Herald Sun : Police play down money, sex allegations in British spy death

Police play down money, sex allegations in British spy death

August 28, 2010

BRITISH police have played down as “pure speculation” reports that thousands of pounds had passed through the bank account of a British spy shortly before he was found dead in his London apartment.

Three sums of £2,000 ($3,477) were said to have been paid into Gareth Williams' account on consecutive days, then withdrawn on consecutive days, prior to the discovery of his body stuffed into a sports bag in the bath at his London home.

Scotland Yard also denied a series of sexual allegations made against Williams by the security services sources who claimed that he was gay, a transvestite, possessed bondage paraphernalia and was linked to male escorts.

Investigators, led by the Metropolitan Police’s Homicide and Serious Crime Command with the security-vetted Counter Terror Command in a lesser role, dismissed outright many of those allegations.

There was no evidence of contact with male escorts, and no S&M gear was found in his apartment. Claims that Williams was stabbed and dismembered were also untrue, they said.

The claims, from usually reliable intelligence sources, and the vehement counter-claims of the police, led Williams’ family to believe that he is the victim of an MI6 smear campaign.

In a statement released Friday night, his family said the speculation was “very distressing.”

“Gareth was a generous, loving son, brother, and friend, and he was a very private person. He was a great athlete, and loved cycling and music,” they said.

“His loss has devastated us and we would ask that anyone with information to come forward and assist the police inquiry.”

An autopsy proved inconclusive. He had not been shot, nor were there any obvious signs of strangulation.

Further tests on his body will take place to determine whether he was asphyxiated or poisoned, and whether he had alcohol or drugs in his system.

The possibility that his death was related to issues of national security had not been ruled out, but was low on the list of detectives’ priorities, police said.