Channel 4 : Police probe murdered MI6 spy's private life

Police probe murdered MI6 spy's private life

By Channel 4 News | August 26, 2010

Detectives investigating the killing of an MI6 codes expert are looking into his private life for information which may lead them to his killer.
Murdered MI6 codes expert Gareth Williams (Credit: London Media)

Detectives are questioning associates and friends of murdered codes expert Gareth Williams for clues which could identify his killer.

The remains of the 30 year old, who was employed by the top-secret GCHQ listening station, were found in a holdall in the bath of his flat in south-west London.

His body is thought to have lain there for up to a fortnight.

Police also discovered his mobile phone and several sim cards laid out nearby when they broke into the top-floor flat in Alderney Street, Pimlico at around 4.40pm on Monday.

Mr Williams's family are travelling to London from their home in Wales to speaks to police and formally identify the body.

A man who answered the door at the family home said: "As you can imagine, it is hard enough at the moment and we have nothing to say."

Last night, a post-mortem examination on Mr Williams proved inconclusive so further tests, including toxicological analysis of his blood for evidence of drugs and alcohol, will now take place.

Investigators from the Metropolitan Police's homicide and serious crime command called the death "suspicious and unexplained", but sources said there is no evidence that Mr Williams was stabbed, contradicting earlier reports.

Those close to the inquiry have played down speculation that the murder is linked to his secretive line of work and security sources say there is no evidence linking Mr Williams's death to any rival secret service.

He had been employed as a communications officer at the GCHQ "listening post" in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, but was on secondment at the headquarters of MI6, the Secret Intelligence Service, which is only about half a mile from the flat.

Public documents have revealed that several current and former residents of the freehold block also have links to London and Cheltenham.

Police are continuing to scour Mr William's flat for evidence and cordons remain in place on the prestigious street which is also home to two former home secretaries.

One source said: "The suggestion there are terrorism or national security links to this case is pretty low down the list of probabilities."

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "There is an ongoing police investigation.

"It is long-standing government policy not to confirm or deny that any individual works for the intelligence agencies."

Land Registry documents reveal the block at number 36 Alderney Street, where the body was found, is owned by a private company, New Rodina.

The details of this company are hidden because it is registered in the British Virgin Islands and not listed with Companies House.

The word rodina means "motherland" in Russian and Bulgarian.

The property was bought for £675,250 in 2000 with a mortgage from the Royal Bank of Scotland and has been remortgaged twice, in September 2005 and February 2006.

The documents reveal the owner operated through a law firm known as Park Nelson.

This firm once occupied a rented block in Bell Yard, off Fleet Street, but it no longer appears to exist.

Neighbours shocked

Mr Williams joined Cambridge University's St Catharine's College to undertake a postgraduate certificate in mathematics in 2000 but dropped out a year later.

His former landlady Jenny Elliott said he lived in a flat attached to her Cheltenham property for 10 years and was preparing to return on 3 September.

"He phoned me a few weeks ago to say he was coming back," she said.

She described him as "a lovely guy, very friendly, very well-mannered and polite and no trouble at all".

She added: "He was often away. He went to America to work a lot and often combined it with holiday because he hated flying."

Former Tory leader Michael Howard and Sir Leon Brittan are among a host of politicians and bankers who live in the street, according to residents.

Mr Williams's neighbours described him as athletic, a keen cyclist and as having a strong Welsh accent.

Neighbour Laura Houghton said a man identifying himself as Gareth lived at the address that is being searched.

She said: "I have spoken to him only once. I met him in the entrance hall of the set of flats because of a boring plant issue about a year ago.

"He was extremely friendly and had a Welsh accent."

She said the man had an athletic build, and added: "He was not especially tall. He had medium to short brown hair.

"His windows were always shut and curtains were often closed. I could never tell if anyone was in.

"It was strange that we never saw him come and go. I just assumed he worked away.

"The first I heard of anything happening was when the police knocked on my door and asked me if I had heard anything happening. I told them the walls were so thick that I couldn't hear a thing.

"All they told me was that there had been a serious incident. I'm amazed it's taken this long to all come out."

GCHQ has a rigorous recruitment system which includes enquiring about character, family history and personal circumstances.
On the GCHQ website it says:

"GCHQ conducts enquiries into the character, family history and personal circumstances of candidates before they can be employed. It is for the protection of both the individual and GCHQ assets that we consider the risk of an individual being placed in a potentially compromising position".

"To ensure your suitability for appointment you will have to undergo a rigorous security clearance. As part of this a criminal records check will be conducted and you will be drugs tested.

"If you do not meet the Developed Vetting requirements for the job, or fail to disclose any security related issues or concerns, you will not be considered for employment."

It is unlikely GCHQ will consider a person for a position in GCHQ if they:
• Have used Class A drugs (e.g. ecstasy, cocaine, etc) in the last 12 months.
• Have used Class B/C drugs (e.g. amphetamines, cannabis, etc) in the last 6 months.
• Are currently being treated for an addiction (e.g. alcohol, gambling, etc) or have received such treatment in the last 12 months.
• Have ever suffered from manic depression or schizophrenia.
• Are currently bankrupt or the subject of an Individual Voluntary Agreement (IVA).

Pensioner Eileen Booth, 73, who lives opposite, said detectives told her the murder may have taken place two weeks ago.

She said: "A few years ago, I would definitely have known who it was that had been killed. But nobody knows each other these days.

Another neighbour Rob Mills, 35, who lives two doors away, said: "We've got two children, it's shocking.

"I'm told the man lived at the top-floor flat but we haven't ever seen him. It's not like you'd tell your neighbours if you were a spy."

Jason Hollands, 41, a city worker, who also lives nearby, said: "It's truly gruesome. This is a very mixed area of bankers and politicians. I've spoken to the next-door neighbour, who knew nothing."

Murder investigation

Scotland Yard has launched a murder investigation, led by detectives from its homicide and serious crime command wing.

It is thought that counter-terrorist and security service officers are also helping detectives in the inquiry.

Investigators say they are following up "several lines of inquiry" but declined to confirm the occupation of the dead man.

It is the first murder on British soil of someone linked to the secret services since the death of Alexander Litvinenko in 2006.

The former KGB agent died in hospital after drinking tea laced with radioactive polonium-210.

In September 1978, Bulgarian defector Georgi Markov was killed by an assassin who used an umbrella to fire a deadly ricin pellet into his leg as he walked across Waterloo Bridge.