Authors: David Lowe
‘Thanks for ringing,’ George said, ‘Jenny Richmond passed onto me that Alec could be the mole. She also passed on the doubts you and Debbie have. I found it hard to agree with you and Debbie, but I came over a few hours ago with Edge and with assistance from Cheshire’s Professional Standards Unit we’ve executed a warrant at Alec’s home and found quite a few things that might be evidence to support your line of thinking. I can’t say much at the moment, but once I’ve got something more concrete to go on, I’ll let you know.’
‘Alec Harvey, I’m arresting you for assisting in acts of terrorism. You don’t have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned anything that you later rely on court. What you say will be given in evidence,’ George Byrne told Alec Harvey in the presence of Detective Superintendent Paul Edge in Alec’s office.
When George walked into the office just moments before, he thought it was his old friend calling in to check on his DS. Seeing Detective Superintendent Edge standing alongside George, the solemn look on George’s face told Alec he was not joking. ‘What the fuck are you on about George?’
‘With the assistance of Cheshire’s Professional Standards Unit, we executed a warrant at your home early this afternoon and found evidence that you may be assisting in acts of terrorism,’ George said, Edge standing impassively next to him.
‘For Christ’s sake George, you’re making a big mistake. You’ve known me long enough to know I’d never do anything of the sort.’
‘Alec, save your explanation for the interview.’
Alec paused for a moment, wondering where George could have got his suspicions from. Then in anger, he flung the report he had in his hand across the room. ‘I know where you got your suspicions from. It’s that damn DS you sent over here. So you’re taking his word against mine. I’m telling you now, Hurst’s suspicions are wrong. If you think I’m the fucking mole, I suggest you look at your own department before accusing mine. After all, Hurst’s half Irish and he only came back from Ireland yesterday morning. It’s his place you should be turning over not mine and it’s him you should be lifting, not me,’ he said indignantly.
Paul Edge looked at George and said, ‘What’s this about Hurst going to Ireland? You didn’t tell me that.’
‘See George, not even your own head of department knew Hurst went over to visit the Paddies. Do you really know what he was doing there?’ Alec asked George, looking for a reaction from Paul Edge.
‘Alec, it’s hard enough without getting involved in a tit-for-tat argument with you. Hurst’s trip to in Ireland is not up for discussion. Don’t make this any more difficult than it already is. To maintain some dignity, I’m not going to handcuff you. So, just walk out with me and let’s go downstairs. We’ve arranged for you to go to a custody suite outside Chester, where we’ll interview you. I’m trying to get this done as painlessly as possible for you.’
‘I appreciate that and I know you’re acting under orders, but you know I’m right. You’re making a big mistake George. For fuck’s sake, you know it. You’ll be the one who’ll be embarrassed when this is over, not me.’
* * *
‘Murphy’s making a call. Listen to this,’ Gary said putting the monitor onto loudspeaker.
The officers assembled around the monitor as they heard Murphy speaking. ‘Everything’s in hand. The new arrivals came in late this morning and they’re on their way to the safe-house. I’ve got one of the old hands and five new recruits who the security services have no information on whatsoever.’
‘Where are you keeping them?’
‘They’re staying in Liverpool and I’ve already got two staying in Winsford. They’ve been over here for a few days now.’
‘Six hiding out in one house! That’ll raise suspicion with the security services.’
‘Don’t worry. The safe house is a guest house on Shiel Road in Kensington, Liverpool. It won’t look suspicious at all. Also, the Winsford house is quite safe. I’ve managed to get new materials and equipment to get the job done. They were delivered to another Liverpool address this afternoon and will be ready for my lot to collect when they get there. I’ve got the return trip organised too. Once the job’s done, they’ll be going straight back home.’
‘How are they getting back?’
‘The same way they came over. I’ve made sure they’re not using public transport. If they get a ferry from either Holyhead or Liverpool back to Ireland, they can still be traced, even as foot passengers. As the Branch is on high alert, we don’t want them to end up in a position where they’re captured and compromised.’
‘That makes sense. Being in and out within a few days and using our own people to get back will make it harder for both the Branch and MI5 to identify who did the job.’
‘Don’t forget to make their job even harder, the other lads are keeping them running around in circles. They’re heads will be up their fucking arses by the time this is over,’ Murphy said laughing.
‘How did your meeting go this morning?’
‘I met my man on the inside and gave him his first payment for services rendered. ‘
‘Are you going to see him again?’
‘I’m seeing him on Monday. He’s going to run through any last minute points over the visit and I’m going to pay him off. Is there anything else I need to know before Monday?’
‘No. My company’s got another job to complete next week. As the timing will be close to yours, with luck, it’ll make our rivals split their resources. Once you’ve met your man, ring me on this number at noon on Monday and let me know how things progress.’ The phone call abruptly ended without any pleasantries being exchanged.
David looked at Gary and said, ‘That’s fucking Sayfel’s voice. You keep your eye on Murphy. If he fucking farts, I want to know. I’m going back to your office and decipher this conversation. I’ll log on and link into this wire tap.’
* * *
Having taken him from headquarters to a smaller police station on the outskirts of Chester, George Byrne and Paul Edge were interviewing Alec Harvey. Alec sat opposite the two Manchester officers in the small, stuffy interview room. Without any air conditioning, the stifling summer heat had started to penetrate the outer walls of the room. All three men were in their shirt sleeves, but Alec’s profuse sweating brought on by the heat and the pressure he felt revealed itself in the ever expanding perspiration stains on his shirt. Feeling confident at the start of the interview, Alec Harvey declined to have legal representation. During the first part of the interview he denied all the allegations George put to him. Throughout the interview Paul Edge sat there passively, having not uttered a single word.
George produced copies of Alec’s bank accounts and placed them on the table in front of DCI Harvey. ‘I am now producing copies of your bank statements,’ George said, ‘These copies include your current account with the National and Cheshire Bank, exhibit number GB one, your deposit account with the same bank, exhibit number GB two and an account with the National Kensington Bank based in London, exhibit number GB three. Look at these statements. Do you agree these are statements from your bank accounts?’
‘Yes.’
‘We obtained these from the search of your house we carried out this afternoon. They were in a locked drawer of a desk in the study of your home.’
Alex picked up the statements and took a minute to look at them. He lingered as he looked at the statements from the National Kensington Bank. Placing them back onto the table, he said, ‘I know where you’re going with this one George.’
‘And where’s that?’
‘You’re going to ask me about the large deposits I’ve made over the past two years or so with the National Kensington Bank. You’re going to ask me where I’ve got the money from aren’t you? Something that you already know or you’ve worked out. Having worked with you in the past, I know how you think. You’re assuming I’ve used this to finance acts of terrorism.’
‘Well, have you?’
Alec Harvey aggressively pushed the statements across the table towards George. ‘For fuck’s sake George, how many times have I got to deny this? I’ve nothing to do whatsoever with supporting, planning, financing or preparing acts of terrorism.’
‘So where did you get this money from? Every quarter over the past two years, which is the date when the account was first opened, you’ve deposited a hundred and fifty thousand pounds on each occasion. Is that right?’
‘You know it is.’
‘Your salary is nowhere near that amount of money is it?’
‘You know it’s not.’
‘Do Cheshire Police pay you your salary every month?’
‘Yes, they pay me on the first of every month and that goes into my National and Cheshire current account. You can see that on the statements. Now you want to know from where I’ve managed to acquire £150,000 every quarter? I suppose you wouldn’t believe me if I told you that I’ve been lucky on the horses.’
‘No I wouldn’t,’ George said picking up the bank statements. Looking through them, he said, ‘You’ve deposited the same amount every quarter for the past two years. Where did you get the money from?’
Alec paused before he answered. He looked at his old colleague from their days in the former Regional Crime Squad who was looking straight back at him waiting for an answer. At that moment Alec knew he would have to tell the two officers the truth. His mouth dried as images of the potential media headlines flashed through his mind once it was out in the public domain what he had done. He knew his career was over and from now on he would be spending the foreseeable future in a prison cell, disgraced and despised by his fellow officers. He sighed and said, ‘I took it, or if you want me to be full and frank with you, I stole it from Cheshire Police’s ISB funds given by the Chief that supplements the funding from the Home Office.’
‘Why?’
‘In all seriousness, I’ve got an expensive wife. You’ve seen my house and no doubt you saw the cars at my home. In addition to this, I also have a small villa in Italy. Up to two years ago she had a good job as a senior executive with a large finance company. When they made heavy losses, she was unceremoniously made redundant and didn’t get a large pay off either. On top of that, it looked like I wasn’t going to get any further promotions in the job. I’ve only got eighteen months to go before I retire. George, you must have felt the same as me at times. I looked at the scumbags we deal with and how they’ve made a good living out of crime.
‘I also looked at the white-collar criminals like those who sacked my wife. We went to an employment tribunal for unfair dismissal as they had clearly used her as the scapegoat for the losses. While it was their decisions that ultimately led to the company making the losses, those who were really responsible disposed of my wife and a handful of others. Of course it was difficult to prove her case, as we only had circumstantial evidence. I told her how the Special Branch funding allocation for Cheshire’s budget was not audited by the Audit Commission, but the Home Office because of the secretive equipment we purchase and how this was not scrutinised by anyone outside. She came up with a method of how I could siphon off part of the Chief’s funding without it being spotted. I thought about it and gave it a go. I only intended to do it the once, but seeing how easy it was to get away with it, I got greedy. That’s the truth George. It’s got nothing to do with funding terrorism or being involved in the preparation of acts of terrorism. I’m fucked now aren’t I?’
George paused for a moment as he looked at Alec. He was not the bright, confident detective he had got to know. Constantly looking down at his hands that he was wringing frenetically, beads of sweat dripping from his forehead onto the table, all George saw was the wreck of a man sitting in front of him. ‘I’m afraid so Alec and because of what you’ve just told us, we’ll have to arrest your wife as well.’
Alec Harvey stopped wringing his hands and sat back in his seat. Crossing his arms, he looked at George and said, ‘Do you know what’s really pissed me off George? I’d have got away with it if there wasn’t a mole in my department and if your DS hadn’t stirred it all up getting that MI5 girlfriend of his to look into it.’
‘Alec, it isn’t that which caused you to be sitting in front of me. It’s the evidence we found that’s in front of you. Is it correct you complained to your own staff that Chief Constable Hudson cut the amount of her budget she allocated to the ISB over the last two years?’
‘Yes.’
‘Has the Chief Constable, Julia Hudson ever cut the ISB budget over the last two years?’
Still sitting back in his seat with his arms folded, Alec Harvey laughed and said, ‘No, in fact she increased it. I couldn’t believe how easy it was. She was so gullible. I just hid behind the Official Secrets Act and national security. It was that easy. When I asked her for an increase, she would raise the odd eyebrow and tell me that she could only increase the Special Branch budget by cutting back on the uniform department’s allocation.’
‘So you deceived the Chief Constable of Cheshire Police to increase her part of the budget allocation to the Special Branch in order for you to dishonestly take money from that budget for your own personal gain and permanently deprive the Chief Constable of that money?’
‘In one George,’ Alec said leaning across the table. Prodding his right index finger hard on the table, he added, ‘If it wasn’t for Hurst being nosey, I’d have got away with it too.’
Ignoring Alec Harvey’s constant references to his DS, George continued to ask him questions about the evidence he had before him. ‘Where were you at ten o’clock this morning?’
‘I was with my wife at our accountants. We were looking to reinvest the money offshore because, as you can see from this statement there is just over three hundred thousand pounds in the account. The aim was to make it harder for it to be traced. It’s as simple as that. I’ll give you the details of the accountant so you can check it out. Seriously George, this has nothing to do with terrorism. What you’ve stumbled across is simply a criminal deception and theft. I know I’m fucked. I know it’ll hit the headlines and that I’ll get a long stretch in prison. Two things are bothering me. Can you make it look like I used my wife so she’s dealt with leniently? In return, I could help you catch the mole. You can temporarily put me back as the DCI in my Special Branch department and I’ll do whatever you want to catch whoever it is. All I ask in return is that you do a deal with the Crown Prosecution Service so she gets something like a suspended sentence? I can claim she acted under duress. Tell the CPS she feared I’d be violent if she didn’t do as I say.’