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Back to Part 2
In November 1969 I was described as a 'good
copper' my 'qualities';- double shrewd, extra cunning, hard enough, 1000%,
balls of steel, sound as a bell, plenty of bottle etc Then "I am offering to
'work' for Perry and directly accepting small sums of money"?
'Changing horses in mid stream' way to block and 'alter' an unwelcome
result.
Lambert out, protests and badly treated by Virgo. Goes 'sick' and retires
(broken).
Moody appointed to 'take over' Times Enquiry to general astonishment of all.
Alfred Moody (call me Bill) nicknamed 'Punchy' (and why) Corruption success
story.
First met him when he was a Sgt at Croydon (very corrupt mention Goodrich
and Co).
New recruit to F.M. practising signs and signals in office, but got him in
with 'Ernies'.
O.P.O. (Obscene Pubs Office) had gone out of control and Ernies not getting
whacks.
Changes in Law led to 'flourishing' and vast profits. Big opportunities
going to waste.
So easy and lucrative, past O.P.O. officers had not 'let go' when posted (or
'retired').
Moody promoted to D.I. to take over and 'pull together' and 'organise' the
racket.
Took with him two 'close' D.C.'s from Croydon, Mike Smith and Ernie Culver.
Big success, brought all pornographers into 'line' and soon vast sums going
'upstairs'.
My connection to Mike Smith and Ernie Culver. (The two sisters and later
Croydon).
Moody rewarded with promotion every year to 'stay in control' of
pornographers.
Now a Supt but with no 'outside' experience or training e.g. completing
'S.O.Courses'.
So how could Virgo appoint him to 'take over' from the 'very experienced'
Lambert?
Moody's only experience was as an efficient bribe extortionist and collector
and his 'reputation' was, as a man who would, without warning, punch you in
the face.
I knew why and how Moody had got onto the Enquiry as the 'unofficial' Supt 2
i/c.
Perry and another man had been arrested over a shop breaking in Nuneaton,
they had been bailed to re-appear after 'enquiries' but then the Nuneaton
Police received an alibi for the second man. This had been provided by a
'Peckham Justice of the Peace'
Lambert discovered this on the second day of the Enquiry and by the third
day he had exposed the phoney alibi from the phoney J.P. who was then due
for the 'high jump'.
This information very quickly got to Moody vV and had an 'electric effect'
upon him.
The 'phoney' J.P. was better known to his criminal associates as 'Frankie
the Barber'.
Frankie’s real job was Moody's 'bagman' and spent his days in the West End
collecting hundreds of thousands of pounds (equiv of millions today) from
the pornographers.
Frankie’s 'percentage' gave him a good living and he had the 'goods' on
Moody & Co.
Virgo was reading all the reports, knew about Frankie and recognised the
dangers.
Moody appeared in the Enquiry room and offered to take over the 'Nuneaton
Aspect'.
This meant that he would be the officer to eventually interview Frankie the
Barber J.P.
Moody had to visit Nuneaton to interview the Police Officers concerned but
true to his 'reputation' lost his temper over some imagined slight and
violently assaulted one of the Nuneaton Police Officers. Despite this he
kept control of the Nuneaton Aspect.
Moody was not qualified or competent to take over the Enquiry. He could not
'run it'.
But Virgo could, and did, from behind the scenes, using Moody as his
'middleman'.
Therefore Thomson had gained control of the Times Enquiry! I take my hat off
to him.
Moody had become the 'unofficial 2 i/c' simply because he was the only other
Supt.
Normally with 'changing horses' the whole leadership is replaced plus the
i/c exhibits.
Virgo's decision to work Moody on to Enquiry and then put him in charge of
it was to prove fatal to me and eventually to them as well. We were all
'ruined' & N.S.Y too.
Virgo's brief was to 'PROTECT THE TIMES', that meant that there could be no
criminal prosecutions of Times Staff and it was necessary to make the
printed allegations 'stand up' that meant that Thomson's libel money would
be saved, plus his Newspaper's reputation. That meant the 'named' Police
Officers must be 'sacrificed'. In the event the 'un-named' Police Officers
referred to in the article were also ruined.
I still cannot believe the 'wickedness' of these officers. I discovered what
was happening very early on. I fought back with all my strength. The rest of
this account 'follows on' from this 'injustice', whistle-blower, fugitive,
mercenary, K.G.B. agent, prisoner, 1st ever Police 'supergrass', Private
Investigator (to top London Lawyers) and 'stringer' to international
Detective Agencies and Press Bureaux and Agencies.
On reading through the first 10 pages I think it is time to tell you more
about myself.
The average (uninitiated) reader may well wonder how I could be so well
informed!
Over the past 30 years everything I have said has been rubbished as a
'fantasy' and I have been portrayed as a fool and liar. These allegations
have been verbal and printed and made by either corrupt senior Police
Officers or by incompetent M.I.5/6 Officers.
The Police Officers were anxious to hide their past corrupt actions (of
which I had knowledge) and the M.I.5/6 Officers were incompetent to 'just
accept' their 'views'!
The Met had the sole right to investigate themselves, no Watch Committees to
answer to, only the Home Secretary. The C.I.D. were the 'investigative arm'
and therefore investigated complaints against the uniform branches and also
against themselves!
The C.I.D. were a 'comparatively' small and 'close knit' interdependent
group of men and deliberately so. The method of Policing then (and now?)
meant that it was vital for the Detectives to be able to rely upon each
other for support whenever needed.
Not only when carrying out 'raids' or the ambushing of armed and dangerous
robbers but mainly and particularly the supplying of 'corroboration' or
'supporting evidence' at the subsequent trials. i.e. perjuring themselves to
ensure that a conviction is gained.
It was a common practice for one or two officers to 'make up' the evidence
for the whole 'squad' , whether all the members had been involved or not.
The interlocking 'individuals' evidence was issued for 'writing up' in their
pocket books and 'given'!
Mass Perjury! A Conspiracy! Plus of course the fitting up with gear and
confessions.
Everyone had been 'intimately compromised together'. It was how it worked.
Starting from the aspiring C.I.D. officers initiations such as the 'Suss'
test, Perjury was an everyday occurrence. All C.I.D. Officers were either
corrupt or 'condoned' corruption.
To refuse your 'whack' could damage your career prospects and to shrink from
giving Perjured evidence could end it. (I will give later examples.) Another
compromising situation was the 'whack' system. Moody used to give each and
every member of his O.P.O. squad a £100 whack every Friday in their office
at New Scotland Yard (C.1.) not bad with a then basic wage of £20 per week!
Everybody accepted it of course.
They were not so generous on Division. The D.I. or D.S. may occasionally
hand everybody a fiver or a tenner. It meant some money had come into the
Office. We may know why or we may not. The D.I. may tell us what it was for
or he may not. You NEVER asked "What was it for?" You NEVER refused it. Just
take your whack.
What we had on Division that the O.P.O. did not have, were the 'Share Outs',
which were exactly that. Lorry loads of stolen property were significantly
reduced in size. Recovered stolen property and sometimes property stolen (by
Police) was 'laid out' in the C.I.D. Office and everybody was invited to
'take their pick'. Everybody did.
Everyone was 'intimately compromised together' with everybody else and
everyone knew everybody else and if you did not know somebody you would
surely know somebody who would know somebody who knew that person. Entirely
incestuous.
And we were allowed to investigate ourselves! Nobody else (except our own
uniform branch) was allowed to investigate us. By the Law of the Land. We
were untouchable.
But we could (and did) severely punish anybody who broke our own 'House
Rules'!
So of course I knew everything that was going on in that first, open and
'straight' Enquiry. And so did everybody else who had a 'need to know',
Robson and Harris and Jim Sylvester certainly did. We were all 'good
coppers' and 'well connected' etc etc.
I knew that I had not broken any house rules. My No 3 speech was well known
and widely used and no one believed that I had taken small sums of cash
directly from Perry. Nobody thought that I was that stupid or that greedy
and I had (in that society) the very highest credentials, including the most
important 'sound'. I knew everything.
What Moody and Virgo did not know, and it follows that Thomson did not know
was that I also knew everything that happened AFTER they took over the
Enquiry and made it a High Security 'secret' Enquiry. It was ridiculous. The
only way they could have made their new Enquiry 'secret' was to have sacked
all the Officers who had been engaged on the previous Enquiry for the past
six months and to have recruited an entirely new staff. Moody simply changed
all the door and cabinet locks and 'he' kept the keys 'High Security’? He
then announced that the Enquiry was to be 'Secret'.
The first thing that Moody did was to 'demolish' the painstaking work of
Lambert.
He removed (and destroyed?) the vital record books of the Enquiry and opened
new.
He removed (and destroyed?) all Statements by (or referring to) Times Staff.
So the Statements had gone, also the records of their existence! So no
‘charges’!
Moody brought in new men, all past or present members of his Obscene Pubs
Office and set them to work re-taking statements from certain Times Staff
(but not others!).
This all happened during the first days of Moody's 'new rule' and I was the
first told.
Moody sent me a message through Mike Smith who had been close to him and who
had also worked with me at Croydon. There were 'fraternal greetings' and the
assurance that I should not worry about the changed situation as I would
still be O.K.
It was implied that 'orders' had come down from 'upstairs' that the Times
Staff should be 'dropped out' and that Lambert had gone because he resisted
this 'change of course'.
This did not 'add up' to me. Unless there was a 'deal' and everybody was
going to be 'dropped-out'. This did not affect me as I was already 'out' but
I was very glad for Bernie Robson, another ex-Officer who had commanded E
Boats towards the end of the last War. We had been meeting up at the R.A.C.
Club to 'exchange notes' and relax in plush surroundings. (and full of
familiar 'faces' from N.S.Y and 'Underworld').
When I heard that Moody had put the Times Squad on to 'retaking' Statements
in order to 'tie-up' the case against R & H (and Sylvester and Assistant) I
tipped them off and sent a 'High Level Delegation ' into Moody to ask him
"What was happening with the Enquiry and is John (Symonds) going to be
affected by these 'new' moves"?
I sense the F factor coming to the fore here (F = fantastical) and should
'enlarge'.
Question. "Why should we believe that a 'person such as you', sitting
'suspended' at home in your small Kentish village would be in a position to
send any sort of level of 'delegation' anywhere"? My answer is that in 1970.
I was not a 'person such as you' i.e.;- a stupid and "blabber-mouthed"
corrupt fool who had been caught 'red-handed' by heroic and fearless 'War
Correspondent' Times 'Investigative Journalists' who then extracted from me
a 'full confession' that I was a member of gang of Criminal C.I.D. Officers
who called ourselves 'The little firm within the firm'. (('The Fall of
N.S.Y")).
In 1970 I was not the man who had secretly returned to the U.K. on several
occasions to carry out daring armed robberies on banks using a sawn-off
shotgun. Met Police 'source' 1980 (When I voluntarily returned to the U.K.
to give myself up for trial).
In 1970 I was not the man who had persistently requested that the Secret
Services interview him in the early 1980's claiming that he had worked for
the K.G.B. and had information of value to them. They publicly dismissed him
as a 'fantasist' (D.Express).
AND MUCH SIMILAR ON MANY OTHER OCCASIONS. (Total rubbishing. Why?).
The answer is given earlier. The 'nexus' of Corrupt Police and Incompetent
M.I.5/6.
Certain (now very senior) Police were desperate to prevent me 'speaking out'
about our previous 'meetings' either in the Police or later when I was
acting for the K.G.B.
Ditto certain M.I.5 officers and particularly the one who used to be an
Ambassador.
They then succeeded because it suited me to 'let things lie'. But I WROTE IT
DOWN.
This will all come out later when I am talking about the 1980's and 90's
(Insurance!)
Police and M.I.5. used each other and 'played off' each other to their
mutual benefit.
To return to 1969/70 (and the man I really was). In 1969 I was about to reap
the rewards of 10 years of very hard work and 'effort'. I was the 'well
thought of ' and more importantly 'well connected' (At the cost of my
marriage,) I had worked just as hard, and had put in as many hours 'off
duty', as I had whilst 'on duty’;-"Networking".
I believe that my first good 'connection' was forged a few days after my
birth when my father's then Commanding Officer became one of my
'godfathers'. His name was Ramsey and was 'of Ramsey' a town within the
'Soke of Peterborough' and was the direct descendant of the Ramsey of
'Ramsey's Troop' of the Royal Horse Artillery.
He was a good godfather who took his duties seriously and followed my
'progress' from then on. He wrote the all important letter of recommendation
to the War Office Selection Board (W.O.S.B.) when my name was put forward
for a Commission.
My first experience of 'Networking' was as a 'victim' of it and I still feel
this incident 'blighted' my Army Career. It certainly spoiled it for me and
eventually cut it short.
A few days before their 'passing out parade' the future officers get
probably the only chance in their lives to choose their own posting, from a
list of available positions.
From a complicated system involving Course results and 'type' of Commission,
I had the 'first pick' and so of course I picked the best posting which was
to a 'fighting Regt' in a War Zone which was then Korea. (Every young
Officers 'dream' was to get into Action where the Action was) I was sent on
the 'Young Officers Gunnery Course' at Larkhill and then on 'embarkation'
leave and given my FARELF clothing allowance.
Days before reporting for departure I was told that my highly prized posting
was cancelled and I was now going to join a R.A. 'Training' Regt somewhere
in Wales!
This had been the 'worst' posting on the list and was 'all that was left' by
the time the Course 'Idiot' got to choose a posting. I had gone from 'best
to worst'. I was shocked.
I complained to my father who told me it was just "bad luck" and my Army
career would prove to be a succession of good and bad postings One following
the other.
However two of my uncles made enquiries at the 'War Box' on my behalf and
made the discovery that the Course 'Idiot' had gone to Korea in my place and
I now had his.
It had been a 'Masonic Fix' by the father of the 'Idiot' and could not be
'undone'.
My Welsh Training Regiment posting was scrapped and I was posted to an
'elite' Specialist Regiment which had R.H.A. 'Standing' but (unfortunately)
it was in BAOR.
Much more about these days (if anyone is interested) but eventually I left
the Army an 'expert' on the 25pdr Gun Howitzer with an array of 'Counter
Bombardment' skills.
No use at all in 'civvy street' but I also had become 1) competent in
'networking' and 2) been inducted into Freemasonry. & both were to prove
'very' useful in civvy street.
As an Officer Cadet I was the only one in my class who had neither been to a
Public School nor held an 'Oxbridge' degree. It seemed to me that
'networking' skills came with a Public School education. Everybody was 'at
it' and 'trophy contacts' valued.
It was the same on all the Courses I attended and in the 'Regiment'. I
joined the 'game'.
My earliest Police 'contacts' were my father’s friends. Harry Cauclough had
joined the Army with my father during the First World War. Both were under
age but determined not to miss out on the big 'adventure'. Afterwards they
served together in Gibraltar and India. Harry joined the Met Police in the
1930's and shortly afterwards joined the Royal Protection Unit and became
the 'personal and private' bodyguard to the late Queen Mary for the rest of
her life. He was granted a 'Grace and Favour' Apartment over 'Gerrards' the
Crown Jewellers. He stayed in lifelong contact with my father.
Another one of my father’s 'Police friends' was Cdr Flood . They met at the
beginning of the Second World War when my father was at the Military College
of Science and engaged on Proof and Experimental Work at Woolwich Arsenal.
Flood was a Special Branch Officer. There was a big 'Spy (and Saboteur)
Scandal' at that time. Many were killed when the cordite store blew up and
when there was a gun explosion My father was awarded an 'Act of Gallantry'.
A second gun explosion cost my father his L Hand.
My father stayed on with A.R.D.E. and friends with Cdr Flood who rose to
Command Special Branch. They often met up at Fort Halstead as they both
lived within easy reach. Both of the above took an interest in my career and
gave me very good advice.
I made good contacts whilst I was at Bow Street and more amongst the club
and casino owners whilst in the 'City'. I have always followed the 'rules'
and have kept in touch with the people I 'cultivated' as friends from the
very earliest days. Regular Xmas and birthday cards and the odd 'note' or
telephone call suffices (at small cost).
When I rejoined the Police Force I had an 'agenda'. I soon knew some of the
basic 'tenets' for the achieving a successful career, e.g. "It is not 'what'
you know but 'who' you know" and the lawyers favourite." You do not have to
know everything in every book,- you only have to know where to look" and
many similar applicable to Police.
One of my first 'mentors' was Sam Goddard who was my Detective
Superintendent at Catford Police Station. He was an admirable man who had
held the then long obsolete rank of D.S. Grade 2 for very many years and
told me how that situation had come about. He was one of the last survivors
of the old Trenchard scheme designed to encourage intakes of new 'officer
class' recruits who were expected to impose a good discipline and cut out
the endemic corruption in a then shambolic Metropolitan Police.
Sam enjoyed telling me his life story (and my rapt attention) and gave me
much good advice. His daughter Anne was his pride and joy and I was sure
that he was plotting to 'match us up'. She was a Law Student (and is now a
Judge) He was an 'old school' gentleman who had been badly treated by Senior
'criminal' Police Officers (more?).
Another mentor was Ken Drury whom I will mention again. I admired him as a
'thief taker' and set out to learn all I could from him. We worked the same
'shifts' and most nights we went West. (stopping off to meet a few of his
informants along the way) and I gradually introduced him to the 'Club Set'
from my Lamson Paragon days.
From Ken I learned all the 'tricks of the trade', for example I told him
that I intended to take two weeks off to study for the Sgts Exam. Ken said
"Take the time off but spend it with your kids or doing the garden. I'll
drop the questions round to you a couple of days before the exam. A couple
of hours to revise those and you'll be O.K".
He did, I was, and I came out near the top of the list and was eligible for
Bramshill.
Ken had taught me one of the 'secrets of the job' (he was later to teach me
other such).
The Sgt's Exam papers were prepared by a couple of Supts in the Yard and it
was argued by certain 'Specialist' Squads that they did not have the time to
study, because of the 'pressure of their work', so the Supts were told to
supply short 'revision lists'.
The same system for the Inspectors exam and they were all the exams that
were needed to be taken in a Police Career up to Chief Constable. The rest
was interviews.
The 'revision list' identified sufficient questions to 'qualify' which was
all a C.I.D. Officer needed to do. If you wanted to come high on the
'competitive' list you needed to either study very hard for several years or
if you were 'on the square' and 'in the swim' you could buy a complete set
of the 'competitive exam papers ' from one of the Supt's local 'agents'. The
nearest agent to me at that time was 'Black-Jack' Garrard a Det Sgt at
Bromley Police Station. The then cost was £200 a set. (you could buy a new
Mini then for £350) I know of cases where Officers put up 'blags' to buy the
Q's.
A Det .Constable on my Division who was then notoriously corrupt (and later
became famously so) went into a car dealer I was friendly with and asked for
a £200 'loan' to buy the Sgts exam papers. He promised to repay it 'with
interest' on his promotion.
One year later he set up the dealer with three other men to defraud Cedar
Holdings of one million pounds in the first big fraud against a car 'hire
purchase' Company. The new Det Sgt was able to protect them throughout from
his new office near the scene.
The 'dealer' invested his quarter million in property and later retired to
Spain as a multi-millionaire and now enjoys life together with the ex Sgt
and many other ex CID.
I saw people all around me making fortunes through corruption, I did not
take money for myself, but I did for and on behalf of the senior officers I
was cultivating. Mistake There are 'hundreds' of pages on these sort of
memories and thoughts. Maybe analyse.
The easiest and safest money offered to me was a post with the Obscene
Publications Squad which I had refused on the advice of Ken Drury as he had
then arranged for me to go on to the Flying Squad. In the O.P.O. everybody
got a regular £100 p.w. for doing nothing (against the pornographers). That
was an 'extra' £5000 p.a. and for a (normal) three year posting £15,000. In
1969 you could buy a very nice house in a good suburb for less than £5,000 (
In 1971 obliged to sell my own house for £6,000 ) These same houses are now
worth between 150.000 and 200.000 pounds each?
The O.P.O. was called 'The Dirty Squad' for good reason. In my opinion it
was a dirty and disgusting job to spend all day reading and watching the
most depraved materials. Many Officers became themselves depraved and
perverted, truly corrupted.
A Det .Sgt at Cray had just come off the Dirty Squad . He lived in a very
nice house which he owned outright and his was the first 'luxury' limousine
with an automatic gearbox that I ever rode in. His 'rent aid' had become
just 'extra pocket money' and he seemed to 'have it made'. Unfortunately he
also became a 'bit of a joke'. He had acquired a huge collection of
revolting 'dirty pictures' which he tried to interest other Officers in
(without success). He had carefully set them into bound volumes and was
often 'caught' sitting alone with his volumes 'flush faced' and playing
'pocket billiards'.
A Det Con at Croydon returned from the Dirty Squad with some very peculiar
ideas and lost his girlfriend over them. I later inherited her and she
regaled me with many hilarious and astonishing stories about elaborate
bondage gear with whips and masks.
A Det Sgt friend of mine, shortly after joining the Dirty Squad, started to
take home some very strange and 'advanced' ideas about the limits of what
could be regarded as normal marital relations. His eminently sensible and
down to earth, dear lady wife, had very different ideas on that particular
subject and 'ordered him off the premises'.
Many other examples of the pervasive effect of pornography including
'turning queer'.
These men were not simple minded or easily led. There were experienced
Police Officers who were nevertheless 'perverted' in some way by their
exposure to 'porn'. What could be the effect of pornography on young,
unformed and innocent minds?
Moody was being paid a Superintendents wages to track down and close down
the flood of 'hard core' filthy pornography seeking to enter the U.K.
market. He in fact did the exact opposite, for and on the behalf of the
greedy wicked old men 'upstairs'. He encouraged and protected this vile
trade in return for bribes. He facilitated the opening of more and more
shops and the importation and production of more and more pornographic
materials (and acquired fortunes for himself and those 'upstairs'.).
At that time the 'Drug Squad' was even more lucrative (although much more
fraught) and I feel sure that these two comparatively small units, did more
harm, to more people, and ruined more young lives, than all the criminal
gangs engaged in drug dealing or hard core pornography, could ever have
done. (without their assistance.).
And so the ruination of my life would have been of little importance to such
men.
I was not then a threat to the Dirty Squad racket. So it must have been
'just business'.
I feel sure they would have had the £500,000 lying in the High Court in mind
when calculating the 'fee'. Thomson was going to lose that either way. "So
we will have it".
I had become 'close' to every senior officer that I had ever worked with and
that included the more junior officers who later became senior. I was also
on good terms with many senior officers that I had met 'socially', through
sporting activities, (I lived only 'minutes' away from the 'Warren' ),
through 'benevolent' activities, (supporting the Widows and Orphans fund,
The Police Nursing Home in Denmark Hill, and the original fundraising for
the purchase and establishment of the Police Convalescent Home in Hove) and
through any other 'activities' that came to my attention e.g. supporting the
Police Band, The St John’s Ambulance 'First Aid' (Volunteer Advanced Classes
and the 'Life Saving Awards) and even the Senior Officer who strove to dress
the Force in 'Gannex' raincoats and 'Hardy Amies' Uniforms. I took an
interest in Police Federation work and was always available to their
'welfare' section and to be called out to counsel and support officers
suffering bereavement or other problems.
As with everything else in my previous life, Boy Scouts, The Church, The
Army and even my 'City' jobs I had committed myself 'totally and full time'
to the 'job'. It was my way, I could not help it, I was 'buzzing' with
energy and took an 'avid interest' in everything around me. I could always
find the time to 'answer any call' (hyperactive?).
As I got more and more involved in the inner workings of the C.I.D. I had
less and less time for my 'good causes'. I had made a point of 'keeping in
touch' with the friends I had made, but I was 'pleasantly surprised' (if not
'moved') by the immediate response to the one and only 'distress call' that
I have ever put out on my own behalf.
My friends had supported me throughout the original Enquiry and had
congratulated me when I was cleared. They had heard 'rumours' about the
later developments and were concerned when I told them what was really
happening (destruction of docs etc).
A small group said they would go to the 'Yard' and try to find out what was
going on.
This was my "High Level Delegation" (page 14 line 34). They all outranked
Moody both as Police Officers and as Freemasons. They asked to meet Moody at
a nearby Lodge but Moody declined. They put the meeting 'on the square'
anyway. Moody was nervous and evasive. They asked about my position and said
that if anything were to happen to me "It would be a loss to the 'job'" (My
highest ever 'commendation').
Moody told them that nothing would happen to me and I would stay 'cleared'
but I would have to stay on suspension until the present 'changes' had been
completed.
Moody said that he could only obey the orders that came down from 'upstairs'
and he thought it was a 'Political' decision to take no action against the
Times Staff, probably Callaghan was saving Jay's neck. This meant that a lot
of Lambert's work would have to be 'dumped' and the statements retaken.
Lambert had to go because he opposed this.
Moody said that fresh complications had arisen because new witnesses had
recently come forward with very damaging further allegations against Robson
and Sylvester.
He said that he had known me since Croydon, liked me and knew that I was
'sound' and that he had in fact offered me a job on his Squad just before
the 'troubles' (True).
Moody repeated that I had no problems and should have no worries I was in
the clear.
My friends told me about the above conversation. Some had a 'bad feeling'
about it but said he 'had to be believed' because the meeting had clearly
been 'on the square'.
Some years later Moody was said to be 'distraught' when he was thrown out of
the Freemasons. It was not because he was then a convicted criminal. It was
because he had lied to my friends when they visited him on my behalf. He
lied 'on the square'.
The vital proof was the fact that Moody had told certain members of the
Enquiry that "Symonds was going to have to go" just 'hours' before his
meeting with my friends.
The order had (of course) come down from 'upstairs' and Moody displayed what
he called a 'secret statement'. This statement was never properly recorded
and placed in the 'statement file' so my informant could not tell me what it
said or who made it?
I learned this 'news' immediately on my return from meeting my friends. They
were not at all pleased and thereafter were allies in my long campaign
against Moody & Co.
I told Robson and Sylvester the story about 'new evidence' in their cases
and they were surprised but on making enquiries discovered that it was true.
A colleague had been put under great pressure by Moody and had been 'turned'
to go against them.
Everyone was very shocked. It was then an unimaginable (but now common)
'action'.
I now started (for the very first time) to get 'worried' I had allowed
myself to become 'intimately compromised together', with so many people I
was entitled to be worried if the tactics were to be 'turning' people. What
I had thought to be my main protection had now become my main weakness. Who
ordered this 'line of enquiry’? What was the 'thinking'? "Get something on
someone who might know something about John Symonds and then 'turn' him. If
Symonds then takes 'him' with him, then 'so what' "!!
This was 'extreme' policing. These methods were at the 'extreme' edge of
Policing. These methods were not (and had never been) used in a normal
internal discipline enquiry. Colleague investigating colleague. Everything
should be 'very correct', but with the basic 'decencies' observed. Then
guilty men went quietly (if sadly) to prison, or to dismissal, or to
reprimand, according to the offence. But it must have been 'fair'.
I had been 'fairly' investigated and rightfully and justly completely
exonerated. If I had been guilty of taking money from Perry I like to think
that I would have been 'man enough' to have taken my punishment and then
have rebuilt my life (before 40.).
I later wished that I had taken a bribe and had been guilty because
everything would have been 'cut and dried' and there would have been no need
for the later 'miseries'.
I had a surprise visit to my home from my old Office colleagues (because
they did not want to talk on the phone) Moody had 'turned' one of my Office
staff. His name was Munro and had arrived as a young 'aide' (probationer
D.C.) just a few weeks before the Times article. Lambert had interviewed
everybody in the office during his first investigation and it had gone well.
Lambert had taken away all the 'duty books' and the office later received a
message that everything was properly recorded and 'A.O.K.'
I was surprised because I had taken Munro 'under my wing' and had 'settled
him in'.
Munro was a 'Jockson with ambitions to join the Jockafia' (I will elaborate
on this).
Munro's name had come to my notice previously because he was the only person
who refused to 'contribute' to the weekly Office 'whip' on my behalf ever
since I was suspended. (this continued for two and a half years without
fail). Munro was then described as 'That snidey little scotch shit Munro'.
He was already very unpopular.
Munro had apparently gone to Moody to report that I had 'presided' over an
office 'share-out' and had described the 'goods' and 'who had what'. In
order to try to please Moody and get me into trouble he had put the whole
Office into jeopardy. Everyone completely denied the allegation and my
paperwork stood up to each and every test.
The allegation fell flat, Munro was obviously the 'grass' and received an
'accidental' beating and some terrible threats. He suddenly 'disappeared'
having been 'posted'.
The 'dirty trick' was that Moody tried to get my colleagues to believe that
I was his informant and had presumably broken down and betrayed them all.
They did not.
So the dirty little man from the dirty squad was now resorting to 'dirty
tricks'!
The final act of this sad and disgusting story was that Munro reappeared
some years later as a prosecution witness against Moody and helped to get
him convicted of his own corruption and sentenced to 18 years imprisonment.
Moody had taken him onto his Squad (probably to report on his colleagues
there) He had ignored his own rules, Munro may have been 'on the square' but
he was certainly not 'sound'. What a fool.
The same story was repeated only this time it was Moody who was presiding
over the 'share-outs' and once again Munro was claiming that he had
'declined' his share. How ironic. Munro had taken the greedy lions share of
the toiletry's share-out and whilst at the Dirty Squad had been taking his
whack plus 'private' money from pornographers.
I do not know where Munro is now. He is probably a Chief Constable
somewhere?
Moody did eventually manage to 'turn' one of my colleagues. I did not find
out 'who' until many years later when the Q.C. who had been briefed to
prosecute me, told a multi-millionaire about the content of a 'secret
statement' held at New Scotland Yard.
I will tell this story when I get to 1979, but it was a terrible blow to me
then and my feelings today are still disbelief. He was my 'partner' at
Camberwell, he lived 'round the corner' to my house, our families were very
close, He named his son John after me, we baby sat for each other He was
younger than me and I often protected him and got him 'out of trouble'. I
would have trusted him with my life. He betrayed me.
Robson was betrayed by 'his' partner 'Bomber' Harris (who also 'tried' to
betray me) I do not know whether Sylvester was betrayed by his partner or
not, but both men were 'ruined' anyway. So much for the 'comradeship' of
corrupt C.I.D. 'colleagues'.
All very well when all is well, but if you are thought to be finished or
'going down' they will 'turn on you' in order to save themselves as if a
pack of wild dogs or wolves.
All my Police friends outside the C.I.D. stayed loyal to me, and all of my
colleagues who had served with me stayed loyal (except one) but when amongst
the savage 'Alpha Males' of the wolf pack, then my one time 'Colleagues'
vied with each other to be the first to bring me down as if they would then
'demonstrate' their own innocence.
I was reminded of some things Sam Goddard had told me about the problems
that are encountered by anybody who was perceived to be 'fast track' or
'officer class'. He said" People will 'suck up to you' if they think you are
going to the top", (for their own possible future benefit)." But if you come
'unstuck' or are thought to be 'falling' then those same people will be the
first to put the knife into you".(they resent the time they wasted sucking
up to you because you turned out to be a loser). Sam was a wise man.
Having read through these later pages I notice some 'points' that should be
'enlarged'.
Go to Part 4
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