Telegraph : Could mystery fingerprints provide clue in dead spy case?

Could mystery fingerprints provide clue in dead spy case?

Police are still to identify up to 20 sets of fingerprints found in the flat of dead MI6 spy Gareth Williams, The Daily Telegraph can disclose.

By Tom Whitehead, Security Editor | May 5, 2012

Some of the potential prints are little more than marks or “smudges” but officers hope they could still hold the key to the maths prodigy’s death.

Forensic officers are still examining them along with traces of DNA found on a towel in the kitchen.

It came as the head of the Met’s homicide squad said he believed the bizarre death could still be solved despite few clues after a two-year investigation.

Officers are preparing to return to MI6 to interview colleagues of Mr Williams and take DNA as part of a review of the case.

It followed criticism by a coroner this week over aspects of the investigation and the way some evidence was handled.

Mr Williams’ naked decomposing body was discovered in a padlocked sports bag in the bath of his Pimlico home in London in August 2010.

It had been there for a week without anyone raising concerns that the 31-year-old, who was on secondment to MI6 from GCHQ, had gone missing.

At the end of an eight day inquest on Wednesday, coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox said that “on the balance of probabilities” Mr Williams was “unlawfully killed” and likely to have been “criminally mediated” by a mystery third party.

A lawyer for the family has previously suggested someone expert in the “dark arts” of the secret service was linked to the death.

Anthony O’Toole also hinted that foreign forces may have been aware the flat was being used to house MI6 officers and targeted it rather than a specific agenda against Mr Williams.

During the inquest, DCI Jackie Sebire, who is leading the investigation, said more than 300 fingerprints were found around the flat.

The majority of those have been accounted for but police sources revealed around 20 are still unresolved.

Some may prove to be too weak to be of use while others may still turn out to be entirely innocent, such as from a workman.

However, experts are working hard to resolve them in the hope they may throw up a mystery visitor to the flat.

Faint traces of the DNA of at least two other people were found on the bag containing Mr Williams but forensic officers fear they are too weak to ever be of use.

There is more hope surrounding DNA tests on a towel found in the kitchen which are due to be concluded within the next few weeks.

Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell, head of the Met's homicide squad, said of the riddle: “I think it can be resolved and DCI Sebire has my full support.

“We will make every effort to do that, will review the investigation and follow up lines.”

The Daily Telegraph disclosed yesterday that MI6 fear Scotland Yard is trying to make it a scapegoat for failings in the investigation.

Tensions are growing between the intelligence services and police over a possible blame game following criticism by the coroner.

Dr Wilcox criticised the delays in spotting Mr Williams was missing and apparent failures in the handling of potential evidence.

The inquest heard how nine memory sticks that may have belonged to the codebreaker and a bag similar to the one he was found dead in were discovered his office but never handed over to the Met team that investigated his death for almost two years.

A senior Whitehall source said there was concern within the intelligence service that the police were using it as a “scapegoat” to mask their own failings in solving the mystery.

SMH : British spy found in sports bag 'wanted out of MI6'

British spy found in sports bag 'wanted out of MI6'

Martin Evans, Tom Whitehead, London | April 25, 2012

THE British spy found dead in a padlocked sports bag in his London apartment in August 2010 hated the "flash car and drinking" culture of MI6 and complained of "friction" at work, his family told an inquest.

Gareth Williams, 31, told his sister, Ceri Subbe, he wanted to leave London because he did not like the "rat race" lifestyle and was unhappy working for the security services. He had applied to cut short his three-year secondment to MI6 and return to GCHQ, an intelligence agency that monitors communications, in Cheltenham but felt his superiors were "dragging their feet", Mrs Subbe told the hearing.

A date for his return was fixed for September 2010. His body was discovered in his Pimlico flat a week before he was due to return.
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The spy's parents, Ian and Ellen, were on holiday in Canada, celebrating Mrs Williams' 50th birthday when they learned of their son's death.

The long-awaited inquest was opened at Westminster Coroner's Court on Monday to investigate the "highly controversial" death of Mr Williams. Dr Fiona Wilcox, the coroner, has promised a "full, fair and fearless" inquiry in which no evidence will be heard behind closed doors. Up to 40 witnesses are due to give evidence, including intelligence officers, police, forensic experts and friends.

The family believes that a third party was involved in Mr Williams' death.

The naked and decomposing body of the maths prodigy, a cipher and codes expert, was discovered in a sports bag that had been locked from the outside and placed in the bath at his flat.

Lawyers for Scotland Yard said there was still a "real possibility" that criminal proceedings could arise.

Mrs Subbe described her brother as "the most scrupulous risk-assessor" she had ever known.

She said he would never have let anyone into his flat who had not been cleared by security.

She said he would turn back a few hundred metres from the summit of mountains if there was "the hint of adverse weather conditions", adding: "Better to be safe than sorry."

She said her brother never told her he was being followed or felt threatened in any way. "I cannot think as to why anybody would want to harm him."

The inquest heard how Mr Williams failed to turn up for a meeting at work on August 16 but the alarm was not raised until August 23 - by his family. After his death, Mrs Subbe described how she had spoken to a colleague about the missed meeting, "He said Gareth was like a Swiss clock - very punctual, very efficient, and it was very unlike him not to attend a meeting."

Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell, from the Metropolitan Police's homicide unit, said the force's SO15 counter-terrorism unit was called to assist, but its officers would not have had access to the flat without permission from the crime scene manager.

Four intelligence officers will be allowed to give evidence from behind a screen in the coming days after Dr Wilcox granted an application to keep their identity a secret. The request came from MI6 and GCHQ, backed by Foreign Secretary William Hague, amid concerns over a risk to national security if they were exposed.

The coroner will also allow some evidence to remain secret, including any information from foreign intelligence agencies, ongoing operations or details of secret service officers, methods and tactics.

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Independent : Dead spy Gareth Williams' sister casts new doubt on official account of his death

Dead spy Gareth Williams' sister casts new doubt on official account of his death

No alarm was raised over disappearance despite missed meeting, says Williams’ sister

Kim Sengupta | April 24, 2012

Gareth Williams, the MI6 officer who was found dead in a padlocked holdall in his bath, was so unhappy about "friction" at work and the "rat race" that he had asked for a transfer back to his previous post, his family has disclosed. The 31-year-old cipher specialist died a week before he had been due to return to work at GCHQ, the government listening post.

"He disliked office culture, post-work drinks, flash car competitions and the rat race," his sister, Ceri Subbe, told the inquest into his death yesterday. "He even spoke of friction in the office. The job was not quite what he expected. He encountered more red tape than he was comfortable with."

Mr Williams's family believes that he may have been executed by secret agents specialising in the "dark arts", with a cover-up subsequently organised to ensure the that his killers did not face justice.

Yesterday Ms Subbe insisted it was inconceivable that her brother would have voluntarily allowed anyone who had not been cleared by the security agencies into his home in Pimlico, south-west London. "He was very strict about only allowing people who had been vetted to visit his flat. I cannot emphasise enough his conscientiousness," she stressed.

"Gareth did not tell us what specifically he did as a job. Of course we knew where he worked, but he didn't speak about it in any detail."

On 23 August 2010, Mr Williams's family contacted MI6 after not having heard from him for over a week.

On 16 August, he had failed to turn up to chair a meeting at MI6 and was not seen subsequently until the discovery of his naked and decomposing remains. Ms Subbe said she had later spoken to an officer from MI6 who told her that her brother was extremely punctual "and it was highly unlikely for him to miss a meeting like that". Yet no alarm was raised by MI6 over an operative suddenly going missing.

The coroner, Fiona Wilcox, acknowledged that Mr Williams's death was "highly controversial" and has led to a "great deal of anxiety". Agents from MI6 (the Secret Intelligence Service) and GCHQ will be giving their evidence from behind a screen. There would be "a real risk of harm to national security and international relations" if some of those giving evidence were identified, she said.

The inquest heard Mr Williams was a prodigy who took his O-levels aged 10 and began a degree course at Bangor University aged 16. Ms Subbe told the court that her brother "adored music, theatre and the arts, and fashion" and had undertaken two six-week design courses at Central St Martin's in London.

Officers from GCHQ and MI6 had held that Gareth Williams organised his own accommodation privately in the house at Alderney Street, Pimlico, as Anthony O'Toole QC, speaking for his family, pointed out. But there was evidence, he claimed, that it was a "safe house" used by the intelligence service. The inquest heard a statement from Vanessa Scott, who worked for an estate agency, W A Ellis, saying: "The Secretary of State had taken a contract on the property in 2003 and the tenancy would be continued."

The Scotland Yard homicide team carrying out the investigation into Mr Williams's death was not able to talk directly to members of MI6 and GCHQ, the inquest was told. Instead they had to give their questions to SO15, the Metropolitan Police's Counter-Terrorism Command, which carried out the interviews on their behalf.

Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell, from the Yard's Homicide and Serious Crime Command, stressed that the agencies co-operated fully with Scotland Yard, adding he was not aware of MI5, MI6 or SO15 carrying out their own independent investigations into Mr Williams's death. Asked by Dr Wilcox whether she was surprised that women's clothes worth £20,000 had been found at her brother's place, Ms Subbe said they were "possibly a gift", as her brother had been generous.

She had not, however, been given any clothes herself and did not know of anyone else who had received any items.

PC John Gallagher, who found Mr Williams's body, said his attention was caught on entering the flat by a woman's wig hanging on a chair as well as a mobile phone and two SIM cards on a table.

On going into the bathroom he noticed a bulging red holdall in the bath with the zip padlocked together. "I am realising it is something serious and my concern was to not damage anything in a crime scene." He lifted the bag up, when he could see red fluid seeping out. "Then there was the smell," he said. "Probably as a result of moving the bag. It is unusual because normally you would expect to smell it earlier," he said.

The inquest continues.

Williams's death: Timeline

11 August 2010 Mr Williams returns to Britain from a fly-drive holiday to the West coast of the United States.

15 August He is captured on CCTV in London's Knightsbridge after shopping at Harrods.

16 August He fails to turn up at MI6 to chair a meeting. No alarm is raised.

23 August Mr Williams's family alerts the police after not hearing from him for a week. His body is discovered padlocked inside a holdall in a bath in his top-floor flat at 36 Alderney Street in Pimlico.

1 September Westminster Coroner's Court hears a post-mortem examination has failed to establish the cause of death.

30 March 2012 A pre-inquest review hears that Mr Williams's family suspects an agent specialising in the "dark arts" may have covered up his death.

Daily Star : SIS: SPY-IN-THE-BAG HATED LONDON AND FLASHY MI6 SPOOKS

SIS: SPY-IN-THE-BAG HATED LONDON AND FLASHY MI6 SPOOKS

Marc Walker | April 24, 2012

BAG death spy Gareth Williams complained of “friction” at MI6 before his death, a court heard.

The codebreaker, 31, hated the London “rat race” and his colleagues’ “flash car competitions”, his sister said.

Ceri Subbe, 29, also said he was careful about letting people into the safe house, where his corpse was found in a padlocked holdall.

But she said she was “not aware” of £20,000-worth of women’s designer clothes her brother kept at the flat in Pimlico, central London.

She said the garments may have been presents for herself or his old school pal, Sian Lloyd-Jones, 34.

Ceri told the inquest, at Westminster Coroners’ Court, that Gareth loathed London and was just a week away from returning to his previous job at the Government’s GCHQ listening post in Cheltenham, Glos.

She said in a statement: “He disliked the London office culture, the post-work drinks, the flash car competitions and the rat race. He even spoke of friction in the office.”

But she added: “He was hugely professional in his approach and never spoke about his work.

“I have never known anyone to be let into his flat in Cheltenham or London who had not been vetted by his work.”

Gareth, of Anglesey, had been a cycling enthusiast and was also interested in fashion.

Ceri described him as a “perfect” big brother and a “remarkable man”.

It was only when she had not heard from him for 10 days that she alerted police and Gareth’s body was found.

He was inside a red North Face bag in the bathtub, but his body was so decomposed it was impossible to know the cause of death.

Det Chief Supt Hamish Campbell said MI6 agents did not enter the flat after the body was found.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox has said some information would be withheld on the grounds of “national security”.

She said Gareth’s family still believed “dark arts” secret agents were responsible for his death.

The hearing continues.

marc.walker@dailystar.co.uk

Irish Times : MI6 man complained of 'friction in office', inquest told

MI6 man complained of 'friction in office', inquest told

April 24, 2012

LONDON – The sister of a British MI6 agent whose lifeless body was found padlocked inside a sports bag said he had complained of office tensions and of London’s “rat race” shortly before he met his macabre death.

The naked decomposing corpse of Gareth Williams (31) was found inside a red bag in a bath at his flat, near the headquarters of Britain’s external intelligence service MI6, in central London on August 25th, 2010.

Women’s dresses and shoes worth around £20,000 ($24,000) were also found at the flat, creating another mystery in an already complex case. They had never been worn.

“He disliked office culture, post-work drinks, flash car competitions and the rat race,” his sister, Ceri Subbe, told an inquest trying to establish how Mr Williams died.

“He even spoke of friction in the office,” she added, clearly distraught. A lawyer for the dead man’s family said last month that “a member of some agency specialising in the dark arts of the secret services” might be responsible for his murder, fuelling speculation that he was killed by foreign spies and that MI6 might have covered it up.

At the time of his death, Mr Williams was on a three-year secondment to MI6, which deals with foreign espionage matters and is headquartered at a large, modern, imposing building on the banks of the Thames.

But Ms Subbe said her brother had wanted to return to his old post as a code breaker at the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), the state eavesdropping service which is based in Cheltenham in Gloucestershire.

He had wanted to escape London for the countryside and return to a quieter pace of life, she said. “His enthusiasm had begun to fade,” she said. “I think the job wasn’t quite what he had expected.”

She told the inquest that in April 2010 Mr Williams had sought to end his secondment to MI6. He had been due to return to Cheltenham just days after his body was found.

Bizarrely, there were no signs his flat had been broken into or indications of foul play, even though detectives do not believe he could have got into the bag by himself. Toxicology tests found no traces of alcohol, drugs or poison in his body.

A keen cyclist and hill-runner, who gained a university first-class degree in mathematics at the age of just 17, Mr Williams was single and intensely private.

Ms Subbe, who was in regular contact with her brother, told the coroner that despite his worries about work, he had been “very upbeat” and had not given any indication that he had been threatened or followed before his death.

She said he would not have let anyone into his flat who had not been vetted, nor give his keys to anyone apart from close family.

Nor, she said, would he have taken unnecessary risks, an apparent reference to suggestions that his death was an accident. “Gareth was the most scrupulous risk assessor I have known,” she said.

His body was not discovered until his family reported him missing, up to 12 days after he was last seen, raising questions about his employer’s apparent lack of concern.

Det Chief Supt Hamish Campbell, the officer in charge of the case, told the inquest that MI6 had been very co-operative.

He was unaware that the spy agency had carried out its own investigation, he added.

Police said their inquiry was continuing and that charges were possible. “It’s not a straightforward inquiry and it may at some stage result in criminal proceedings,” Vincent Williams, a lawyer for London police, said.

The inquest is due to hear from 37 witnesses, including four unnamed members of the intelligence services. Three will give evidence from behind screens to protect their identity from the inquest, which, in keeping with the nature of the mysterious case, is accessed from a small entrance guarded by security men, next to a sign saying the building is a health clinic. – (Reuters)

Belfast Telegraph : Dead MI6 spy's sister casts new doubt on official account of his death

Dead MI6 spy's sister casts new doubt on official account of his death

No alarm was raised over disappearance despite missed meeting, says Williams’ sister

Kim Sengupta | April 24, 2012

Gareth Williams, the MI6 officer who was found dead in a padlocked holdall in his bath, was so unhappy about "friction" at work and the "rat race" that he had asked for a transfer back to his previous post, his family has disclosed.

The 31-year-old cipher specialist died a week before he had been due to return to work at GCHQ, the government listening post.

"He disliked office culture, post-work drinks, flash car competitions and the rat race," his sister, Ceri Subbe, told the inquest into his death yesterday. "He even spoke of friction in the office. The job was not quite what he expected. He encountered more red tape than he was comfortable with."

Mr Williams's family believes that he may have been executed by secret agents specialising in the "dark arts", with a cover-up subsequently organised to ensure the that his killers did not face justice.

Yesterday Ms Subbe insisted it was inconceivable that her brother would have voluntarily allowed anyone who had not been cleared by the security agencies into his home in Pimlico, south-west London. "He was very strict about only allowing people who had been vetted to visit his flat. I cannot emphasise enough his conscientiousness," she stressed.

"Gareth did not tell us what specifically he did as a job. Of course we knew where he worked, but he didn't speak about it in any detail."

On 23 August 2010, Mr Williams's family contacted MI6 after not having heard from him for over a week.

On 16 August, he had failed to turn up to chair a meeting at MI6 and was not seen subsequently until the discovery of his naked and decomposing remains. Ms Subbe said she had later spoken to an officer from MI6 who told her that her brother was extremely punctual "and it was highly unlikely for him to miss a meeting like that". Yet no alarm was raised by MI6 over an operative suddenly going missing.

The coroner, Fiona Wilcox, acknowledged that Mr Williams's death was "highly controversial" and has led to a "great deal of anxiety". Agents from MI6 (the Secret Intelligence Service) and GCHQ will be giving their evidence from behind a screen. There would be "a real risk of harm to national security and international relations" if some of those giving evidence were identified, she said.

The inquest heard Mr Williams was a prodigy who took his O-levels aged 10 and began a degree course at Bangor University aged 16. Ms Subbe told the court that her brother "adored music, theatre and the arts, and fashion" and had undertaken two six-week design courses at Central St Martin's in London.

Officers from GCHQ and MI6 had held that Gareth Williams organised his own accommodation privately in the house at Alderney Street, Pimlico, as Anthony O'Toole QC, speaking for his family, pointed out. But there was evidence, he claimed, that it was a "safe house" used by the intelligence service. The inquest heard a statement from Vanessa Scott, who worked for an estate agency, W A Ellis, saying: "The Secretary of State had taken a contract on the property in 2003 and the tenancy would be continued."

The Scotland Yard homicide team carrying out the investigation into Mr Williams's death was not able to talk directly to members of MI6 and GCHQ, the inquest was told. Instead they had to give their questions to SO15, the Metropolitan Police's Counter-Terrorism Command, which carried out the interviews on their behalf.

Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell, from the Yard's Homicide and Serious Crime Command, stressed that the agencies co-operated fully with Scotland Yard, adding he was not aware of MI5, MI6 or SO15 carrying out their own independent investigations into Mr Williams's death. Asked by Dr Wilcox whether she was surprised that women's clothes worth £20,000 had been found at her brother's place, Ms Subbe said they were "possibly a gift", as her brother had been generous.

She had not, however, been given any clothes herself and did not know of anyone else who had received any items.

PC John Gallagher, who found Mr Williams's body, said his attention was caught on entering the flat by a woman's wig hanging on a chair as well as a mobile phone and two SIM cards on a table.

On going into the bathroom he noticed a bulging red holdall in the bath with the zip padlocked together. "I am realising it is something serious and my concern was to not damage anything in a crime scene." He lifted the bag up, when he could see red fluid seeping out. "Then there was the smell," he said. "Probably as a result of moving the bag. It is unusual because normally you would expect to smell it earlier," he said.

The inquest continues.

---

Williams's death: Timeline

11 August 2010 Mr Williams returns to Britain from a fly-drive holiday to the West coast of the United States.

15 August He is captured on CCTV in London's Knightsbridge after shopping at Harrods.

16 August He fails to turn up at MI6 to chair a meeting. No alarm is raised.

23 August Mr Williams's family alerts the police after not hearing from him for a week. His body is discovered padlocked inside a holdall in a bath in his top-floor flat at 36 Alderney Street in Pimlico.

1 September Westminster Coroner's Court hears a post-mortem examination has failed to establish the cause of death.

30 March 2012 A pre-inquest review hears that Mr Williams's family suspects an agent specialising in the "dark arts" may have covered up his death.

Scotsman : ‘Flash car contests’ and drinking culture at MI6, inquest told

‘Flash car contests’ and drinking culture at MI6, inquest told

April 24, 2012

AN MI6 codebreaker found dead in a sports bag had been unhappy living in London and complained about “friction” at the intelligence agency, an inquest has heard.

Gareth Williams, 31, hated the post-work drinking culture and “flash car competitions” at the Secret Intelligence Service, his sister said.

He was due to move back to the West Country a week after his naked body was discovered padlocked inside a holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, central London, on 23 August, 2010.

The inquest into Mr Williams’s death began yesterday with evidence that Scotland Yard murder detectives were not able to speak to his MI6 colleagues directly.

Instead, specialist officers from the Metropolitan Police’s SO15 counter-terrorism command had to carry out the interviews and produce anonymous statements.

Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell said police were not shown any internal inquiry by MI6 into what happened to the brilliant codebreaker.

The spy’s sister, Ceri Subbe, told the inquest her brother was excited when he began what was supposed to be a three-year secondment to MI6 from GCHQ, the government listening station at Cheltenham. But he missed the countryside and became disillusioned with the atmosphere at MI6’s Vauxhall Cross headquarters in London.

“He disliked office culture, post-work drinks, flash car competitions and the rat race. He even spoke of friction in the office,” Mrs Subbe said. “The job was not quite what he expected. He encountered more red tape than he was comfortable with.”

In April 2010 Mr Williams applied to return to GCHQ earlier than planned. MI6 “dragged their feet” in approving his request but eventually agreed.

Mr Williams, of Anglesey, north Wales, failed to turn up for a meeting at MI6 on 16 August, 2010, the inquest heard.

Mrs Subbe said she discussed her brother’s absence with one of his colleagues. “He is very conscientious,” she said. “The person I spoke to agreed, and said Gareth was like a Swiss clock – very punctual, very efficient, and it was very unlike him not to attend a meeting.”

The discovery of the spy’s body curled up in a large holdall at his top-floor flat in Alderney Street, Pimlico, sparked a painstaking investigation, worldwide media frenzy and several outlandish conspiracy theories.

Mrs Subbe was asked about £20,000 of women’s clothes found in her brother’s flat after his death, but said it was “not particularly” surprising and suggested they could have been a gift. She told the inquest she did not believe Mr Williams would let a potential killer in his flat, adding: “I cannot emphasise enough his conscientiousness”.

Four intelligence agents will give evidence to the inquest anonymously after coroner Fiona Wilcox said there was a real risk of harm to national security and international relations if they were exposed.

Mr Williams was a mathematics prodigy who passed his O-levels aged ten, his A-levels a few years later, and studied at Bangor University when he was 16. He was a keen fell runner and mountaineer.

His sister said he was “the most scrupulous risk-assessor” she had known.

She said he would turn back a few hundred yards from the summit of mountains if there was the hint of adverse weather conditions.

Mrs Subbe said her brother never told her he was being followed or felt threatened in any way, adding: “I cannot think as to why anybody would want to harm him.”

Family members want to know why the alarm was not raised when Mr Williams initially failed to turn up to work.

By the time officers arrived at his flat, his body was so decomposed that evidence had been lost. Dr Wilcox has indicated she may want to see a practical demonstration of how Mr Williams might have got into the bag and locked it himself.

The inquest continues.

Telegraph : Body in bag spy Gareth Williams 'hated London and wanted to leave MI6’

Body in bag spy Gareth Williams 'hated London and wanted to leave MI6’

The spy found dead in a padlocked holdall hated the “flash car and drinking” culture of MI6 and complained of “friction” at work, his family told an inquest on Monday.

By Martin Evans and Tom Whitehead | April 23, 2012

Gareth Williams, 31, told his sister, Ceri Subbe, he wanted to leave London because he did not like the “rat race” lifestyle and was unhappy working for the security services. He had applied to cut short his three-year secondment to MI6 and return to GCHQ in Cheltenham but felt his superiors were “dragging their feet”, Mrs Subbe told the hearing.

A date for his return was finally fixed for September 2010. His body was discovered in his Pimlico flat a week before he was due to return.

The spy’s parents, Ian and Ellen, were on holiday in Toronto, Canada, celebrating Mrs Williams’s 50th birthday when they learned of their son’s death.

CHARGES STILL POSSIBLE

The long-awaited inquest was opened at Westminster Coroner’s Court on Monday to investigate the “highly controversial” death of Mr Williams.

Dr Fiona Wilcox, the coroner, has promised a “full, fair and fearless” inquiry in which no evidence will be heard behind closed doors. Up to 40 witnesses are due to give evidence at the hearing, including intelligence officers, police, forensic experts and friends.

The family believe that a third party was involved in Mr Williams’s death. Their lawyer has previously suggested experts in the “dark arts of the secret services”.

The naked and decomposing body of the maths prodigy, who was a cipher and codes expert, was discovered in a holdall that had been locked from the outside and placed in the bath at his Pimlico flat in August 2010.

Police attended the flat, which is less than a mile from MI6 headquarters, after being alerted by his family, who were concerned that they had not heard from him for more than a week. The discovery led to worldwide speculation and conspiracy theories over how he died.

Lawyers for Scotland Yard said there was still a “real possibility” that criminal proceedings could be brought in connection with the death.

DESPERATE TO LEAVE LONDON

The first witness to take the stand was Mrs Subbe, who said her brother had grown increasingly frustrated with his city life and wanted to leave.

Mr Williams joined MI6 on a three-year secondment from GCHQ in 2009 but by March the following year his “enthusiasm had begun to fade”, Mrs Subbe said.

In a statement, she told the hearing: “He disliked office culture, post-work drinks, flash car competitions and the rat race. He even spoke of friction in the office.”

In her oral evidence she added that her brother, a keen cyclist, was a “country boy and the city life did not quite suit him”.

“Also, I think the job was not quite what he had expected,” she said. “There was a lot more red tape than he was comfortable with but more than anything he just wanted to get back to the countryside.”

In an emotional statement, Mrs Subbe told the inquest that her brother had a wide range of hobbies including fell running, cycling, art and fashion.

She said he was happiest when walking in the mountains or riding his bicycle in the countryside.

The hearing was also given a glimpse of the “incredibly close” family life of Mr Williams. Mrs Subbe said her brother returned home once or twice a month and they had a “truly magical time” during her last meeting with him in London. They had champagne in Mayfair before more champagne, cakes and “dainty finger sandwiches” at the Ritz hotel. “In terms of a big brother figure, Gareth was perfect,” she said.

THE £20,000 COLLECTION OF WOMEN’S CLOTHES

Mrs Subbe was unaware of other aspects of her brother’s life, however. He did not tell her that he had completed two six-week fashion courses at St Martin’s College in London or that he had amassed more than £20,000-worth of female clothing at his flat.

Asked if she was surprised, she said: “I am not surprised. He was very generous with gifts.”

Mrs Subbe suggested that he may have simply been collecting the clothing due to his interest in fashion and his desire to buy high-quality items. The hearing was told that the last time Mrs Subbe had spoken to her brother was on Aug 13, when he mentioned that he was planning to visit a comedy club with a friend where a transvestite performer was appearing.

HE PUT SAFETY FIRST

Mrs Subbe described her brother as “the most scrupulous risk-assessor” she had ever known.

She said he would never have let anyone into his flat who had not been security cleared.

He would turn back a few hundred yards from the summit of mountains if there was “the hint of adverse weather conditions”, adding: “Better to be safe than sorry.” She said her brother never told her he was being followed or felt threatened in any way, adding: “I cannot think as to why anybody would want to harm him.”

The inquest heard how Mr Williams failed to turn up for a meeting at work on Aug 16 but the alarm was not raised until Aug 23 — by his family.

After his death, Mrs Subbe described how she had spoken to a colleague about the missed meeting, adding: “He said Gareth was like a Swiss clock — very punctual, very efficient, and it was very unlike him not to attend a meeting.”

DISCOVERY OF THE BODY

Pc John Gallagher found Mr Williams’s body after being asked to make a welfare check at an address in Alderney Street. He was let in by a member of staff from an estate agent that managed the rented property and found a pile of unopened mail, but otherwise the flat was tidy. In the bedroom, the duvet was half on the floor and there was a pile of neatly folded clothes on the bed.

In the living room he noticed a mobile phone on the dining room table alongside two sim cards, with a woman’s wig hanging on a chair. The lights were on despite it being 5pm on a summer evening.

Pc Gallagher told the hearing that when he entered the en suite bathroom he noticed a smell that he associated with dead bodies and saw a red North Face holdall in the bath. “I lifted the bag up around six or seven inches,” he said. “It was quite heavy and that is when I noticed a red fluid seeping out of the bag.”

He called for assistance and a colleague, Det Sgt Paul Colgan, inspected the bag. The detective told the hearing that after making a small incision in the holdall it was obvious that it contained a body.

COUNTER TERRORISM OFFICERS CALLED IN

Det Ch Supt Hamish Campbell, from the Met’s homicide unit, said the Met’s SO15 counter-terrorism unit was called to assist, but its officers would not have had access to the flat without permission from the crime scene manager.

He was not aware of any unauthorised inquiries being carried out by any agencies outside the homicide squad.

In a written statement submitted to the inquest, Vanessa Scott, who worked for the estate agent that managed the flat, said it was owned by a company based in St Hellier and “the Secretary of State” took over the tenancy in September 2003.

It was not clear to which department she was referring but the Foreign Secretary has responsibility for MI6. Jack Straw held the post at that time.

ANONYMITY FOR SPIES

Four intelligence officers will be allowed to give evidence from behind a screen in the coming days after Dr Wilcox granted an application to keep their identity a secret. The request came from MI6 and GCHQ, backed by William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, amid concerns over a risk to national security if they were exposed.

The coroner will also allow some aspects of the evidence to remain secret, including any information from foreign intelligence agencies, ongoing operations or details of secret service officers, methods and tactics.

Mirror : The spy who hated his job at MI6: 'Body-in-the-bag' victim didn't like the London "rat race"

The spy who hated his job at MI6: 'Body-in-the-bag' victim didn't like the London "rat race"

Sister explains to inquest that job was not what Williams expected

By Tom Pettifor | April 23, 2012

The plot thickened today in the real-life spy mystery of the top MI6 codebreaker found dead in a holdall.

Amid accusations of dirty tricks in the shadowy world of espionage, the first day of the inquest was told victim Gareth Williams had complained of “friction” with other spooks and was about to quit the job.

His family believe secret service agents may have been involved in his baffling death.

He was so unhappy with his work he had cut short his secondment with MI6 and had been due to leave days after his body was found in the locked bag in his bath, his sister Ceri Subbe told the hearing.

Ms Subbe said he did not feel comfortable with the job, which was “not quite what he expected”.

She said: “He disliked office culture, post-work drinks, flash car competitions and the rat race. He even spoke of friction in the office.”

The maths whizkid and ace codebreaker, 31, was on secondment to the Secret Intelligence Service from communications surveillance agency GCHQ in Cheltenham, Glos.

Police believe he died in the early hours of August 16, 2010 - a week before an officer discovered the rotting corpse in the spy’s locked apartment in Pimlico, London.

A postmortem and further tests found no trace of drugs, alcohol or poison and the police probe also failed to establish a cause of death.

Two “bag experts“ are due to give evidence to the inquest on whether it would have been possible for him to have padlocked himself inside.

And to add to the mystery, police say a woman’s wig and lady’s clothes were found in the single man’s flat.

Ms Subbe, who was accompanied by her parents, engineer Ian Williams and his wife Ellen, told the hearing her brother was on a three-year secondment in London but “as time went by his enthusiasm began to fade”.

He had already packed his bags and had spent an increasing number of weekends at his parents’ house in Anglesey, North Wales.

But MI6 had “dragged their feet” in approving his request to leave.

Ceri said in her statement: “I think the job was not quite what he had expected. There was a lot more red tape than he was comfortable with.”

She admitted he had not told her that he had completed two courses in fashion design at St Martin’s College in London.

Asked about £20,000 of women’s clothes found in his flat, she said it was “not particularly” surprising, adding that they were “possibly as a gift”.

She said he would not have let anyone into his flat unvetted and he had never told her he was being followed or felt threatened, adding: “I cannot think as to why anybody would want to harm him.”

His family want to know why the alarm was not raised when Mr Williams initially failed to turn up to work by colleagues, who described him as being as reliable as a “Swiss clock”.

By the time a police officer was sent to at the flat and the body was discovered, it was so decomposed that evidence had been lost.

Ms Subbe said he was a private man who was “very selective” in choosing friends, naming three as Sian Jones, her mother and a work colleague whose identity coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox ordered not to be revealed.

In his last conversation with her on August 13, he said he was that night going to see a transvestite comedian with his friend Sian.

His body was discovered 10 days later after Ceri raised the alarm.

PC John Gallagher said he had been on patrol on August 23 when he was told to carry out a “welfare check” on Mr Williams, who had not been seen for many days.

The front door was double-locked and he was let in by a property agent.

In the living room, PC Gallagher found a mobile phone and two SIM cards on a table and a laptop on the floor.

And he told the inquest: “My attention was drawn to a lady’s wig hanging on one of the corners of a chair.”

There were some full yellow sports holdalls in the bedroom – and then in the en-suite bathroom he noticed a bulging red North Face holdall in the bath with the zips padlocked together.

PC Gallagher said he only noticed the “particular smell” of a body when he tried to lift the bag up.

“It is unusual because normally you would expect to smell it earlier,” he said.

“I looked at the bag to try to get a picture. I noticed that the side nearest the door had a round bulge.

“I noticed there was a padlock with the two zips joined together.

“At this point I am realising it is something serious and my concern was to not damage anything in a crime scene.”

He lifted the bag up slightly and could see red fluid seeping out.

“Then there was the smell,” he told the hearing. “Probably as a result of moving the bag.”

Mr Williams’s death immediately prompted top-level discussions between murder and counter terrorism officers and MI6 were kept off the scene, it was said.

But Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell, from the Met’s homicide and serious crime command, stressed that MI6 co-operated fully.

Mr Williams’s family have claimed that “agents specialising in the dark arts of the secret service” had possibly cleaned the flat after his death to hide clues.

Det Chief Supt Campbell said: “I don’t think anyone was aware of Gareth and his death until he was found in the bath.”

Four intelligence agents will give evidence at the Westminster inquest from behind a screen to avoid the “real risk” of harm to national security.

Coroner Dr Wilcox today promised she would mount a “full, fair, and fearless inquiry into the evidence of this highly controversial death”.

The inquest continues.

Guardian : MI6 spy Gareth Williams complained of friction at work, inquest told

MI6 spy Gareth Williams complained of friction at work, inquest told

Sister says Williams disliked office culture and had been due to return to GCHQ one week after his body was found in holdall

Caroline Davies | April 23, 2012

Gareth Williams, the intelligence worker found dead in a padlocked holdall at his London flat, had requested a transfer from MI6 because he was unhappy and he had been due to move a week after his body was found, an inquest heard.

He had wanted to return to the intelligence agency GCHQ in Cheltenham after complaining of "friction" at work and his dislike of the "rat race", his sister, Ceri Subbe, told the Westminster coroner's court on the opening day of the inquest.

Williams, 31, a cipher and codes expert, was so secretive about his work that his parents and sister did not know the nature of his job. He was on a three-year secondment to MI6 when he was found in the locked bag in his bath on 25 August 2010.

Describing her brother as a cycling enthusiast and someone who was happiest "in the mountains" and engaged in outdoor pursuits, Subbe said: "He disliked office culture, post-work drinks, flash car competitions and the rat race. He even spoke of friction in the office."

PC John Gallagher was first on the scene at 5pm after Williams's family reported him missing. He said he searched the "extremely tidy" top-floor flat in Pimlico before noticing a red holdall in the bath in a bathroom that was devoid of toiletries.

"I noticed a bulge," he said, describing the bag as having the two zips padlocked together. He lifted the bag six or seven inches. "That's when I noticed some red fluid. It was seeping out of the bag," he said.

Williams's body was found in the bag, naked and decomposing.

Detective chief superintendent Hamish Campbell said he had been made aware later that evening of the nature of Williams's job with MI6, and that this had prompted senior level talks between homicide and counter-terrorism about the chain of the command in the investigation.

It was decided that homicide officers would conduct the investigation, with participation at senior level from the security intelligence services, and Campbell said Scotland Yard had full cooperation.

He added that he was not aware of MI5, MI6 or SO15 carrying out their own independent investigations into the death.

Inside Williams's rented flat, police found a woman's wig hanging on a chair, two sim cards, a mobile phone and a laptop. Designer women's clothing worth £20,000 was also discovered.

The flat was owned by a company called New Rodina, registered in the British Virgin Islands, but the tenancy had been taken over by the secretary of state in 2003, the inquest heard.

Williams had been in the process of packing up in preparation for his transfer.

The coroner, Fiona Wilcox, described Williams's death as highly controversial and said that four intelligence officers giving evidence would be given anonymity in the public interest. There would be "a real risk of harm to national security" and international relations, she said, if some of those giving evidence were identified.

Scotland Yard said it might have problems with allowing some exhibits to be released to the media.

A 21-month investigation into Williams's death has left detectives baffled, but Vincent Williams, a lawyer for the Metropolitan police, said the inquiry was ongoing and, though "not straightforward, it may at some stage result in criminal proceedings".

Asked whether she was surprised that £20,000 worth of women's clothing had been found at the flat, Williams's sister said she was not, as her brother had been generous and it was "possibly a gift".

In a statement, Subbe said: "In terms of a big brother figure, Gareth was perfect."

They were incredibly close as a family, she said, and he would visit his parents often. "It was impossible to do justice to Gareth's impressive character without meeting him."

The inquest heard that Williams had taken his O-levels aged 10 and had begun a degree course at Bangor University aged 16. He loved cycling and fell walking, said Subbe. "His passion was undoubtedly the mountains."

He was a scrupulous risk assessor, she said. He adored music, the theatre, the arts and fashion. He had undertaken two six-week design courses at Central St Martin's College in London.

His sister said he was secretive about his job. "Gareth didn't tell us what specifically he did as a job – of course we knew where he worked, but he didn't speak about it in any great detail," she said.

He was very strict about only allowing people who had been security vetted to visit his flat, she said, and would not have lent his keys to anyone.

Subbe said the family had not heard from Williams, who was originally from Anglesey, for 10 days before his body was found.

Subbe said her brother's job with MI6 had not been "not quite what he expected".

"He encountered more red tape than he was comfortable with," she said. In April 2010 he had applied to return to GCHQ earlier than had been planned, but MI6 "dragged their feet", eventually approving that he would return to the Cheltenham listening post on September 1 2010.

She said her brother had failed to turn up for a meeting he was supposed to chair on 16 August.

"He is very conscientious," she said, and MI6 had agreed he was like "a Swiss clock – very punctual, very efficient".

She added that the family wanted to know why the alarm was not raised when he initially failed to turn up at work. She also said her brother had never told her he was being followed, or felt threatened in any way.

"I cannot think as to why anybody would want to harm him," she said.

Williams's family urged the coroner not to release to the media video footage of a reconstruction – made for the purposes of the inquest – to establish if someone could lock themselves into a holdall.

Anthony O'Toole, a lawyer for Subbe and her parents, Ian and Ellen, who were at the inquest, said it would be "upsetting" for the family if the "speculative film were released".

At a pre-inquest hearing, the coroner heard that a battery of post-mortem tests had failed to determine how Williams died and that police had originally decided it would have been impossible for him to lock himself in the bag.

His family believe that by the time the officers arrived at his flat, his body was so decomposed that possible vital evidence was lost.

The hearing continues.

UKPA : MI6 spy 'unhappy with London job'

MI6 spy 'unhappy with London job'

April 23, 2012

An MI6 spy found dead in a sports bag had been unhappy living in London and complained about "friction" at the intelligence agency, an inquest has heard.

Gareth Williams, 31, of Anglesey, North Wales, hated the post-work drinking culture and "flash car competitions" at the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), his sister said.

He was due to move back to the West Country a week after his naked body was discovered padlocked inside a holdall in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, central London, on August 23 2010.

The inquest into Mr Williams's mysterious death began with evidence that Scotland Yard murder detectives were not able to speak to his MI6 colleagues directly. Instead specialist officers from the Metropolitan Police's SO15 counter-terrorism command had to carry out the interviews and produce anonymised statements.

Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell, from the Met's homicide and serious crime command, said police were not shown any internal inquiry by SIS into what happened to the brilliant codebreaker. But he stressed that MI6 co-operated fully with Scotland Yard, adding that he was not aware of MI5, MI6 or SO15 carrying out their own independent investigations into Mr Williams's death.

The spy's sister, Ceri Subbe, told the inquest her brother was excited when he began what was supposed to be a three-year secondment to MI6 from GCHQ, the Government listening station based in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.

But he missed the countryside and became disillusioned with the atmosphere at MI6's Vauxhall Cross headquarters in London. "He even spoke of friction in the office," Mrs Subbe said, adding: "The job was not quite what he expected. He encountered more red tape than he was comfortable with."

In April 2010 he applied to return to GCHQ earlier than planned. MI6 "dragged their feet" in approving his request but eventually agreed he could go back to Cheltenham on September 1 2010.

Mr Williams failed to turn up for a meeting at MI6 on August 16 2010, the inquest heard. Mrs Subbe said she discussed her brother's absence with one of his colleagues. She said: "He is very conscientious. The person I spoke to agreed, and said Gareth was like a Swiss clock - very punctual, very efficient, and it was very unlike him not to attend a meeting."

Paying tribute, she said he was "perfect" as a "big brother figure", adding: "It's impossible to do justice to Gareth's impressive character without meeting him." She told the inquest at Westminster Coroner's Court she did not believe Mr Williams would let a potential killer in his upmarket London flat, adding: "I cannot emphasise enough his conscientiousness".

Copyright © 2012 The Press Association. All rights reserved.

Calgary Herald : Inquest may unravel truth of spy in a bag

Inquest may unravel truth of spy in a bag

Killing could be personal or professional

By Patrick Sawer | The Telegraph | January 29, 2012

It remains one of the most baffling mysteries in the history of the secret services.

When the body of an MI6 spy was found locked in a large gym bag in the bath of his apartment in August 2010 it led to a rash of conspiracy theories, from the disturbing to the bizarre.

Nearly 18 months on, police have been unable to establish what led to the death of Gareth Williams, despite toxicology tests and an exhaustive investigation into his background.

But Dr. Fiona Wilcox, the recently-appointed coroner for Westminster, has decided that the time is right to attempt to record the first official account of what happened to the 31-year-old spy.

She will hold a Pre-Inquest Review (PIR) on March 29 at Horseferry Road Coroner's Court. A full inquest will begin three weeks later, probably at a larger venue, and is expected to last three to four days.

The PIR is required to establish who will give evidence and, crucially, in what form. Attending will be a member of Scotland Yard's investigation team and legal representatives of GCHQ and MI6. A solicitor is understood to have been appointed by Williams's parents, Ian and Ellen, to represent his family.

It is expected that some or all of the evidence from as many as 40 of Williams's colleagues will be held "in camera" to protect their identities and the content of their statements.

The spy's badly decomposed body was found on Aug. 23 at his flat in Pimlico.

The property was used by MI6 as a safe house. In what was apparently a secret services in-joke, the building was owned by a British Virgin Islands-registered company called New Rodina, meaning "new motherland" in Russian.

Williams had missed work for several days, but it was only when his sister, Ceri, called police from her home in Chester to say she had not heard from him in more than 10 days, that a constable went to the top-floor apartment.

He made a gruesome discovery. The flat was "spotless," but in the bath was a red holdall from which red liquid was seeping. It had been padlocked.

Inside, the officer found a body so contorted that he initially assumed the "legs and arms had been cut off." There were no signs of a struggle.

On a table were two iPhones, a number of SIM cards and an Apple notebook computer, suggesting it was not a robbery. News of the find - and its description by detectives as "a tidy job" - prompted speculation that Williams had fallen victim to a hit instigated by a foreign power.

Williams, a brilliant mathematician who took a degree course at Bangor university while in his early teens, had been seconded from GCHQ - the government's listening centre in Cheltenham - to MI6 to work on secret computer systems to detect and prevent cyber-attacks on Britain's banks and infrastructure and eavesdrop on terrorist communications.

At the time of his death it is believed he was researching British vulnerability to Russian, Turkish and Chinese gangs - any one of them capable of targeting him.

There was even talk that a couple, who appeared to be Mediterranean and claimed to have a key to his flat weeks before Williams's death, were Mossad agents. Police have been unable to trace the pair.

But in December 2010, Det. Chief Supt. Hamish Campbell, head of Scotland Yard's homicide command, said the killing was not linked to the spy's work, but his private life.

It was disclosed that Williams had viewed websites on bondage and visited gay clubs and detectives turned to the possibility that he died as a result of a sado-masochistic game, perhaps after his partner panicked and fled.

"We are very sure that someone else was in that flat," said Campbell.

Williams's family angrily denied suggestions that he would have behaved in that way. He was known to have attended drag shows and police disclosed that unworn women's dresses and wigs had been found in the wardrobe.

Sir John Sawers, the head of MI6, said Williams did "really valuable work with us in the cause of national security."

Some question what it was that he did for "the cause," and if it got him killed.

His family hopes the inquest will help answer that question.

© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald

Wales Online : Police probe dead Welsh MI6 spy’s bondage links

Police probe dead Welsh MI6 spy’s bondage links

by Paul Rowland, Wales On Sunday | December 26, 2010

REVELATIONS that mystery death spy Gareth Williams visited bondage websites before his death were “not intended to add salacious detail or tittle-tattle” or embarrass his family, senior officers have insisted.

The denial came after officers investigating the death of the 31-year-old MI6 codebreaker, from Anglesey, revealed he had viewed sites showing people bound and tied, which included do-it-yourself guides.

Detectives also found an unworn £15,000 collection of women’s designer clothing, including tops, dresses and shoes in his wardrobe.

They revealed he visited a drag cabaret in east London four days before his death and held tickets to two more. Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell said police hoped the details may encourage people to come forward.

He said: “This is not intended to add salacious detail or tittle-tattle. We feel there is a small sub-group of the community or individuals who may know something about this matter and the nature of Gareth’s death.

“They are embarrassing, hurtful and distressing for the family, but they are aware of the matters we are raising.”

Mr Campbell added that investigators are sure someone else involved with the bondage or gay scene has “linked in” with Mr Williams, but police “cannot find that trace”.

He said: “We are very sure someone else was in that flat.”

Mr Williams’ body was found in a padlocked holdall in the bath of his Pimlico flat on August 23. The keys were inside.

Express : WAS MI6 GENIUS KILLED BY COUPLE SPYING ON HIM?

WAS MI6 GENIUS KILLED BY COUPLE SPYING ON HIM?

Detectives believe Gareth Williams was not alone in his flat when he died.

By James Murray | December 26, 2010

MI6 codebreaker Gareth Williams may have been murdered because he was becoming suspicious of a ­mystery couple befriending him.

Spy chiefs have been forced to ­consider the theory that the young, Mediterranean-looking couple seen at his home weeks before he died could have been foreign agents targeting him because of his superb encryption skills.

They are considering the possibility that Williams, whose naked body was found locked in a bag in his bath, was under surveillance because he was living at an address known to be used by security ­service staff in Alderney Street, Pimlico, central London.

Experienced foreign agents would have quickly built up a ­profile of the 31-year-old keen club cyclist’s double life and then worked on a plan to get close to him by exploiting his weaknesses: drag cabaret, gay bars and expensive women’s clothing and wigs. They could have befriended him by striking up conversation in one of his regular haunts.

Their approach would have been ­tailored to appeal to his fantasies. Once they had gained his confidence, they would have tried to see what secrets they could get from him.

If the couple were foreign agents trying to unearth secrets, they would have kept the relationship going for as long as ­possible. Williams may have been murdered because he started to question his new friends and they, in turn, feared being unmasked as spies.

A security source said: “With more details emerging it is obvious to see why his bosses at MI6 and GCHQ are asking more and more questions about this couple.

“If they had an innocent relationship with him and perhaps shared some of his private interests then you think they would have come forward by now just to clear themselves.

“Experienced spies would not leave a trail, which could explain why the police are seemingly banging their heads against the wall.”

Police are trying to find out who ­Williams was socialising with and want to hear from ­anyone who was at the ­Bistrotheque in London’s East End on August 13, 10 days before he died. He bought two ­tickets for two other shows at the same venue, which suggests he may have struck up friendships there.

They also want to speak to anyone who saw him at the Barcode gay bar in Vauxhall, south London, in May, when there was an unconfirmed sighting of him. Inquiries are also ­continuing at the Central St Martins College in Clerkenwell, where he had enrolled on a fashion course.

Williams’s wardrobe contained £15,000 worth of women’s designer clothes, including shoes by Christian Louboutin and items by Stella McCartney and Christopher Kane. Police want to know where he bought the clothes and why.

The mystery woman who went to his flat with a man one evening in June or July could have bought or worn some of the clothes.

Detectives believe Mr Williams was not alone in his flat when he died.

On August 23 he was found naked in a zipped and padlocked red North Face holdall which was in an empty bath in the en‑suite bathroom. The keys to the bag were under his body inside the bag.

Detective Chief Superintendent ­Hamish Campbell said: “We are very sure someone else was in the flat so we need to know the circumstances where you leave someone in that ­position by accident or design. It is unexplained and suspicious.”

There were no traces of drugs, ­alcohol or poisons in his body. An inquest will be held at Westminister Coroner’s Court in February.

Sydney Morning Herald : MI6 spy's death may have been linked to interest in bondage

MI6 spy's death may have been linked to interest in bondage

Vikram Dodd | December 24, 2010

LONDON: British detectives believe the death of the MI6 spy Gareth Williams will be solved by getting an insight into his private life after they revealed he had visited bondage websites and a drag club and had £15,000 ($23,000) worth of unworn designer womenswear in his wardrobe.

Mr Williams's decomposed body was discovered in a padlocked bag in his apartment, about a kilometre from MI6 headquarters in London where he was a senior analyst.

Police believe he died a week earlier, early on August 16, and that someone else was present. Tests have shown no signs of a struggle or forced entry and no sign that he was drugged.

Scotland Yard's detectives gave their best account of Mr Williams's death. They revealed:

He used his iPhone to visit websites on bondage and escaping from bondage.

He must have been padlocked into the bag by someone else as it was impossible for him to have locked himself inside.

Once in the bag, with the keys inside, he could have survived for only 30 minutes.

Four days before his death, he went to a drag club called Bistrotheque in east London to see an act called Jimmy Woo, and had tickets for two similar performances at a pub in Vauxhall, near MI6 headquarters.

When Mr Williams's remains were found by police on August 23, they also discovered £15,000 of unworn women's clothing, wigs and shoes in his wardrobe.

Speculation has been rife that Mr Williams's highly secretive work might explain his death. He worked as an expert on codes at the government's eavesdropping centre in Cheltenham, in the west of England, before moving to MI6 on a secondment.

But Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell, the head of homicide at Scotland Yard, said: ''This is not linked to his work - it's his private life.''

He said police had been reluctant to make public details of Mr Williams's private life, knowing it could prove distressing to his family, but were doing so now because his lifestyle could be important to solving whether his death was a sex game gone wrong, manslaughter or murder.

Superintendent Campbell said: ''Somebody must have been there to secure him in the bag on a voluntary or involuntary basis. If someone was there and it was a voluntary activity gone wrong, why not cut him free or call an ambulance?

''The alternative scenario is there is maybe something more sinister to it. We just don't know.''

Montreal Gazette : Dead male, British spy owned wardrobe of women's clothes

Dead male, British spy owned wardrobe of women's clothes

By Duncan Gardham, Daily Telegraph | December 23, 2010

A British spy whose naked body was found padlocked in a sports bag had been visiting bondage websites and drag clubs and had $25,000 collection of women's clothing, police have disclosed.

Officers investigating the death of Gareth Williams, a code-breaker who was on secondment to MI6, have released details of his unusual private life and explained the extraordinary riddle that surrounds his death.

While the death is officially described as "suspicious" rather than murder, officers also released photos of a Mediterranean couple who visited the apartment a few weeks later and let themselves in with a key.

Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell, the head of Scotland Yard's murder squad, said he was aware that the details would be "embarrassing, hurtful and distressing" for Williams's family but said they supported the appeal for anyone who had encountered him in the nightclubs, online or at women's clothing shops to come forward.

"We are very sure that someone else was in that flat.

"We want to know the circumstances when you would leave somebody in that position, by accident or design," he said.

Detective Chief Inspector Jacqueline Sebire, who is leading the inquiry, described Williams, 31, from Anglesey in Wales, as an "intensely private person" who kept his way of life hidden from friends and family.

His body was found in a red North Face bag on Aug. 23 after he failed to turn up to work at MI6's headquarters in London.

Inside his flat in central London, police found half a dozen boxes with neatly folded, apparently unused women's designer clothing and shoes, along with a number of wigs.

The clothing had been bought online and in London's West End, starting in 2008 and up until a few weeks before Williams died.

They were in small sizes that would have fit Williams, who was five-foot-eight and weighed around 126 pounds.

The labels included Stella McCartney, Christopher Kane and Christian Louboutin shoes, and the collection came to around $25,000.

Williams was not in debt, police said, and there were no signs that unaccounted for sums of money had been paid in to or left his bank account.

Unknown to his family and colleagues, Williams had attended two short courses in fashion design, one in 2010 and one in 2009.

Examination of his personal laptop and personal mobile phone showed that he had visited five separate bondage websites, beginning with a search on the online encyclopedia site Wikipedia and followed up with specialist bondage websites.

Keys to the padlock on the sports bag in which Williams was discovered were lying underneath the spy's naked body, police say.

An expert on rescuing people from confined spaces told investigators it would be impossible to lock the North Face bag from the inside.

© Copyright (c) The Edmonton Journal

Scottish Daily Record : Revealed: MI6 spy found dead in a holdall loved bondage and had £15k hoard of women's designer clothes

Revealed: MI6 spy found dead in a holdall loved bondage and had £15k hoard of women's designer clothes

By Jon Clements | December 23, 2010

THE MI6 spy found dead in a padlocked bag lived a double life - spending £15,000 on women's clothes and visiting bondage websites.

Codebreaker Gareth Williams, a 31-year-old maths genius, owned Stella McCartney dresses, tops by Christopher Kane and Christian Louboutin shoes.

There is no evidence that Williams wore the clothes or some wigs he had bought - but he hid his interest in women's clothing from spy chiefs at the Government listening post GCHQ.

Detectives have found out that while tracking al-Qaeda suspects and countering Chinese hackers, Williams took two evening courses in ladies' fashion.

Drag Yesterday, police issued e-fits of a Mediterranean couple suspected of having a key to Williams's flat.

They revealed Williams visited bondage websites and researched tying himself up and escapology.

He also watched drag queen Jimmy Woo at east London bar Bistrotheque three days before he died and bought tickets for other acts at the gay pub.

But he is not known to have had any sexual partners and there is no evidence that he was gay.

Scotland Yard detectives believe Williams died in a sex game which went wrong when both keys to the padlock were left inside the bag. Officers released the details with the consent of the spy's grief-stricken family as part of a new appeal for information.

Detective Chief Super-intendent Hamish Campbell said: "We are trying to say if his death is a direct result of what we have seen on the internet, bondage sites, escape - that is not a wide community.

"This is trying to set out the plain facts, unpalatable as they are, embarrassing as they are, to someone in that world. It may be they meet on the net or at Bistrotheque and maybe someone came back to the flat with him."

Williams is believed to have died early on August 16 - a week before his body was found naked inside a waterproof North Face duffel bag. He was lying on his back with his legs bent under him and hands on his chest.

Dcs Campbell said: "We are very assured someone else was in the flat so we need to know the circumstances where you leave someone in that position.

"It is unexplained and suspicious."

Herald Scotland : Plea to gay community for help in explaining spy’s death

Plea to gay community for help in explaining spy’s death

Chris Greenwood | December 23, 2010

Mystery death spy Gareth Williams visited a series of bondage websites in the months before his bizarre death, police have revealed.

The MI6 codebreaker, whose naked, decomposing body was found in a padlocked holdall with the keys inside in the bath of his central London flat four months ago, had viewed sites showing people bound and tied. They included do-it-yourself guides to the fetish.

Police also found a £15,000 collection of unworn women’s designer clothing including tops, dresses and shoes in his wardrobe and revealed Mr Williams, 31, had visited a drag cabaret in east London four days before his death and held tickets to two more such events.

Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, who is leading the inquiry that has been delving into the life of the intensely private man, yesterday said she remained convinced someone else helped put him in the bag.

She told a news conference that a witness had seen him at a gay bar several months before his death, but police did not know for certain if he was gay.

She added that police believe they will get to the bottom of the spy’s death.

She said: “We remain completely open-minded about how he died. We are appealing today to someone who is out there to come forward and tell us more.”

The Government Communications Headquarters intelligence officer had been on a year-long secondment to the spy agency from the Government’s eavesdropping headquarters in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, which was due to end days after he was found dead on August 23.

He was discovered by police after he was reported missing. The discovery immediately sparked lurid speculation that included unfounded media reports he may have targeted by people with links to al Qaeda and the Taliban. Theories were put forward that he was killed by those who wanted to steal state secrets.

However, there were also a suggestion from the outset that he died following a sex game that had gone wrong and police have been concentrating on this line of inquiry.

No evidence of drugs, alcohol or poisons were found during a battery of tests conducted by toxicologists, said Ms Sebire, who also revealed police have forensic evidence that other people whom they have been unable to trace were in the flat.

Mr Williams, of Anglesey, North Wales, was last seen alive on August 15, eight days before he was found dead in the £400,000 property.

Mrs Sebire said the six boxes of unworn designer clothing found in a wardrobe included pieces by Stella McCartney, Christopher Kane and Christian Louboutin that had been bought at London boutiques and online.

She said the clothing was in various sizes, all small, and a number of women’s wigs were also found. The items had not been worn or hung up, the buttons were done up and items were still wrapped in paper.

However, Ms Sebire said Mr Williams attended two fashion design courses at Central St Martins College in the capital. His employers did not know he had taken part in or that he was interested in fashion.

She said it was a possibility the clothing purchases were linked to the diploma courses for beginners, which Mr Williams had passed.

Ms Sebire said analysis of Mr Williams’s phones and laptops revealed he visited no more than five bondage websites and had spent between 30 minutes and an hour on the sites from the end of last year until July, shortly before his death on August 16.

However, he did not appear “obsessed” with the subject and no other pornography was found in Alderney Street, she added.

She continued: “The sites primarily feature women and there are guides on how to do certain things.”

On the dead man’s sexuality, the lead officer said: “We do not have any evidence to suggest that he was gay. We have not spoken to any past or present sexual partner, whether male or female.

“We know he was intensely private, and however difficult this might be for someone who has had any interaction with Gareth, it would really help us if they came forward so we know if that side of his life had any relevance to his death.”

Mr Williams attended Bistroteque in the east end of London on Friday August 13. Police said the restaurant, bar and theatre venue hosted Jimmy Woo, a drag cabaret act, that night and the spy went alone.

Others who were at the event have told police Mr Williams chatted amicably with some of the audience.

Mr Williams, who lived alone, also held tickets for drag shows that took place after his death.

Detective Chief Superintendent Hamish Campbell said police hope that revealing some details of Mr Williams’ private life may encourage people to come forward.

He said: “This is not intended to add salacious detail or tittle-tattle. We feel there is some small sub-group of the community or individuals who may know something about this matter and the nature of Gareth’s death.

Mr Campbell added that investigators were sure someone else involved with the bondage or gay scene had “linked in” with Mr Williams.

He said: “We are very sure that someone else was in that flat. We want to know the circumstances when you would leave somebody in that position, by accident or design. Maybe, by explaining to the public, someone will think: ‘I get it and I can explain.”

Visiting pair are sought by detectives

MI6 spy Gareth Williams may have died at the hands of a mystery bondage sex partner he met on London’s gay scene, detectives have suggested.

Police have released two e-fits of a couple who they said they were visiting Mr Williams’s home in late June or July. The casually dressed Mediterranean couple, in their twenties, were buzzed through the communal entrance by another resident at the property in Pimlico.

They suggested they had been given a key by “Pierre Palo” and were on their way to flat four.

Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire said that an expert brought in to examine the red North Face holdall in which Mr Williams was found concluded he could not have locked it himself. The zip was held shut by a common travel-style Yale padlock through holes in two zip fasteners.

Tests found the temperature inside the bag would have risen to 30°C within three minutes. An expert on survivability in confined spaces from the National Policing Improvement Agency said he would have suffocated in 30 minutes.

She said Mr Williams probably died in the early hours of August 16, a week before he was found, and there was no sign of injury apart from bruising to his elbows, which might have occurred some time before his death.

Speaking about how Mr Williams ended up in the bag, Mrs Sebire said an expert found it was “quite easy” to fit someone inside. She said: “If he was alive, he got into it voluntarily or, if not, he was unconscious and placed in the bag.

“There is forensic evidence that indicates the presence of other people that we have not been able to eliminate yet.”

Mrs Sebire said there was no evidence Mr Williams was suicidal and no signs of forced entry at the flat. None of his possessions were laid out in a “ritualistic” manner, she added.

Mr Williams had a laptop and four mobile phones, including at least one pay-as-you go handset. The death remains suspicious and unexplained and no conclusive cause of death has been found. An inquest will be held at Westminster Coroner’s Court on February 15.

Mirror : Body in the bag spy Gareth Williams spent £15,000 on women's clothes and visited bondage websites

Body in the bag spy Gareth Williams spent £15,000 on women's clothes and visited bondage websites

by Jon Clements | December 23, 2010

THE MI6 codebreaker found dead in a padlocked bag had researched bondage websites – and spent £15,000 on women’s clothes, police revealed yesterday.

Maths genius Gareth Williams, 31, had visited four bondage sites and looked into how people escape after tying themselves up.

Det Chief Supt Hamish Campbell, investigating his bizarre death, said: “We’re trying to see if it was as a direct result of what we’ve seen on the net – bondage sites and escape.”

Officers released the details with the consent of the spy’s grief-stricken family as part of a new appeal for information.

They also said Mr Williams owned Stella McCartney dresses and Christian Louboutin designer shoes. He kept his interest in the clothes and wigs a secret – but there is no evidence he wore any of them.

Scotland Yard believes Mr Williams, who was found naked in his flat, died in a weird sex game which went wrong when both keys to the padlock were accidentally left in the bag.

Detectives say someone else must have been involved because it would have been impossible for Mr Williams to lock himself inside.

Det Chief Supt Campbell said: “We’re sure someone else was in the flat so need to know the circumstances where you leave someone in that position by accident or by design. It’s unexplained and suspicious.”

As police issued e-fits of a Mediterranean couple suspected of having a key to Mr Williams’ flat in Pimlico, Central London, other revelations about his private life were revealed. While he worked tracking al-Qaeda suspects at the government listening post at GCHQ in Cheltenham, Gloucs, Mr Williams took two evening courses in women’s fashion.

He saw drag queen Jimmy Woo at East London bar Bistrotheque three days before he died and bought tickets to two similar acts at a gay pub.

Police also said Mr Williams is not known to have had any sexual partners and there is no evidence he was gay.

The inquiry continues to focus on the man and woman buzzed into the block of flats a few weeks before he died.

An intelligence officer at the GCHQ-owned apartments spoke briefly to the couple and was told a man called Pier Paulo had given them the key. They went upstairs towards Mr Williams’ flat but were not seen going inside.

Det Chief Insp Jackie Sebire, who is leading the inquiry, said: “Gareth was an intensely private person and would not give his key to anybody, so the fact they had the key for his flat could be a very important detail in unlocking a part of his private life we’ve yet to uncover.”

Mr Williams, of Holyhead, Anglesey, is believed to have died on August 16, a week before his body was found inside the North Face bag. He was lying on his back with his legs bent under him and with his hands on his chest.

An expert in confined spaces from the National Policing Improvement Agency estimates that anyone inside the waterproof holdall would have run out of oxygen after half an hour.

Mr Williams was uninjured apart from small bruises on his elbows, and tests found there were no drugs, poison or alcohol in his system. His inquest takes place in February.

There were no signs of a disturbance at the apartment and nothing was missing.

Daily Star : MI6 BAG SPY 'DIED IN EX GAMES WITH MYSTERY COUPLE'

MI6 BAG SPY 'DIED IN EX GAMES WITH MYSTERY COUPLE'

By Emma Wall | 23rd December 2010

POLICE are hunting this mystery couple in connection with the death of spy-in-a-bag Gareth Williams.

The e-fits released yesterday show the pair believed to have visited his flat in the weeks before he died.

M16 codebreaker Gareth was found locked in a holdall with the keys inside at his London flat in August.

Investigators believe someone else fastened the padlock on the bag, pictured right, before leaving him in the bath.

The 31-year-old visited a series of bondage websites in the months before he died. Several showed people bound and tied, and included do-it-yourself guides.

A £15,000 collection of unworn women’s designer clothing was also found stashed in his wardrobe.

Police said Gareth visited a drag cabaret four days before his death and held tickets to two more. A witness also claims he was spotted at a popular gay bar.

Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire said she is convinced someone helped to put Gareth in the bag and believes the key to the mystery lies in his private life.

She said: “We are appealing today to someone who is out there to come forward and tell us more.”

GCHQ code-breaker Gareth, who had been on secondment to MI6, does not appear to have taken drugs or alcohol, nor does he appear to have been poisoned.

But forensic tests showed other people were in the flat. Police said the e-fit couple visited his home in late June or July.

The casually-dressed Mediterranean pair, in their 20s, were buzzed through the communal entrance by another resident.

Det Ch Supt Hamish Campbell said investigators were sure someone involved with the bondage or gay scene had “linked in” with Williams.

He said: “We are very sure that someone else was in that flat. We want to know the circumstances when you would leave somebody in that position, by accident or design.

“Maybe, by explaining to the public, someone will think: ‘I get it and I can explain.'”

DCI Sebire said police still did not know for certain that Gareth was gay and appealed for more information about his private life.

An inquest will be held at Westminster Coroner’s Court in February.

emma.wall@dailystar.co.uk