived, he told Police that the gunman was Ernie Wright, and Police launched a manhunt.  Wright had tried to make an alibi for himself but it fell apart and they had him in custody.  Convicted, he was told that despite his age, he was far too dangerous to be ever released. 

Sandy Alexander -Biker Leader

Sandy Frazier Alexander in the seventies and early eighties, was a powerhouse biker within the Hell`s Angels that rivalled the most famous biker of them all; Sonny Barger.  They were the powerbase for both coasts of the United States.  Alexander on the East coast in New York and Barger on the West coast in California.  Alexander was a Cuban who joined the Aliens MCC in New York in 1967.  The Aliens worked as muscle or associates for the Five Families, but Alexander decided that the Aliens, who had NY chapters in Manhattan, Bronx, Staten Island & Queens, were not true outlaw bikers, so with the backing of a good number of Aliens members, Alexander formed a Nomad chapter, and applied for a charter for the Angels.

    In 1969, the Nomad Aliens are ratified as the Angels Manhattan chapter, and as the new chapter adapts to doing business the HA way, his power within the club expands.  Having served in the military, as many of the older members of the HA have, Alexander demands and imposes strict guidelines as to doing business and not leaving the club open to possible charges from authorities.  New proposed members, known in the biker world as "Prospects", must prove their total loyalty to the club by carrying out a murder.  This must also be proven beyond any doubt, and for security purposes, eliminates any cops trying to infiltrate them.

     Alexander was involved in the incident that led to the war with the Outlaws MCC.  He had a very personal score to settle with a biker named Rogers, who had become a national enforcer for the Outlaws.  Rogers had allegedly sexually assaulted Alexanders` wife back in the late 60`s and was a wanted man. He was caught in New York, held for Alexander, who offered him a straightener)(one to one fight) and hammered him.  Rogers claimed to Outlaws he had been gang beaten.  This led to a triple murder of Angels and started a war that ran for decades.  Alexander lost his powerhold when he was jailed in the mid-80`s and it is discovered that he has been feathering his nest.  He fades from the scene.

Yves Lavigne - The Reporter People Hate

Yves Lavigne is a Canadian crime reporter and author that is very despised by the biker world, due to his no-bullshit approach to investigating bike gangs, and his extreme views on the drug world and the people involved.  He has written books called Hell`s Angels - Taking Care of Business(Also known as Three Can Keep a Secret if Two Are Dead), Hell`s Angels - Into The Abyss( about informant Tony Tait), Hell`s Angels At War, and Death Dealers(Also known as Good Cop, Bad Cop) about the worldwide drug trade.  The biker books not only deal with the Hell`s Angels but the others of the "Big Four" - The Angels, Outlaws, Bandidos & Pagans.  He also writes about other "Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs" - OMGs, that are independent of the Big Four or have been absorbed by them or quite simply, eliminated.

    This approach has, of course, made him very unpopular with the outlaw biker world, who accuse him frequently of misinformation, lying, inventing stories, etc, etc.  You do get a clearer picture of the OMGs and how they, since the seventies, have become a major part of organised crime.  Yet, he says that they are NOT a criminal organisation, but an organisation of criminals, with many members enjoying the lifestyle, camarderie and brotherhood as bike riders, not being involved in crime.

    His book "Death Dealers" pulls absolutely no punches in his investigation into the drug world, saying where the drugs are grown, cultivated, smuggled, and the effects these concoctions have on your body and brain.  And to think that people enjoy a "buzz" that lines the pockets of parasitic pushers who are too fucking lazy to go and earn a living like the rest of us have to.  He also believes that when successive US Presidents declare a war on drugs, they should have backed that up by using troops to hunt down drug labs and destroy them, troops to confront the pushers and if necessary, shoot the fuckers where they stand.

    Of course this would upset the professional apologists, whingers and fucknuts who think drugs are so wonderful.  At least Lavigne never shirks from telling it the way it is, regardless of who gets upset, such as the people just mentioned.  Long may he go on.

Robert Napper - Serial Killer

Robert Napper is the man responsible for the horrific murder of Rachel Nickell on Wimbledon Common in 1992.  He was also convicted for the brutal and nauseating murder of Samantha Bissett and her four year old daughter.  He also admitted a couple of rapes and attempted rapes.  But this is only the tip of the iceberg where Napper is concerned.  He is believed to have committed seventy plus rapes around a section of South East london, between 1990 and 1994.  He is also in the frame for three unsolved and frenzied murders; Penny Bell, Claire Tiltman and Jean Bradley.  Claire was attacked by a railway station and Mrs Bradley was stabbed THIRTY times in her car, near Acton Train Station.  Yes, very reminiscent of the murder of Mrs Bell.  When you add it all up, Penny stabbed fifty times, Jean - thirty times, Rachel - dozens, Sam Bissett - in the home with nobody to disturb him -grotesquely disembowelled, very much in the way the Ripper slaughtered Mary Kelly.  Would something say that this is obviously the work of the same man or is just unlucky that there are killers running about at the same time and in the same section of London, that all commit frenzied knife attacks?

    Robert Clive Napper was born in 1966, to a violent father.  At thirteen years of age, he was sexually assaulted on a holiday, resulting in the asailant being jailed.  He then went into a personality change, becoming violent and aggressive towards his sister and brothers.  He also became a peeping tom towards his sister.  Many years later, he confessed to his mother that he had raped a woman.  She contacted the Police whom could not find any reports of a rape where he siad he committed it.  Did they come out and interview as a precaution?  No, they dismissed it.  When more rapes occured, a mass DNA screening of all males above a certain age, took place.  Twice, Napper did not show up to give a sample, but this was not pursued!  In hindsight, you can say that if they had done their job properly, Rachel Nickell, Samantha Bissett and her daughter, would not have been murdered.  Plus, Colin Stagg would not have had an undercover Policewoman hinting at sex if he admits he`s a killer.  Forensics placed him at the Bissett murder scene, and he was convicted at the Old Bailey.  Years later, he was convicted for the murder of Rachel, despite a knife was found on the Common with his fingerprints on it!

    So Napper is in the frame for dozens of violent rapes, has committed three murders and is suspected of three more.  At least the bastard is going to die banged up for the rest of his life.

   

The Murder of Penny Bell

This unsolved murder is one that is being re-examined with the latest advances in forensic technology by the newly set up Murder Review Group.  This savage and horrific murder took place in broad daylight in a congested area, on June 6th 1991.  The victim was 43 year old businesswoman Ruth Penelope Bell, a married woman with two children, from Denham in Buckinghamshire.

    Born in February 1948, she helped start up a successful catering agency based in Kilburn, North London.  On June 6th, she left her home, telling workmen who were doing jobs on her house, that she was off to an appointment.  This appointment was not noted in her diary.  Later she was found stabbed to death in her car in Perivale, Greenford, in West London.  She had been stabbed FIFTY times!  Another unusual occurence was that she drew just over £8,000 from an account, yet this was not noted in any of her record books, despite the fact that she was very meticulous.  Witnesses came forward saying that they had seen her in the car with another man, mouthing the words "Help me!" yet they did nothing.  Others told how she drove very slowly with her hazard warning lights flashing, causing a traffic build-up, but yet again, nobody did anything.  Then a forensic report stated that the passenger had stabbed her from his seat but had to have gotten out of the car and walked around to the drivers door, to carry on the attack.  Yet again, no person intervened!

    Theories have sprung up that she was being blackmailed, this accounting for the money withdrawal and not keeping a record.  If this was a pay-off gone badly, then what reason was there for the frenzied attack?  Another theory was that she was meeting a secret lover.  This has been dismissed by her husband and friends.  One man has claimed that he was to become her lover but was surprisingly tight-lipped about his supposed involvement with her, to Police.  This has led to his claim being dismissed.

    So what does the attack on Mrs Bell tell us?  For such a frenzied attack and so many wounds, the assailant would have to be well known to her, and the attack says immense rage was being directed against her and the killer literally wanted to obliterate her.  Nobody knows any person wielding such anger and venom towards her.  That leaves a mentally disturbed person.  Somebody like Robert Napper.  He lived not far away from the scene, and he had already committed three KNOWN murders; Rachel Nickell and Samantha & Jazmine Bissett.  Rachel Nickell - the woman Paul Britton and Keith Pedder were so sure had been murdered by Colin Stagg.   DCS Mick Banks had believed that Napper was the  Green Chain Rapist and the murderer of the Bissetts and Rachel.  Who was right?   Napper has been interviewed over this murder and two other similiar cases.  Time will tell if he is a modern Jack the Ripper.

Jimmy Burke "Goodfella"

Mention the name of Jimmy Burke or Jimmy Conway and the film "Goodfellas" you will probably think of the scene in the bar with De Niro, Pesci & Frank Vincent as"Billy Batts".   Burke was a major villain in The Big Apple, but was not a member of the Mob, as he was of Irish descent.  His standing in the Underworld made him a prized asset for any of the Five Families, as they liked what was termed "Good earners".  His stock -in- trade was lorry hijacking, in which it was believed he committed hundreds a year, all over New York State.  He was also a cold & ruthless killer, events later on which were to prove.  Bodies popped up all over New York.

    Burke was born in July 1931 to a woman named Conway, but as a young child, it was decided that his mother was neglecting him, so he was passed around various foster-parents, where he ran the usual gauntlet of violence, sexual abuse, torment and genuine affection.  His mind blocked out the names of most of these foster-carers.  One day, one foster father, with a hair trigger temper, driving a car, turned to hit him but lost control and crashed, killing himself.  His foster mother continuously blamed fhim for the death and systematically beat him, so he started absconding and committing petty crimes, resulting in stints in Juvenile Reformatories.  At the age of eighteen, he was arrested for passing fraudulent cheques for a known fraudster, and given a beating in the Precinct House, in order for him to name the fraudster, Dominick Cerami.  He refused and was sent to Auburn Prison for five years.  He was greeted by a small crowd of inmates, impressed by his actions of a "Stand up guy".  This was his introduction to the world of Organised Crime.

    Over the years, Burke was the leading hi-jacker in the City, and his main location was Kennedy Airport.  In his crew came Tommy Desimone(Pesci) and Henry Hill(Liotta).  The central scene in the film was the murder of Batts.  He was a made man in the Gambino Family, and part of a crew run by John Gotti.  He insulted Desimone, who returned later and he and Burke laid into Batts, thinking he was dead. They loaded his body into the boot of a car and drove off to bury him somewhere.  Batts was not dead, so they finished him off with a shovel and tyre iron, rather than a gun and knife as in the film.  But later on, Desimone was killed as payback for Batts.

    His biggest heist was the Lufthansa Airport robbery on December 11th 1978, in which a group of men stole just under six million dollars in cash and jewellry. After the robbery, with intense activity from the Police and FBI, plus the carelessness of some of the gang, bodies started piling up.  Guys talked too much, did not keep a low profile and also the fact that Burke really wanted the lions share of the job, if not all of it.  Henry Hill was arrested for drugs and turned informant, sending Burke, Paul Vario, a crew leader for the Lucheese Family and other mob guys, down.  Burke died in prison in the nineties.

The Arif Family

The Arif Family are one of the powerfulest crime families in London, and have had a strong grip on the Underworld since the seventies.  The family are Turkish Cypriots, and set up home in Stockwell, South London.  The family, Dogan,Dennis, Bekir,Mehmet, Osar & Michael.  This firm have been involved in crimes that stretch across the board, from armed robberies to drug smuggling.  One of the family, Dogan, owns a non-league football club, Fisher United.

    Not all their jobs went according to plan.  One attempted armed robbery resulted in the gang being ambushed by the Flying Squad.  Dennis Arif surrendered but Mehmet Arif was shot and wounded in the shoulder.  Kenny Baker decided to fight it out and was subsequently shot dead.  Crimes that they have been accused of include the murder of a security guard during a blag in the late seventies.Osar Arif was found Not Guilty of murder.  Dogan was acquitted over an attempt to extract many millions from the ruler of Iran, the Ayatollah.  The Arifs were involved in a number of gangland shootings involving The Brindles and the Dalys`.   What their standing in the Underworld is today, is open to debate.

The Sabini Mob

Probably the first real big crime family in the UK was the Sabini Family, of mixed English and Italian parentage.  Their home base for many years was Clerkenwell, an area close to Kings Cross, that was also known as "Little Italy".  The family consisted of the leader, Charles "Darby" Sabini, along with brothers Fred, George, Harry and Joe.  Darby was born in 1888.  They had their small rackets around their area but what provided the vast bulk of their money, was simple racecourse extortion.  Bookies had to pay for the privelege of having a pitch on the course, having a bucket and sponge to wipe the boards, and even chalk.  When they arrived on the courses, some were armed, and anybody foolish enough to try to stand up against them, ended up severely assaulted and slashed.

    You would think that with activities like these going on, the Police would have been taking action.  Not so.  A good number of Police were accepting bribes from the Sabinis, so in reality, the Sabinis worked hand in glove with the Police.  Leniency if they had to take action, tip offs about Police activity, and even senior officers speaking very highly of this thug.  But they were not the only racecourse gang.  They had the control of the southern courses, but in the north, their were mobs from Leeds, Uttoxeter, and the powerfulest, Billy Kimbers` Brummagen Boys.  Bloody brawls became a feature with these mobs. 

    Sabini had apparently made a name for himself after flattening a strong arm man known as "Monkey" Benneyworth.  Debate has gone on in books as to whether Benneyworth actually existed. Benneyworth worked for The Elephant Gang, and had supposedly deliberately ripped the dress of a young Italian girl, in front of Sabini.  The Elephant mob was forced to leave Clerkenwell, after attacks from the Sabinis and other young men.  This formed the nucleus of his mob, said to number as many as three hundred.  In later years, a faction did break away, this was the four Cortesi Brothers,Enrico, Augustus, Paul & George.  fights began between the rival factions for control of the southern courses.  But what finished them off, was the war in 1939.  Being of Italian extraction led them to being interred as enemy aliens.  After the war, Sabini worked as a bookmaker in Brighton and died in 1950.

   

What Lovely Neighbours

There has been a proliferation of buying houses that are going cheap and converting them into single rooms.  These houses are supposed to be half-way houses or bail hostels, originally for people facing petty charges, but the real truth is far more sinister.  These are not part of a justice system that provides accommodation but are privately owned.  So if you have any of these places near you, then what can you expect?

    A bit of research has shown that many are not registered with local authorities or have trained staff.  So how are people who may be on bail, or have been released from prison, expected to be kept under control?  Answer is, they are not.  How do I know?  Simple!  A member of my family is suffering from this at the moment.  Contrary to what might be stated as to the background of these people, they are housing paedophiles, rapists, thugs, druggies - just the sort of dregs of society you need in your street.  The sort of neighbourly and good hearted people guaranteed to drive down the cost of the houses in your area, as people strive to move away and nobody wants to buy.

    Of course, if you have a couple of tough nuts to go and give these troublemakers a taste of their own medicine, you know how fast they will run crying to the Police.  You will end up in trouble, for trying to protect somebody from the scumbags of this world.  Remember Tony Blair and his phrase "Tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime".  What a load of bollocks!

Gangs of Britain PT3

Looking at families other than the "Two" in London, let us have a look at a feud between two families that almost resulted in one of them standing on the gallows.  This feud was between the Copleys and the Porritts.  What set this chain of events off, was, quite simply, a woman. Flo Copeland had been the girlfriend of Ed Copley, who had been killed in a high speed chase, and had taken up with George Porritt.  This did not bode with the Copleys, and after a huge row between Copeland and one of the Copley women, things then escalated.  Half a dozen men, armed, laid seige to the Porritt home.  George had a small arsenal of weapons in his home, and fired a shotgun when seeing two men attacking his step-father.  The blast hit and killed his step-father but completely missed the two assailants.

    Under the new terms of The 1957 Homicide Act,  murder by firearm was one of the crimes that fell under the criteria of Capital Murder, and through this, Porritt was charged with Capital Murder, and convicted in July 1961.  The jury did give a recommendation of mercy, but under the Law, he had to be sentenced to death.  Appeals went to the Court of Appeal, with petitions being presented, and indeed, a petition from the Copleys themselves citing that George was goaded into shooting by his step-father.  He was reprieved ONE day before his execution.  But love did not run smoothly, Porritt married another woman whilst in prison.

    The Hennessey Brothers, Micky, Peter & Bernard, from South London, ran a pub, the Dog & Bell, and had their involvement in differing crimes.  Micky had faced arrest over an importation of cocaine along with notorious Police informer Roy Garner and Nikolaus Chrastny.  A substantial amount of cocaine was found by Police at the home of Chrastny.  Bernie had a conviction for conspiracy to rob and Peter had received a substantial sentence for a warehouse burglary.  Peter was involved in the mass brawl at Mr Smith`s club in Catford with members of the Richardson mob.  Peter had a fight with Eddie Richardson, and came off second best, Richard Hart was shot dead, Frank Fraser was wounded, as was Richardson, Harry Rawlins was wounded in the arm.  Fraser was acquitted over the murder of Hart.  Fraser was convicted of affray, as was Richardson in a second trial.  Onthe opposing side, Billy Hayward and henry Botton were convicted.

    Years later, Peter Hennessey was murdered at a boxing tournament held at the Royal Garden Hotel.  This was well attended y the South London Underworld, and trouble broke out when Hennessey decided to stage an extra collection for an invalid wife of a friend.  But a row broke out between Hennessey and Patrick O`Nione, resulting in a huge fight.  Hennessey was stabbed dozens of times, and his alleged killeres, O`Nione and Jim Coleman were acquitted.

Gangs of Britain PT2

When you mention gangs in London, you immediately think of the Krays & the Richardsons, but if you take a step back and research, you. find that there were so many more.  From the fifties, there were the Butlers, running large scale theft from the docks, along with the Madden & Collins families.   Going slightly forward, you had the Copleys who had a dispute with the Porritt family, that resulted in George Porritt being convicted of Capital Murder, but was repreived one day before his execution. Over in South London, you had the Hennessy Brothers, Bernard, Peter & Micky.  Peter was involved in the big brawl that brought down the Richardson mob.  Others included the Smiths, Frenches, Tobins, Callaghans, Regans.  All kings of their terroritories.

    But into the seventies and eighties, more violent and criminal families emerged.  At the head of the pack were the Arifs, Turkish Cypriots involved in numerous crimes.  Armed robberies & drug smuggling were their speciality, which has resulted in some of the brothers being jailed.  Other big names that have followed include the Adams, Hiscocks, Hunts, Dalys, Whites, Colemans, Frasers & Brindles.  Two of the Adams` were jailed, one for drugs, and the other in an operation involving the security services. There have also been villains that have had major holds in their particular shere, Joe Wilkins, Joe Pyle, Fred Foreman, Frank Mifsud, Bernie Silver, Jimmy Humphreys.  There will be people you never hear about, as they manage to keep their heads below the parapet.  I wonder just who Fred Dineage was referring to when visiting "Super-villain" Ronnie Kray in Broadmoor.  A car pulled up and a guy sat in the back said "I run a lot of Londons` Underworld" which must have come as a bit of a shock to the likes of the Arifs & Adams`, and all the others, as this obviously implies they do not.  Hmmmm!

The Murder of Inspector Barry Taylor

This notorious double murder took place in 1970, in Pudsey, just outside Laisterdyke, in Bradford.  The alarm went off at Sunny Bank Mills, and Inspector Taylor was on patrol when the call was put out.  When he arrived, other Officers were arriving, so he decided that an Engineer who was on site, would accompany him to investigate.  A watchman was also supposed to be on duty.  The other constables were spaced around to cut off any escape should anybody make a break for it.  Suddenly, they were confronted by a man armed with a sawn-off shotgun:  Neil Adamson. Adamson opened fire, killing Inspector Taylor, then he made his escape.  The other Policemen did not attempt to stop him, for obvious reasons.

    Whilst Inspector Taylor was being attended to - the Engineer was unharmed - the others searched the building.  In an office, they made a very grim discovery.  The Night Watchman had been murdered also, shot in the head , twice at close range.  Soon a huge manhunt was in operation and Adamson was arrested in Colne, in Lancashire.  Adamson was given a minimum of thirty years for double murder.  A man, Jack Depledge was given five years for harbouring Adamson immediately after the shootings.  It has been claimed that Depledge simply let Adamson stay at his home, not knowing what had gone on.  Another claim was that Adamson sold Depledge down the river simply to gain a bit of favour with the Police.  It is believed that Adamson has since died.  If so, he will not be missed.

    Adamson had a long history of violence, and had frequents spells in prison for bodily harm.  He even sought help for his violent outbursts but this was never addressed, leaving him ready to truly explode.  He did that night in 1970 when he ruthlessly and cold-bloodedly murdered two men, simply because they got in the way of him robbing a warehouse.

Arthur Hutchinson - Triple Murderer

A man who is the list of killers who will never be released is triple killer Arthur Hutchinson.  He gained notoriety in October 1983, when he murdered a middle-aged couple and their son, then raped one of their daughters at knifepoint.  They had just had a wedding reception for their other daughter, when Hutchinson struck in Dore, South Yorkshire.  When Police were alerted, a description from the rape victim, plus prints left on a glass, left in no doubt that the assailant was Hutchinson.  They were hunting him for a rape, and now they knew he was extremely dangerous.  It was thought that Hutchinson was originally going to commit a robbery.

    Hutchinson moved from town to town, around Yorkshire and the east coast.  Finally, they ran him to ground in Hartlepool, his birthplace.  Put on trial in 1984, he was convicted and sentenced to a minimum of eighteen years.  However, the Home Secretary deemed him so dangerous that life was to mean life.  But in 2008 he appealed against this ruling.  Thankfully, reason prevailed and his appeal was rejected.  His solicitors said it breached his human rights.  As usual with apologists like these, they conveniently forgotten how Hutchinson breached the civil and human rights of the three people he slaughtered, they forgotten about the civil and human rights of the two women he violently raped!  And if that was not bad enough, he then issued death threats from prison to all the people who helped the Police capture him, obviously thinking that a parole board is going to ignore his barbaric crimes, and the threats to kill as soon as he is out!  Then again, how many people have been released despite serious warnings about them, and have gone on to commit horrendous crimes?  His death inside prison will only be mourned by the whingers and apologists.

The Murder of Lennie Fulberg

The murder of Lennie Fulberg would have been an unsolved death but for the advances in forensic investigation.  He diappeared in 1996, after going to meet a girlfriend at a McDonalds in Bradford.  In 1997, bones were discovered buried on a moorland, but it was not until 2007 that a positive identification was made that the remains were Lennies`.

    Lennie Fulberg worked as a rag & bone man, making his money through collecting scrap metal and old clothes.  What made him stand out was his incessant womanising.  It was said he could walk into a pub totally filthy and dishevelled, but walk out with a woman at his side.  He was a charmer with a real gift for the gab.  So much that he had been married four times and had fathered twelve children, though it has been claimed that it could be as many as thirty two.  He met up with one of his killers, Tracy Cameron, whilst she was still married, and set up home with him in the Bierley area of Bradford.  They had a daughter in 1994, but Lennie disappeared after he found out the Police were looking for him for an alleged assault on a young girl.  Later, he gave himself up, and was jailed for the assault.

    Whilst he was in jail, Tracy Cameron, who was working in a massage parlour, hooked up with a friend of Lennies` called Graham Hylett, a man Lennie helped earn money when he was broke.  Now it was decided that Lennie had to go when he was released.  When Lennie was released, he was staying with his brother in Buttershaw, and went to meet her at McDonalds on Rooley Lane.  That was the last that was seen of him.  After the identification of the bones, Police investigations led them to Cameron & Hylett, and when on trial, were found guilty and sentenced to a minimum of twenty years each.

    What about the players in this story?  I heard stories that despite women dropping at his feet, he was an unpleasant person.  I again say, this is only what I heard.  Hylett had an extremely violent reputation, where he would assault and intimidate anybody.  Women were not immune to violence and threats.  When convicted he was living in Batley, but I was told that he lived at various adresses around the Holmewood estate in Bradford.  Cameron still lived in Bierley, in Dunsford Avenue.  I know the Bierley and Holmewood estates like the back of my hand due to my job.  One day, I was delivering to a street very close to Dunsford, when a woman asked if I had any mail for that particular house.  I replied with"Oh, the murder house?" meaning that is where the murderess lived.  "Hey", she shouted, "She`s my cousin!"  I replied "that makes murder okay then?"  At the end of the day, Fulberg has a lot of heirs running around Bradford and other places, so he still lives on in a lot of people.

The Murder of Kate Lee

This is an old case from the East Coast in 1908.  The scene of the crime was the small seaside town of Withernsea, a place for people to have a getaway from suburban life in chalets or caravans.  Many people use it as a weekend retreat.  Not much happens here but in 1908, the local Police Chief, Superintendent Maw, did get a shocking surprise one Sunday morning.  He had finished his breakfast in the local Station but was startled by a loud banging on the door.  Outside was a small crowd of townspeople.  One stepped forward and asked Maw to take him into custody.  Maw enquired as to why.  Then one person from the crowd spoke up saying that this man had killed a girl on the beach, and her body still lay there.  The man said that he was Charles Woodman, aged 22.  Maw took him into custody and locked him in a cell, whilst he went to check the beach.

    Maw reached the beach where a young boy handed him a knife.  There were bloodstains on the blade.  Maw looked out and saw the body of a young woman.  Maw tried to preserve the scene but this was near impossible with the morbid crowd of onlookers making life difficult for the Police Photographer and other Officers.  Maw headed back to the station to question Woodman.  He was now saying nothing, acting very withdrawn.  He was told that he would be charged with the murder of the as yet, un-named girl.

     Maw and his men made numerous enquiries and discovered the girls` identity.  She was 21 year old Kate Lee, a barmaid at a local pub, though she lived in Hull.  Woodman himself, lived in Hull and worked in a tramway shed.  He had met Kate Lee and found himself besotted with her.  When he discovered she was working at a pub in Withernsea, he travelled there, staying for the weekend, but got enraged when he spotted her in the company of another man.  He went for a stroll on the beach with her on the Saturday night, and it was there and then that he brutally murdered her by cutting her throat.

    Woodman went on trial at York Assizes but the court heard that the father of Woodman had been incarcerated in a mental hospital for a long time.  The court decided that Woodman was unfit to stand trial and was sent to a secure hospital for an indefinite sentence.

Hanged At Dawn

The Death Penalty was a sentence not reserved solely for citizens, it applied equally to members of the Armed Forces.  One man who suffered the ultimate penalty in khaki was Tom Houghton, whom emanated from the East of Hull.  He completed his National Service, serving in the RASC - Royal Army Service Corps.  He enjoyed his time in the Army, and decided to sign on full time.  He was posted to Suez, in Egypt, and it was on the military base he was stationed at, that he became consumed with a beautiful young woman named Iro Hadjifoti  Houghton was so besotted with her that he later claimed that not only was she his girlfriend, but she had also agreed to marry him.

    Houghton took to continuously pestering Iro, so much that she went to an officer, Captain Mason, to complain.  Mason spoke to Houghton, ordering him to back off and leave her be.  This however, did not deter Houghton, who in his delusions, decided that the real reason that Mason warned him off was because he wanted her for himself!  Matters came to a head when a party was held for somebodys` birthday.  Soldiers, wives, girlfriends, families, were all having a great time.  But Houghton, who was not at the party, and had been drinking elsewhere, through a window, saw Mason dancing with his beloved Iro.  Houghton made an instant decision;  Mason was to pay!  He went away and then returned clutching a Sten Gun, a machine gun that was devastating at close range.

    He walked into the hall, walked up to Captain Mason, and cut him down with a hail of gunfire.  He was jumped on from all sides and disarmed.  He was arrested and held in a British military Prison at Fanara.  His trial was a mere formality, though his defence cited mitigating circumstances over his obsession with Iro, who became known as "The woman in blue".  The sentence of the Military Court as the same as a civilian court: Death.  His appeal was handed to two very high ranking Military Officers, who oversaw the Armed Forces in that region of the world.  Both saw no reason to change the sentence.  Houghtons` mother was flown out from Hull to see him before his execution.  Houghton was hanged by Albert Pierrepoint on June 24th 1952.

The Gangs of Britain

This new and interesting documentary series hosted by brothers Gary & Martin Kemp looks at the old and new takes on criminal gangs.  Gary covers the historical and Martin the new.  Four episodes on, they have looked at Glasgow, with the Billy Boys, lead by Billy Fullerton, and their rivals, the Norman Conks, whilst in the modern era, a feud between two families that resulted in a brutal murder.  Then Liverpool dealt with the Cornermen, and the horrific murder of a man simply because he would not hand over sixpence when demanded.  This happened in 1874, when a man and his wife, and his brother, were returning from a day trip.  They were walking down Tithebarn Street, when some young men demanded money.  These were known as the Cornermen, groups of thugs and criminals who basically hung around the street corners, where inevitably, there was a pub.  They would demand money from passers-by.  He refused and was viciously attacked by the gang.  People poured out into the street to watch, but did nothing.  There were even women screaming encouragement to the gang.  The victim was literally kicked all over the street and died from his injuries.  The new era was represented by Curtis Warren, and the drug empire he built, but is now doing another stretch in prison for drug smuggling.  He did not need to get involved in anything ever again, but certainly could not resist putting together another importation.  No doubt he needed the adrenalin rush of completing another deal.

    Episode three dealt with Manchester with the Scuttlers and the Gooch Gang.  The Scuttlers, who were probably the first youth cult in the country, ran amok throughout Manchester and Salford.  Gangs operated not only on areas but streets.  Weapons usually carried were knives, the clog boots, and belts with heavy buckles that inflicted terrible head injuries.  Scuttler gang ages ran from around fourteen to twenty, and many of these young men were tough and up for any kind of a battle.  Surprisingly, there were very few fatalities, no doubt due to the ever presence of the gallows.  The Gooch mob were taken down in a high profile court case that saw leaders Colin Joyce & Lee Amos go down for very long sentences.  The Gooch were battling with their rivals The Doddington, Longsight, and a couple of other mobs.  There were murders, gun fights, innocent people shot dead and wounded, so the Police went ahead to take them down, which they did.

    The latest episode dealt with Birmingham, with the Brummagen Hammers, and the war between the Burger Boys and the Johnson Crew.  The Brummagen mob was led by Billy Kimber, and just after WW1, the popularity of horse racing was immense, and Kimbers` mob started extorting money from bookmakers.  This spread around the Northern racecourses, but the southern racecourses were controlled by the gang led by Italian Charles "Darby" Sabini.  The attempts to take over in the south did lead to huge fights on the racecourses between the Sabinis and not just Birmingham, but Leeds and Uttoxeter.  The New Year shootings in Birmingham a few years back left two young women dead, and another woman and man wounded.  This was an attack with a Mac-10 and two handguns, where the gunmen drew alongside a small crowd of people and then opened fire at point blank range.    This was a continuation of the war between the Burger Boys & The Johnson Crew, in which members of one side were seen and so were fired upon.  A huge Police investigation resulted in two of the gunmen receiving thirty five years prison and the other shooter, twenty seven years. 

    It has taken a very long time but now cold-blooded killers are finally receiving sentences that their crimes demand.  When a minimum sentence is handed down, it does not automatically mean that they will be released on completion.  Some may never be set free.  Hopefully sentences like these will start having an effect on people thinking that killing somebody is a trivial offence.

The Murder of Olive Balchin PT4

When the Court of Appeal rejected the application on behalf of condemned man Walter Graham Rowland, he was there in person and predictably he reacted with anger and despair.  So much it took a number of warders to remove him from the dock, and take him to the holding cell.  He protested his innocence all the way to the cells.  The Home Office ordered a thorough investigaton into the claim made by David Ware, at that time, incarcerated in Walton Jail, in Liverpool.  The investigation was conducted by a leading Barrister, John Jolly.

    Now Ware retracted his confession, claiming that he made it for fame and publicity purposes.  He denied meeting and killing Olive Balchin.  John Jolly, in his report, believed that Ware obtained details of the crime from newspaper reports, and that he had signed in at a lodging house, and was alibied as being in his room and asleep at midnight.  He decided that Ware altered the time of the murder to 10.00pm, to fit in with his story.  The midnight time slot was the sighting by Mercer, a pub landlord, of a man & woman arguing close to the murder scene, and his subsequent positive identification of a man in total darkness.  Another point Mr Jolly made was that Ware referred to Olive Balchin, as Olive Balshaw, a mistake made in newspapers right after the discovery of the body.

    Rowlands` defence team discovered a good number of factual errors in his report.  Ware did reveal some details that were never released by Police, including the fact that Olive wore a double breasted coat.  This piece of information was not published in any newspaper, and for some reason, the lodging house register proved he could not have been there but the lodging house register that Rowland signed, was an obvious falsification!  Rowlands` only hope now lay with a plea for clemency to the Home Secretary.  He turned it down, and Rowland was executed on 27th February 1947.  In 1951, David Ware went on trial at Bristol for the attempted murder of a woman.  He tried to batter her with a hammer, and was found guilty but insane.  Whilst being questioned by Police, he repeatedly said that he murdered Olive Balchin in Manchester.

    ANALYSIS - The verballing by two detectives put Rowland in the frame.  Witnesses described a dark haired man, one said thin faced.  Rowland was blonde and chubby faced.  The salesman could not state the hammer was the one he sold, later he was positive.  The landlord positively identified Rowland as the man arguing with a woman despite the darkness.  Elizabeth Copley positively identified Rowland as being with Olive and another woman in the cafe at 5.00pm.  Rowland said he was in Stockport and was alibied by the man he sold cigarettes to, the two Policemen saying they did exactly as Rowland described when entering the Wellington pub, the crowds around the cinema at a time confirmed by the cinema manager, and that he signed in at a lodging house at 11.00pm.  How did Rowland manage to get dust particles in just his trouser turn-ups?  And as for his comments as to catching a disease from her, is any man who uses prostitutes going to say "Oh dear, I`ve caught a dose.  It`s my own fault!"

    A couple of questions:  What was the description given by Mercer of the woman he saw arguing with a man, in his original statement?  What were the descriptions of the trio in the cafe, given by Elizabeth Copley?  Was the other woman traced and interviewed?  My belief is that the Police had decided that Rowland had escaped the noose once, so he was not getting away with it a second time.  To get the witnesses to be "correct" it would not have taken much to let them know his past, this dastardly child murderer. 

The Murder of Olive Balchin PT3

Walter Graham Rowland, facing a Capital Murder charge for the death of Olive Balchin, presented his defence.  Far from being in Manchester City Centre around the time of the murder, he stated he was many miles away in Stockport, in a pub called The Wellington. He had been in the pub for quite some time, and said that two Policemen very late, walked into the pub through one door, then exited through the other.  The Officers, one a Sergeant, confirmed that they went into the Wellington at 10.30pm, then left through the other door, as Rowland claimed.  Then Rowland took a bus to the Ardwick area of Manchester, bought some fish and chips, then entered a lodging house in Brunswick Street.  The register had him entering at 11.00pm.  This was still a few miles away from the murder scene.

    But the Prosecution came back with damning forensic evidence.  There was dust particles in the turn-ups of Rowlands` trousers that matched debris at the murder scene.  There was no explanation of how Rowland could have launched a frenzied attack in a debris-strewn area but only managed to get dust particles in his turn-ups.  Maybe he brushed his trousers but conveniently forgotten to turn down his trouser bottoms.  So fortunate for the Police.  After summing up by Mr Justice Sellers, Rowland was convicted and sentenced to death yet again.  An appeal was immediately launched.  The appeal was due to be heard on January 27th 1947, but a man suddenly appeared and what he claimed, resulted in the postponement of the appeal, until a thorough investigation had been made.  This man was named David Ware, who was now serving a short sentence at Walton Jail in Liverpool.  He was saying that he was the real killer of Olive Balchin.  Ware said that he met Olive Balchin on the day she was murdered, taking her to a cinema, but saying he murdered her at 10.00pm, not at midnight.

    Rowlands` appeal team produced new witnesses, one man said he had been in The Wellington and had bought a packet of cigarettes from a man in there.  He testified that it was Rowland, and the time was around 10.15pm.  Another witness was the manager of a cinema, situated by The Wellington.  Rowland said that when he left the pub, there were crowds that had emerged from the picture house.  The manager said that the programme finished just before 10.15pm and crowds would still have been around just after 10.30pm, again, a witness corroborating the claim of Rowland.  This still put him many miles away from the murder.  The Prosecution still leaned on the evidence of the three witnesses, and indeed, the defence witnesses, destroyed the testimony of Elizabeth Copley.  He was supposed to have been in the cafe at five o`clock, with the victim, then suddenly he is miles away in Stockport, alibied by two Policemen, a pub customer, a cinema manager, and finally entering a lodging house at 11.00pm, yet he was busy murdering Olive miles away in Manchester City Centre at midnight!  Of course his appeal was dismissed.

The Murder of Olive Balchin PT2

The murder of Olive Balchin, a prostitute, in Manchester in 1946, had the Police turn up a piece of evidence, a bank money bag, that was traced to a man but he was found to have no involvement in the crime and cleared of suspicion.  The Police received a tip about a man who did not want to leave his room during daylight.  Two detectives went to question the man whom, when confronted by the Officers, allegedly replied, "You don`t want me for the murder of that woman, do you?".  This, to overseas readers, is known in the UK as "verballing", a long adopted Police method in which Police swear in court to remarks the suspect allegedly made.  The problem is, the remarks always seem to be an admission of guilt.  Examples like this, "I did it copper, but you have to prove it!"  "OK Guv, I`ll put my hands up to it.  You`ve got me bang to rights!" and many variations, all desperately trying to put a rope around their neck or give themselves a very long spell in jail.

     The man was Walter Graham Rowland, whom was taken in for questioning.  He admitted that he had known her for about two months, and had an on-off sexual relationship with her.  He had suspected that he may have caught a sexual disease from her, and later remarked that if he had, she deserved her fate.  This was a clear indication of motive.  On an identification parade, the salesman, McDonald, picked out Rowland and so he was charged with murder.

    The trial began on December12th.  The Prosecution had a small problem in that the witnesses, in their original statements stated that the man they had seen was dark haired.  Rowland was a blonde.  To counter this, it was claimed that under certain circumstances, Rowland could appear to be dark haired but the Defence was able to bring a counter-claim to this. McDonald said that he was now positive the murder weapon was the one he had sold on the day of the murder.  Despite the fact that he originally said he could not be positive.  He then confirmed that the man was Rowland, and had picked him out of an ID parade.  Rowland, whilst blonde haired, also had a very chubby face.  McDonald originally stated that the purchaser was dark haired and thin faced.

    The pub landlord, Mercer picked Rowland out of a parade.  Yet, he was adamant it was Rowland he saw arguing with a woman at midnight on a darkened bombsite.  How he was able to see very clearly through the dark at distance, is anybodys guess!  The third witness, Liz Copley said that Rowland was the man with the two women in the cafe at five o`clock.  But Rowland had a very, very good alibi, backed up by two Police Officers!

The Murder of Olive Balchin & The Execution of Walter Rowland PT 1

This case is of a man sentenced to death but being repreived and then years later, receiving another Death Sentence and subsequently being hanged.  This man was Walter Graham Rowland.  He had originally been condemned in 1934 for the murder of his two year old daughter, but was reprieved by the Home Secretary.  Long time prisoners were allowed out of jail if they agreed to fight in the Army and so Rowland was paroled in 1945, to fight in Europe.  He did not need to fight for long as the war soon ended and he was demobbed.  But just over a year later, he found himself in the dock facing another Capital Murder charge.

    This time, the victim was a forty year old woman named Olive Balchin, a prostitute from Birmingham, who used a number of different names, including Balshaw, and carried different ID cards.  Her body was discovered on a bombed out site near Deansgate, in Manchester, on October 20th, a Sunday.  She had suffered blunt force trauma injuries, from a hammer which was lying close to her body.  Also near by was some brown wrapping paper that had an impression on it.  Police concluded that it had been recently purchased.  The hammer was of a type used in the leather trade, so Police focused on leather workers and suppliers.  Soon, they had three witnesses, but as we will see later, the evidence they gave in court was highly suspect and showed "help" or "prompting" from the Police.

    The first witness, Norman Mercer, a pub landlord, was walking his dog around midnight when he saw a man and woman arguing, close to the spot where Olive Balchin was found.  His description was that of a man 30-35, round faced, dark haired, proportionately built, wearing a blue suit.  Salesman Ted McDonald described a man to whom he had sold a hammer.  The description was similiar in ways to Mercers`, however, he could not say that the murder weapon was the one he sold.  He also stated that the brown paper was similiar to the paper he used for wrapping.

    The third witness was a waitress from a cafe, Elizabeth Copley.  She stated that on the afternoon of the murder, there were three people together she served.  Two women and a man.  She identified Olive Balchin was one of the women.  The man was carrying a brown parcel, which she thought MAY have had the murder weapon inside. 

David Holmes - Criminal Profiler

David Holmes is one of the new breed of true life crime expert, in which he stands alongside Prof. David Wilson & Laura Richards as a breath of fresh air in examining the actions of criminals and killers.  He pulls no punches in his evaluations on cases.  The case of Michael Ross, convicted years later for the motiveless murder of an Asian man.  When he received a guilty verdict, Ross, an army man, tried to escape from the court.  A car was discovered parked near the court, packed with survival gear, and most seriously, hand grenades and a machine gun.  Holmes pulled no punches in his summarisation, citing the planning, the car with survival gear and weaponry, the attempt to escape from court.  The weaponry was obviously to go out in a hail of bullets.  All the hallmarks of an innocent man.  I would add two points; every photo of him, even as a cadet, show total arrogance in his face.  And as for having black men in his platoon and getting on with them, it seems that the question as to how many were Asian, did not arise. 

    With the case of double murderer, Neil Entwistle, a man who fled back to England after the murder of his wife and daughter, he again, spoke bluntly.  Entwistle made his way to his parents home in Worksop.  Despite the death of his family, he had no intention of going back to the States, and even managed to disappear despite a Police watch on the house. He was captured but fought extradition, but eventually was taken back.  Again, all the hallmarks of an innocent man.  During the trial, Entwistle covered the lower half of his face as it looked very clearly as if he was laughing.  Claims were made that he was shocked or horrified, but Holmes did not flinch; Entwistle was laughing.  He was convicted.

    In other cases, he has not sunk to psychobabble to explain a persons` actions or motives, he puts in straight plain English.  When somebody sets out to do something heinous, that is what they have done. Not because of social conditions, unemployment, or "marginalisation".  Not a man that professional apologists will like.

The Hunt For Fame & Celebrity

The pursuit for fame & celebrity continues unabated within the criminal fraternity.   It comes in different shapes and form, as reality shows can give them the platform they crave.  My belief is that Donal Mcintyre scored a huge own goal by giving such a platform to the Noonan Family.  I see it as nothing more than them announcing that they are not dead and buried, but still a force to be reckoned with.  You instantly wonder how many other criminals may have approached Mcintyre to feature them.

    One man who thinks he is a celebrity, simply because he has gotten to know major villains, did not like it when I told him that many book publishers were not interested in him, and one company said that he does not fit into any category of celebrity.  The bottom line being "Who are you?"  With that, he went berserk, screaming at me about how well he is known.  Publishers do not care how people see themselves, each book deal they offer is a straight forward business proposition.  It is a simple yes or no.

    Yet there is the talk of highly successful villains that are not publicly known.  One such man lives in Liverpool, and if stories about him are true, then he is one of the most successful British villains of all time.  But as he has never faced charges or been convicted, he cannot be named or his picture fully shown.  He is not a limelight hogger like the Krays.  He is said to be a most precise planner, who does not take chances.  You see the results when supposed "super villains" are jailed, just like you know who.  Maybe we will see a brutal sitcom starring the Adams` or the Arifs, just to show they are still the cream of the crop.

Why Are Drugs So Wonderful?

This is not a post citing the true wonders of illicit drugs, but the harsh realities that mean absolutely nothing to the pushers and the advocates of legalisation.  Very recently, a grandmother was brutally stabbed to death by her grandson.  What made him commit such a heinous crime?  The answer is drugs.  Not being under the influence of drugs, but facing doing without.  He demanded money so he could crawl to the pusher but this was refused, and despite pleas and angry outbursts, it was still no.  So he grabbed a knife and hacked her to death.

    So all the fucknuts, who think that drugs are not harmful, and should be legalised, HE HACKED HER TO DEATH BECAUSE SHE WOULD NOT HAND HIM MONEY FOR DRUGS!!!   No wonder many people turn their backs on family members who are addicted, they never know if they may face serious violence if they refuse to give money.  Of course the pushers will never give a toss, as long as they get the money, nothing matters.  I wonder what those legalisation wankers, such as Howard Marks, would say to the family of the victim. Marks believes drugs should be made legal with warning slogans on, like cigarette packets.  It does not matter whether it is a street pusher or a government approved pusher, you need money to buy.  As this person could not force his grandmother to hand it over, he killed her.  It would have made no difference who the pusher was, he could not get money.  As far as I am concerned, the sixties has much to answer for.

Frank Williamson - An Honest Cop

Frank Williamson had a distinguished career and indeed, rose to become an Inspector of Constabulary for Crime, a high ranking post that reported to the Home Office.  He was not held in high regard by some forces, particularly the Metropolitan Police because he was straight and honest, and would not cover up for anybody.  He had a good career in the Manchester force, and even had a run-in with the Krays.  He says that it was in the very early sixties, and he received a report from an officer in the Transport Police, that two brothers calling themselves Gray, from East London, had battered the Doorman at the Cromford Club, old fighter Jack London.  He then said that the club owner, a tough man named Owen Ratcliffe, was walking around the Midland Hotel with a meat cleaver, looking for them.

   Williamson phoned stations around the East End, twin brothers, boxers, calling themselves Gray.  "We know nothing about them" was the response from all the stations he rang.  He thought that it was not difficult at all to know who he was referring to, but he accepted this as typical London cops, bent.  He and his Sergeant went into the hotel where they were and told them to leave or else.  They went

    Examples of his honest approach to Policing, was his blocking an application by Chief Constable of Blackpool, Stanley Parr, to getting the C.C. of Lancashire post.  His rating for Parr was that he was totally unsuitable for the job, upsetting the others on the panel.  He later said that Parr had only achieved his post by crawling his way up.  He later overseen an inquiry into the C.C. of Southend, William McConnach, that seen him convicted on numerous accounts of dishonesty and jailed.  Williamson had also been C.C. of Cumbria.  But when the scandal about some Met officers in 1969, which had been exposed by the Times Newspaper, he was brought in to supervise the inquiry.  This was seen by the Met as bad news because Williamson would not overlook anything or instigate a whitewash.  He had a senior officer sent to him to help his investigation.  DCS Bill Moody, a man who a few years later was jailed for running extortion on Soho pornographers, along with other members of the Porn Squad.  He was sent by John Du Rose but Williamson fully believed that Du Rose sent him to sabotage his investigation.  He had problems with the very top echelons of the Met, and all these troubles led him to take retirement. 

    Again, the question I raise is that cops expect people to grass everybody up but if you expose THEIR illegal activities, you are thoroughly despised.  What sort of rapport do they want from the public when some see themselves as above the law?

The David Oluwale Saga.

The story of David Oluwale is one of mental health neglect and sheer malice and violence by two members of Leeds Police.  The unbelievable aspect of it was the twp protaganists were an Inspector and a Sergeant.  David Oluwale came from Nigeria, had mental health issues and was disabled.  He lived as a vagrant, and by accounts, was not a pleasant man.  But did that justify the campaign of violence and intimidation from two ranking Police Officers?  His body was found floating in the River Aire in 1969.  An investigation revealed that Oluwale had suffered at the hands of these two officers for nearly a year.

    In a trial, other officers admitted that DI Ellerker and DS Kitching used to give Oluwale, beatings in front of them and they stood by doing nothing.  The officers faced manslaughter charges as witnesses gave evidence that Oluwale went into the water due to being chased by a couple of men.   They were found Not Guilty of his manslaughter but were jailed for a number of assaults on him.  It seems that they used to go out looking for him, harrassing him, and if he responded, they could give him a beating. 

    Some people wanted a plaque to his memory putting up but one cynical officer responded with that who would want to know where Oluwale had a shit!  Fair point.  it seems that he never received proper medical care for his mental problems, a situation that that still goes on in Mental Health.  It should be of no surprise that Inspector Ellerker had already been jailed for attempting to pervert justice.  This involved a high ranking officer knocking down an elderly lady on a pedestrian crossing.  An attempt was made to show that the woman had been drinking.  Unfortunately, the lady in question was a well known teetotaller.  Two officers involved in the investigation were very unhappy about things being said, and reported them to the Coroner, rather than their superiors, citing a possible cover-up.  It resulted in a prison sentence for Ellerker and another officer named Nicholson.  Three other officers were cleared.

The Rhino Whip Scandal

Sheffield has long had a tough reputation, not only for being the Steel production city but also for it`s criminal history.  It`s most notorious time was during the 1920`s when it was plagued by gang warfare and the excessive response of force by the Police, breaking up the gambling and protection mobs of Sam Garvin & George Mooney.  But an incident in 1963 brought the force into disrepute.  A special crime squad had been formed under the command of DCS Carnill, and their job was to investigate serious crime, from burglaries upwards.  At a briefing, they were told by DCI Wells that the people they were dealing with were seasoned villains who would not admit to anything.

    Two young constables in the squad. Derek Streets & Derek Millicheap went to a public house on information received.  At the White Horse, they arrested two brothers and another man, on committing a number of burglaries and taken in for questioning.  The "interrogation" involved beatings from a truncheon and a small leather object known as a Rhino Tail.  The other man was released but the brothers were charged, and when appearing in court, showed the marks on their bodies, to the magistrates.  The Chief Constable ordered an immediate inquiry, to be headed by DCS Carnill.  The inquiry dragged as no statements were taken from officers more than a week and the officers notebooks were written up a week after the incident.  The offending whip and truncheon vanished.  The brothers were released without charge.

    The two officers received summonses alleging assault, and it was attempted to explain away the injuries as the results of the brothers being involved in S&M.  Then the story changed to them being involved in a street fight, which the officers attempted to quell but the brothers were drunk and aggressive so the officers unintentionally used too much force. The constables were fined but were dismissed by the Chief Constable.  They appealed against their dismissal   An internal report stated that the squad spent five days attempting to come up with an explanation for the injuries.  It emerged that DI Rowley was the man behind the new versions of events.  The two officers told the inquiry that they were told to come clean and they would not lose their jobs.  These suggestions came from Rowley & Carnill.  Rowley resigned from the force.  Then the Chief Constable & Carnill were suspended, then Carnill and DCI Wells took retirement.  The Chief Constable resigned his post.  It was said that the CC did not live in the real world and had difficulty in accepting that men under his command could commit such acts.  Street & Millicheap lost their appeals.

Bronson - A truly Great Briton

Before any of you think I have taken leave of my senses, I am being extremely sarcastic with my post title.  Prof. David Wilson called him "a paranoid narcissist" and "a man who does not want to be normal".  Bouncer turned author Bernard O`Mahoney simply referred to him as "a dickhead!"  So just who is this man that we should be so grateful to be breathing the same air as.  His proper name is Michael Peterson, born in Luton, who moved up to Ellesmere Port in his teens to live with his grandparents.  My home town.  One small correction in his memoir "Insanity", they did not live in Bellington Road, it is Bebbington Road. (Oh how pedantic of me!).  When he grew older was in trouble with Police and the courts, he lived on the Parklands estate, across the road from me.  Contrary to the documentary about him (The Real Bronson), he was never the perpetually snarling troglodyte, it portrayed.  The only time he came to notice was when he went down for armed robbery.

    He was always causing trouble, so much that he seemed that he would never be released.  Strange that his fanatical fan club forget that he WAS released in 1988 & 1992, but got himself locked up again, both times.  Just who`s fault was that?  Since then, when it seems like he has been forgotten about, he does something to attract attention to himself, not to mention more prison time.  He took a teacher hostage and had a rope tied around his neck, with threats to kill him.  Obviously the teacher did not pay him sufficient "Respect" (that grossly overused word) and had to pay.  His fan club have apparently been claiming that this teacher was this, was that, was the other.  All to excuse the actions of their hero.  He appealed against his sentence for that in July 2010, and his fan club turned up to offer their support.  All thirty one of them!  Bernard O`Mahoney put the pictures on his site for us to have a perusal at.

    What about the "adulation" that seems to be there for him?  On his site, somebody from the Port put, "Charlie, you`re a legend in the Port!"  Really?  I never seem to hear these platitudes making their way over to me.  And he was totally unknown about for so many years, how does he suddenly become "a legend?"  And why do we not hear from jail inmates who think Peterson is a thorn in their side?  Is it fear of people turning on them because they will not grovel or toady to this man?  One man has; Paul Ferris.  He called Peterson the biggest headache in the system.  To all the other inmates.  He said that every time Peterson started his antics, everybody else in the jail suffered as a result.  I have not come across anybody mouthing off about the remarks made by Ferris, and it is easy to see why. Ferris was a notorious Glasgow gangster, so nobody will say anything about him, particularly to his face.  Their mouths will be firmly shut.  Another put, "Anything I can do to help?"  Yes, very simple.  Tell your hero to put his head down and do his time like the rest have to.  But when you are dealing with a "Right Man", what can you do?  What is a "Right Man?"  Somebody who says he is right because he says so.  No matter how wrong, he is right.  You get the idea.  On a final note, what kind of man treats all things from the mouth of Ronnie Kray as words from a great mind or philosopher?

The Angola Affair

This post is a tad different from the rest, but it did result in a show trial and the execution of four men.  A conflict had raged between Marxist backed MPLA forces and the FNLA forces of Holden Roberto.  The FNLA had three British mercenaries fighting for them, Costas Georgiou, Nick Hall, and I believe, Mick Wainhouse.  They scored a spectacularly lucky victory over enemy forces, which so impressed Roberto, he asked for more British mercenaries to be recruited. 

    This is actually what happened.  NICK HALL returned to Britain and asked JOHN BANKS to do the recruiting.  Amongst the first to sign up were Dave Tomkins, Chris Dempster, Jamie McCandless, Colin Evans and I believe, Sammy Copeland.  The first group of mercenaries went out, but found that the line given by Hall, was false and no matter what they were recruited for, they were there to fight.  Confusion and fear amongst some new arrivals resulted in them mistakenly opening fire against Georgiou and others. In anger, Georgiou had everybody who refused to fight, lined up.  They were given the chance to run, and were then cut down by machine gun fire from Sammy Copeland.  Many mercenaries died, others escaped the MPLA army, and numerous were captured. 

    A show trial was put on, but to ensure "fairness" observers were invited to attend from around the world.  All of these observers were known Marxists!  Costas Georgiou accepted the blame for everything, including the firing squad.  Around a dozen were jailed, but four were sentenced to death.  Georgiou, Andy Mackenzie, John Barker & American Danny Gearheart - They had to sentence the USA to death.  They were shot by firing squad.  Dave Tomkins & Chris Dempster escaped back to England and wrote a book about their experiences entitled "Firepower".  Any claims that Georgiou did recruiting in this country before going out to Angola is a huge pack of lies.  He went out there, with Hall & Wainhouse, as soldiers of fortune, willing to fight.

Harold Challenor - Bent Copper

Harold "Tanky" Challenor became infamous in the 1960`s as the face of Police corruption.  Challenor was a Regan - style cop who was genuinely feared by villains in London, but unlike Jack Regan, Challenor regularly lied and fitted people up.  What stood Challenor in good stead was that he was a true war hero, in the thick of the action in WW2.  He joined the Metropolitan Police at the beginning of the 1950`s, quickly gaining promotion to the Detective Division, and also serving in the famous Flying Squad.

    In the early 60`s, Challenor was transferred to West End Central, where he racked up many arrests, though there were claims of lies and planting of evidence.  When Challenor gave evidence in front of Magistrates and Judges, he made it sound like the West End was the scene of constantly rampaging gangs having Chicago-style shootouts.  Complete fiction and despite these people sampling the West End nightlife, they believed every word he said.  In 1962, he smashed an alleged protection racket involving individuals like Joe Oliva, Riccardo Pedrini, Alan Cheeseman, James Fraser & John Ford.  At their trial, Fraser was acquitted but the others were convicted.  The sentences were quashed on appeal in 1964. His come-uppance came in 1963, with a visit from Queen Frederika of Greece.  A small group of demonstrators were arrested and one of them, Donald Rooum had a half brick put in his pocket by Challenor.  Rooum handed his clothes to his solicitor for examination, and at his trial, a forensic scientist gave evidence supporting Rooum, and acquittal followed.

    In 1964, Challenor was thoroughly discredited and was facing corruption charges, but was found to be unfit to plead. In time, a medical discharge became known as "Doing a Challenor"  The novel "The Strange Affair" by Bernard Toms and the subsequent film in 1968, starring Michael York, was based on Challenor.  Jeremy Kemp played the Challenor -style detective who cracked up in court.  Challenor worked for the firm of solicitors who defended him.  He died in 2008.

Lois Nadean Smith - Evil Bitch

Lois Nadean Smith is one of three women executed for murder in Oklahoma since the Death Penalty was reintroduced in 1976, and quite frankly, she was a twisted, psychotic bitch who thoroughly deserved her fate.  What did she do and why?  She was a massively over-protective mother that thought that no matter what her precious son did, he could do no harm or wrong.  He pushed drugs, which was fine as far as she was concerned, because it was her son.  She also had a notorious reputation as a woman you avoided, and having a very short fuse.  In short, she could pick a fight with a lamp-post.

    The horrifying events that led her to the Death Chamber, was that her son Gregg, had been ditched by his girlfriend, Cindy Baillee.  Gregg soon found another girl but rumours started that Cindy was prepared to give him up to the local drugs squad.  Smith exploded when she heard this.  How dare she do this to HER son!  She had Gregg and his girlfriend, Theresa Baker, take her to where Cindy lived and persuaded her to go out with them.  Once in the car, Cindy was repeatedly threatened with murder, then Gregg handed his mother a knife which she used to cut her under the chin.

    They drove their victim to the home of Smiths` ex-husband, and forced him at gunpoint to hide.  They then taunted Cindy with being shot, then fired a number of shots close to her.  She then had Gregg reload the gun and then she cold-bloodedly murdered her.  Shots brought the cops but the ex-husband was sent to the door to get the cops to go away.  They then tried to stage the scene as a suicide.  Theresa Baker was trying to clean up the blood.  Whilst she was doing this, Smith said that if she talked, she would receive the same.  They then left, but neighbours were unhappy with events and brought the cops back.  They walked into a scene of horror.  Three people were seen leaving the house.  Police quickly arrested Theresa Baker who caved in immediately and cut a deal.  In return for testifying against the Smiths, she was given immunity.  They were both convicted.  Gregg Smith received life without parole, and his mother received the Death Penalty.  The murder occured in 1982, and she was executed in 2001.

Frank Serpico

Mention Frank Serpico and most people would think of the film with Al Pacino.  Some may be a touch cleverer and remember the TV film and short series with David Birney.  Frank Serpico was a very real cop who paid an extremely heavy price for exposing endemic corruption throughout the NYPD; he was very nearly fatally shot.  The continued view of some people is that the raid Serpico and a couple of other cops went on, was in fact a set-up for Serpico to be fatally wounded.  He was shot at virtually point blank range in the face, whilst his colleagues seemingly "held back".  Whilst in hospital, he received poison pen letters and cards hoping he dies.  This from cops themselves.  Why should an honest cop be treated disgustingly by his own bosses and colleagues, and his own force?  Why does exposure of corruption scare and frighten Police Administrations so much?

    Frank Serpico was born in New York in 1936 and his dream was to become a cop.  He worked as a private investigator and youth counsellor before joining the NYPD in September 1959, working as a uniform cop, then for the Forces` BCI department for two years, then he went into plainclothes.  His ambition was to become a detective.  It was in plainclothes that he encountered corruption. He never accepted bribes.  His coleagues could not understand why he didn`t because the money was from gambling operators, and organised crime.  They felt it was not bad because the bribes were not from drug pushers or distributors.  Serpico had his principles; a bribe is a bribe.  To accept is to be bought.  He made complaints discreetly to high ranking Officers he felt he could trust, but for a few years, he was given the runaround, given false hopes and promises that led to nothing.  He was transferred a couple of times but wherever he went, the corruption was rife.

    The pressure he was constantly under, simply for the reason that he was not crooked, took an enormous toll on his private life.  The ongoing struggle to find hierarchy that would listen, consumed him.  A half hearted investigation in which around seven officers faced acton over bribery, and some of the people Serpico was long talking to, were given promotions, and it could be shown that this was the extent of corruption.  Serpico knew he had wasted a couple years of his life, fighting to have a proper investigation, but was blocked.  Finally, he and some others went to the New York Times, told all they knew and they splashed it all over their paper.  it caused huge ructions within the NYPD, with hierarchy denying that cops were thoroughly corrupt.  Serpico was hated throughout the department.  He received threats(from cops!) and then ended up being shot in 1971.

    There has been sporadic bursts of  whistleblowers revealing bent cops, but will corruption ever be eradicated?  I do not believe so, but it thrives when the command structure simply look the other way.  One thing that is puzzling is that cops want everybody to betray their friends yet despise cops who do the same to their bent colleagues.  in truth, is a bent cop any different from a crook?  No!   Case closed.

Brilliant Chang - The Curtis Warren of His Day

It is interesting to research the story of Billy "Brilliant" Chang and read the tabloid newspapers of the day.  To be blunt, the Race Relations Board would have a field day if todays papers went full tilt about foreigners, particularly Chinamen and West Indians.  It is these races that started the dreadful downfall and moral destruction of young white women, who had allowed themselves to be drawn in by the offer of illicit drugs such as cocaine & opium.  This also led them wide open to sexual seduction and degradation at the hands of Chinamen, couplings that normal, decent white women would never contemplate.  Yeah right!

    Now you have an idea of just how they were portayed in the press.  One important point that the moralising and racist newspapers never grasped was that the majority of the women sucked into this world of vice and drugs, were society women and actresses and others in the entertainment world.  They would have more money than any women slaving her guts out in a factory or shop.  Money was not a problem.

   The first high flying victim of the "Yellow Peril" was actress Billie Carleton, a popular stage star who had appeared at the Royal Albert Hall in November 1918, at the victory celebration ball.  She turned heads with a revealing dress.  She was found dead from a drug overdose, and the cause was cocaine.  She was addicted to it.  Chang moved into Limehouse, the area of the East End that had a small Chinese community.  He started supplying cocaine and opium.  He then moved into a restaurant in Gerrard Street in Soho, close to the West End theatres where many of his customers worked and visited.  But persistent raids from Police forced him to move back to Limehouse.  Then another high profile actress died, Freda Kempson.  Again, from a cocaine overdose.  Chang claimed in court that he knew nothing about any cocaine. 

    Another drug addicted actress tipped off Police who raided his flat, and where stunned to find two white women in his bed!  A search found an amount of cocaine that warranted his arrest and charge.  He was convicted and sent to prison for more than a year, and upon his release, was deported.  One estimate was that Chang made around one million pounds from his drug activities, which in this day and age, would put him in the criminal super-league.  What happened to him is a bit of a mystery.