Metro : MI6 and police ‘held on to evidence after spy Gareth Williams’ death’

MI6 and police ‘held on to evidence after spy Gareth Williams’ death’

By Joel Taylor | May 1, 2012

MI6 and a senior Scotland Yard detective have been criticised for failing to disclose evidence in the death of spy Gareth Williams.

The secret service and Det Supt Michael Broster did not reveal the existence of nine memory sticks and a North Face bag, similar to the one Mr Williams’s body was found in, at his office, an inquest heard.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox told the counter-terror officer, who was unable to rule out secret service involvement in the death, that he had offered ‘total non-sequitur’ reasons for failing to pass on evidence.

‘I suggest that this means you have not been completely impartial in this case,’ she added.

His assistant, Det Con Colin Hall, said ‘there was stuff of a sensitive nature’ in the bag but, when asked what, he told Westminster coroner’s court he could not remember.

Det Con Hall’s search of the 31-year-old’s workplace in Vauxhall, central London, was called off shortly after the spy was found dead in his Pimlico flat in August 2010.

On the last day of evidence in the inquest, the Williams family barrister Anthony O’Toole accused the officer of being as ‘helpful as a London pea souper’.

Det Ch Insp Jackie Sebire, the senior officer investigating the death, said she was not told about the missing evidence until Monday. ‘What I knew was that Gareth’s email accounts had been checked but I did not know that other media had been checked,’ she added.

Poisoning and asphyxiation were the ‘foremost contenders’ for the cause of his death, pathologists have said.

LBC : Spy Death: Unlawful Killing Verdict Ruled Out

Spy Death: Unlawful Killing Verdict Ruled Out

May 1, 2012

A coroner investigating the death of MI6 spy Gareth Williams has said there is insufficient evidence to consider a verdict of unlawful killing.

Dr Fiona Wilcox said a narrative verdict was the most appropriate option available to her as an open verdict "would not do justice" to her findings.

Mr Williams' body was found curled up naked in a padlocked holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, central London, in August 2010.

Dr Wilcox, who has spent seven days listening to evidence from 39 witnesses, is due to deliver her verdict later today over his mysterious death.

A narrative verdict is an option open to a coroner when other verdict options do not fit the case. It is a short factual statement outlining the facts.

It does leave open the option to include any failures by any party relevant to the circumstances of a death.

The lawyer for Mr Williams' family, Anthony O'Toole, believes that in the balance of probability, to use his words, the codebreaker's death was unlawful killing.

However, he accepts there is perhaps insufficient evidence to come categorically to that conclusion.

The very fact that Mr Williams' body was found locked in a bag would lead some to believe that perhaps there was a third party involved.

Indeed, the police have said all along that it is their belief that a third party was involved.

Dr Wilcox has questioned all of those who appeared in person and listened as lawyers for Mr Williams' family, as well as lawyers representing both the Metropolitan Police and MI6 cross-examined the witnesses.

Evidence included some surprising revelations, including the disclosure that MI6 had failed to pass over some of Mr Williams' belongings from his office at MI6.

The officer in charge of the investigation into his death only found out about the existence of some of the items on Tuesday.

"Had I known about their existence, I would have expected them to be disclosed and any relevant information to be sent to my team. I would have expected to have been told," DCI Jackie Sebire told the court.

A senior Metropolitan Police officer also admitted that he had relied on MI6 to decide which of Mr Williams' belongings was relevent to the investigation into the death.

Detective Superintendent Michael Broster said that he trusted MI6 to give him all the information he needed.

Responding to that admission, the coroner said: "Shouldn't the investigators be examining the items, not the people providing them?

"I would suggest that you are not being an impartial investigator in this case. An impartial investigator would have seized the items themselves."

Mr O'Toole put it more directly to Supt Broster.

"If the person who killed Gareth was a member of the Secret Intelligence Service, you did nothing to investigate because you believed that the organisation was trustworthy?"

The wide range of witnesses in this inquest began with Mr Williams' sister Ceri Subbe who talked fondly of her brother.

She described him as "a country boy" who had expressed frustration with his secondment from GCHQ in Gloucestershire to MI6 in London.

Friends of Mr Williams also gave evidence. Among them was Sian Jones, a fashion consultant.

"We were childhood sweethearts and I would just say we were very, very close," she told the court last week.

She, and other witnesses were asked how they could explain the fact that £20,000 of women's clothes and shoes were found in the flat where Mr Williams' body was discovered.

Ms Jones and Ms Subbe both told the inquest that Mr Williams was a very generous man and that the clothes were likely to be gifts. Ms Jones said he had frequently bought her clothes and handbags.

"He was a truly generous person. It wouldn't surprise me if they were gifts," she said.

His family listened as other uncomfortable details about his private life were discussed. He had visited bondage websites, the court was told, but only on four occasions in two years.

The inquest was also told he had once tied himself to a bed and had to rely on his landlord to free him.

Mr Williams' professional life was examined in minute detail as well. He was described as a brilliant man, highly intelligent and part of a team whose "Herculean efforts" in cryptology had won departmental awards at GCHQ.

Staff at MI6 gave evidence anonymously from behind a screen. They were pressed on why it took them eight days to report Mr Williams missing.

One MI6 officer, identified only as witness G said he first thought Mr Williams was stuck on a train, then thought perhaps there had been a mix up with holiday.

"In hindsight, knowing what I know now, should I have taken action? Absolutely," witness G said.

Another witness, SIS-F, apologised for Witness G's lack of action.

"SIS are profoundly sorry about what happened. It shouldn't have happened. We recognise the delay (of a week) in finding Gareth's body has made it harder to come to terms with his death," SIS-F said.

The delay in reporting him missing made the pathologists work very hard, the court heard. When Mr Williams' body was eventually discovered it was badly decomposed.

The three post-mortem examinations could not establish the cause of death. Three pathologists told the inquest that the decomposition hindered their work.

Benjamin Swift, a Home Office pathologist, said that although the cause of death was "unascertained", he believed that poisoning or asphyxiation such as suffocation were "probably rather than possibly" to blame.

The police officer in charge of the investigation said at the start of the inquest that she believed the crux of the case surrounded the bag Mr Williams was found in.

The police still do not know how Mr Williams came to be in that bag. If he was alone, they do not know how he locked it from the outside.

If he was not alone, then who else was there and what motive did they have for killing him?

The police investigation had drawn a succession of blanks.

New evidence heard in this inquest for the first time might help them draw new leads in the coming months.

The police have repeatedly said there is still a chance of the breakthrough they need.

Yorkshire Post : Evidence kept back in inquiry over spy’s death

Evidence kept back in inquiry over spy’s death

May 1, 2012

Officials from MI6 failed to pass on vital evidence to the police concerning the death riddle of spy Gareth Williams, an inquest heard.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox and the family’s lawyer both delivered angry outbursts after it emerged that nine computer memory sticks and a black bag were overlooked for 21 months after the death.

The lead detective on the case was told about the evidence only on Monday.

The coroner suggested the counter-terror officer was not being “completely impartial” towards secret services during the Scotland Yard inquiry.

Dr Wilcox told Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who was unable to rule out secret service involvement in the death, that he was offering “total non-sequitur” reasons for failing to pass on evidence.

As Dr Wilcox ordered police to bring the missed evidence into the inquest into Mr Williams’s death, family barrister Anthony O’Toole told police they had not taken the incident seriously enough.

The lawyer said: “If this had not involved SIS (Secret Intelligence Service) and it was the Kray twins you were investigating, you would have gone into this in far more detail.”

The North Face bag – similar to the one in which Mr Williams was found dead at his flat – was discovered by officers under the spy’s desk at MI6’s London HQ.

MI6 also examined computer equipment belonging to Mr Williams without telling police, the inquest heard.

Members of Mr Williams’s family shook their heads as Detective Constable Colin Hall, of the force’s counter-terror SO15 branch, said his search of the agent’s Vauxhall HQ was called off shortly after the spy was found dead.

Mr Hall said “there was stuff in there of a sensitive nature” in the bag but, when asked what, he said he could not remember.

Mr O’Toole added: “That’s about as helpful as a London pea souper.”

Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, the lead officer on the case, said she had no knowledge of the existence of memory sticks in his cabinet at work or the bag.

“I would have expected to have been told,” she said. “What I knew was that Gareth’s email accounts had been checked but I did not know that other media had been checked.”

Mr Hall was ordered to re-examine the black bag in the courtroom as the inquest heard its last day’s evidence.

The body of the 31-year-old was found curled up in a padlocked holdall in the bath of his flat in London, in August 2010.

The inquest was adjourned until today when the coroner will hear final legal submissions.

UKPA : Coroner criticises MI6 death probe

Coroner criticises MI6 death probe

May 1, 2012

MI6 and a senior detective have been accused of failing to disclose vital evidence in the death riddle of spy Gareth Williams.

A coroner suggested the counter-terror officer was not being "completely impartial" towards secret services during the Scotland Yard inquiry.

Detective Superintendent Michael Broster was criticised after his assistant was told he had offered evidence as "helpful as a London pea souper" at the inquest into Mr Williams's death.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox and the family's lawyer both delivered angry outbursts after it emerged that nine computer memory sticks and a black bag were overlooked for 21 months after the death.

The lead detective on the case was told about the evidence only on Monday.

Dr Wilcox told Mr Broster, who was unable to rule out secret service involvement in the death, that he was offering "total non-sequitur" reasons for failing to pass on evidence.

"I suggest that this means you have not been completely impartial in this case," she told him at Westminster Coroner's Court.

As Dr Wilcox ordered police to bring the missed evidence into the inquest into Mr Williams's death, family barrister Anthony O'Toole told police they had not taken the incident seriously enough.

The lawyer said: "If this had not involved SIS (Secret Intelligence Service) and it was the Kray twins you were investigating, you would have gone into this in far more detail."

The 31-year-old fitness enthusiast was found naked, curled up in a padlocked holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, central London, on August 23 2010.

Copyright © 2012 The Press Association. All rights reserved.

Guardian : Gareth Williams' evidence not shared

Gareth Williams' evidence not shared

Detective investigating death of MI6 officer was not made aware of existence of nine memory sticks found near victim's office

Caroline Davies | May 1, 2012

Memory sticks found among MI6 officer Gareth Williams's possessions were examined by the Secret Intelligence Service, but never handed over to detectives investigating his murder, it emerged on Tuesday.

The inquest into his death heard that the lead detective in the case, DCI Jackie Sebire, did not know until Tuesday that nine memory sticks and a holdall bag had been found at Williams's office in Vauxhall Cross, London.

The coroner hearing the inquest also accused a senior detective of not being completely impartial towards the SIS during the police investigation into the death of Williams.

Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, the SO15 counter-terrorism officer whose job was to liaise between Scotland Yard and the SIS, failed to tell Sebire about the memory sticks because he had been assured by SIS that the devices, found in a cabinet Williams shared with colleagues, were not relevant. He had agreed that the SIS should examine them.

The Westminster coroner, Fiona Wilcox, said: "You had plenty of resources at your disposal. This is a category A murder inquiry. You have access to a team who are capable of examining sticks? Looking back on that decision, remembering this is a murder inquiry, didn't you think that the team responsible for the inquiry should have investigated this evidence, and not the persons providing the evidence to you.

"It seems to me that this is a total non sequitur, and … if this had been information provided to you by any other type of agency, you would have seized it and it would have been examined by your officers, particularly given the public anxiety around this death, which by then was huge."

The naked body of Williams, 31, a codes and ciphers expert on secondment from GCHQ in Cheltenham to MI6 in London, was found in a padlocked bag in the bath at his flat in Pimlico, central London, on 23 August 2010.

Williams' relatives gasped as Broster maintained he was "comfortable with his decision".

Wilcox replied: "It suggests you are not impartial in this case. An impartial investigator would have taken these exhibits and examined them themselves."

Broster maintained that he was "completely impartial". Questioned by the family's lawyer, Anthony O'Toole, Broster said: "We are talking about the British security services. It's not like the Met Police can just walk into Vauxhall Cross," he said.

"I believe them to be witnesses of truth. They were very helpful throughout and continue to be."

He added: "I have seen no information or evidence that someone is involved. I am not saying a member of SIS is not involved. I don't know."

Earlier, the inquest heard that Detective Constable Colin Hall was the forensic officer responsible for seizing items from Williams's office at MI6. He had not produced an inventory of either items found in Williams's shared locker, or in his locked sports bag, "due to the sensitive nature" of some of the documents. O'Toole asked: "If this had not involved the SIS, but it was the Kray twins or someone else you were investigating, you would have gone into this in far more detail, wouldn't you?"

Sebire, the lead officer in the case, said she had no knowledge of the memory sticks or the bag. "I would have expected to have been told," she said.

As the last evidence was heard, Sebire, the lead detective, said it remained her belief that "a third party" was involved in the death, and she appealed for people who may know something to "search their consciences".

The hearing continues.

CNN : Mysterious death of MI6 spy grips Britain

Mysterious death of MI6 spy grips Britain

By Laura Smith-Spark, CNN | May 1, 2012

It reads like something from a spy novel. An MI6 agent known for his mathematical genius and codebreaking talent is found dead at his home, his naked body padlocked inside a large red carrying bag stowed in the bathtub.

There is no sign of a break-in or of force having been used against him. The man's Internet history betrays an interest in sex games and bondage. But DNA traces suggest other people may have been in his apartment.

The mysterious 2010 death of Gareth Williams, who worked for Britain's foreign intelligence service, is a riddle that has gripped the nation.

And at the heart of the mystery is a key question: Could Williams have zipped himself into the bag as part of a bizarre sexual fantasy? Or was the Cambridge-educated math whiz placed there by what family members have suggested are killers versed in the "dark arts" of espionage?

At Westminster Coroner's Court, a solid red-brick building across the River Thames from the headquarters of MI6 -- where fictional spy James Bond worked -- the disturbing tale of the final hours of a man known for closely guarding his privacy has unfolded in the most public of ways.

The inquest has heard that Gareth Williams was not reported missing for more than a week, despite the sensitive nature of his work, meaning many vital clues were lost to decomposition.

Meanwhile, UK media have focused on revelations about the 31-year-old's apparent interest in bondage and claustrophilia, a fetish for enclosure in very confined spaces.

Reports about the "body in a bag spy" detail how two experts spent days trying to figure out whether Williams, who was athletic and of medium height, could have contorted himself in such as way as to lock himself into the North Face holdall bag, with a key to the padlock inside.

Video provided to the court shows one of them, Peter Faulding, folding himself laboriously into an identical bag, measuring just 32 inches by 19 inches (81 by 48 centimeters), placed in a bathtub.

Faulding, who specializes in rescuing people from confined spaces, told the inquest he had tried to lock himself into the bag 300 times without success, according to the Press Association news agency. A second expert witness, also of a size and build similar to Williams, tried 100 times to re-enact the feat without succeeding.

BBC : MI6 failed to hand police dead spy Gareth Williams' belongings

MI6 failed to hand police dead spy Gareth Williams' belongings

May 1, 2012

MI6 failed to pass police a lot of Gareth Williams' belongings during the probe into his death, an inquest heard.

Officers discovered on Monday that MI6 withheld computer memory sticks found in his office and a North Face bag similar to the one he was found in.

Secret services also searched his "electronic media" without informing police, a leading detective said.

The body of the 31-year-old code-breaker from Anglesey was found locked in a bag in his London flat in 2010.

Det Ch Insp Jackie Sebire, who is leading the investigation, told Westminster Coroner's Court that she "would have expected to have been told" about the belongings in 2010.

"What I knew was that Gareth's email accounts had been checked, but I did not know that other media had been checked," Ms Sebire said.

She added that she was not surprised that Mr Williams had left memory sticks at his office, "given his line of work".

Search 'not completed'

Scotland Yard's Det Const Colin Hall, of the counter-terror SO15 branch, was questioned about his search of Mr Williams' MI6 office on 26 August 2010, saying he did not seize computer memory sticks because he was told they contained material "of a sensitive nature".

Asked why he had failed to seize a black North Face bag discovered under the spy's desk, Mr Hall said: "I was told there was nothing there about Gareth's death."

"The bag was looked through and searched but nothing was seized... it contained work related items, it contained personal items."

Mr Hall was accused by the barrister for the Williams' family of failing to take the task as seriously as he should have done because the work was linked to the secret services.

But Mr Hall said that his team "had not completed our search" of the Vauxhall HQ because it was called off on the orders of senior detectives.

"I will do what I'm told," said he added.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox ordered Mr Hall to re-examine the missed evidence of the black bag in front of the courtroom.

Det Supt Michael Broster of the counter-terror SO15 branch was recalled later to give further evidence about the search of Mr Williams' office.
'Neglected'

Mr Broster told the inquiry he may have "neglected" to tell exhibit officer Det Const Hall to log details of a seized work phone and that, in hindsight, his team should have examined the memory sticks instead of passing them to MI6.

He also said he had not checked if a set of keys found in Mr Williams' work locker fitted his flat, but accepted they were for the office, as he was told by MI6.

Mr Broster insisted he had taken what he believed was relevant material, and that he had acted impartially.

The inquest into the death of Mr Williams is hearing a final round-up of evidence from the case, following a 21-month police investigation. A verdict is expected on Wednesday.

His body was found naked in a padlocked holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, central London.

Three pathologists who conducted post-mortem examinations gave evidence at Westminster Coroner's Court, have been unable to reach a firm conclusion on how Mr Williams died.

But they said poisoning and asphyxiation are the foremost contenders as the cause of death.

The inquest will hear again from the forensic scientist Ros Hammond, as well as a new witness from MI6 known as Witness D.

Daily Mail : Police investigating body-in-the-bag spy accused of giving special treatment to MI6

Police investigating body-in-the-bag spy accused of giving special treatment to MI6

* Police who searched Gareth Williams' office at the MI6 headquarters 'failed to document what they saw or seize key items'
* Lead detective only today made aware of nine memory sticks carrying 'potentially explosive' information

By Chris Greenwood | May 1, 2012

Scotland Yard was accused yesterday of undermining the inquiry into the death of spy Gareth Williams by giving MI6 special treatment.

On a day of drama at the inquest into Mr Williams’s death, a senior detective was accused of failing to be ‘completely impartial’ when he dealt with potentially vital evidence.

And coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox raised deep concerns over the failure of police to seize all of 31-year-old Mr Williams’s possessions from his MI6 office.

Another detective was forced to admit he only made a ‘cursory search’ of the office. Detective Constable Colin Hall was accused by barrister Anthony O’Toole, who represents the Williams family, of being ‘as helpful as a London pea souper’.

Mr O’Toole said: ‘If this had not been the Secret Intelligence Service [MI6] and it was the Kray twins or someone else you would have gone into this in far more detail wouldn’t you?’

The final hours of evidence at the inquest into Mr Williams’s mysterious death were dominated by claims that police failed to put MI6 under the spotlight. Officers did not interview spies directly and their questions were channelled through counter terrorism detectives, who only replied with general and anonymous summaries.

The codebreaker’s naked and decomposing body was found in a padlocked North Face holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, Central London, in August 2010.

The coroner revealed that fresh evidence, including nine memory sticks and another North Face holdall, had been discovered. Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, who is leading the investigation, told Westminster Coroner’s Court that she was only made aware yesterday of the memory sticks and an inventory of other items left at Mr Williams’s office.

And MI6 confirmed for the first time that his laptop was checked by spies before being handed to police.

Dr Wilcox said Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who acted as a ‘firewall’ between MI6 and police because of his high-level security clearance, had failed to pass on relevant information.

She said: ‘Don’t you think the murder inquiry and those responsible for it should have been investigating that evidence and not the person providing the evidence to you?

‘If this had been information provided to you by any other agency it would have been seized by your officers, not left to those responsible to look at them and tell you what they contain, particularly given the public anxiety and concern around this death. You are not being completely impartial because an impartial investigator would have taken those exhibits and examined them himself.’

But Mr Broster insisted SIS has been ‘very helpful’. He added: ‘I have seen no information of relevance that somebody is involved. I am not saying a member of SIS is not involved, I don’t know.’

The inquest was adjourned until today when a verdict is expected.

Sun : ‘Spy in bag' would need 'to be Houdini' to lock himself in holdall

‘Spy in bag' would need 'to be Houdini' to lock himself in holdall

By ALEX WEST | May 1, 2012

'SPY in the bag' Gareth Williams would have needed the skill of Harry Houdini to lock himself into the holdall in his flat, an inquest heard today.

The MI6 agent was either dead or unconscious when he was placed inside, experts believe.

Ex-para Peter Faulding said even world famous escapologist Houdini "would have struggled" to squeeze into the bag.

Cops discovered the naked decomposing body of the 31-year-old spy padlocked inside a red North Face holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, London, on August 23, 2010.

Mr Faulding, a former Parachute Regiment reservist who specialises in rescuing people from confined spaces, made 300 unsuccessful attempts to lock himself inside an identical 81cm x 48cm bag.

He said: "I couldn't say it's impossible, but I think even Houdini would have struggled with this one."

The expert added: "My conclusion is that Mr Williams was either placed in the bag unconscious, or he was dead before he was in the bag."

He suggested it would have been "very easy" to fold the dead spy's arms and place him in the holdall as long as rigor mortis had not set in.

The inquest was shown a video of Mr Faulding trying to squeeze himself into the bag while it was in a bath of the same size as the one in Mr Williams' flat.

He flayed around, starting with his torso, then tucking his head in, and finally pulling his legs in one by one.

He said: "The only way I could get myself into the bag was to lie on my back, put my shoulders and head in first, and bending my body at my stomach, pulling my knees up and pulling the bag over my body."

Mr Faulding told the hearing it would have been "extremely hot" in the holdall and Mr Williams would only have been able to survive for a maximum of 30 minutes once he was inside.

He added: "I am used to confined spaces, and once I'm in that bag, it is a very unpleasant place to be."

But a second expert refused to rule out Mr Williams could not lock himself in the bag.

William MacKay and a yoga expert assistant tried more than 100 times to recreate the feat without success.

But he said it was possible that Mr Williams, a fitness-loving maths genius, died without a third party being present.

He told Westminster Coroner's Court: "I would not like to say that it could not be done.

"There are people around who can do amazing things and Mr Williams may well have been one of those persons."

Mr MacKay, who has previously worked with the military, suggested the spy would have needed extensive training to have pulled off the act in the middle of summer and in pitch darkness.

He said: "I think you could continue to work on this for a long period of time."

Video reconstructions played to the hearing showed Mr MacKay's assistant, of similar height and build to Mr Williams, curling his body inside the bag but then struggling to pull the zip shut.

Mr Williams' mountaineering experience would have given him an advantage as it would have strengthened his fingers, the inquest heard.

But Mr MacKay said: "It was very painful to do it. You tend to move the zip with your finger nails, straggling about.

"It was very frustrating, fiddly, you just can't get the thing together."

The expert said it was possible for someone locked inside the bag who wanted to get out to poke a small hole through the zip with their fingers.

This would give them more oxygen and allow them to unlock the padlock as long as they had the key.

He said: "There was an option of saving oneself."

Mr MacKay said the holdall was not airtight, and as long as the person inside did not panic they would be able to breathe for some time.

He said: "If the person was in the bag willingly, then I am tending more towards the heat side being a problem than the oxygen side.

"It depends on how calm you are in terms of oxygen intake."

The inquest heard that one way of getting into the holdall would be to use the "baggage handler's technique" employed by thieves to steal from locked luggage.

This involves breaking the zip apart with a pen, opening it as wide as possible, and then crawling inside and closing it again.

But in tests the zip did not close neatly, leaving a gap between the two ends, and became damaged.

Mr MacKay said it was "probably unlikely" that Mr Williams would have been able to do this successfully on his first attempt.

He said: "There are so many intricate things to do.

"If he hadn't been trained, he wouldn't have had lots of knowledge, it probably wouldn't have happened."

The inquest also heard today that video recovered from Mr Williams’ flat appears to show him dressed in nothing but black leather boots.

He “wiggles and gyrates” with his back to the camera in the footage found on a mobile phone by detectives.

The spy also kept pictures of drag queens on his computer and browsed self-bondage websites on his computers and phone.

He spent 50 per cent of his time online looking at “couture” women’s fashion and was looking at fetish websites days before his death.

Detective Constable Robert Burrows said some images showed “a model enclosed in plastic and using a vacuum cleaner to suck the air out”.

Det Con Burrows said film also “appears to show him being filmed from the back naked apart from a pair of leather boots”.

Describing the footage, Det Con Burrows said: “He walks up to the chair and stands directly behind the back of the chair.”

He appears to reach down and touch his boots before he “wiggles and gyrates his posture”.

He then turns towards the camera before walking out of view.

Web records also showed he once searched for bondage sites and watched a YouTube video after typing “dress bondage training”.

Pages from 2008 showed he may have looked at sites relating to “hogtie”, a bondage method of tying the limbs together.

Detective Constable Simon Warren said: “I would say that Gareth was keenly interested in ladies’ fashion but the very high end couture fashion.”

He said the bondage footage on his computer was “an isolated (incident) among a sea of other data”.

Guardian : Gareth Williams inquest: MI6 kept spy's possessions, court hears

Gareth Williams inquest: MI6 kept spy's possessions, court hears

Detectives were not told about memory sticks or holdall that was found at his workplace, says the officer leading the inquiry

Caroline Davies | May 1, 2012

Memory sticks found among MI6 officer Gareth Williams's possessions in his office were examined by the Secret Intelligence Service but never handed over to detectives investigating his murder, it emerged on Tuesday.

Detectives only discovered on Monday, as his inquest drew to a close, that nine assorted memory sticks were in his locker at MI6's Vauxhall Cross offices, where he worked. The SIS also examined "electronic media" found without telling police.

Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, leading the murder inquiry, only knew of the memory sticks when an inventory was produced for the inquest on Monday, she told Westminster coroner Fiona Wilcox. "I would have expected to have been told," she said.

"Has your team even been given possession of these?" asked Wilcox, "No" replied Sebire. "Had I known of their existence, I would have expected them to be at least reviewed or audited by SO15, [counter-terrorism] and if information was available, then sent to my team."

She added: "What I knew was that Gareth's email accounts had been checked, but I didn't know that other media had been checked".

The naked body of the 31-year-old codes and ciphers expert, on secondment from GCHQ in Cheltenham to MI6 in London, was found in a padlocked holdall in his Pimlico flat, central London, on 23 August 2010.

The inquest has heard that because of the sensitive nature of Williams's work, counter-terrorism officers from SO15 acted as a conduit between murder detectives and the SIS.

Detective Constable Colin Hall, from SO15, said he went to the MI6 offices where Williams worked three days after his death, and was shown a shared cabinet used by Williams.

No inventory was taken of the contents of the cabinet "due to the sensitive nature of the documents," said Hall.

Nor did police seize a black North Face holdall, containing personal and work-related items, found under Williams's desk, and similar to th bag in which his body was found.

The coroner asked Hall : "Don't you think this bag should have been seized?"

Hall replied: "Probably yes, ma'am." He added: "The contents of the bag were of a sensitive nature." He said he was instructed to leave it locked "in situ".

Anthony O'Toole, lawyer for the family, asked: "If this wasn't the SIS and it was the Kray twins or someone else, you were investigating, you would have gone into far more detail, wouldn't you?"

The hearing continues.

Telegraph : MI6 kept Gareth William's computer memory sticks from police

MI6 kept Gareth William's computer memory sticks from police

MI6 failed to hand over nine computer memory sticks belonging to spy Gareth Williams to the police investigating his death, an inquest heard.

By Tom Whitehead, Security Editor | May 1, 2012

The intelligence service also examined “electronic media” of the maths prodigy without telling the police.

A full inventory of his belongings at work and the presence of a red North Face holdall were also never passed on to officers.

The existence of the memory sticks and MI6 data searches only emerged this morning on what was due to be the final day of evidence.

DCI Jackie Sebire, the Met officer leading the investigation, revealed the first she heard of it was this morning.

She said she would have expected to have been informed in August 2010, when Mr Williams’ body was discovered, and any relevant information passed on.

Westminster Coroner’s Court is investigating the death of Mr Williams, whose naked decomposing body was found in a North Face holdall in a bath at his Pimlico flat in London in August 2010.

The inquest heard on Monday that Mr Williams would have suffocated within three minutes after getting inside his sports holdall.

Poisoning and asphyxiation were the "foremost contenders" in solving the death riddle, pathologists said.

It also emerged scientists found traces of "at least" two unknown people in his upmarket London apartment despite evidence Mr Williams rarely invited people over.

Forensic expert Ros Hammond said there were hopes of a breakthrough "within a matter of weeks" from DNA tests on a green towel discovered in his kitchen.

"There's hope," she told Westminster Coroner's Court. "The tests are still in progress and there may be some promising results from those tests."

The 31-year-old was probably suffocated or killed by a poison which disappeared in his system during decomposition, pathologist Benjamin Swift said.

Dr Swift said his post-mortem examination was hampered by levels of heat within the bag after radiators were turned on in Mr Williams's top-floor flat in the middle of summer.

Ian Calder, who performed the second post-mortem examination, observed that the build-up of carbon dioxide would have become poisonous to Mr Williams within about two or three minutes, had he been alive when he entered the bag.

"The toxic effect of the carbon dioxide... plays some considerable havoc with the chemistry of the body and so as a result of that the accumulation of carbon dioxide has quite a considerable effect on the wellness of the individual," he said.

A soporific state would have been induced before the spy lost consciousness, which could have prevented him from trying to escape, he said.

Hypercapnia - a high level of carbon dioxide in the blood - would be a "reasoned explanation" of what might have happened to Mr Williams.

Another pathologist, Richard Shepherd, also said it was "more likely (Mr Williams) was alive when he entered the bag than that he was dead".

There was, however, "no suggestion" the spy's body had been manhandled into the holdall and were he to have been forced into it either alive or straight after he died, marks on his body would have been expected, Mr Shepherd said.

Dr Swift said he believed Mr Williams would have died shortly after his last-known movements on August 15 in his top-floor apartment in Pimlico, central London.

The evidence came after bag experts said even Harry Houdini would have struggled to lock himself in the bag.

The hearing continues.

International Business Times : Spy in the Bag Gareth Williams Inquest: MI6 Failed to Pass Memory Sticks and Other Evidence to Police

Spy in the Bag Gareth Williams Inquest: MI6 Failed to Pass Memory Sticks and Other Evidence to Police

Ewan Palmer | May 1, 2012

MI6 did not hand over to police nine computer memory sticks belonging to spy Gareth Williams during the investigation into his death, an inquest has heard.

Officers discovered that MI6 withheld a North Face bag similar to the one Williams was found and the memory sticks.

The intelligence service had examined electronic media belonging to the code-breaker but failed to pass on a full inventory of his possessions at work.

The existence of the memory sticks was only revealed on the final day evidence at the inquest.

The body of Williams, 31, was found locked in a North Face holdhall at his Pimlico flat in London in August 2010.

DCI Jackie Sebire, the police officer leading the investigation, told Westminster's coroner's court that she "would have expected to have been told" about the belongings in 2010.

"What I knew was that Gareth's email accounts had been checked, but I did not know that other media had been checked," said Sebire.

She added that she was not surprised that Williams had memory sticks at his office given his line of work.

It is not clear how relevant they could be to the investigation.

DC Colin Hall, of the counter-terror SO15 branch, was questioned about his search of Williams's MI6 office.

Hall told the court he did not seize the memory sticks from Williams's office because they contained information "of a sensitive nature" and the bag did not hold any information about his death.

"The bag was looked through and searched but nothing was seized. It contained work-related items, it contained personal items," said Hall.

The inquest previously heard how Williams would have suffocated within three minutes of getting inside the sports bag.

Pathologist Benjamin Swift said Williams probably died because of suffocation or an unknown poison which disappeared in his system during decomposition.

UKPA : MI6 accused over spy case evidence

MI6 accused over spy case evidence

May 1, 2012

MI6 was accused of failing to disclose evidence during the 21-month police inquiry into the death riddle of spy Gareth Williams whose body was found in a central London flat.

A detective faced claims he offered information as "helpful as London pea souper" after it emerged secret services held on to nine computer memory sticks and a black bag.

As a coroner ordered police to bring the missed evidence into the inquest of Mr Williams' death, family barrister Anthony O'Toole told police they had not taken the incident seriously enough.

The North Face bag - similar to the one which Mr Williams was found dead in at his flat - was discovered by officers under the spy's desk at MI6's HQ.

But the lead detective on the case was only told about it on Monday after officers were stopped from seizing it in August 2010.

MI6 also examined computer equipment belonging to Mr Williams without telling police, the inquest heard.

Family members of Mr Williams shook their heads as Detective Constable Colin Hall, of the force's counter-terror SO15 branch, said his search of the agent's Vauxhall HQ was called off shortly after the spy was found dead.

Mr Hall said "there was stuff in there of a sensitive nature" in the bag but, when asked what, he said he could not remember.

Mr O'Toole added: "That's about as helpful as London pea souper."

The 31-year-old fitness enthusiast was found naked, curled up in a padlocked holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico on August 23 2010, with pathologists saying poisoning and asphyxiation are the "foremost contenders" in solving the death riddle.

Copyright © 2012 The Press Association. All rights reserved.

Independent : ‘Spy in a bag’ likely to have been killed with poison, inquest told

‘Spy in a bag’ likely to have been killed with poison, inquest told

Asphyxiation is said to be the other most likely explanation for the death of Mr Williams

Kunal Dutta | May 1, 2012

The MI6 officer found dead in a bag may have been poisoned, an inquest heard yesterday.

Poisoning and asphyxiation were the "foremost contenders" for the death, consultant pathologist Benjamin Swift told the inquest. Overcome by carbon dioxide, Gareth Williams would have lost consciousness within two to three minutes if the bag had been sealed.

Yesterday, scientists said they had found traces of "at least" two unknown people who had been in Williams's apartment prior to the death, despite evidence he rarely entertained guests.

The inquest heard that post-mortem examinations were hampered by decomposition of the body caused by heat because the radiators had been left on.

According to the findings, Williams had been dead for 10 days at the time of the post-mortem examination, consistent with the last time he was seen alive on CCTV on 15 August 2010.

His naked body was found in a padlocked holdall in his bath at his top-floor flat in Pimlico, central London, on 23 August 2010. The Home Office pathologist Richard Shepherd said it was "more likely than not" that Williams was alive when he entered the bag, but it was "an extremely difficult call".

Because of the "floppiness" of a newly dead body, it was not easy to place a body as neatly as Williams was found, he said. Hypercapnia – a high level of carbon dioxide in the blood – would be a "reasoned explanation" of what might have happened to Mr Williams, the pathologist noted.

Examinations on August 25, 2010 – two days after Mr Williams was found in a holdall in his bathroom – gave cause of death as "unascertained". But under questioning, Dr Swift said poisoning or asphyxiation such as suffocation were "probably rather than possibly" to blame. Another pathologist, Richard Shepherd, said it was "more likely (Mr Williams) was alive when he entered the bag than that he was dead".

There was, however, "no suggestion" the spy's body had been manhandled into the holdall and were he to have been forced into it either alive or straight after he died, marks on his body would have been expected, Mr Shepherd said. The hearing continues today.

Lancashire Evening Post : Coroner criticises MI6 death probe

Coroner criticises MI6 death probe

May 1, 2012

MI6 and a senior detective have been accused of failing to disclose vital evidence in the death riddle of spy Gareth Williams, whose body was found in a locked bag at his central London flat.

A coroner suggested the counter-terror officer was not being "completely impartial" towards secret services during the Scotland Yard inquiry.

Detective Superintendent Michael Broster was criticised after his assistant was told he had offered evidence as "helpful as a London pea souper" at the inquest into Mr Williams's death.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox and the family's lawyer both delivered angry outbursts after it emerged that nine computer memory sticks and a black bag were overlooked for 21 months after the death. The lead detective on the case was told about the evidence only on Monday.

Dr Wilcox told Mr Broster, who was unable to rule out secret service involvement in the death, that he was offering "total non-sequitur" reasons for failing to pass on evidence. "I suggest that this means you have not been completely impartial in this case," she told him at Westminster Coroner's Court.

As Dr Wilcox ordered police to bring the missed evidence into the inquest into Mr Williams's death, family barrister Anthony O'Toole told police they had not taken the incident seriously enough. The lawyer said: "If this had not involved SIS (Secret Intelligence Service) and it was the Kray twins you were investigating, you would have gone into this in far more detail."

The North Face bag - similar to the one in which Mr Williams was found dead at his flat - was discovered by officers under the spy's desk at MI6's London HQ. MI6 also examined computer equipment belonging to Mr Williams without telling police, the inquest heard.

Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, the lead officer on the case, said she had no knowledge of the existence of memory sticks in his cabinet at work or the bag.

The body of Mr Williams, 31, was found naked, curled up in a padlocked holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, central London, on August 23 2010. Ms Sebire said she remained convinced Mr Williams' death was "suspicious".

The inquest was adjourned until Wednesday when the coroner will hear final legal submissions before delivering her verdict.

Copyright (c) Press Association Ltd. 2012, All Rights Reserved.

BBC : MI6 failed to hand police dead spy Gareth Williams' belongings

MI6 failed to hand police dead spy Gareth Williams' belongings

May 1, 2012

MI6 failed to pass police a lot of Gareth Williams' belongings during the probe into his death, an inquest heard.

Officers discovered on Monday that MI6 withheld computer memory sticks found in his office and a North Face bag similar to the one he was found in.

Secret services also searched his "electronic media" without informing police, a leading detective said.

The body of the 31-year-old code-breaker from Anglesey was found locked in a bag in his London flat in 2010.

Det Ch Insp Jackie Sebire, who is leading the investigation, told Westminster Coroner's Court that she "would have expected to have been told" about the belongings in 2010.

"What I knew was that Gareth's email accounts had been checked, but I did not know that other media had been checked," Ms Sebire said.

She added that she was not surprised that Mr Williams had left memory sticks at his office, "given his line of work".

Scotland Yard's Det Const Colin Hall, of the counter-terror SO15 branch, was questioned about his search of Mr Williams' MI6 office on 26 August 2010, saying he did not seize computer memory sticks because he was told they contained material "of a sensitive nature".

Asked why he had failed to seize a black North Face bag discovered under the spy's desk, Mr Hall said: "I was told there was nothing there about Gareth's death."

"The bag was looked through and searched but nothing was seized... it contained work related items, it contained personal items."

Mr Hall was accused by the barrister for the Williams' family of failing to take the task as seriously as he should have done because the work was linked to the secret services.

But Mr Hall said that his team "had not completed our search" of the Vauxhall HQ because it was called off on the orders of senior detectives.

"I will do what I'm told," said he added.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox ordered Mr Hall to re-examine the missed evidence of the black bag in front of the courtroom.

Det Supt Michael Broster of the counter-terror SO15 branch was recalled later to give further evidence about the search of Mr Williams' office.

'Neglected'

Mr Broster told the inquiry he may have "neglected" to tell exhibit officer Det Const Hall to log details of a seized work phone and that, in hindsight, his team should have examined the memory sticks instead of passing them to MI6.

He also said he had not checked if a set of keys found in Mr Williams' work locker fitted his flat, but accepted they were for the office, as he was told by MI6.

Mr Broster insisted he had taken what he believed was relevant material, and that he had acted impartially.

The inquest into the death of Mr Williams is hearing a final round-up of evidence from the case, following a 21-month police investigation. A verdict is expected on Wednesday.

His body was found naked in a padlocked holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, central London.

Three pathologists who conducted post-mortem examinations gave evidence at Westminster Coroner's Court, have been unable to reach a firm conclusion on how Mr Williams died.

But they said poisoning and asphyxiation are the foremost contenders as the cause of death.

The inquest will hear again from the forensic scientist Ros Hammond, as well as a new witness from MI6 known as Witness D.

Sunday Mercury : Coroner criticises MI6 death probe

Coroner criticises MI6 death probe

May 1, 2012

MI6 and a senior detective have been accused of failing to disclose vital evidence in the death riddle of spy Gareth Williams.

A coroner suggested the counter-terror officer was not being "completely impartial" towards secret services during the Scotland Yard inquiry.

Detective Superintendent Michael Broster was criticised after his assistant was told he had offered evidence as "helpful as a London pea souper" at the inquest into Mr Williams's death.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox and the family's lawyer both delivered angry outbursts after it emerged that nine computer memory sticks and a black bag were overlooked for 21 months after the death.

The lead detective on the case was told about the evidence only on Monday.

Dr Wilcox told Mr Broster, who was unable to rule out secret service involvement in the death, that he was offering "total non-sequitur" reasons for failing to pass on evidence.

"I suggest that this means you have not been completely impartial in this case," she told him at Westminster Coroner's Court.

As Dr Wilcox ordered police to bring the missed evidence into the inquest into Mr Williams's death, family barrister Anthony O'Toole told police they had not taken the incident seriously enough.

The lawyer said: "If this had not involved SIS (Secret Intelligence Service) and it was the Kray twins you were investigating, you would have gone into this in far more detail."

The 31-year-old fitness enthusiast was found naked, curled up in a padlocked holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, central London, on August 23 2010.

Chicago Tribune : MI6 "kept evidence related to dead spy" - testimony

MI6 "kept evidence related to dead spy" - testimony

Yeganeh Torbati | Reuters | May 1, 2012

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's MI6 intelligence agency failed to hand over to police the belongings of a spy found dead inside a bag in his home, including computer memory sticks, an inquest heard on Tuesday.

Gareth Williams, 31, was on secondment to MI6 at the time of his death in 2010.

Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire told the inquest that MI6 agents searched Williams' electronic media without informing police, the BBC reported. Police only learned of the memory sticks on Monday.

"Had I known of their existence, I would have expected them to be at least reviewed or audited by (the counter-terrorism unit) and if information was available, then sent to my team," Sebire was quoted by the Guardian newspaper as saying.

Sebire testified last week that she believed someone else was involved in Williams getting inside the bag, which was found locked. A small amount of unknown DNA not belonging to Williams was found on the bag.

Williams, a mathematics prodigy, was trying to develop technologies that could be used in gathering information for MI6, Britain's foreign intelligence service.

One police officer, Detective Superintendent Michael Broster of the counter-terrorism branch SO-15, was quoted by the BBC as saying his team should have examined the memory sticks before giving them to MI6, but that he had taken what evidence he believed was relevant to the case.

Police also did not take an inventory of the contents of Williams's office cabinet because of the "sensitive nature of the documents," fellow counter terrorism officer Colin Hall was reported by the Guardian as saying.

Pathologists believe the likeliest cause of death was either poisoning or suffocation, but say they cannot be sure which.

The strange death - Williams was found naked inside the padlocked bag, his corpse decomposing in the August summer heat - has puzzled investigators, who have found little forensic evidence that would point to a culprit.

Last week, the inquest was told that if proper procedures had been followed by Williams' supervisors at MI6, his absence would have been reported and acted upon within hours. Instead, they waited days to report him missing and Williams' body was found a week after he had first failed to show up to work.

(Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Belfast Telegraph : Coroner criticises MI6 death probe

Coroner criticises MI6 death probe

May 1, 2012

MI6 and a senior detective have been accused of failing to disclose vital evidence in the death riddle of spy Gareth Williams.

A coroner suggested the counter-terror officer was not being "completely impartial" towards secret services during the Scotland Yard inquiry.

Detective Superintendent Michael Broster was criticised after his assistant was told he had offered evidence as "helpful as a London pea souper" at the inquest into Mr Williams's death.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox and the family's lawyer both delivered angry outbursts after it emerged that nine computer memory sticks and a black bag were overlooked for 21 months after the death.

The lead detective on the case was told about the evidence only on Monday.

Dr Wilcox told Mr Broster, who was unable to rule out secret service involvement in the death, that he was offering "total non-sequitur" reasons for failing to pass on evidence.

"I suggest that this means you have not been completely impartial in this case," she told him at Westminster Coroner's Court.

As Dr Wilcox ordered police to bring the missed evidence into the inquest into Mr Williams's death, family barrister Anthony O'Toole told police they had not taken the incident seriously enough.

The lawyer said: "If this had not involved SIS (Secret Intelligence Service) and it was the Kray twins you were investigating, you would have gone into this in far more detail."

The 31-year-old fitness enthusiast was found naked, curled up in a padlocked holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, central London, on August 23 2010.

Sky : Lawyer Alleges MI6 Involvement In Spy Death

Lawyer Alleges MI6 Involvement In Spy Death

Mark Stone, Sky News reporter | May 1, 2012

A lawyer representing the family of MI6 spy Gareth Williams whose body was found in a holdall has suggested the secret services may have been involved in his death.

Anthony O'Toole, the Williams' family lawyer, made the accusation in open court during the 31-year-old GCHQ code breaker's inquest at Westminster Coroner's Court.

The allegation came after it emerged MI6 failed to hand over nine computer memory sticks to Scotland Yard.

A black North Face holdall - similar to the one which Mr Williams was found dead in at his flat - was eventually passed to police.

The Metropolitan Police team investigating Mr William's death did not have direct access to his office.

Instead, the force's counter-terror SO15 branch, which has specialist security clearance, acted as a conduit between MI6 and the investigation team.

Two officers from the SO15 unit - Superintendent Michael Broster and Detective Constable Colin Hall - searched Mr Williams' MI6 office.

They only took three items - his phone, some notes and a copy of his birth certificate.

Asked why he did not take the memory sticks, Supt Broster said he did not think they were relevant - and admitted MI6 were left to examine them.

Mr O'Toole said: "So if the person who killed Gareth Williams was a member of SIS (MI6) you would do nothing to investigate because you believed that organisation to be trustworthy?"

Supt Broster insisted MI6 had been fully co-operative.

The officer was also criticised by Coroner Fiona Wilcox, who told him he was offering "total non-sequitur" reasons for failing to pass on evidence.

"I suggest that this means you have not been completely impartial in this case," she said.

Mr O'Toole also accused DC Hall of failing to take the probe seriously.

"If this had not involved SIS and it was the Kray twins you were investigating, you would have gone into this in far more detail," he told the officer.

Members of Mr Williams' family shook their heads as DC Hall revealed his search of Mr Williams' office was called off shortly after the spy was found dead.

Mr Hall said "there was stuff in there of a sensitive nature" in the bag but, when asked what, he said he could not remember.

Mr O'Toole added: "That's about as helpful as a London pea souper."

Earlier, Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, the police officer in charge of the investigation, returned to give evidence to the inquest and told the coroner she had no knowledge of the memory sticks, or the bag, until this morning.

"Had I known about their existence, I would have expected them to be disclosed and any relevant information to be sent to my team," she said.

It is not clear what relevance if any the sticks and the bag have to the investigation into Mr Williams' death, but DCI Sebire said that MI6 should have told her about their existence.

It was also disclosed that MI6 searched some of Mr Williams' "electronic media" without telling the police.

"What I knew was that Gareth's email accounts had been checked but I did not know that other media had been checked," DCI Sebire said.

Meanwhile, a forensic scientist has been asked to appear again at the inquest, and a new MI6 witness has been asked to give evidence anonymously.

The inquest is due to conclude on Wednesday, but there is a chance now it could continue for longer.

The painstaking investigation has drawn a 20-month blank for detectives.

On Monday, Ros Hammond, a police forensic scientist, expressed hope that tests on a green towel found in the kitchen of Mr Williams' Pimlico apartment could yield a breakthrough within a matter of weeks.

The inquest also heard from a forensic Scientist and from the pathologists who carried out three separate post-mortems on Mr Williams' body.

They told the court all their examinations had proved to be inconclusive, and spoke of the difficulties they encountered because Mr Williams' body was badly decomposed.

A period of up to 10 days passed between when they believe he died and when his body was first examined.

However Benjamin Swift, a Home Office pathologist, said that although the cause of death was "unascertained", he believed that poisoning or asphyxiation such as suffocation were "probably rather than possibly" to blame.

Tests on the Mr Williams body did not reveal signs of any poisons, but the experts said that they could not rule out the possibility that a poison could have disappeared as the body decomposed.

FOX (TX) : MI6 kept belongings of British spy found dead in sports bag, court hears

MI6 kept belongings of British spy found dead in sports bag, court hears

Sky News | May 1, 2012

LONDON -- The police officer in charge of the investigation into the death of a British spy found in a padlocked sports bag said Tuesday she was unaware that nine memory sticks and a similar bag were found among his belongings at the intelligence agency MI6's headquarters.

Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, appearing for the second time at the coroner's hearing into Gareth Williams' death, told the central London court she did not know about the objects until early Tuesday.

"Had I known about their existence, I would have expected them to be disclosed and any relevant information to be sent to my team," she said.

Williams' naked body was found curled up inside a padlocked North Face sports bag in the bathtub of his apartment in Pimlico, central London, in August 2010.

It is not clear what relevance, if any, the memory sticks or sports bag have to the investigation into his death, but Sebire told Westminster Coroner's Court that MI6 should have told her about their existence.

The police investigation into Williams' death always has been somewhat restricted by issues of national security. For example, officers did not get direct access to some aspects of Williams' professional life.

Instead, the Counter Terrorism Command of London's Metropolitan Police -- which has specialist security clearance -- acted as a conduit between MI6 and the investigation team. It was not clear whether the command team was aware of the belongings or if the intelligence agency withheld information from that unit, too.

It also was disclosed that MI6 searched some of Williams' "electronic media" without telling the police operation.

"What I knew was that Gareth's email accounts had been checked, but I did not know that other media had been checked," Sebire said.

The hearing also heard from a detective who searched Williams' office at MI6 headquarters.

Detective Constable Colin Hall, of the Counter Terrorism Command team, said the visit to the agent's Vauxhall office was cut short on the orders of senior officers.

Hall said he did not seize the bag found underneath Williams' desk because "there was stuff in there of a sensitive nature."

Mirror : MI6 'hid evidence': Body-in-bag spy's memory sticks withheld from cops

MI6 'hid evidence': Body-in-bag spy's memory sticks withheld from cops

Tom Pettifor | May 1, 2012

Vital evidence belonging to spy Gareth Williams was not passed by MI6 to detectives investigating his death, an inquest has heard.

Murder squad officers were understood to be furious that nine computer memory sticks and a North Face bag similar to the holdall his body was found in have been withheld from the murder inquiry for 20 MONTHS.

Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, the officer spearheading the case, said she only found out about the items’ existence for the first time this week.

She told Westminster Coroner’s Court police should have been given the material at the time of Mr Williams’ death in August 2010.

The memory sticks, which were accessed by MI6 following the 31-year-old’s death, had been kept in a cupboard at the spy’s shared office in Vauxhall Cross, central London.

Detective Constable Colin Hall, an officer from SO15, the Met’s counter-terrorism branch, searched Mr Williams’ workplace but made no inventory of his belongings because it included “sensitive” items.

Det Con Hall said a list of items not actually seized as evidence would not be ‘routinely done’.

Anthony O’Toole, representing the family, asked him: “If this hadn’t involved SIS, and it was the Kray twins, or somebody else you were investigating, you would have gone into this in far more detail, wouldn’t you?”

DC Hall replied: “I chose at the time not to write anything down. Obviously I’m under instructions - I do what I’m told.”

The SO15 detective also visited Mr Williams’ flat just hours after his body was first discovered.

Records from the crime scene show he entered at around 8pm, dressed in forensic clothing.

The security services and police have always maintained Mr Williams’ death had no connection with his work.

Asked by Coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox if she had known of the memory sticks’ existence, DCI Sebire replied simply: “No.”

Dr Wilcox asked: “Has your team ever been given possession of these?”

DCI Sebire replied: “No.”

And she added: “Had I known of their existence, I would have expected them to be at least reviewed or audited by SO15, and, if information was available, then sent to my team.

“What I knew was Gareth’s email account had been checked, but I didn’t know any other media had been checked. I would have expected to be told.”

Police found Mr Williams’ decaying body in a padlocked holdall in the bathroom of his two-bedroom flat in Pimlico on the evening of August 23, 2010.

His line manager at MI6 had not raised the alarm despite him not having turned up for work since August 16 - the day after he was last seen alive.

Police believe it would have been impossible for him to have locked himself inside, while two spots of partial DNA found on the bag are said to belong to “another contributor”.

It is not known whether or not he was alive when he was sealed inside the holdall.

Detectives are also puzzled by the presence of £20,000 worth of women’s clothes found at the flat - despite friends and family insisting he had not been a transvestite.

The family’s lawyer has previously said relatives feared the flat had been professionally cleaned of evidence by an agency specialising in the “dark arts”.

The hearing continues.