Spy found dead in bag 'had infuriated his MI6 bosses'
August 31, 2015
The British spy whose body was found padlocked inside a bag in his flat had illegally hacked into secret data on former U.S. president Bill Clinton, it has been revealed.
Gareth Williams, 31, was discovered in a holdall in the bath at his London home five years ago this month, but the mystery surrounding his death has never been solved.
Today, it has been revealed the spy had dug out a guest list for an event Clinton was due to attend as a favour for a friend.
The hack breached Mr Williams' security clearance and this sparked anger among MI6 bosses as tensions rose with U.S. security services over the spy's transatlantic work, The Sun on Sunday has reported.
A source said: "The Clinton diary hack came at a time when Williams' work with America was of the most sensitive nature.
"It was a diplomatic nightmare for Sir John Sawers, the new director of MI6 at the time."
The paper has also reported that voicemail messages Mr Williams, a maths genius and expert cryptographer, left for family and friends were deleted shortly after his death.
Earlier this month, it was revealed that detectives who investigated the mysterious death believe he was murdered and that his killers then broke back in through a skylight to cover their tracks.
The claim centres on the revelation that part of the forensic equipment placed in the flat after the body was found was moved - despite the fact the building was under armed police guard.
The theory supports his family's suspicions he was murdered by "agents specialising in the dark arts of the secret services".
Mr Williams had been working with the American National Security Agency in Washington before returning to London, where he underwent training and was sent on active operations.
The exact nature of his work remains a closely guarded secret, but sources claim he dealt with equipment that tracked the flow of cash from Russia to Europe.
The technology enabled MI6 to follow money trails from bank accounts in Russia to criminal European gangs. One theory is that Mr Williams had disrupted a mafia ring closely linked to the Russian state.
Cars registered to the Russian Embassy were spotted near his Pimlico flat just days before his body was discovered on August 23, 2010.
Mr Williams was last seen alive on August 15 - a Kremlin car was seen near his property that day.
Other lines of inquiry, also dismissed by the Metropolitan Police at the time, were that he was killed by MI6 or American agents after stumbling on sensitive data, or because he threatened to make secret intelligence public.
There were also claims Mr Williams may have been killed by a lover during a bizarre sex game.
Coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox, who heard the 2012 inquest into his death, criticised MI6 for failing to report that the spy had been missing for a week, saying this caused extra suffering for his family and led to the loss of forensic evidence.
The delay, for which MI6 apologised, also meant a Home Office pathologist was unable to find a cause of death.
Dr Wilcox concluded that Mr Williams's death was "unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated".
She said she was satisfied "on the balance of probabilities that Gareth was killed unlawfully", as it was likely someone else had put his body in the bag and locked it.
But a year later, Scotland Yard ended a review of the investigation, saying it was more likely Williams had locked himself in the bag and that no one else was involved.
This is despite there being no traces of Mr Williams' own DNA on the padlock of the bag he was found in. His palm prints were not found on the bathtub which held the bag.
Another theory was that Mr William's was poisoned. Former Detective Chief Inspector Colin Sutton was the most senior officer on the scene when he arrived at Mr Williams' flat in Pimlico on August 23, 2010.
He thought the flat was unusually warm when he arrived, claiming the heating was turned up to its maximum setting, possibly to assist with decomposition.
He said: "If he had been poisoned, then the chemical compounds might have vanished by the time toxicology results were conducted."
- Daily Mail
Showing posts with label Sir John Sawers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sir John Sawers. Show all posts
New Zealand Herald : Spy found dead in bag 'had infuriated his MI6 bosses'
Monday, August 31, 2015
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Sun : Clinton secrets hacked by spy in bag
Sunday, August 30, 2015
Clinton secrets hacked by spy in bag
August 30, 2015
THE MI6 spy found dead in a holdall had illegally hacked into secret data on Bill Clinton, The Sun on Sunday can reveal.
Gareth Williams, 31, dug out the guestlist for an event the former American president was going to as a favour for a pal.
The codebreaker — who had breached his security clearance — handed the list to the friend, who was also to be a guest.
MI6 bosses raged over the data breach amid growing tensions with US security services over Mr Williams’s transatlantic work.
Today, just over five years since his body was found inside a padlocked bag, his death remains one of Britain’s most mysterious unsolved cases.
The Sun on Sunday can reveal that voicemail messages Mr Williams left for family and pals were deleted in the days after his death. And a rival agent may also have broken into the flat to destroy or remove evidence.
The inquest was barred from discussing Mr Williams’s work in public. But sources say he was helping on the joint monitoring network Echelon, which uses sophisticated programs to eavesdrop on terrorists and criminal gangs, particularly those in Russia.
Echelon is used by Britain, the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
A source said: “The Clinton diary hack came at a time when Williams’s work with America was of the most sensitive nature.
“It was a diplomatic nightmare for Sir John Sawers, the new director of MI6 at the time.”
Insiders claim Mr Williams, who had been given a second passport with a fresh identity, was also getting fed up with living a secret life. He is said to have loathed his spy training after having his wrist broken during one hardcore session.
One insider said: “Williams’s state of mind in the months before his death was worrying those closest to him.
“He found the training so stressful and his mood blackened even talking about it.
“Typically he’d be asked to learn a new identity then report to a country hotel to meet an interrogation team. There he would be grilled about his new ID for 48 hours without sleep.
“His wrist was broken once after he was handcuffed to a metal bar inside a van that was driven around the country for several hours while he faced a barrage of questions.”
His sister Ceri Subbe also told the inquest he did not enjoy the “flash car competition and post-work drinking culture” of MI6.
He had applied to return to GCHQ, in Cheltenham, but bosses were slow in approving this.
Mr Williams, a keen cyclist originally from Anglesey, North Wales, died shortly after returning from a hacking conference in America.
He had been to see a drag queen show by himself two days before he was last seen alive, on August 15, 2010.
Eight days later his naked body was found folded into the 32in by 19in bag placed in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, central London.
His mobile phone and sim cards were laid out on a table. The last computer evidence of him being alive showed him looking at a cycling website.
Detectives are still baffled as to how the maths genius and expert cryptographer died.
An initial line of inquiry was that he was killed by a jealous lover. Yet there were no signs of forced entry to the flat.
In 2012, lawyers for his family said he could have been killed by someone who specialised in the “dark arts of the secret services”. The police did not rule out his intelligence work playing a part in his death.
They thought he may have been stuffed in the bag by killers who later broke back in to cover their tracks.
Investigators also suspect the flat had been “steam-cleaned”, which would explain why no DNA evidence was found.
The nature of Mr Williams’s work remains a secret, but sources claim he dealt with equipment that tracked the flow of cash from Russia to Europe. The technology let MI6 follow money trails from accounts in Russia to criminal gangs.
A Kremlin car was spotted near his home on the day he was last seen alive.
Police also issued e-fits of a “Mediterranean” couple said to have visited Mr Williams in either June or July.
Coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox, who heard the 2012 inquest into his death, criticised MI6 for failing to report Mr Williams missing for a week. The delay meant a Home Office pathologist was unable to find a cause of death.
Dr Wilcox concluded that Mr Williams’s death was “unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated”.
She ruled out his interest in bondage and drag queens as having any bearing, adding: “I wonder if this was an attempt by some third party to manipulate the evidence.”
She also dismissed speculation that Mr Williams died due to some kind of “auto-erotic activity” and denied he had any interest in claustrophilia, the love of enclosed spaces.
Experts said even escapologist Harry Houdini would have struggled to lock himself in the bag. Pathologists said Mr Williams would have suffocated within three minutes if he was still alive when put in there.
Yet a year later, Scotland Yard ended a review of the investigation, saying it was more likely Mr Williams had locked himself in the bag and no one else was involved. The announcement angered Mr Williams’s family, who said they stood by the coroner’s findings.
Last night a Met spokesman said: “The death of Gareth Williams was subject to a thorough investigation and coroner’s inquest. We are not prepared to speculate.”
tom.morgan@the-sun.co.uk
August 30, 2015
THE MI6 spy found dead in a holdall had illegally hacked into secret data on Bill Clinton, The Sun on Sunday can reveal.
Gareth Williams, 31, dug out the guestlist for an event the former American president was going to as a favour for a pal.
The codebreaker — who had breached his security clearance — handed the list to the friend, who was also to be a guest.
MI6 bosses raged over the data breach amid growing tensions with US security services over Mr Williams’s transatlantic work.
Today, just over five years since his body was found inside a padlocked bag, his death remains one of Britain’s most mysterious unsolved cases.
The Sun on Sunday can reveal that voicemail messages Mr Williams left for family and pals were deleted in the days after his death. And a rival agent may also have broken into the flat to destroy or remove evidence.
The inquest was barred from discussing Mr Williams’s work in public. But sources say he was helping on the joint monitoring network Echelon, which uses sophisticated programs to eavesdrop on terrorists and criminal gangs, particularly those in Russia.
Echelon is used by Britain, the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
A source said: “The Clinton diary hack came at a time when Williams’s work with America was of the most sensitive nature.
“It was a diplomatic nightmare for Sir John Sawers, the new director of MI6 at the time.”
Insiders claim Mr Williams, who had been given a second passport with a fresh identity, was also getting fed up with living a secret life. He is said to have loathed his spy training after having his wrist broken during one hardcore session.
One insider said: “Williams’s state of mind in the months before his death was worrying those closest to him.
“He found the training so stressful and his mood blackened even talking about it.
“Typically he’d be asked to learn a new identity then report to a country hotel to meet an interrogation team. There he would be grilled about his new ID for 48 hours without sleep.
“His wrist was broken once after he was handcuffed to a metal bar inside a van that was driven around the country for several hours while he faced a barrage of questions.”
His sister Ceri Subbe also told the inquest he did not enjoy the “flash car competition and post-work drinking culture” of MI6.
He had applied to return to GCHQ, in Cheltenham, but bosses were slow in approving this.
Mr Williams, a keen cyclist originally from Anglesey, North Wales, died shortly after returning from a hacking conference in America.
He had been to see a drag queen show by himself two days before he was last seen alive, on August 15, 2010.
Eight days later his naked body was found folded into the 32in by 19in bag placed in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, central London.
His mobile phone and sim cards were laid out on a table. The last computer evidence of him being alive showed him looking at a cycling website.
Detectives are still baffled as to how the maths genius and expert cryptographer died.
An initial line of inquiry was that he was killed by a jealous lover. Yet there were no signs of forced entry to the flat.
In 2012, lawyers for his family said he could have been killed by someone who specialised in the “dark arts of the secret services”. The police did not rule out his intelligence work playing a part in his death.
They thought he may have been stuffed in the bag by killers who later broke back in to cover their tracks.
Investigators also suspect the flat had been “steam-cleaned”, which would explain why no DNA evidence was found.
The nature of Mr Williams’s work remains a secret, but sources claim he dealt with equipment that tracked the flow of cash from Russia to Europe. The technology let MI6 follow money trails from accounts in Russia to criminal gangs.
A Kremlin car was spotted near his home on the day he was last seen alive.
Police also issued e-fits of a “Mediterranean” couple said to have visited Mr Williams in either June or July.
Coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox, who heard the 2012 inquest into his death, criticised MI6 for failing to report Mr Williams missing for a week. The delay meant a Home Office pathologist was unable to find a cause of death.
Dr Wilcox concluded that Mr Williams’s death was “unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated”.
She ruled out his interest in bondage and drag queens as having any bearing, adding: “I wonder if this was an attempt by some third party to manipulate the evidence.”
She also dismissed speculation that Mr Williams died due to some kind of “auto-erotic activity” and denied he had any interest in claustrophilia, the love of enclosed spaces.
Experts said even escapologist Harry Houdini would have struggled to lock himself in the bag. Pathologists said Mr Williams would have suffocated within three minutes if he was still alive when put in there.
Yet a year later, Scotland Yard ended a review of the investigation, saying it was more likely Mr Williams had locked himself in the bag and no one else was involved. The announcement angered Mr Williams’s family, who said they stood by the coroner’s findings.
Last night a Met spokesman said: “The death of Gareth Williams was subject to a thorough investigation and coroner’s inquest. We are not prepared to speculate.”
tom.morgan@the-sun.co.uk
Theories and evidence
— Killed by a rival spy agency. Police issued e-fit of visiting couple.
— Murdered by a jealous lover. No sign of a break-in at Pimlico flat.
— He may have got a sexual kick from being left helpless.
— Coroner says death “unlawful” and “likely criminally mediated”.
— Yard review later said it was probably an accident with no one else present.
Filed under
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Sir John Sawers
by Winter Patriot
on Sunday, August 30, 2015 |
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Mirror : MI6 spy found in holdall 'hacked into secret data about Bill Clinton'
Sunday, August 30, 2015
MI6 spy found in holdall 'hacked into secret data about Bill Clinton'
Human Mole Peter Faulding who has cracked some of the greatest mysteries and now he reveals why he thinks there was foul play involved in the spy in the holdall
By Sam Webb | August 30, 2015
MI6 spy Gareth Williams hacked into restricted information about former US President Bill Clinton, it has been claimed.
The 31-year-old codebreaker was discovered inside a padlocked bag in a bathtub at his London home in 2010, sparking a real-life mystery worthy of any 007 thriller.
Theories about the maths genius with a taste for cross-dressing included that he was killed by foreign spooks, eliminated by fellow agents and suffocated when a sex game went disastrously wrong.
Now it is claimed he illegally obtained a guest list for an event attended by Mr Clinton as a favour for a friend who was going.
A source told the Sun on Sunday: "The Clinton diary hack came at a time when Williams’s work with America was of the most sensitive nature.
"It was a diplomatic nightmare for Sir John Sawers, the new director of MI6 at the time."
In 2013 after a three-year investigation – and despite a coroner’s ruling that Mr Williams was killed unlawfully – the Metropolitan Police decided he had locked himself inside the red holdall and no one else was involved.
But last week it was shockingly claimed unknown secret service agents could have killed the Welsh cryptographer after all – breaking in to his London flat through a skylight to clean evidence from the crime scene right under the noses of police.
A source close to the investigation revealed forensic officers noticed equipment left in the Pimlico flat had been moved, despite it being under armed guard.
Peter Faulding is the expert witness who tried – and failed – more than 300 times to fold himself into an identical bag and lock it from the outside.
A Red North face Bag similar to the one in which the body of MI6 codebreaker Gareth Williams was found in
Body: A Red North face Bag similar to the one in which the body of MI6 codebreaker Gareth Williams was found in
Peter, who at 5ft 6in is a similar height and build, told the inquest into Mr Williams’ death it was “an unbelievable scenario” he could have got into alone, and even escapologist Harry Houdini would have struggled.
And the latest claims have fuelled his conviction the spy was murdered in “the perfect crime”.
Peter, 52, says: “If Gareth Williams had got into that bag as part of a weird sex game he would surely have had a knife with him in case things went wrong.
“It was summer time but the heating was turned up. His iPhone was completely wiped, the bathroom door was closed, the shower screen was closed, the lights were off and the keys to the padlock were under his body.
“There was unidentified DNA found – but none of Gareth’s own DNA on the padlock, the zipper, or the bath screen, and no palm prints on the bath from lowering himself in. Nothing.
“I think it is perfectly feasible that experts in covert entry got back in across the rooftops and removed forensic evidence. Unless the flat was monitored electronically no one would have known.”
Peter, a world leader in confined spaces rescues, a specialist in underground and underwater searches and an expert witness on suffocation, went on: “I got someone to zip me into the bag with oxygen monitors and worked out how long it would have taken for Gareth to suffocate – within 30 minutes.
“Then I tried to get into the bag and zip it closed. I managed that, but there was no way I could have put the padlock on the outside too. I told the coroner I believe he was dead before he was put in the bag – that he was murdered.”
The Metropolitan Police said Mr Williams' death had been "subject to a thorough investigation" and inquests, and they were "not prepared to speculate".
Human Mole Peter Faulding who has cracked some of the greatest mysteries and now he reveals why he thinks there was foul play involved in the spy in the holdall
By Sam Webb | August 30, 2015
MI6 spy Gareth Williams hacked into restricted information about former US President Bill Clinton, it has been claimed.
The 31-year-old codebreaker was discovered inside a padlocked bag in a bathtub at his London home in 2010, sparking a real-life mystery worthy of any 007 thriller.
Theories about the maths genius with a taste for cross-dressing included that he was killed by foreign spooks, eliminated by fellow agents and suffocated when a sex game went disastrously wrong.
Now it is claimed he illegally obtained a guest list for an event attended by Mr Clinton as a favour for a friend who was going.
A source told the Sun on Sunday: "The Clinton diary hack came at a time when Williams’s work with America was of the most sensitive nature.
"It was a diplomatic nightmare for Sir John Sawers, the new director of MI6 at the time."
In 2013 after a three-year investigation – and despite a coroner’s ruling that Mr Williams was killed unlawfully – the Metropolitan Police decided he had locked himself inside the red holdall and no one else was involved.
But last week it was shockingly claimed unknown secret service agents could have killed the Welsh cryptographer after all – breaking in to his London flat through a skylight to clean evidence from the crime scene right under the noses of police.
A source close to the investigation revealed forensic officers noticed equipment left in the Pimlico flat had been moved, despite it being under armed guard.
Peter Faulding is the expert witness who tried – and failed – more than 300 times to fold himself into an identical bag and lock it from the outside.
A Red North face Bag similar to the one in which the body of MI6 codebreaker Gareth Williams was found in
Body: A Red North face Bag similar to the one in which the body of MI6 codebreaker Gareth Williams was found in
Peter, who at 5ft 6in is a similar height and build, told the inquest into Mr Williams’ death it was “an unbelievable scenario” he could have got into alone, and even escapologist Harry Houdini would have struggled.
And the latest claims have fuelled his conviction the spy was murdered in “the perfect crime”.
Peter, 52, says: “If Gareth Williams had got into that bag as part of a weird sex game he would surely have had a knife with him in case things went wrong.
“It was summer time but the heating was turned up. His iPhone was completely wiped, the bathroom door was closed, the shower screen was closed, the lights were off and the keys to the padlock were under his body.
“There was unidentified DNA found – but none of Gareth’s own DNA on the padlock, the zipper, or the bath screen, and no palm prints on the bath from lowering himself in. Nothing.
“I think it is perfectly feasible that experts in covert entry got back in across the rooftops and removed forensic evidence. Unless the flat was monitored electronically no one would have known.”
Peter, a world leader in confined spaces rescues, a specialist in underground and underwater searches and an expert witness on suffocation, went on: “I got someone to zip me into the bag with oxygen monitors and worked out how long it would have taken for Gareth to suffocate – within 30 minutes.
“Then I tried to get into the bag and zip it closed. I managed that, but there was no way I could have put the padlock on the outside too. I told the coroner I believe he was dead before he was put in the bag – that he was murdered.”
The Metropolitan Police said Mr Williams' death had been "subject to a thorough investigation" and inquests, and they were "not prepared to speculate".
Filed under
Bill Clinton,
Peter Faulding,
Sir John Sawers
by Winter Patriot
on Sunday, August 30, 2015 |
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TSWKTM home |
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WP home
Daily Mail : Spy found dead in a bag 'had infuriated his MI6 bosses by illegally hacking into secret US data on Bill Clinton'
Sunday, August 30, 2015
Spy found dead in a bag 'had infuriated his MI6 bosses by illegally hacking into secret US data on Bill Clinton'
Gareth Williams's body was found in a bag at his London flat five years ago
Spy illegally hacked into secret data on former U.S. president Bill Clinton
Personal voicemail messages left by the spy were deleted after he died
By Jenny Stanton | August 30, 2015
The British spy whose body was found padlocked inside a bag in his flat had illegally hacked into secret data on former U.S. president Bill Clinton, it has been revealed.
Gareth Williams, 31, was discovered in a holdall in the bath at his London home five years ago this month, but the mystery surrounding his death has never been solved.
Today, it has been revealed the spy had dug out a guest list for an event Clinton was due to attend as a favour for a friend.
The hack breached Mr Williams' security clearance and this sparked anger among MI6 bosses as tensions rose with U.S. security services over the spy's transatlantic work, The Sun on Sunday has reported.
A source said: 'The Clinton diary hack came at a time when Williams' work with America was of the most sensitive nature.
'It was a diplomatic nightmare for Sir John Sawers, the new director of MI6 at the time.'
The paper has also reported that voicemail messages Mr Williams, a maths genius and expert cryptographer, left for family and friends were deleted shortly after his death.
Earlier this month, it was revealed that detectives who investigated the mysterious death believe he was murdered and that his killers then broke back in through a skylight to cover their tracks.
The claim centres on the revelation that part of the forensic equipment placed in the flat after the body was found was moved – despite the fact the building was under armed police guard.
The theory supports his family’s suspicions he was murdered by ‘agents specialising in the dark arts of the secret services’.
Mr Williams had been working with the American National Security Agency in Washington before returning to London, where he underwent training and was sent on active operations.
The exact nature of his work remains a closely guarded secret, but sources claim he dealt with equipment that tracked the flow of cash from Russia to Europe.
The technology enabled MI6 to follow money trails from bank accounts in Russia to criminal European gangs. One theory is that Mr Williams had disrupted a mafia ring closely linked to the Russian state.
Cars registered to the Russian Embassy were spotted near his Pimlico flat just days before his body was discovered on August 23, 2010.
Mr Williams was last seen alive on August 15 – a Kremlin car was seen near his property that day.
Other lines of inquiry, also dismissed by the Metropolitan Police at the time, were that he was killed by MI6 or American agents after stumbling on sensitive data, or because he threatened to make secret intelligence public.
There were also claims Mr Williams may have been killed by a lover during a bizarre sex game.
Coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox, who heard the 2012 inquest into his death, criticised MI6 for failing to report that the spy had been missing for a week, saying this caused extra suffering for his family and led to the loss of forensic evidence.
The delay, for which MI6 apologised, also meant a Home Office pathologist was unable to find a cause of death.
Dr Wilcox concluded that Mr Williams’s death was ‘unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated’.
She said she was satisfied ‘on the balance of probabilities that Gareth was killed unlawfully’, as it was likely someone else had put his body in the bag and locked it.
But a year later, Scotland Yard ended a review of the investigation, saying it was more likely Williams had locked himself in the bag and that no one else was involved.
This is despite there being no traces of Mr Williams' own DNA on the padlock of the bag he was found in. His palm prints were not found on the bathtub which held the bag.
Another theory was that Mr William's was poisoned. Former Detective Chief Inspector Colin Sutton was the most senior officer on the scene when he arrived at Mr Williams' flat in Pimlico on August 23, 2010.
He thought the flat was unusually warm when he arrived, claiming the heating was turned up to its maximum setting, possibly to assist with decomposition.
He said: 'If he had been poisoned, then the chemical compounds might have vanished by the time toxicology results were conducted.'
Gareth Williams's body was found in a bag at his London flat five years ago
Spy illegally hacked into secret data on former U.S. president Bill Clinton
Personal voicemail messages left by the spy were deleted after he died
By Jenny Stanton | August 30, 2015
The British spy whose body was found padlocked inside a bag in his flat had illegally hacked into secret data on former U.S. president Bill Clinton, it has been revealed.
Gareth Williams, 31, was discovered in a holdall in the bath at his London home five years ago this month, but the mystery surrounding his death has never been solved.
Today, it has been revealed the spy had dug out a guest list for an event Clinton was due to attend as a favour for a friend.
The hack breached Mr Williams' security clearance and this sparked anger among MI6 bosses as tensions rose with U.S. security services over the spy's transatlantic work, The Sun on Sunday has reported.
A source said: 'The Clinton diary hack came at a time when Williams' work with America was of the most sensitive nature.
'It was a diplomatic nightmare for Sir John Sawers, the new director of MI6 at the time.'
The paper has also reported that voicemail messages Mr Williams, a maths genius and expert cryptographer, left for family and friends were deleted shortly after his death.
Earlier this month, it was revealed that detectives who investigated the mysterious death believe he was murdered and that his killers then broke back in through a skylight to cover their tracks.
The claim centres on the revelation that part of the forensic equipment placed in the flat after the body was found was moved – despite the fact the building was under armed police guard.
The theory supports his family’s suspicions he was murdered by ‘agents specialising in the dark arts of the secret services’.
Mr Williams had been working with the American National Security Agency in Washington before returning to London, where he underwent training and was sent on active operations.
The exact nature of his work remains a closely guarded secret, but sources claim he dealt with equipment that tracked the flow of cash from Russia to Europe.
The technology enabled MI6 to follow money trails from bank accounts in Russia to criminal European gangs. One theory is that Mr Williams had disrupted a mafia ring closely linked to the Russian state.
Cars registered to the Russian Embassy were spotted near his Pimlico flat just days before his body was discovered on August 23, 2010.
Mr Williams was last seen alive on August 15 – a Kremlin car was seen near his property that day.
Other lines of inquiry, also dismissed by the Metropolitan Police at the time, were that he was killed by MI6 or American agents after stumbling on sensitive data, or because he threatened to make secret intelligence public.
There were also claims Mr Williams may have been killed by a lover during a bizarre sex game.
Coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox, who heard the 2012 inquest into his death, criticised MI6 for failing to report that the spy had been missing for a week, saying this caused extra suffering for his family and led to the loss of forensic evidence.
The delay, for which MI6 apologised, also meant a Home Office pathologist was unable to find a cause of death.
Dr Wilcox concluded that Mr Williams’s death was ‘unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated’.
She said she was satisfied ‘on the balance of probabilities that Gareth was killed unlawfully’, as it was likely someone else had put his body in the bag and locked it.
But a year later, Scotland Yard ended a review of the investigation, saying it was more likely Williams had locked himself in the bag and that no one else was involved.
This is despite there being no traces of Mr Williams' own DNA on the padlock of the bag he was found in. His palm prints were not found on the bathtub which held the bag.
Another theory was that Mr William's was poisoned. Former Detective Chief Inspector Colin Sutton was the most senior officer on the scene when he arrived at Mr Williams' flat in Pimlico on August 23, 2010.
He thought the flat was unusually warm when he arrived, claiming the heating was turned up to its maximum setting, possibly to assist with decomposition.
He said: 'If he had been poisoned, then the chemical compounds might have vanished by the time toxicology results were conducted.'
THEORIES SURROUNDING SPY GARETH WILLIAMS' DEATH
The Russian mafia assassinated him in a bid to stop him investigating money-laundering networks.
He was killed by MI6 or American agents after stumbling on sensitive data, or because he threatened to make secret intelligence public.
Mr Williams was killed by a lover during a bizarre sex game. It has been claimed he had close links with London's drag and bondage scenes.
The spy locked himself in the bag and no one else was involved.
He was poisoned.
Agents killed Mr Williams then got into his flat through a skylight to destroy evidence.
Filed under
Bill Clinton,
Sir John Sawers
by Winter Patriot
on Sunday, August 30, 2015 |
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Wales Online : Claims that Welsh MI6 spy who was found dead in holdall 'hacked into secret data about Bill Clinton'
Sunday, August 30, 2015
Claims that Welsh MI6 spy who was found dead in holdall 'hacked into secret data about Bill Clinton'
Gareth Williams, from Anglesey, was found dead in a padlockled bag in his flat in 2010 and his death remains a mystery
August 30, 2015
MI6 spy Gareth Williams, who was found dead in a holdall, hacked into restricted information about former US President Bill Clinton, it has been claimed.
The 31-year-old from Valley, near Holyhead on Anglesey, was discovered inside a padlocked bag in a bath at his London home in 2010 and his death remains a mystery.
Theories surrounding his death include speculation that he was killed by fellow agents or suffocated during a sex game that went wrong.
Now it has been claimed that he illegally obtained a guest list for an event attended by Mr Clinton as a favour for a friend who was going.
'Diplomatic nightmare'
A source told the Sun on Sunday: “The Clinton diary hack came at a time when Williams’ work with America was of the most sensitive nature.
“It was a diplomatic nightmare for Sir John Sawers, the new director of MI6 at the time.”
In 2013, following a three-year investigation, the Metropolitan Police concluded he had locked himself inside the red holdall and no one else was involved.
In contrast, a coroner ruled that Mr Williams had been killed unlawfully.
'Evidence moved'
Last week it was claimed that unknown secret service agents could have broken into his London flat through a skylight to clean evidence from the crime scene.
A source close to the investigation said forensic officers noticed equipment left in the Pimlico flat had been moved, despite the property being under armed guard.
The source claimed special footplates, which allow officers to walk across the crime scene without contaminating evidence, appeared to have been moved on the first day of the investigation.
Detectives suggested that someone had scaled the walls of the building and climbed in through the skylight to get access to evidence left behind.
It supports Mr Williams’ family’s theory that he was murdered by secret service agents.
'Unlawful killing' - coroner's verdict
The claims also tie in with a coroner’s inquest into the death which said he was “unlawfully killed”.
A Scotland Yard review into the death of Mr Williams said he was likely to have died alone and may have been taking part in a lone sex game.
The Metropolitan Police said Mr Williams’ death had been “subject to a thorough investigation” and inquests, and they were “not prepared to speculate”.
Gareth Williams, from Anglesey, was found dead in a padlockled bag in his flat in 2010 and his death remains a mystery
August 30, 2015
MI6 spy Gareth Williams, who was found dead in a holdall, hacked into restricted information about former US President Bill Clinton, it has been claimed.
The 31-year-old from Valley, near Holyhead on Anglesey, was discovered inside a padlocked bag in a bath at his London home in 2010 and his death remains a mystery.
Theories surrounding his death include speculation that he was killed by fellow agents or suffocated during a sex game that went wrong.
Now it has been claimed that he illegally obtained a guest list for an event attended by Mr Clinton as a favour for a friend who was going.
'Diplomatic nightmare'
A source told the Sun on Sunday: “The Clinton diary hack came at a time when Williams’ work with America was of the most sensitive nature.
“It was a diplomatic nightmare for Sir John Sawers, the new director of MI6 at the time.”
In 2013, following a three-year investigation, the Metropolitan Police concluded he had locked himself inside the red holdall and no one else was involved.
In contrast, a coroner ruled that Mr Williams had been killed unlawfully.
'Evidence moved'
Last week it was claimed that unknown secret service agents could have broken into his London flat through a skylight to clean evidence from the crime scene.
A source close to the investigation said forensic officers noticed equipment left in the Pimlico flat had been moved, despite the property being under armed guard.
The source claimed special footplates, which allow officers to walk across the crime scene without contaminating evidence, appeared to have been moved on the first day of the investigation.
Detectives suggested that someone had scaled the walls of the building and climbed in through the skylight to get access to evidence left behind.
It supports Mr Williams’ family’s theory that he was murdered by secret service agents.
'Unlawful killing' - coroner's verdict
The claims also tie in with a coroner’s inquest into the death which said he was “unlawfully killed”.
A Scotland Yard review into the death of Mr Williams said he was likely to have died alone and may have been taking part in a lone sex game.
The Metropolitan Police said Mr Williams’ death had been “subject to a thorough investigation” and inquests, and they were “not prepared to speculate”.
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Daily Mail : Search for the new 'C' as MI6 chief steps down: Sir John Sawers to leave post in November after five years in charge
Friday, June 27, 2014
Search for the new 'C' as MI6 chief steps down: Sir John Sawers to leave post in November after five years in charge
* First M16 chief to be chosen from outside the service in 41 years
* Compared to James Bond because of his suave manner and good looks
* Leaves following damaging revelations by Edward Snowden
By Ian Drury | June 27, 2014
The Foreign Office is searching for a new spy chief after it was announced Sir John Sawers, the head of MI6, is stepping down.
The boss of Britain's overseas intelligence services – traditionally known as ‘C’ – will leave the post in November after five years.
Sir John – often compared to James Bond for his suave manner and good looks – had tried to lift the veil of secrecy surrounding MI6 and was its first head to give a public speech.
But his departure comes after a rocky year in which the three British intelligence services – the others are MI5 and GCHQ – were thrown into disarray by CIA whistleblower Edward Snowden's revelations about surveillance.
Only one – Andrew Parker, the director general of the domestic spy agency – will be left. Officials said Sir John’s departure was not linked to the Snowden disclosures.
Sir John was the first MI6 chief to be chosen from outside the service for 41 years.
His appointment was opposed by senior spies who believed it was an attempt by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to increase its influence after the Iraq debacle, when the intelligence agencies claimed Iraq had stockpiled weapons of mass destruction.
Sir John, 58, is a career diplomat who has also worked as an envoy in Baghdad and as foreign affairs adviser to former Prime Minister Tony Blair.
But he was no stranger to the world of espionage, having trained with MI6 at the start of his career before joining the FCO.
Last year he told an intelligence committee hearing the Snowden revelations had been very damaging. ‘They have put our operations at risk. It is clear our adversaries are rubbing their hands with glee. Al-Qaeda is lapping it up,’ he said.
In 2012, MI6 was also in the spotlight when a coroner criticised spies for hampering the police investigation into the death of Gareth Williams, a GCHQ employee seconded to the agency who was found dead in a holdall in a London flat.
Even though he presided over a secret service, Sir John was accidentally exposed by his wife, Shelley, on the internet shortly after being appointed to the top job.
To the astonishment of spy-watchers, personal photographs posted on Facebook showing the spy chief on a beach in tight-fitting swimming trunks. Other potentially compromising details about where the family live and work, who their friends are and where they spend their holidays were posted.
The names of serving members of MI6 other than its head are secret, so a speculative list of potential successors will not be made public. But one candidate could be Charles Farr, director of the Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism (OSCT), a close ally of Home secretary Theresa May.
* First M16 chief to be chosen from outside the service in 41 years
* Compared to James Bond because of his suave manner and good looks
* Leaves following damaging revelations by Edward Snowden
By Ian Drury | June 27, 2014
The Foreign Office is searching for a new spy chief after it was announced Sir John Sawers, the head of MI6, is stepping down.
The boss of Britain's overseas intelligence services – traditionally known as ‘C’ – will leave the post in November after five years.
Sir John – often compared to James Bond for his suave manner and good looks – had tried to lift the veil of secrecy surrounding MI6 and was its first head to give a public speech.
But his departure comes after a rocky year in which the three British intelligence services – the others are MI5 and GCHQ – were thrown into disarray by CIA whistleblower Edward Snowden's revelations about surveillance.
Only one – Andrew Parker, the director general of the domestic spy agency – will be left. Officials said Sir John’s departure was not linked to the Snowden disclosures.
Sir John was the first MI6 chief to be chosen from outside the service for 41 years.
His appointment was opposed by senior spies who believed it was an attempt by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to increase its influence after the Iraq debacle, when the intelligence agencies claimed Iraq had stockpiled weapons of mass destruction.
Sir John, 58, is a career diplomat who has also worked as an envoy in Baghdad and as foreign affairs adviser to former Prime Minister Tony Blair.
But he was no stranger to the world of espionage, having trained with MI6 at the start of his career before joining the FCO.
Last year he told an intelligence committee hearing the Snowden revelations had been very damaging. ‘They have put our operations at risk. It is clear our adversaries are rubbing their hands with glee. Al-Qaeda is lapping it up,’ he said.
In 2012, MI6 was also in the spotlight when a coroner criticised spies for hampering the police investigation into the death of Gareth Williams, a GCHQ employee seconded to the agency who was found dead in a holdall in a London flat.
Even though he presided over a secret service, Sir John was accidentally exposed by his wife, Shelley, on the internet shortly after being appointed to the top job.
To the astonishment of spy-watchers, personal photographs posted on Facebook showing the spy chief on a beach in tight-fitting swimming trunks. Other potentially compromising details about where the family live and work, who their friends are and where they spend their holidays were posted.
The names of serving members of MI6 other than its head are secret, so a speculative list of potential successors will not be made public. But one candidate could be Charles Farr, director of the Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism (OSCT), a close ally of Home secretary Theresa May.
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Guardian : MI6 chief Sir John Sawers to step down
Thursday, June 26, 2014
MI6 chief Sir John Sawers to step down
Sawers, the first outsider to be appointed to the role in decades, has been in post since 2009
Ewen MacAskill and Richard Norton-Taylor | June 26, 2014
Sir John Sawers, the head of Britain's overseas intelligence agency MI6, is to stand down in November.
His departure comes after a turbulent year in which the three British intelligence services have been thrown into disarray by Edward Snowden's revelations about surveillance.
Of the three intelligence heads who gave evidence to the parliamentary intelligence committee in November which was dominated by the Snowden controversy, only one will be left – Andrew Parker, the director general of the domestic spy agency MI5.
The Foreign Office announced in January that the head of the surveillance agency GCHQ, Sir Iain Lobban, was to stand down. It was presented as long planned and unconnected to Snowden.
At the intelligence committee hearing, Sawers was critical of Snowden's revelations, claiming they had been very damaging. "They have put our operations at risk. It is clear our adversaries are rubbing their hands with glee. Al-Qaida is lapping it up," he said.
Sawers, 58, has been in post since 2009 and has apparently decided that 36 years as a public servant is long enough. He is not planning to take another public service job. Five years in post is about average for MI6 chiefs.
The announcement is being made early to give his successor a chance to take over well before the next year's general election.
The names of serving members of MI6 other than its head are secret, so a speculative list of potential successors will not be made public.
Although he worked for MI6 when young, serving in Yemen and Syria, Sawers spent most of his career as a diplomat working through a series of Foreign Office jobs, including foreign affairs adviser to Tony Blair and ambassador to the United Nations.
He was the first outsider to be appointed to the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS, also known as MI6) for decades. His appointment was opposed by senior MI6 officers who saw it as an attempt by the Foreign Office to increase its influence over the intelligence service as a result of the Iraq fiasco. The intelligence agencies claimed Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.
Sawers tried to lift the veil of secrecy surrounding MI6, and was its first head to give a speech in public. In that speech, in October 2010, he described MI6 as the "secret frontline of national security".
He added: "Secrecy is not a dirty word. Secrecy is not there as a cover-up." MI6 obtained its intelligence from secret agents abroad who risked their lives providing it, he told his audience of editors.
Sawers said torture was "illegal and abhorrent under any circumstances and we have nothing whatsoever to do with it. If we know or believe action by us will lead to torture taking place, we're required by UK and international law to avoid that action. And we do, even though that allows the terrorist activity to go ahead."
He added, however, that if MI6 received credible intelligence that might save lives here or abroad, "we have a professional and moral duty to act on it".
But a year later he was confronted with clear evidence that in 2004, before his time as head of the agency, MI6 was directly involved in the rendition of two prominent Libyan dissidents to Tripoli where they were tortured by Muammar Gaddafi's secret police. The evidence was laid out in the files of the head of Gaddafi's intelligence service, Moussa Koussa, ransacked after the bombing of Libya in 2011.
In 2012, a coroner rebuked MI6 officers for hampering the police investigation into the death of Gareth Williams, a GCHQ employee seconded to MI6 who was found dead in suspicious circumstances at a London flat.
Sawers, the first outsider to be appointed to the role in decades, has been in post since 2009
Ewen MacAskill and Richard Norton-Taylor | June 26, 2014
Sir John Sawers, the head of Britain's overseas intelligence agency MI6, is to stand down in November.
His departure comes after a turbulent year in which the three British intelligence services have been thrown into disarray by Edward Snowden's revelations about surveillance.
Of the three intelligence heads who gave evidence to the parliamentary intelligence committee in November which was dominated by the Snowden controversy, only one will be left – Andrew Parker, the director general of the domestic spy agency MI5.
The Foreign Office announced in January that the head of the surveillance agency GCHQ, Sir Iain Lobban, was to stand down. It was presented as long planned and unconnected to Snowden.
At the intelligence committee hearing, Sawers was critical of Snowden's revelations, claiming they had been very damaging. "They have put our operations at risk. It is clear our adversaries are rubbing their hands with glee. Al-Qaida is lapping it up," he said.
Sawers, 58, has been in post since 2009 and has apparently decided that 36 years as a public servant is long enough. He is not planning to take another public service job. Five years in post is about average for MI6 chiefs.
The announcement is being made early to give his successor a chance to take over well before the next year's general election.
The names of serving members of MI6 other than its head are secret, so a speculative list of potential successors will not be made public.
Although he worked for MI6 when young, serving in Yemen and Syria, Sawers spent most of his career as a diplomat working through a series of Foreign Office jobs, including foreign affairs adviser to Tony Blair and ambassador to the United Nations.
He was the first outsider to be appointed to the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS, also known as MI6) for decades. His appointment was opposed by senior MI6 officers who saw it as an attempt by the Foreign Office to increase its influence over the intelligence service as a result of the Iraq fiasco. The intelligence agencies claimed Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.
Sawers tried to lift the veil of secrecy surrounding MI6, and was its first head to give a speech in public. In that speech, in October 2010, he described MI6 as the "secret frontline of national security".
He added: "Secrecy is not a dirty word. Secrecy is not there as a cover-up." MI6 obtained its intelligence from secret agents abroad who risked their lives providing it, he told his audience of editors.
Sawers said torture was "illegal and abhorrent under any circumstances and we have nothing whatsoever to do with it. If we know or believe action by us will lead to torture taking place, we're required by UK and international law to avoid that action. And we do, even though that allows the terrorist activity to go ahead."
He added, however, that if MI6 received credible intelligence that might save lives here or abroad, "we have a professional and moral duty to act on it".
But a year later he was confronted with clear evidence that in 2004, before his time as head of the agency, MI6 was directly involved in the rendition of two prominent Libyan dissidents to Tripoli where they were tortured by Muammar Gaddafi's secret police. The evidence was laid out in the files of the head of Gaddafi's intelligence service, Moussa Koussa, ransacked after the bombing of Libya in 2011.
In 2012, a coroner rebuked MI6 officers for hampering the police investigation into the death of Gareth Williams, a GCHQ employee seconded to MI6 who was found dead in suspicious circumstances at a London flat.
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Daily Beast : Scotland Yard: Dead Spy in a Bag Probably an Accident
Thursday, November 14, 2013
Scotland Yard: Dead Spy in a Bag Probably an Accident
Scotland Yard has concluded that British spy Gareth Williams, found padlocked naked inside a gym bag in his apartment, ‘probably’ died by accident.
By Nico Hines | November 14, 2013
A British intelligence agent was found dead, padlocked naked inside a gym bag, in the bathtub of his London apartment; there was no sign of a struggle, no witness, no fingerprints and no DNA evidence to explain how he died.
After three years of speculation about murder by foreign agents, targeting by the Russian mafia and an MI6 cover-up, Scotland Yard announced on Wednesday that they thought it was “probably” just an accident.
Their extraordinary conclusion directly contradicted the findings of Westminster Coroner’s Court which ruled last year that Gareth Williams, a 31-year-old code-breaker from Wales, was most likely killed unlawfully.
The police explanation that Williams had padlocked himself into the bag before dying alone in his apartment was met with widespread consternation. Martin Hewitt, the Deputy Assistant Commissioner at Scotland Yard, rejected suggestions that the police had been duped by intelligence services who wanted to ensure that the real reason for Williams’ death was never disclosed. “I do not believe that I have had the wool pulled over my eyes. I believe that what we are dealing with is a tragic unexplained death,” he said. “The Metropolitan Police’s position is that, on balance, it is a more probable conclusion that there was no other person present when Gareth died.”
He did admit, however, that they could not be sure what had happened in August 2010, when Williams went missing. “No evidence has been identified to establish the full circumstances of Gareth’s death beyond all reasonable doubt,” Hewitt said.
During last year’s coroners’ hearing, a lawyer acting on behalf of the Williams family said his death must have had a connection to his highly sensitive intelligence work. “There is a high probability that some third party was in the flat when Gareth was placed in the bag. Evidentially there seems to be no trace of an unknown party in the flat,” Anthony O‘Toole said in court. “Our impression is that the unknown third party was a member of some agency specializing in the dark arts or secret services.”
Williams was found in the curled up in the fetal position inside a red North Face bag in his bath. The bag had been padlocked shut but there was no evidence of anyone else being inside the flat. Police and family members said the trail may have gone cold because of the time that elapsed between the agent’s last sighting and the discovery of his body.
Officials at MI6, where he failed to show up for work, did not raise the alarm until August 23, a week later. A family statement released via the police on Wednesday said they were furious that the intelligence agency had not informed the police any sooner. “We still remain very disappointed over the failure of his employers at MI6 to take even the most basic inquiries concerning Gareth’s welfare when he failed to attend for work on August 16, 2010,” they said. “We believe that if proper steps had been taken in the same manner as any reasonable employer would have undertaken, further information relating to the cause of his death might have become apparent and not have been lost due to the length of time before Gareth’s body was found.”
Last year, Sir John Sawers, the head of MI6, apologized “unreservedly” for the agency’s “failure to act more swiftly.” The cause of that delay has never been fully explained.
After a secret meeting between the police and MI6 soon after the body was discovered, a team of counter-terrorism officers was asked to act as a buffer between the murder squad investigators and the security services.
Scotland Yard now admits that was wrong. “We didn’t get it right at the beginning and the way that we did it was cumbersome and didn’t allow us to do the investigation in the way that we wanted to,” Hewitt said, although he denied that any delay had allowed somebody to destroy evidence in Williams’ home.
“There is no evidence whatsoever to support the suggestion that Gareth’s flat had been subject to some form of ‘forensic clean’,” he said. “Indeed, finger marks and traces of DNA going back some years have been recovered, which tends to fundamentally disprove such a theory. Such a ‘selective’ clean would not be possible.”
Hewitt also appeared to downplay another of the theories that has surrounded Williams’ death. He said there was no clear evidence that the math prodigy’s interest in escapology or bondage, which he had searched for on the Internet, was linked to his death.
Last year’s inquest also heard evidence from his landlady that Williams was previously rescued from another awkward situation. Jennifer Elliot and her husband had let themselves in to Williams’ apartment when they heard cries for help at around 1:30am one night. They found him tied to his bed wearing nothing but boxer shorts. “He was embarrassed and panicky and apologized and said ‘I wanted to see if I could get myself free,’” she told the court.
Scotland Yard has concluded that British spy Gareth Williams, found padlocked naked inside a gym bag in his apartment, ‘probably’ died by accident.
By Nico Hines | November 14, 2013
A British intelligence agent was found dead, padlocked naked inside a gym bag, in the bathtub of his London apartment; there was no sign of a struggle, no witness, no fingerprints and no DNA evidence to explain how he died.
After three years of speculation about murder by foreign agents, targeting by the Russian mafia and an MI6 cover-up, Scotland Yard announced on Wednesday that they thought it was “probably” just an accident.
Their extraordinary conclusion directly contradicted the findings of Westminster Coroner’s Court which ruled last year that Gareth Williams, a 31-year-old code-breaker from Wales, was most likely killed unlawfully.
The police explanation that Williams had padlocked himself into the bag before dying alone in his apartment was met with widespread consternation. Martin Hewitt, the Deputy Assistant Commissioner at Scotland Yard, rejected suggestions that the police had been duped by intelligence services who wanted to ensure that the real reason for Williams’ death was never disclosed. “I do not believe that I have had the wool pulled over my eyes. I believe that what we are dealing with is a tragic unexplained death,” he said. “The Metropolitan Police’s position is that, on balance, it is a more probable conclusion that there was no other person present when Gareth died.”
He did admit, however, that they could not be sure what had happened in August 2010, when Williams went missing. “No evidence has been identified to establish the full circumstances of Gareth’s death beyond all reasonable doubt,” Hewitt said.
During last year’s coroners’ hearing, a lawyer acting on behalf of the Williams family said his death must have had a connection to his highly sensitive intelligence work. “There is a high probability that some third party was in the flat when Gareth was placed in the bag. Evidentially there seems to be no trace of an unknown party in the flat,” Anthony O‘Toole said in court. “Our impression is that the unknown third party was a member of some agency specializing in the dark arts or secret services.”
Williams was found in the curled up in the fetal position inside a red North Face bag in his bath. The bag had been padlocked shut but there was no evidence of anyone else being inside the flat. Police and family members said the trail may have gone cold because of the time that elapsed between the agent’s last sighting and the discovery of his body.
Officials at MI6, where he failed to show up for work, did not raise the alarm until August 23, a week later. A family statement released via the police on Wednesday said they were furious that the intelligence agency had not informed the police any sooner. “We still remain very disappointed over the failure of his employers at MI6 to take even the most basic inquiries concerning Gareth’s welfare when he failed to attend for work on August 16, 2010,” they said. “We believe that if proper steps had been taken in the same manner as any reasonable employer would have undertaken, further information relating to the cause of his death might have become apparent and not have been lost due to the length of time before Gareth’s body was found.”
Last year, Sir John Sawers, the head of MI6, apologized “unreservedly” for the agency’s “failure to act more swiftly.” The cause of that delay has never been fully explained.
After a secret meeting between the police and MI6 soon after the body was discovered, a team of counter-terrorism officers was asked to act as a buffer between the murder squad investigators and the security services.
Scotland Yard now admits that was wrong. “We didn’t get it right at the beginning and the way that we did it was cumbersome and didn’t allow us to do the investigation in the way that we wanted to,” Hewitt said, although he denied that any delay had allowed somebody to destroy evidence in Williams’ home.
“There is no evidence whatsoever to support the suggestion that Gareth’s flat had been subject to some form of ‘forensic clean’,” he said. “Indeed, finger marks and traces of DNA going back some years have been recovered, which tends to fundamentally disprove such a theory. Such a ‘selective’ clean would not be possible.”
Hewitt also appeared to downplay another of the theories that has surrounded Williams’ death. He said there was no clear evidence that the math prodigy’s interest in escapology or bondage, which he had searched for on the Internet, was linked to his death.
Last year’s inquest also heard evidence from his landlady that Williams was previously rescued from another awkward situation. Jennifer Elliot and her husband had let themselves in to Williams’ apartment when they heard cries for help at around 1:30am one night. They found him tied to his bed wearing nothing but boxer shorts. “He was embarrassed and panicky and apologized and said ‘I wanted to see if I could get myself free,’” she told the court.
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Anthony O'Toole,
dark arts,
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Martin Hewitt,
Sir John Sawers
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Crime Library : Gareth Williams: The Dead Spy in The Sports Bag
Friday, January 04, 2013
Gareth Williams: The Dead Spy in The Sports Bag
By Bruce Gain | January 4, 2013
One of the first things police noticed on entering the London apartment of the missing man, was the smell of death, exacerbated by the sweltering temperature. It was the middle of August in 2010, and someone had turned up the heat and shut the windows.
The smell was coming from the bathroom, where a large sports bag lay in the tub. Inside the bag, which was locked from the outside, was the badly decomposed body of missing British MI6 spy Gareth Williams.
Investigators did not have much to go on. There were few traces of DNA in the apartment that did not belong to Williams and his family. A suspect would have to have had professional training to know how to enter and leave an apartment without leaving any fingerprints or DNA evidence. Since the body had had over a week to decompose in the sweltering apartment, determining whether he had been poisoned or had suffocated inside the bag was impossible. Traces of alcohol and the date rape drug GHB were found in his body, but according to coroner Dr. Fiona Wilcox, the decomposition process could have produced those chemicals naturally.
Lacking any fingerprints, investigators could not confirm whether someone had stuffed Williams into the bag or not. They speculated that Williams, with his expert spy training, had managed to crawl inside the bag and lock it himself, but the evidence was in conclusive. In fact, the mystery surrounding how Williams got into that bag is at the center of the case.
Police, however, suspected foul play. The mere fact that Williams was a spy aroused their suspicions. Investigators pondered the possibility that, because of his connections to M16 as well as other agencies, including the U.S.’s NSA (National Security Agency), Williams had been the victim of a professionally orchestrated hit.
Investigators also learned that Williams might have led a secret life, possibly involving cross-dressing and the S&M scene in London. Police naturally probed Williams’ private life and sexual interests, the behavior of Williams’ colleagues and superiors at MI6 in the wake of his death drew criticism. Most notably, they did not report him missing for a week. Intentionally or not, these errors committed during the course of the investigation wound up impeding it, leading many to conclude that at the very least MI6 knew more about the circumstances surrounding Williams’ death than the secretive organization was willing to reveal.
The Welsh Math Genius
British intelligence had made good use of Williams’ talents as a cryptologist and computer network expert. His intellectual aptitude became apparent while he was still growing up in Wales, where he excelled in school, and began taking university classes while still in high school. Williams graduated from Bangor University at the age of 17.
He got his Ph.D. in computer science at the University of Manchester, and joined the UK Government Communications Headquarters in 2001. Few details were revealed about his role at the agency other than that he specialized in “applications of emerging technologies.”
Based in Cheltenham, Britain, at first, Williams spent his downtime pursuing his favorite activities: cycling and hiking. He then moved to the London flat where his body was found, and joined MI6’s operations. According to testimony from his family, however, Williams was not happy with his assignment in London: He did not like the hectic pace of city life, nor did he appreciate M16’s macho, cloak-and-dagger culture. He requested and was granted permission to transfer back to Cheltenham to take up his former post at GCHQ, and was scheduled to make the move just a few days after his death.
Court testimony also revealed that Williams was actively involved in gathering intelligence about terrorist activities, which he did by penetrating and monitoring computer and voice networks. Just a few weeks before his death, it was revealed that Williams was responsible for preventing a major jihadist attack on British soil.
According to the Daily Express, Williams intercepted phone calls that matched the voice prints of a terrorist database, composed of Al-Qaeda members and other terrorists. Williams would later travel to Afghanistan with members from the GCHQ and the U.S.’ NSA. It was uncovered that the terrorist group was preparing to launch a major attack against targets in Berlin, London, and Paris and planned to destroy cultural and historical landmarks, such as the Eiffel Tower, the Brandenburg Gate, and Buckingham Palace. The attack was reportedly thwarted by arrests, and by a U.S. drone strike that killed Abdul Jabbar, a Pakistan-born British national. According to the Daily Express, Williams was responsible for saving thousands of lives in Europe.
An S&M Connection?
Williams’ roll in saving lives while serving his country at M16 might have made him a hero, but that is not what the tabloid press chose to focus on. Instead, during the weeks and months after Williams’ body was found, much attention was paid to Williams’ private life, details of which were leaked to the British press.
By all accounts, Williams was very private; he kept mostly to himself, had few close friends and few people outside of his work knew him. However, there were some aspects of his life outside the agency that police theorized could have played a role in his death.
Besides his passion for cycling and hiking, William was a prodigious collector of women’s clothing. Police found over £20,000 worth of women’s apparel at his London flat, a major investment for Williams who earned hardly twice that much in a year. Investigators concluded that the clothing collection, most of which was not his size, reflected his personal interest in fashion itself, an interest he pursued by attending classes at a local fashion design institute in his free time.
Other details police uncovered about Williams’ private life prompted investigators to suspect that he may have been a transvestite, possibly involved with the local S&M bondage community. Witnesses reported seeing him, on occasion, at transvestite clubs and gay bars, according to the Daily Mail. Police found a video on one of his cell phones of him dancing naked, wearing only women’s boots. However, police never found evidence that Williams had gay relationships. In fact, they never found evidence that he had relationships of any kind, with women or men. His friends and relatives continued to insist that he was heterosexual.
One incident that lent credibility to the theory that Williams was interested in sexual bondage, came from his landlady. She told investigators that on one occasion, while renting a floor of her house, Williams had once cried to her out for help. She and her husband responded, discovering Williams tied to his bed, wearing only underwear. He explained that he was trying to see if he was able to free himself after being tied up. The landlady reported that she suspected Williams was seeking sexual thrills by tying himself up.
While there continues to be much speculation by police and the media that Williams was involved in a sexual stunt that resulted in his death, his family and friends think otherwise. Wilcox, who released her verdict in late 2012, cast further doubts that Williams was killed during a sexual misadventure.
If someone had entered the apartment without force, it indicated that Williams had let that person in, and that it was a colleague. Williams would have only trusted a colleague to enter the flat, which had served as housing for MI6 officers before Williams moved there.
Wilcox also questioned MI6’s intentions for mishandling the case. Suspicious were raised from the beginning, when the agency waited for over a week to alert police that Williams had not reported to work, despite the extremely sensitive nature of that work.
Other details smacked of a professional hit. The bag, for example, had been placed in the bathtub, which would have facilitated the draining of bodily fluids as the corpse decomposed. Turning up the heat in the apartment helped to speed decomposition, making it more difficult to determine cause of death.
MI6 found and removed USB memory sticks that Williams had, in violation of protocol, brought home from work. The agency, however, did not share the contents of the USB keys with police, citing security concerns. MI6 officials also did not communicate the possible reasons why Williams breached the agency’s security rules by taking classified data from the agency to his apartment in the first place.
An Elaborate Cover Up?
If the bizarre nature of his death was part of a setup staged by a professional from the intelligence community, it would almost certainly not be the first time such an incident occurred. Many M16 and other spies have turned up dead in the aftermath of what looked like embarrassing sexual encounters. According to the Daily Mail, there have been more than 17 deaths of British agents who have died under suspicious circumstances during the past 50 years. Of those deaths, a third died while engaging in what appeared to have been bizarre sexual acts. The motive in staging these sex scenes was to prevent investigators from discovering the truth, according to the Daily Mail.
In one incident in 1990, Jonathan Moyle, a British journalist and editor of Defence Helicopter World, was found dead in his hotel room in Chile, hanging naked in his closet with a pillowcase over his head. British officials initially claimed that he had asphyxiated himself as a way to heighten his pleasure during sex. He was officially in Chili to investigate an arms deal for his magazine, but years later, British intelligence divulged that the 3-year former RAF officer was actually working undercover for MI6 seeking intelligence about an arms deal between Chile and Iraq. It took an aggressive legal campaign spearheaded by the family against the British Secret Service before officials reluctantly agreed to apologize and acknowledged that Moyle was probably murdered.
British politician and former BBC newscaster Stephen Milligan also died under suspicious circumstances in 1994. Milligan, believed to have ties to the British intelligence community, was found dead in his London flat tied to a chair wearing only women’s leggings and suspenders. There was a cord wrapped around his neck and a bag over his head. Part of an orange was stuffed in his mouth. Despite the sexual implications of the circumstances, the true circumstances of Milligan’s death remain a mystery.
Many Questions, More Answers … And More Questions
In her official verdict, coroner Fiona Wilcox downplayed the possibility that Williams was killed during a sex encounter and said that his death was likely “criminally premeditated.” She also concluded that Williams was probably “killed unlawfully,” and while she did not have conclusive proof, the coroner also said that a member or members of the MI6 or GCHQ could have been involved.
Gareth Williams’ family remains adamant that MI6 at least knows more about his death than the agency’s members are willing to reveal. They have openly questioned how the rumors, that the family continues to deny, of the sordid details of Williams’ his private life could have been mysteriously leaked to the newspapers. The family claims that Williams has been the target of a smear campaign.
John Sawers, head of MI6 and GCHQ, offered a “profound apology” to Williams’ family for the delay in taking action after Williams was reported missing. However, MI6 officials have denied that his death was the result of the espionage-related “black arts.” Family members, however, remain unconvinced and are using legal channels to get the British secret service as well as the police to reveal more about what they may have uncovered about the case.
After the coroner concluded that Williams was killed and did not die by sexual misadventure, police at Scotland Yard stated that they have exhausted all of their leads, and that Williams ‘probably locked himself in holdall’ willingly, because they keys were found inside. Also a retired Army sergeant, William MacKay, demonstrated for police how Williams could have done it.
Police however continue to assure the public that they haven’t given up yet. So the mysterious death of Gareth William’s will most likely remain hot topic for 2013.
By Bruce Gain | January 4, 2013
One of the first things police noticed on entering the London apartment of the missing man, was the smell of death, exacerbated by the sweltering temperature. It was the middle of August in 2010, and someone had turned up the heat and shut the windows.
The smell was coming from the bathroom, where a large sports bag lay in the tub. Inside the bag, which was locked from the outside, was the badly decomposed body of missing British MI6 spy Gareth Williams.
Investigators did not have much to go on. There were few traces of DNA in the apartment that did not belong to Williams and his family. A suspect would have to have had professional training to know how to enter and leave an apartment without leaving any fingerprints or DNA evidence. Since the body had had over a week to decompose in the sweltering apartment, determining whether he had been poisoned or had suffocated inside the bag was impossible. Traces of alcohol and the date rape drug GHB were found in his body, but according to coroner Dr. Fiona Wilcox, the decomposition process could have produced those chemicals naturally.
Lacking any fingerprints, investigators could not confirm whether someone had stuffed Williams into the bag or not. They speculated that Williams, with his expert spy training, had managed to crawl inside the bag and lock it himself, but the evidence was in conclusive. In fact, the mystery surrounding how Williams got into that bag is at the center of the case.
Police, however, suspected foul play. The mere fact that Williams was a spy aroused their suspicions. Investigators pondered the possibility that, because of his connections to M16 as well as other agencies, including the U.S.’s NSA (National Security Agency), Williams had been the victim of a professionally orchestrated hit.
Investigators also learned that Williams might have led a secret life, possibly involving cross-dressing and the S&M scene in London. Police naturally probed Williams’ private life and sexual interests, the behavior of Williams’ colleagues and superiors at MI6 in the wake of his death drew criticism. Most notably, they did not report him missing for a week. Intentionally or not, these errors committed during the course of the investigation wound up impeding it, leading many to conclude that at the very least MI6 knew more about the circumstances surrounding Williams’ death than the secretive organization was willing to reveal.
The Welsh Math Genius
British intelligence had made good use of Williams’ talents as a cryptologist and computer network expert. His intellectual aptitude became apparent while he was still growing up in Wales, where he excelled in school, and began taking university classes while still in high school. Williams graduated from Bangor University at the age of 17.
He got his Ph.D. in computer science at the University of Manchester, and joined the UK Government Communications Headquarters in 2001. Few details were revealed about his role at the agency other than that he specialized in “applications of emerging technologies.”
Based in Cheltenham, Britain, at first, Williams spent his downtime pursuing his favorite activities: cycling and hiking. He then moved to the London flat where his body was found, and joined MI6’s operations. According to testimony from his family, however, Williams was not happy with his assignment in London: He did not like the hectic pace of city life, nor did he appreciate M16’s macho, cloak-and-dagger culture. He requested and was granted permission to transfer back to Cheltenham to take up his former post at GCHQ, and was scheduled to make the move just a few days after his death.
Court testimony also revealed that Williams was actively involved in gathering intelligence about terrorist activities, which he did by penetrating and monitoring computer and voice networks. Just a few weeks before his death, it was revealed that Williams was responsible for preventing a major jihadist attack on British soil.
According to the Daily Express, Williams intercepted phone calls that matched the voice prints of a terrorist database, composed of Al-Qaeda members and other terrorists. Williams would later travel to Afghanistan with members from the GCHQ and the U.S.’ NSA. It was uncovered that the terrorist group was preparing to launch a major attack against targets in Berlin, London, and Paris and planned to destroy cultural and historical landmarks, such as the Eiffel Tower, the Brandenburg Gate, and Buckingham Palace. The attack was reportedly thwarted by arrests, and by a U.S. drone strike that killed Abdul Jabbar, a Pakistan-born British national. According to the Daily Express, Williams was responsible for saving thousands of lives in Europe.
An S&M Connection?
Williams’ roll in saving lives while serving his country at M16 might have made him a hero, but that is not what the tabloid press chose to focus on. Instead, during the weeks and months after Williams’ body was found, much attention was paid to Williams’ private life, details of which were leaked to the British press.
By all accounts, Williams was very private; he kept mostly to himself, had few close friends and few people outside of his work knew him. However, there were some aspects of his life outside the agency that police theorized could have played a role in his death.
Besides his passion for cycling and hiking, William was a prodigious collector of women’s clothing. Police found over £20,000 worth of women’s apparel at his London flat, a major investment for Williams who earned hardly twice that much in a year. Investigators concluded that the clothing collection, most of which was not his size, reflected his personal interest in fashion itself, an interest he pursued by attending classes at a local fashion design institute in his free time.
Other details police uncovered about Williams’ private life prompted investigators to suspect that he may have been a transvestite, possibly involved with the local S&M bondage community. Witnesses reported seeing him, on occasion, at transvestite clubs and gay bars, according to the Daily Mail. Police found a video on one of his cell phones of him dancing naked, wearing only women’s boots. However, police never found evidence that Williams had gay relationships. In fact, they never found evidence that he had relationships of any kind, with women or men. His friends and relatives continued to insist that he was heterosexual.
One incident that lent credibility to the theory that Williams was interested in sexual bondage, came from his landlady. She told investigators that on one occasion, while renting a floor of her house, Williams had once cried to her out for help. She and her husband responded, discovering Williams tied to his bed, wearing only underwear. He explained that he was trying to see if he was able to free himself after being tied up. The landlady reported that she suspected Williams was seeking sexual thrills by tying himself up.
While there continues to be much speculation by police and the media that Williams was involved in a sexual stunt that resulted in his death, his family and friends think otherwise. Wilcox, who released her verdict in late 2012, cast further doubts that Williams was killed during a sexual misadventure.
If someone had entered the apartment without force, it indicated that Williams had let that person in, and that it was a colleague. Williams would have only trusted a colleague to enter the flat, which had served as housing for MI6 officers before Williams moved there.
Wilcox also questioned MI6’s intentions for mishandling the case. Suspicious were raised from the beginning, when the agency waited for over a week to alert police that Williams had not reported to work, despite the extremely sensitive nature of that work.
Other details smacked of a professional hit. The bag, for example, had been placed in the bathtub, which would have facilitated the draining of bodily fluids as the corpse decomposed. Turning up the heat in the apartment helped to speed decomposition, making it more difficult to determine cause of death.
MI6 found and removed USB memory sticks that Williams had, in violation of protocol, brought home from work. The agency, however, did not share the contents of the USB keys with police, citing security concerns. MI6 officials also did not communicate the possible reasons why Williams breached the agency’s security rules by taking classified data from the agency to his apartment in the first place.
An Elaborate Cover Up?
If the bizarre nature of his death was part of a setup staged by a professional from the intelligence community, it would almost certainly not be the first time such an incident occurred. Many M16 and other spies have turned up dead in the aftermath of what looked like embarrassing sexual encounters. According to the Daily Mail, there have been more than 17 deaths of British agents who have died under suspicious circumstances during the past 50 years. Of those deaths, a third died while engaging in what appeared to have been bizarre sexual acts. The motive in staging these sex scenes was to prevent investigators from discovering the truth, according to the Daily Mail.
In one incident in 1990, Jonathan Moyle, a British journalist and editor of Defence Helicopter World, was found dead in his hotel room in Chile, hanging naked in his closet with a pillowcase over his head. British officials initially claimed that he had asphyxiated himself as a way to heighten his pleasure during sex. He was officially in Chili to investigate an arms deal for his magazine, but years later, British intelligence divulged that the 3-year former RAF officer was actually working undercover for MI6 seeking intelligence about an arms deal between Chile and Iraq. It took an aggressive legal campaign spearheaded by the family against the British Secret Service before officials reluctantly agreed to apologize and acknowledged that Moyle was probably murdered.
British politician and former BBC newscaster Stephen Milligan also died under suspicious circumstances in 1994. Milligan, believed to have ties to the British intelligence community, was found dead in his London flat tied to a chair wearing only women’s leggings and suspenders. There was a cord wrapped around his neck and a bag over his head. Part of an orange was stuffed in his mouth. Despite the sexual implications of the circumstances, the true circumstances of Milligan’s death remain a mystery.
Many Questions, More Answers … And More Questions
In her official verdict, coroner Fiona Wilcox downplayed the possibility that Williams was killed during a sex encounter and said that his death was likely “criminally premeditated.” She also concluded that Williams was probably “killed unlawfully,” and while she did not have conclusive proof, the coroner also said that a member or members of the MI6 or GCHQ could have been involved.
Gareth Williams’ family remains adamant that MI6 at least knows more about his death than the agency’s members are willing to reveal. They have openly questioned how the rumors, that the family continues to deny, of the sordid details of Williams’ his private life could have been mysteriously leaked to the newspapers. The family claims that Williams has been the target of a smear campaign.
John Sawers, head of MI6 and GCHQ, offered a “profound apology” to Williams’ family for the delay in taking action after Williams was reported missing. However, MI6 officials have denied that his death was the result of the espionage-related “black arts.” Family members, however, remain unconvinced and are using legal channels to get the British secret service as well as the police to reveal more about what they may have uncovered about the case.
After the coroner concluded that Williams was killed and did not die by sexual misadventure, police at Scotland Yard stated that they have exhausted all of their leads, and that Williams ‘probably locked himself in holdall’ willingly, because they keys were found inside. Also a retired Army sergeant, William MacKay, demonstrated for police how Williams could have done it.
Police however continue to assure the public that they haven’t given up yet. So the mysterious death of Gareth William’s will most likely remain hot topic for 2013.
Filed under
clothing,
DNA,
Fiona Wilcox,
heat,
Jonathan Moyle,
Sir John Sawers,
Stephen Milligan,
William MacKay,
windows
by Winter Patriot
on Friday, January 04, 2013 |
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BBC : MI6 staff 'may face DNA screening over spy death'
Tuesday, May 08, 2012
MI6 staff 'may face DNA screening over spy death'
May 8, 2012
MI6 staff may have samples of their DNA checked following the death of MI6 officer Gareth Williams, the head of the Metropolitan Police has confirmed.
Bernard Hogan-Howe also demanded that MI6 give "unrestricted access" to detectives for the first time, as Scotland Yard reinvestigate the case.
The naked body of Mr Williams, 31, from Anglesey, was found locked in a bag in a bath in his London flat in 2010.
A coroner has concluded that he was probably unlawfully killed.
She also said she doubted whether Mr Williams' death would ever be explained, saying that "fundamental questions" remained unanswered.
Mr Hogan-Howe said any screening of staff at MI6 would be voluntary and could involve a few MI6 officers, or many.
A number of DNA samples were taken during the previous investigation.
Mr Hogan-Howe said: "Of course it may well be that Gareth Williams' death has nothing to do with employment. All we need to do is to make sure that all areas of his life were fully explored."
When asked if MI6 had agreed to grant new levels of access, Mr Hogan-Howe said they didn't have to: "It's called the law."
He criticised an "unacceptable" breakdown in communication over potential evidence, which emerged during the inquest.
Memory sticks
He said the senior investigating officer (SIO) would in future have complete access to all MI6 material, after it emerged a counter-terrorism officer did not tell the SIO, Det Ch Insp Jackie Sebire, about potential evidence.
He has told detectives to deal directly with the intelligence agency, in a break with tradition at the force.
Scotland Yard detectives are normally required to involve counter-terror colleagues at SO15 to obtain statements and evidence from MI6.
Det Con Colin Hall from SO15 searched Mr Williams' MI6 office on 26 August 2010, but did not seize computer memory sticks because he was told they contained material "of a sensitive nature".
A North Face bag similar to the one in which Mr Williams was found, was allegedly withheld by secret-service officers.
Mrs Sebire, who has led the investigation since the body was found, is soon likely to pass on the case to a colleague because she is being promoted.
Speaking last week, she said it was "highly likely" that a third party was involved in Mr Williams's death, and urged anyone who knew him to come forward with any information.
An independent forensics review will form a central part of fresh efforts to solve the 21-month inquiry into Mr Williams's death, the commissioner said.
Forensics firm LGC, which was responsible for a mix-up early in the investigation, would not be in charge of the independent review.
But Mr Hogan-Howe added: "This is not about criticising the forensic system."
Green towel
Mr Williams was not reported missing by his bosses at MI6 until a week after he was last seen, and the post-mortem examination was not carried out until nine days after he died.
A small amount of "unexplained" DNA was found on the zip toggle and padlock of the red holdall, containing his curled-up body.
Forensic experts are still hoping for a breakthrough from DNA tests on a green towel discovered in his kitchen.
Three pathologists who conducted post-mortem examinations were unable to reach a firm conclusion on how Mr Williams died, because his body had significantly decomposed.
But they said poisoning and asphyxiation are the foremost contenders as the cause of death.
After the inquest, MI6 chief Sir John Sawers apologised "unreservedly" to Mr Williams' family for its "failure to act more swiftly" in reporting his disappearance.
Code-breaker Mr Williams was on secondment to MI6 from the government's listening service GCHQ in Cheltenham when he died.
May 8, 2012
MI6 staff may have samples of their DNA checked following the death of MI6 officer Gareth Williams, the head of the Metropolitan Police has confirmed.
Bernard Hogan-Howe also demanded that MI6 give "unrestricted access" to detectives for the first time, as Scotland Yard reinvestigate the case.
The naked body of Mr Williams, 31, from Anglesey, was found locked in a bag in a bath in his London flat in 2010.
A coroner has concluded that he was probably unlawfully killed.
She also said she doubted whether Mr Williams' death would ever be explained, saying that "fundamental questions" remained unanswered.
Mr Hogan-Howe said any screening of staff at MI6 would be voluntary and could involve a few MI6 officers, or many.
A number of DNA samples were taken during the previous investigation.
Mr Hogan-Howe said: "Of course it may well be that Gareth Williams' death has nothing to do with employment. All we need to do is to make sure that all areas of his life were fully explored."
When asked if MI6 had agreed to grant new levels of access, Mr Hogan-Howe said they didn't have to: "It's called the law."
He criticised an "unacceptable" breakdown in communication over potential evidence, which emerged during the inquest.
Memory sticks
He said the senior investigating officer (SIO) would in future have complete access to all MI6 material, after it emerged a counter-terrorism officer did not tell the SIO, Det Ch Insp Jackie Sebire, about potential evidence.
He has told detectives to deal directly with the intelligence agency, in a break with tradition at the force.
Scotland Yard detectives are normally required to involve counter-terror colleagues at SO15 to obtain statements and evidence from MI6.
Det Con Colin Hall from SO15 searched Mr Williams' MI6 office on 26 August 2010, but did not seize computer memory sticks because he was told they contained material "of a sensitive nature".
A North Face bag similar to the one in which Mr Williams was found, was allegedly withheld by secret-service officers.
Mrs Sebire, who has led the investigation since the body was found, is soon likely to pass on the case to a colleague because she is being promoted.
Speaking last week, she said it was "highly likely" that a third party was involved in Mr Williams's death, and urged anyone who knew him to come forward with any information.
An independent forensics review will form a central part of fresh efforts to solve the 21-month inquiry into Mr Williams's death, the commissioner said.
Forensics firm LGC, which was responsible for a mix-up early in the investigation, would not be in charge of the independent review.
But Mr Hogan-Howe added: "This is not about criticising the forensic system."
Green towel
Mr Williams was not reported missing by his bosses at MI6 until a week after he was last seen, and the post-mortem examination was not carried out until nine days after he died.
A small amount of "unexplained" DNA was found on the zip toggle and padlock of the red holdall, containing his curled-up body.
Forensic experts are still hoping for a breakthrough from DNA tests on a green towel discovered in his kitchen.
Three pathologists who conducted post-mortem examinations were unable to reach a firm conclusion on how Mr Williams died, because his body had significantly decomposed.
But they said poisoning and asphyxiation are the foremost contenders as the cause of death.
After the inquest, MI6 chief Sir John Sawers apologised "unreservedly" to Mr Williams' family for its "failure to act more swiftly" in reporting his disappearance.
Code-breaker Mr Williams was on secondment to MI6 from the government's listening service GCHQ in Cheltenham when he died.
Filed under
asphyxiation,
BBC,
Bernard Hogan-Howe,
Colin Hall,
DNA,
Jackie Sebire,
LGC,
poisoning,
Sir John Sawers,
SO15,
towel,
voluntary screening
by Winter Patriot
on Tuesday, May 08, 2012 |
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NOLA : Naked spy died at hands of mystery killer, British coroner says
Saturday, May 05, 2012
Naked spy died at hands of mystery killer, British coroner says
The Associated Press | May 5, 2012
LONDON -- Even after a coroner's verdict, it remains a mystery: A naked spy found dead in a locked bag, lurid details of a kinky sex life and allegations that someone in Britain's spy agencies may have been involved in his death.
A British coroner ruled Wednesday that another person was likely involved in Gareth Williams' death -- a finding that puts more pressure on police to uncover the cyberwarfare expert's killer and continue to investigate possibilities that include whether he could have died in a sex game gone awry or in a more sinister scenario that involved his counterterrorism work.
In Britain, coroners are asked to investigate unexplained deaths, and their findings can often carry weight as police investigations proceed.
Although Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the death of Williams, 31, will ever be "satisfactorily explained," she said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a "criminally meditated act." She also said it was possible that someone from one of Britain's spy agencies was involved.
Williams, described as an introverted math genius, worked for Britain's secret eavesdropping service GCHQ. But he was attached to the MI6 foreign spy agency when his remains were found in the bathtub at his London apartment on Aug. 16, 2010, just a few days after returning from a trip to the United States.
Forensic experts found about 20,000 thousand pounds, or $32,000, worth of luxury women's clothing, shoes and wigs in his apartment. Police also discovered that he had visited bondage and sadomasochism websites, including some related to claustrophilia -- a desire for confinement in enclosed spaces.
William's landlord testified during the coroner's hearing that she once found him handcuffed to his bed. She said he had appeared embarrassed after asking for help.
Still, Wilcox said there was no immediate evidence of a sexual encounter gone wrong, of suicidal intent, or that Williams' death was linked to a supposed interest in bondage. She said, however, that tales about his sex life could have been fueled in an attempt to "manipulate the evidence."
In the past, spy recruits were often cautioned that their sex lives could make them vulnerable to blackmail.
The case has frustrated Scotland Yard detectives who have been investigating the case for 21 months now and say that the secrecy surrounding Williams' job has thwarted their efforts.
"Obviously a lot of information has come out through the course of this inquest which we have not been party to," lead detective Jackie Sebire said.
But Wilcox also criticized the police detectives.
Time and resources were wasted, she said, when forensic teams investigating a DNA sample taken from Williams's hand later turned out to belong to one of the forensic scientists. She also questioned the handling of William's iPhone, which contained deleted images of him naked in a pair of boots.
Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who was the police liason with MI6, said he had seized it from the spy's workplace and kept it until the next day when he gave it to another officer.
"I find this is either not what occurred ... or it demonstrates disregard for the rules governing continuity of evidence," Wilcox said.
Wilcox also criticized officers who interviewed Williams' colleagues without taking any formal statements.
"I find that this did affect the quality of evidence that was heard before this court," she said.
Still, the coroner said she had seen no evidence to indicate his death was linked to his work.
When the case emerged, some had speculated that he could have been the target of Russian criminal gangs or an al-Qaida extremist. Other media reports had said there had been a break-in at the property where he lived -- a building sometimes used by MI6 to house its agents.
Wilcox said while there wasn't evidence to support a specific verdict of unlawful killing -- which would need a high burden of proof -- it was her opinion that the spy was probably unlawfully killed.
She said while it appeared unlikely, speculation that British intelligence agencies may have had a role in the death continued to be a "legitimate line of inquiry."
MI6 waited a week to investigate why Williams hadn't shown up for work -- a delay that made it difficult for Williams' family to identify his badly decomposed body.
John Sawers, the head of MI6, said in a statement following the corner's verdict that he apologized "unreservedly" to the Williams family for the spy agency's failure.
During the coroner's hearing, MI6 accepted that Williams disliked the agency's boozy culture of post-work drinking and tedious bureaucracy, and had requested to return to his job at GCHQ.
One MI6 officer claimed that Williams hadn't been reported as missing because colleagues assumed he was preparing for his return to the southern England headquarters of the eavesdropping service.
Wilcox said it appeared unlikely that Williams could have climbed inside the duffel bag and locked it himself. Two different specialists attempted to recreate the feat without success. Williams was discovered in the fetal position inside the bag with two keys to the bag's padlock underneath his buttocks.
Pathologists told the inquest that poisoning or asphyxiation may have killed Williams, but said his cadaver was too badly decomposed to be certain.
Williams' family, who have been left distraught by parts of the inquest, did not speak outside court but offered a statement.
The family, from Wales, described Williams as a "special and adored son and brother" and said they "cannot describe the depth of the sorrow his absence leaves in our lives."
The police investigation is ongoing.
By Paisley Dodds, Associated Press
David Stringer contributed to this report.
The Associated Press | May 5, 2012
LONDON -- Even after a coroner's verdict, it remains a mystery: A naked spy found dead in a locked bag, lurid details of a kinky sex life and allegations that someone in Britain's spy agencies may have been involved in his death.
A British coroner ruled Wednesday that another person was likely involved in Gareth Williams' death -- a finding that puts more pressure on police to uncover the cyberwarfare expert's killer and continue to investigate possibilities that include whether he could have died in a sex game gone awry or in a more sinister scenario that involved his counterterrorism work.
In Britain, coroners are asked to investigate unexplained deaths, and their findings can often carry weight as police investigations proceed.
Although Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the death of Williams, 31, will ever be "satisfactorily explained," she said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a "criminally meditated act." She also said it was possible that someone from one of Britain's spy agencies was involved.
Williams, described as an introverted math genius, worked for Britain's secret eavesdropping service GCHQ. But he was attached to the MI6 foreign spy agency when his remains were found in the bathtub at his London apartment on Aug. 16, 2010, just a few days after returning from a trip to the United States.
Forensic experts found about 20,000 thousand pounds, or $32,000, worth of luxury women's clothing, shoes and wigs in his apartment. Police also discovered that he had visited bondage and sadomasochism websites, including some related to claustrophilia -- a desire for confinement in enclosed spaces.
William's landlord testified during the coroner's hearing that she once found him handcuffed to his bed. She said he had appeared embarrassed after asking for help.
Still, Wilcox said there was no immediate evidence of a sexual encounter gone wrong, of suicidal intent, or that Williams' death was linked to a supposed interest in bondage. She said, however, that tales about his sex life could have been fueled in an attempt to "manipulate the evidence."
In the past, spy recruits were often cautioned that their sex lives could make them vulnerable to blackmail.
The case has frustrated Scotland Yard detectives who have been investigating the case for 21 months now and say that the secrecy surrounding Williams' job has thwarted their efforts.
"Obviously a lot of information has come out through the course of this inquest which we have not been party to," lead detective Jackie Sebire said.
But Wilcox also criticized the police detectives.
Time and resources were wasted, she said, when forensic teams investigating a DNA sample taken from Williams's hand later turned out to belong to one of the forensic scientists. She also questioned the handling of William's iPhone, which contained deleted images of him naked in a pair of boots.
Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who was the police liason with MI6, said he had seized it from the spy's workplace and kept it until the next day when he gave it to another officer.
"I find this is either not what occurred ... or it demonstrates disregard for the rules governing continuity of evidence," Wilcox said.
Wilcox also criticized officers who interviewed Williams' colleagues without taking any formal statements.
"I find that this did affect the quality of evidence that was heard before this court," she said.
Still, the coroner said she had seen no evidence to indicate his death was linked to his work.
When the case emerged, some had speculated that he could have been the target of Russian criminal gangs or an al-Qaida extremist. Other media reports had said there had been a break-in at the property where he lived -- a building sometimes used by MI6 to house its agents.
Wilcox said while there wasn't evidence to support a specific verdict of unlawful killing -- which would need a high burden of proof -- it was her opinion that the spy was probably unlawfully killed.
She said while it appeared unlikely, speculation that British intelligence agencies may have had a role in the death continued to be a "legitimate line of inquiry."
MI6 waited a week to investigate why Williams hadn't shown up for work -- a delay that made it difficult for Williams' family to identify his badly decomposed body.
John Sawers, the head of MI6, said in a statement following the corner's verdict that he apologized "unreservedly" to the Williams family for the spy agency's failure.
During the coroner's hearing, MI6 accepted that Williams disliked the agency's boozy culture of post-work drinking and tedious bureaucracy, and had requested to return to his job at GCHQ.
One MI6 officer claimed that Williams hadn't been reported as missing because colleagues assumed he was preparing for his return to the southern England headquarters of the eavesdropping service.
Wilcox said it appeared unlikely that Williams could have climbed inside the duffel bag and locked it himself. Two different specialists attempted to recreate the feat without success. Williams was discovered in the fetal position inside the bag with two keys to the bag's padlock underneath his buttocks.
Pathologists told the inquest that poisoning or asphyxiation may have killed Williams, but said his cadaver was too badly decomposed to be certain.
Williams' family, who have been left distraught by parts of the inquest, did not speak outside court but offered a statement.
The family, from Wales, described Williams as a "special and adored son and brother" and said they "cannot describe the depth of the sorrow his absence leaves in our lives."
The police investigation is ongoing.
By Paisley Dodds, Associated Press
David Stringer contributed to this report.
Filed under
asphyxiation,
blackmail,
bondage,
claustrophilia,
clothing,
Fiona Wilcox,
foetal,
Jackie Sebire,
Michael Broster,
shoes,
Sir John Sawers,
suffocation,
verdict,
wigs
by Winter Patriot
on Saturday, May 05, 2012 |
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WP home
Express : What Does MI6 Have To Say About The Spy In The Bag?
Saturday, May 05, 2012
WHAT DOES MI6 HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THE SPY IN THE BAG?
By James Gillespie | May 5, 2012
THE bizarre case of Gareth Williams has thrown the spotlight on an intelligence service whose shadowy work leads some critics to ask whether it has become a law to itself.
There is an address in South London where even the police can’t go. Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, the officer leading the investigation into the baffling death of MI6 agent Gareth Williams – the so-called “Spy in the Bag” case – must have wished her powers extended to 85 Vauxhall Cross. But they don’t.
That address is the home of MI6 and although Sebire is a highly-experienced murder detective she doesn’t have security clearance to even enter the building much less question its inhabitants.
Instead her investigation depended on the mediation of Detective Superintendent Michael Broster of SO15, the counter-terrorism branch, which works closely with the intelligence services.
Only in the final stages of the inquest into Williams’s death this week did it emerge that no verbatim notes were taken of interviews with his MI6 colleagues and that a black holdall and nine memory sticks had been found at his desk but not handed over to the investigating officers.
Now 50 MI6 staff are facing DNA tests after the coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox, in a narrative verdict, ruled that it was likely Williams was “unlawfully killed”. Investigators are understood to believe that a colleague either from MI6 or the Government’s secret listening post at GCHQ was in the Pimlico flat when Williams died.
For his family – sister Ceri and parents Ian and Ellen – the inquest has raised as many questions as it has answered. And the most disturbing question of all is: does MI6 think it’s above the law?
The family has accused the intelligence service of withholding vital clues and failing to make “basic inquiries” until a week after Williams disappeared. “We are also extremely disappointed over the reluctance and failure of MI6 to make available relevant information,” they added.
Dr Wilcox echoed those concerns when she said that the forgetfulness of some employees at MI6, where Williams was on secondment from GCHQ, “stretched probability” and she refused to rule out the possibility that someone from the world of intelligence was involved.
From the moment the 31-year-old’s body was discovered in a North Face bag in the bath of his flat the response of MI6 has been puzzling. It took staff seven days even to report Williams – a conscientious time-keeper – missing then they appeared keen for police to be first into the apartment that MI6 has used for many years as temporary accommodation for employees.
The flat’s heating had been turned up high, despite the warmth of August, speeding up the decomposition of the body. The placing of the bag containing Williams into the bath prevented the giveaway leakage of fluids through the floor.
There were suggestions that the flat had been “swept” by someone who was forensically aware, to remove as many clues as possible.
Dr Wilcox said there was no evidence to suggest MI6 was involved in the death but “it is still a legitimate line of inquiry” and she added that “many agencies fell short” in the aftermath.
Sir John Sawers, MI6 chief, has apologised “unreservedly”, saying that lessons had been learned. But have they?
The problem may be that deep within MI6, in its culture and attitudes, lies a belief that the law is for other people.
The very nature of its work (MI6 deals with foreign intelligence, MI5 with domestic) means it is often on the boundaries of legality. The service is already under investigation for its part in sending Libyan dissidents into the hands of Muammar Gaddafi’s secret police.
Conservative MP Andrew Tyne, chairman of the all-party parliamentary group on extraordinary rendition, this week called on Foreign Secretary William Hague to investigate whether MI6 officers had briefed journalists over the Libyan case – in breach of the Official Secrets Act.
The 1994 Intelligence Services Act allows MI6 officers to carry out acts abroad that if done in Britain would be in breach of criminal law. It would be hardly surprising if that attitude spreads to their staff at home.
Michael Smith, author of SIX: The Real James Bonds, says: “MI6 would recoil at any suggestion that it sees itself as above the law but the inherent secrecy of organisations like MI6 does tend to make them think that keeping everything they do secret, even the slightest thing, is so important that it transcends everything else.
“We’ve definitely seen that here, which is why the coroner and some police officers are so angry, justifiably so.”
But who are the people who spend their days working in the modernistic building on the banks of the Thames at 85 Vauxhall Cross?
There are about 2,500 people working for MI6 of whom about half are support staff.
The others are divided into two types: Intelligence Branch (IB) officers and General Service officers.
General Service officers asses reports.
It is the IB officers who are the real James Bonds. They train in the "killing houses" of the SAS and SBS at Hereford and Poole and have their own firing range at the MI6 training school at Fort Monckton on the Solent.
Within their shadowy world there are as many tensions and disagreements as in any workplace but these are hidden. In the Williams case a senior MI6 officer identified as F blamed his subordinate G for a "breakdown in communications" but G was not disciplined and no one will ever know who they are.
But Williams was a computer expert on secondment from GCHQ in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. What sort of people work there?
“Geeks,” said one who knows GCHQ staff but did not want to be identified. “They are brilliant in languages, maths or computers but they tend to be the sort of people who don’t mix easily. At university they are always the top ones in their class but they’re loners. A bit awkward.”
That description certainly fits Williams. He was a fitness fanatic who loved competitive cycling but also had a £20,000 collection of women’s clothing in his flat. When it came to the inquest, friends were few and far between.
HOWEVER those who did know him believe the picture painted during the inquiry was misleading. Some have claimed the clothes were gifts for female friends and talk of him visiting claustrophilia websites turned out to be based on four visits in two years. Hardly evidence of a dangerous obsession, as Dr Wilcox pointed out.
Perhaps the truth about what happened to Williams has fallen victim to MI6’s rather ambivalent attitude to the law.
“The secret world lives in a bubble,” says Smith. “It very often seeks to keep secret even things that are freely available on the internet.”
Another intelligence services expert, author Michael Burleigh, says: “After imagining that it could outmanoeuvre Plod, meaning highly-competent detectives, MI6 needs to think about how it lost track of its ‘vital’ employee – for tracking people is what it allegedly does on a global stage.
“It needs also to think about how it can allay the understandable distress of the Williams family while helping DCI Sebire, who has every right to feel short-changed.”
By protecting its right to secrecy every step of the way in the case of Gareth Williams, MI6 may actually be doing nothing more than what it does best: keeping secrets. What it does not appear to have done is to have helped significantly in finding out the truth of what happened in that Pimlico flat.
And MI6 seems to have shown scant regard for the others involved, not least Williams’s sister and his parents.
Because MI6 appears to think of itself as being above the law it hasn’t convinced anyone that it did the right thing.
It has just made itself look guilty.
By James Gillespie | May 5, 2012
THE bizarre case of Gareth Williams has thrown the spotlight on an intelligence service whose shadowy work leads some critics to ask whether it has become a law to itself.
There is an address in South London where even the police can’t go. Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, the officer leading the investigation into the baffling death of MI6 agent Gareth Williams – the so-called “Spy in the Bag” case – must have wished her powers extended to 85 Vauxhall Cross. But they don’t.
That address is the home of MI6 and although Sebire is a highly-experienced murder detective she doesn’t have security clearance to even enter the building much less question its inhabitants.
Instead her investigation depended on the mediation of Detective Superintendent Michael Broster of SO15, the counter-terrorism branch, which works closely with the intelligence services.
Only in the final stages of the inquest into Williams’s death this week did it emerge that no verbatim notes were taken of interviews with his MI6 colleagues and that a black holdall and nine memory sticks had been found at his desk but not handed over to the investigating officers.
Now 50 MI6 staff are facing DNA tests after the coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox, in a narrative verdict, ruled that it was likely Williams was “unlawfully killed”. Investigators are understood to believe that a colleague either from MI6 or the Government’s secret listening post at GCHQ was in the Pimlico flat when Williams died.
For his family – sister Ceri and parents Ian and Ellen – the inquest has raised as many questions as it has answered. And the most disturbing question of all is: does MI6 think it’s above the law?
The family has accused the intelligence service of withholding vital clues and failing to make “basic inquiries” until a week after Williams disappeared. “We are also extremely disappointed over the reluctance and failure of MI6 to make available relevant information,” they added.
Dr Wilcox echoed those concerns when she said that the forgetfulness of some employees at MI6, where Williams was on secondment from GCHQ, “stretched probability” and she refused to rule out the possibility that someone from the world of intelligence was involved.
From the moment the 31-year-old’s body was discovered in a North Face bag in the bath of his flat the response of MI6 has been puzzling. It took staff seven days even to report Williams – a conscientious time-keeper – missing then they appeared keen for police to be first into the apartment that MI6 has used for many years as temporary accommodation for employees.
The flat’s heating had been turned up high, despite the warmth of August, speeding up the decomposition of the body. The placing of the bag containing Williams into the bath prevented the giveaway leakage of fluids through the floor.
There were suggestions that the flat had been “swept” by someone who was forensically aware, to remove as many clues as possible.
Dr Wilcox said there was no evidence to suggest MI6 was involved in the death but “it is still a legitimate line of inquiry” and she added that “many agencies fell short” in the aftermath.
Sir John Sawers, MI6 chief, has apologised “unreservedly”, saying that lessons had been learned. But have they?
The problem may be that deep within MI6, in its culture and attitudes, lies a belief that the law is for other people.
The very nature of its work (MI6 deals with foreign intelligence, MI5 with domestic) means it is often on the boundaries of legality. The service is already under investigation for its part in sending Libyan dissidents into the hands of Muammar Gaddafi’s secret police.
Conservative MP Andrew Tyne, chairman of the all-party parliamentary group on extraordinary rendition, this week called on Foreign Secretary William Hague to investigate whether MI6 officers had briefed journalists over the Libyan case – in breach of the Official Secrets Act.
The 1994 Intelligence Services Act allows MI6 officers to carry out acts abroad that if done in Britain would be in breach of criminal law. It would be hardly surprising if that attitude spreads to their staff at home.
Michael Smith, author of SIX: The Real James Bonds, says: “MI6 would recoil at any suggestion that it sees itself as above the law but the inherent secrecy of organisations like MI6 does tend to make them think that keeping everything they do secret, even the slightest thing, is so important that it transcends everything else.
“We’ve definitely seen that here, which is why the coroner and some police officers are so angry, justifiably so.”
But who are the people who spend their days working in the modernistic building on the banks of the Thames at 85 Vauxhall Cross?
There are about 2,500 people working for MI6 of whom about half are support staff.
The others are divided into two types: Intelligence Branch (IB) officers and General Service officers.
General Service officers asses reports.
It is the IB officers who are the real James Bonds. They train in the "killing houses" of the SAS and SBS at Hereford and Poole and have their own firing range at the MI6 training school at Fort Monckton on the Solent.
Within their shadowy world there are as many tensions and disagreements as in any workplace but these are hidden. In the Williams case a senior MI6 officer identified as F blamed his subordinate G for a "breakdown in communications" but G was not disciplined and no one will ever know who they are.
But Williams was a computer expert on secondment from GCHQ in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. What sort of people work there?
“Geeks,” said one who knows GCHQ staff but did not want to be identified. “They are brilliant in languages, maths or computers but they tend to be the sort of people who don’t mix easily. At university they are always the top ones in their class but they’re loners. A bit awkward.”
That description certainly fits Williams. He was a fitness fanatic who loved competitive cycling but also had a £20,000 collection of women’s clothing in his flat. When it came to the inquest, friends were few and far between.
HOWEVER those who did know him believe the picture painted during the inquiry was misleading. Some have claimed the clothes were gifts for female friends and talk of him visiting claustrophilia websites turned out to be based on four visits in two years. Hardly evidence of a dangerous obsession, as Dr Wilcox pointed out.
Perhaps the truth about what happened to Williams has fallen victim to MI6’s rather ambivalent attitude to the law.
“The secret world lives in a bubble,” says Smith. “It very often seeks to keep secret even things that are freely available on the internet.”
Another intelligence services expert, author Michael Burleigh, says: “After imagining that it could outmanoeuvre Plod, meaning highly-competent detectives, MI6 needs to think about how it lost track of its ‘vital’ employee – for tracking people is what it allegedly does on a global stage.
“It needs also to think about how it can allay the understandable distress of the Williams family while helping DCI Sebire, who has every right to feel short-changed.”
By protecting its right to secrecy every step of the way in the case of Gareth Williams, MI6 may actually be doing nothing more than what it does best: keeping secrets. What it does not appear to have done is to have helped significantly in finding out the truth of what happened in that Pimlico flat.
And MI6 seems to have shown scant regard for the others involved, not least Williams’s sister and his parents.
Because MI6 appears to think of itself as being above the law it hasn’t convinced anyone that it did the right thing.
It has just made itself look guilty.
Filed under
breach,
claustrophilia,
clothing,
DNA,
Fiona Wilcox,
Jackie Sebire,
Michael Broster,
Michael Burleigh,
Sir John Sawers,
SO15
by Winter Patriot
on Saturday, May 05, 2012 |
link |
email |
TSWKTM home |
SHATASM home |
WP home
West End Extra : Coroner records 'unnatural death' verdict, but will we ever know what really happened to the spy found in a holdall?
Friday, May 04, 2012
Coroner records 'unnatural death' verdict, but will we ever know what really happened to the spy found in a holdall?
by JOSH LOEB | May 4, 2012
THE building that hosted the inquest into the death of Gareth Williams is located just steps from Sherlock Holmes’s fictional home in Baker Street.
But perhaps even someone of the calibre of Arthur Conan Doyle’s legendary detective might lack the ability to unravel what has already become known as “The Alderney Street Mystery”.
An inquest, held inside the annexe of the creaking Marylebone Council House building in Marylebone Road, concluded this week after seven days of evidence and a blizzard of media coverage.
It has almost certainly been the most complex Westminster coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox has heard since taking up the post a year ago, and it is hard to imagine a more haunting case.
Mr Williams, 31, a prodigious agent for MI6, was found dead inside a padlocked holdall in a bath in an en suite bathroom at his Pimlico flat on August 23, 2010.
He was naked and was lying on his back curled up in a partial foetal position.
There were no signs of a break-in or struggle at the property.
The flat was eerily tidy and neither Mr Williams’s fingerprints nor his footprints were evident on the bathroom tiles or sides of the bath.
No forensic traces have yet been pinpointed from which any third party can be identified, but experts are still analysing mystery DNA found on the holdall in the hope this could yield a breakthrough.
In her summing up on Wednesday, Dr Wilcox ruled out the possibility that Mr Williams could have zipped himself into the holdall and locked it, still less accomplished this within the even more restricted confines of the bath.
She said: “I am satisfied so that I’m sure that a third party lifted the bag into the bath and, on the balance of probabilities, locked the bag."
"The cause of his [Mr Williams’s] death is unnatural and is likely to be criminally motivated.”
She said it was probable that Mr Williams had died inside the holdall, adding that it was logical to assume this had been placed in the bath to allow the products of decomposition to drain away.
The door of the bathroom had been shut, preventing the smell from spreading.
Mr Williams worked at MI6’s headquarters in Vauxhall, where he was on a secondment from the GCHQ listening station in Cheltenham.
Described as a scrupulous risk assessor, he only ever let vetted people into his flat.
He was last seen alive on Sunday August 15, 2010, and an analysis of one of his iPhones showed it had been reset to factory settings, essentially wiped clean of data, on that date.
Dr Wilcox speculated that “this may have been the phone by which some third party had made some arrangement to meet with Gareth”.
On August 16 Mr Williams failed to appear for work.
Incredibly, he was not reported missing until August 23.
The heating in his flat was on despite the fact that it was a sweltering August, and this caused the corpse to decompose faster than it otherwise would have done.
On the fourth day of evidence, Anthony O’Toole, the lawyer for the Williams family, said MI6’s delay in raising the alarm over the disappearance had produced “horrendous results”.
“Because of the decomposition of the body, any forensic evidence that could have been derived from it has disappeared, so the police investigation has in effect been defeated,” he said.
Dr Wilcox, who recorded a narrative verdict of “unnatural death”, criticised MI6 for this, prompting an apology from the organisation’s chief Sir John Sawers, who promised lessons had been learned.
The court heard that SO15 counter-terrorism command had acted as a conduit between MI6 and DCI Jackie Sebire, the detective leading the case.
But they repeatedly failed to pass potentially vital information on to her.
DCI Sebire said the inquest had raised new lines of inquiry, and she appealed to anyone with any information to come forward, but Dr Wilcox said she believed it was unlikely Mr Williams’s death would ever be satisfactorily explained.
The Williams family have always said they believe “some agency specialising in the dark arts” either had a hand in Mr Williams’s death or cleaned up afterwards.
That impression looks set to remain in the minds of many people, particularly those who have borne witness to this gripping and almost unprecedented window into the cloak-and-dagger world of secret service spooks.
by JOSH LOEB | May 4, 2012
THE building that hosted the inquest into the death of Gareth Williams is located just steps from Sherlock Holmes’s fictional home in Baker Street.
But perhaps even someone of the calibre of Arthur Conan Doyle’s legendary detective might lack the ability to unravel what has already become known as “The Alderney Street Mystery”.
An inquest, held inside the annexe of the creaking Marylebone Council House building in Marylebone Road, concluded this week after seven days of evidence and a blizzard of media coverage.
It has almost certainly been the most complex Westminster coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox has heard since taking up the post a year ago, and it is hard to imagine a more haunting case.
Mr Williams, 31, a prodigious agent for MI6, was found dead inside a padlocked holdall in a bath in an en suite bathroom at his Pimlico flat on August 23, 2010.
He was naked and was lying on his back curled up in a partial foetal position.
There were no signs of a break-in or struggle at the property.
The flat was eerily tidy and neither Mr Williams’s fingerprints nor his footprints were evident on the bathroom tiles or sides of the bath.
No forensic traces have yet been pinpointed from which any third party can be identified, but experts are still analysing mystery DNA found on the holdall in the hope this could yield a breakthrough.
In her summing up on Wednesday, Dr Wilcox ruled out the possibility that Mr Williams could have zipped himself into the holdall and locked it, still less accomplished this within the even more restricted confines of the bath.
She said: “I am satisfied so that I’m sure that a third party lifted the bag into the bath and, on the balance of probabilities, locked the bag."
"The cause of his [Mr Williams’s] death is unnatural and is likely to be criminally motivated.”
She said it was probable that Mr Williams had died inside the holdall, adding that it was logical to assume this had been placed in the bath to allow the products of decomposition to drain away.
The door of the bathroom had been shut, preventing the smell from spreading.
Mr Williams worked at MI6’s headquarters in Vauxhall, where he was on a secondment from the GCHQ listening station in Cheltenham.
Described as a scrupulous risk assessor, he only ever let vetted people into his flat.
He was last seen alive on Sunday August 15, 2010, and an analysis of one of his iPhones showed it had been reset to factory settings, essentially wiped clean of data, on that date.
Dr Wilcox speculated that “this may have been the phone by which some third party had made some arrangement to meet with Gareth”.
On August 16 Mr Williams failed to appear for work.
Incredibly, he was not reported missing until August 23.
The heating in his flat was on despite the fact that it was a sweltering August, and this caused the corpse to decompose faster than it otherwise would have done.
On the fourth day of evidence, Anthony O’Toole, the lawyer for the Williams family, said MI6’s delay in raising the alarm over the disappearance had produced “horrendous results”.
“Because of the decomposition of the body, any forensic evidence that could have been derived from it has disappeared, so the police investigation has in effect been defeated,” he said.
Dr Wilcox, who recorded a narrative verdict of “unnatural death”, criticised MI6 for this, prompting an apology from the organisation’s chief Sir John Sawers, who promised lessons had been learned.
The court heard that SO15 counter-terrorism command had acted as a conduit between MI6 and DCI Jackie Sebire, the detective leading the case.
But they repeatedly failed to pass potentially vital information on to her.
DCI Sebire said the inquest had raised new lines of inquiry, and she appealed to anyone with any information to come forward, but Dr Wilcox said she believed it was unlikely Mr Williams’s death would ever be satisfactorily explained.
The Williams family have always said they believe “some agency specialising in the dark arts” either had a hand in Mr Williams’s death or cleaned up afterwards.
That impression looks set to remain in the minds of many people, particularly those who have borne witness to this gripping and almost unprecedented window into the cloak-and-dagger world of secret service spooks.
Filed under
Anthony O'Toole,
dark arts,
Fiona Wilcox,
foetal,
iPhone,
Jackie Sebire,
Sherlock Holmes,
Sir John Sawers
by Winter Patriot
on Friday, May 04, 2012 |
link |
email |
TSWKTM home |
SHATASM home |
WP home
FOX : British spy likely killed by mystery person, coroner says
Thursday, May 03, 2012
British spy likely killed by mystery person, coroner says
May 3, 2012
Even after a coroner's verdict, it remains a mystery: A naked spy found dead in a locked bag, lurid details of a kinky sex life and allegations that someone in Britain's spy agencies may have been involved in his death.
A British coroner ruled Wednesday that another person was likely involved in Gareth Williams' death — a finding that puts more pressure police to uncover the cyberwarfare expert's killer and continue to investigate possibilities that include whether he could have died in a sex game gone awry or in a more sinister scenario that involved his counterterrorism work.
In Britain, coroners are asked to investigate unexplained deaths, and their findings can often carry weight as police investigations proceed.
Although Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the death of Williams, 31, will ever be "satisfactorily explained," she said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a "criminally meditated act." She also said it was possible that someone from one of Britain's spy agencies was involved.
Williams, described as an introverted math genius, worked for Britain's secret eavesdropping service GCHQ. But he was attached to the MI6 foreign spy agency when his remains were found in the bathtub at his London apartment on Aug. 16, 2010, just a few days after returning from a trip to the United States.
Forensic experts found some 20,000 thousand pounds worth of luxury women's clothing, shoes and wigs in his apartment. Police also discovered that he had visited bondage and sadomasochism websites, including some related to claustrophilia — a desire for confinement in enclosed spaces.
William's landlord testified during the coroner's hearing that she once found him handcuffed to his bed. She said he had appeared embarrassed after asking for help.
Still, Wilcox said there was no immediate evidence of a sexual encounter gone wrong, of suicidal intent, or that Williams' death was linked to a supposed interest in bondage. She said, however, that tales about his sex life could have been fueled in an attempt to "manipulate the evidence."
In the past, spy recruits were often cautioned that their sex lives could make them vulnerable to blackmail.
The case has frustrated Scotland Yard detectives who have been investigating the case for 21 months now and say that the secrecy surrounding Williams' job has thwarted their efforts.
"Obviously a lot of information has come out through the course of this inquest which we have not been party to," lead detective Jackie Sebire said.
But Wilcox also criticized the police detectives.
Time and resources were wasted, she said, when forensic teams investigating a DNA sample taken from Williams's hand later turned out to belong to one of the forensic scientists. She also questioned the handling of William's iPhone, which contained deleted images of him naked in a pair of boots.
Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who was the police liason with MI6, said he had seized it from the spy's workplace and kept it until the next day when he gave it to another officer.
"I find this is either not what occurred ... or it demonstrates disregard for the rules governing continuity of evidence," Wilcox said.
Wilcox also criticized officers who interviewed Williams' colleagues without taking any formal statements.
"I find that this did affect the quality of evidence that was heard before this court," she said.
Still, the coroner said she had seen no evidence to indicate his death was linked to his work.
When the case emerged, some had speculated that he could have been the target of Russian criminal gangs or an Al Qaeda extremist.
Other media reports had said there had been a break-in at the property where he lived — a building sometimes used by MI6 to house its agents.
Wilcox said while there wasn't evidence to support a specific verdict of unlawful killing — which would need a high burden of proof — it was her opinion that the spy was probably unlawfully killed.
She said while it appeared unlikely, speculation that British intelligence agencies may have had a role in the death continued to be a "legitimate line of inquiry."
MI6 waited a week to investigate why Williams hadn't shown up for work — a delay that made it difficult for Williams' family to identify his badly decomposed body.
John Sawers, the head of MI6, said in a statement following the corner's verdict that he apologized "unreservedly" to the Williams family for the spy agency's failure.
During the coroner's hearing, MI6 accepted that Williams disliked the agency's boozy culture of post-work drinking and tedious bureaucracy, and had requested to return to his job at GCHQ.
One MI6 officer claimed that Williams hadn't been reported as missing because colleagues assumed he was preparing for his return to the southern England headquarters of the eavesdropping service.
Wilcox said it appeared unlikely that Williams could have climbed inside the duffel bag and locked it himself.
Two different specialists attempted to recreate the feat without success. Williams was discovered in the fetal position inside the bag with two keys to the bag's padlock underneath his buttocks.
Pathologists told the inquest that poisoning or asphyxiation may have killed Williams, but said his cadaver was too badly decomposed to be certain.
Williams' family, who have been left distraught by parts of the inquest, did not speak outside court but offered a statement.
The family, from Wales, described Williams as a "special and adored son and brother" and said they "cannot describe the depth of the sorrow his absence leaves in our lives."
The police investigating is ongoing.
May 3, 2012
Even after a coroner's verdict, it remains a mystery: A naked spy found dead in a locked bag, lurid details of a kinky sex life and allegations that someone in Britain's spy agencies may have been involved in his death.
A British coroner ruled Wednesday that another person was likely involved in Gareth Williams' death — a finding that puts more pressure police to uncover the cyberwarfare expert's killer and continue to investigate possibilities that include whether he could have died in a sex game gone awry or in a more sinister scenario that involved his counterterrorism work.
In Britain, coroners are asked to investigate unexplained deaths, and their findings can often carry weight as police investigations proceed.
Although Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the death of Williams, 31, will ever be "satisfactorily explained," she said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a "criminally meditated act." She also said it was possible that someone from one of Britain's spy agencies was involved.
Williams, described as an introverted math genius, worked for Britain's secret eavesdropping service GCHQ. But he was attached to the MI6 foreign spy agency when his remains were found in the bathtub at his London apartment on Aug. 16, 2010, just a few days after returning from a trip to the United States.
Forensic experts found some 20,000 thousand pounds worth of luxury women's clothing, shoes and wigs in his apartment. Police also discovered that he had visited bondage and sadomasochism websites, including some related to claustrophilia — a desire for confinement in enclosed spaces.
William's landlord testified during the coroner's hearing that she once found him handcuffed to his bed. She said he had appeared embarrassed after asking for help.
Still, Wilcox said there was no immediate evidence of a sexual encounter gone wrong, of suicidal intent, or that Williams' death was linked to a supposed interest in bondage. She said, however, that tales about his sex life could have been fueled in an attempt to "manipulate the evidence."
In the past, spy recruits were often cautioned that their sex lives could make them vulnerable to blackmail.
The case has frustrated Scotland Yard detectives who have been investigating the case for 21 months now and say that the secrecy surrounding Williams' job has thwarted their efforts.
"Obviously a lot of information has come out through the course of this inquest which we have not been party to," lead detective Jackie Sebire said.
But Wilcox also criticized the police detectives.
Time and resources were wasted, she said, when forensic teams investigating a DNA sample taken from Williams's hand later turned out to belong to one of the forensic scientists. She also questioned the handling of William's iPhone, which contained deleted images of him naked in a pair of boots.
Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who was the police liason with MI6, said he had seized it from the spy's workplace and kept it until the next day when he gave it to another officer.
"I find this is either not what occurred ... or it demonstrates disregard for the rules governing continuity of evidence," Wilcox said.
Wilcox also criticized officers who interviewed Williams' colleagues without taking any formal statements.
"I find that this did affect the quality of evidence that was heard before this court," she said.
Still, the coroner said she had seen no evidence to indicate his death was linked to his work.
When the case emerged, some had speculated that he could have been the target of Russian criminal gangs or an Al Qaeda extremist.
Other media reports had said there had been a break-in at the property where he lived — a building sometimes used by MI6 to house its agents.
Wilcox said while there wasn't evidence to support a specific verdict of unlawful killing — which would need a high burden of proof — it was her opinion that the spy was probably unlawfully killed.
She said while it appeared unlikely, speculation that British intelligence agencies may have had a role in the death continued to be a "legitimate line of inquiry."
MI6 waited a week to investigate why Williams hadn't shown up for work — a delay that made it difficult for Williams' family to identify his badly decomposed body.
John Sawers, the head of MI6, said in a statement following the corner's verdict that he apologized "unreservedly" to the Williams family for the spy agency's failure.
During the coroner's hearing, MI6 accepted that Williams disliked the agency's boozy culture of post-work drinking and tedious bureaucracy, and had requested to return to his job at GCHQ.
One MI6 officer claimed that Williams hadn't been reported as missing because colleagues assumed he was preparing for his return to the southern England headquarters of the eavesdropping service.
Wilcox said it appeared unlikely that Williams could have climbed inside the duffel bag and locked it himself.
Two different specialists attempted to recreate the feat without success. Williams was discovered in the fetal position inside the bag with two keys to the bag's padlock underneath his buttocks.
Pathologists told the inquest that poisoning or asphyxiation may have killed Williams, but said his cadaver was too badly decomposed to be certain.
Williams' family, who have been left distraught by parts of the inquest, did not speak outside court but offered a statement.
The family, from Wales, described Williams as a "special and adored son and brother" and said they "cannot describe the depth of the sorrow his absence leaves in our lives."
The police investigating is ongoing.
Filed under
blackmail,
bondage,
claustrophilia,
clothing,
Fiona Wilcox,
foetal,
Michael Broster,
shoes,
Sir John Sawers,
wigs
by Winter Patriot
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The Australian : More questions than answers after the inquest into MI6 spy Gareth Williams' death
Thursday, May 03, 2012
More questions than answers after the inquest into MI6 spy Gareth Williams' death
Fay Schlesinger and Fiona Hamilton | From: The Times | May 3, 2012
THE death of the MI6 spy Gareth Williams is likely to have been "criminally mediated" by another person who locked him a sports holdall and placed it in a bath, a coroner has ruled.
The ruling came as MI6 and the police were accused by the coroner, Fiona Wilcox, of serious failings in the investigation.
The chief of the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), Sir John Sawers, apologised for adding to the "anguish and suffering" of the code-breaker's family, after his managers did not report him missing for more than a week, potentially allowing evidence to be lost.
Scotland Yard began a review of the 21-month inquiry last night, after the coroner and family levelled criticism at the relationship between the police counter-terrorism command, SO15, and the secret services.
The coroner found that Mr Williams died in the early hours of August 16, 2010, at the MI6-owned flat in Pimlico, Central London, where he lived.
He was probably alive when he entered the bag but succumbed either to poison or suffocation inside the holdall, Dr Fiona Wilcox said after a seven-day inquest.
She said: "I am satisfied ... that a third party placed the bag into the bath and on the balance of probabilities locked the bag.
"The cause of death was unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated. I am therefore satisfied on the balance of probabilities that Gareth was killed unlawfully."
The inquest had focused on whether Mr Williams would have been able to lock himself inside the 81cm by 48cm bag.
After seeing footage of confinement experts trying to manoeuvre their bodies inside, Dr Wilcox said the the absence of foot and finger prints on the bath and tiles made her certain someone else put the bag in the bath.
The toggles were arranged with peculiar neatness, while someone may have tried to speed up the body's decomposition by turning on the heating despite the warm August weather, and disguised the smell using the bag itself, a screen across the bath and the closed ensuite bathroom door.
There was no evidence pointing to a culprit, and it was unlikely the death would ever be satisfactorily explained, the coroner said, though police said that they were following new leads that had emerged during the inquest.
During a two-hour narrative verdict, Dr Wilcox debunked a string of theories, many of which had some basis in evidence but had been embellished through lurid speculation in the media. There was no evidence that Mr Williams was a transvestite; the $A30,000 of unworn women's clothes in his wardrobe reflected an interest in high fashion, the coroner said. Some may have been gifts for his sister and friends.
Visits to bondage websites represented a tiny proportion of his online browsing and could not be seen as indicative of an active interest or having any link to his death, the Coroner said.
Dr Wilcox said it remained a "legitimate line of inquiry" that the secret services were involved in Mr Williams's death, because he socialised with very few people and would only allow those he knew to enter his flat. But she said "there was no evidence to support that he died at the hands of" spies.
Evidence of Mr Williams's death being linked to his work were also rejected by the coroner, as he was considered a "low-risk" employee. He was on a three-year secondment to MI6 from the Government's listening post in Cheltenham, GCHQ. He had not enjoyed the "rat race" in London, but was buoyant about a return to Cheltenham scheduled for a week after his death.
The coroner ruled out suicide and said: "I find that if he had got into the bag and locked himself in, he would have taken a knife in with him. He was a risk assessor." Speaking of the lack of prints in the bath, she added: "In relation to the prints found within the bathroom, in my view what was more significant was what was not found."
She said that "many agencies fell short", including the LGC Forensics, a contractor that chased a false lead for months after an administrative error. The Met's SO15 officers failed to take formal statements from Mr Williams's colleagues, some of whom later showed a remarkably poor memory of events. The coroner cast aspersions on evidence from Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who acted as a conduit between MI6 and the Met, after hearing that he seized an iPhone from Mr Williams's office containing a video of him naked but for a pair of boots, and kept it until the next day.
Dr Wilcox said: "I find this is either not what occurred - in which case how did he acquire this phone? - or it demonstrates disregard for the rules governing continuity of evidence."
Mr Broster had also faced censure for allowing MI6 to analyse and assess the relevance of evidence, including nine memory sticks whose existence was only revealed to the investigation's senior officer this week.
On MI6's failure to report the code-breaker's absence from work for a week, Dr Wilcox said she could "only speculate as to what effect this had" on the investigation. She said that evidence given anonymously by Mr Williams's MI6 line manager, Witness G, had "stretched bounds of credibility". Referring to the manager's recollection of attempting to contact Mr Williams on the day after the "punctual" worker failed to arrive at the office, the coroner said "there was no phone call".
Speaking through their solicitor, Mr Williams's family called on the Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, to review the investigation. They said they were "extremely disappointed" at the secret services' "reluctance and failure" to make relevant information available. They also attacked the "total inadequacies" of the inquiry by SO15 into MI6.
The SIS said that Sir John Sawers "recognises that the Service's failure to act more swiftly when Mr Williams was first became absent has contributed to the anguish of his family. Gareth Williams was a man of remarkable talents which he devoted to public service. The work that Gareth undertook during his career ... made a real contribution to the security of this country."
An MI6 spokesman said: "We fully co-operated with the police and will continue to do so during the ongoing investigation. We gave all the evidence to the police when they wanted it; at no time did we withhold any evidence."
Martin Hewitt, Deputy Assistant Commissioner of the Met, said that investigations into Mr Williams's death were continuing.
Fay Schlesinger and Fiona Hamilton | From: The Times | May 3, 2012
THE death of the MI6 spy Gareth Williams is likely to have been "criminally mediated" by another person who locked him a sports holdall and placed it in a bath, a coroner has ruled.
The ruling came as MI6 and the police were accused by the coroner, Fiona Wilcox, of serious failings in the investigation.
The chief of the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS), Sir John Sawers, apologised for adding to the "anguish and suffering" of the code-breaker's family, after his managers did not report him missing for more than a week, potentially allowing evidence to be lost.
Scotland Yard began a review of the 21-month inquiry last night, after the coroner and family levelled criticism at the relationship between the police counter-terrorism command, SO15, and the secret services.
The coroner found that Mr Williams died in the early hours of August 16, 2010, at the MI6-owned flat in Pimlico, Central London, where he lived.
He was probably alive when he entered the bag but succumbed either to poison or suffocation inside the holdall, Dr Fiona Wilcox said after a seven-day inquest.
She said: "I am satisfied ... that a third party placed the bag into the bath and on the balance of probabilities locked the bag.
"The cause of death was unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated. I am therefore satisfied on the balance of probabilities that Gareth was killed unlawfully."
The inquest had focused on whether Mr Williams would have been able to lock himself inside the 81cm by 48cm bag.
After seeing footage of confinement experts trying to manoeuvre their bodies inside, Dr Wilcox said the the absence of foot and finger prints on the bath and tiles made her certain someone else put the bag in the bath.
The toggles were arranged with peculiar neatness, while someone may have tried to speed up the body's decomposition by turning on the heating despite the warm August weather, and disguised the smell using the bag itself, a screen across the bath and the closed ensuite bathroom door.
There was no evidence pointing to a culprit, and it was unlikely the death would ever be satisfactorily explained, the coroner said, though police said that they were following new leads that had emerged during the inquest.
During a two-hour narrative verdict, Dr Wilcox debunked a string of theories, many of which had some basis in evidence but had been embellished through lurid speculation in the media. There was no evidence that Mr Williams was a transvestite; the $A30,000 of unworn women's clothes in his wardrobe reflected an interest in high fashion, the coroner said. Some may have been gifts for his sister and friends.
Visits to bondage websites represented a tiny proportion of his online browsing and could not be seen as indicative of an active interest or having any link to his death, the Coroner said.
Dr Wilcox said it remained a "legitimate line of inquiry" that the secret services were involved in Mr Williams's death, because he socialised with very few people and would only allow those he knew to enter his flat. But she said "there was no evidence to support that he died at the hands of" spies.
Evidence of Mr Williams's death being linked to his work were also rejected by the coroner, as he was considered a "low-risk" employee. He was on a three-year secondment to MI6 from the Government's listening post in Cheltenham, GCHQ. He had not enjoyed the "rat race" in London, but was buoyant about a return to Cheltenham scheduled for a week after his death.
The coroner ruled out suicide and said: "I find that if he had got into the bag and locked himself in, he would have taken a knife in with him. He was a risk assessor." Speaking of the lack of prints in the bath, she added: "In relation to the prints found within the bathroom, in my view what was more significant was what was not found."
She said that "many agencies fell short", including the LGC Forensics, a contractor that chased a false lead for months after an administrative error. The Met's SO15 officers failed to take formal statements from Mr Williams's colleagues, some of whom later showed a remarkably poor memory of events. The coroner cast aspersions on evidence from Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who acted as a conduit between MI6 and the Met, after hearing that he seized an iPhone from Mr Williams's office containing a video of him naked but for a pair of boots, and kept it until the next day.
Dr Wilcox said: "I find this is either not what occurred - in which case how did he acquire this phone? - or it demonstrates disregard for the rules governing continuity of evidence."
Mr Broster had also faced censure for allowing MI6 to analyse and assess the relevance of evidence, including nine memory sticks whose existence was only revealed to the investigation's senior officer this week.
On MI6's failure to report the code-breaker's absence from work for a week, Dr Wilcox said she could "only speculate as to what effect this had" on the investigation. She said that evidence given anonymously by Mr Williams's MI6 line manager, Witness G, had "stretched bounds of credibility". Referring to the manager's recollection of attempting to contact Mr Williams on the day after the "punctual" worker failed to arrive at the office, the coroner said "there was no phone call".
Speaking through their solicitor, Mr Williams's family called on the Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, to review the investigation. They said they were "extremely disappointed" at the secret services' "reluctance and failure" to make relevant information available. They also attacked the "total inadequacies" of the inquiry by SO15 into MI6.
The SIS said that Sir John Sawers "recognises that the Service's failure to act more swiftly when Mr Williams was first became absent has contributed to the anguish of his family. Gareth Williams was a man of remarkable talents which he devoted to public service. The work that Gareth undertook during his career ... made a real contribution to the security of this country."
An MI6 spokesman said: "We fully co-operated with the police and will continue to do so during the ongoing investigation. We gave all the evidence to the police when they wanted it; at no time did we withhold any evidence."
Martin Hewitt, Deputy Assistant Commissioner of the Met, said that investigations into Mr Williams's death were continuing.
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Fiona Wilcox,
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LGC,
Martin Hewitt,
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Witness G
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Independent : Spy Gareth Williams was probably the victim of a 'criminally mediated' unlawful killing
Thursday, May 03, 2012
Spy Gareth Williams was probably the victim of a 'criminally mediated' unlawful killing
Kim Sengupta | May 3, 2012
Gareth Williams, the MI6 officer whose naked body was found in a padlocked bag, was probably the victim of a “criminally mediated” unlawful killing in which poison may have been used. That was the verdict reached yesterday at the end of a highly charged inquest into the death marked by accusations of an official cover up.
The discovery of 31 year old Mr Williams’ body, in a North Face holdall, in the en-suite bath of his flat in Alderney Street, Pimlico, south west London, due to his profession as an intelligence cypher expert had resulted in international interest and speculation about what happened.
The conclusion reached yesterday by coroner, Dr Fiona Wilcox, effectively pointed towards murder by a “third party” who had apparently managed to eliminate any evidence of their complicity. However, because of a series of blunders, one of the most high profile murder investigations in recent times may never be solved.
“It is unlikely this death will ever be satisfactorily explained” Dr Wilcox, told a packed hearing with Mr Williams’ family, representatives of intelligence services, and senior Scotland Yard officers among those attending. “Most of the fundamental questions in relation to how Gareth died remain unanswered”.
She continued: "I find it more likely than not that Gareth entered the bag alive and then died very soon afterwards either from the toxic effects of carbon dioxide and heat before he was able to make a concerted effort to escape from some unknown poison dioxide and heat. “I am satisfied so that I am sure that a third party on the balance of probabilities locked the bag placed the bag in to the bath where it was found.”
The Coroner maintained that it remained a "legitimate line of inquiry" that the intelligence services were involved in the death of 31 year old Mr Williams, who was on secondment to MI6 from GCHQ at the time, although she stressed "there was no evidence to support that he died at the hands” of a government agency.
But there had been repeated revelations of shortcomings in the inquiry and this week Westminster Coroner’s Court heard that potentially critical evidence, including nine memory sticks belonging to Mr Williams and a bag of the same make in which he was found, was only handed to police this week, 21 months after his killing in August 2010.
Dr Wilcox had been particularly severe in her criticism of the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism command (SO15) which had been tasked with liaising between the murder squad and MI6. At one stage she accused a senior officer, Detective Superintendent Michael Broster of collusion with MI6 and “not being impartial” in the case.
The inquest had also heard that Mr Williams’ immediate superior at the intelligence service did not raise an alert for seven days after he had failed to turn up for work and basic procedures in such a situation were not adhered to. The resulting delay of seven days, decomposition of the body in the Summer heat, enclosed in a holdall, meant that vital forensic evidence was lost and Mr Williams’ parents could not view their dead son.
At the end of proceedings the inquest heard an unprecedented personal apology from Sir John Sawers, the head of the Secret Intelligence Service [MI6] to Mr Williams’ family.
In a statement Sir John acknowledged that the “Service’s failure to act more swiftly when Gareth first became absent from work has contributed to the anguish and suffering of his family.
“On behalf of the whole organisation, we regret this deeply and apologise unreservedly. Lessons have been learned, in particular the responsibility of all staff to report unaccounted staff absences".
Sir John continued: "Gareth Williams was a man of remarkable talents, talents which he devoted to public service. The work that Gareth undertook during his career both at Cheltenham and London made a real contribution to the security of this country and of its citizens. Gareth continues to be mourned by his friends and colleagues."
Members of Mr Williams’ family, in particular his mother, had been unable to sit through some of the more harrowing evidence. Yesterday, in a statement read out by their solicitor, Robyn Williams, they said, "To lose a son and brother in such circumstances as have been outlined during the course of this inquest only compounds the tragedy.
"Our grief is exacerbated by the failure of his employers at MI6 to take even the most basic inquiries as to his whereabouts and welfare, which any reasonable employer would have taken. We are also extremely disappointed at the reluctance and failure of MI6 to make available relevant information.
"We would like to ask Metropolitan Police Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe to look into and review how this investigation will proceed in light of the total inadequacies of the SO15 investigation into MI6 during the course of this inquiry."
Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sabire, in charge of the team investigating Mr Williams death, said” "I've always been satisfied a third party may have been involved in his death and the coroner has confirmed that in her finding today. "The inquest has raised several new lines of inquiry and the investigation will refocus and actively pursue all the evidence heard and all the new lines of inquiry. I urge anyone who knew Mr Williams or had contact with him to search their conscience and come forward with any information about what had happened.”
Kim Sengupta | May 3, 2012
Gareth Williams, the MI6 officer whose naked body was found in a padlocked bag, was probably the victim of a “criminally mediated” unlawful killing in which poison may have been used. That was the verdict reached yesterday at the end of a highly charged inquest into the death marked by accusations of an official cover up.
The discovery of 31 year old Mr Williams’ body, in a North Face holdall, in the en-suite bath of his flat in Alderney Street, Pimlico, south west London, due to his profession as an intelligence cypher expert had resulted in international interest and speculation about what happened.
The conclusion reached yesterday by coroner, Dr Fiona Wilcox, effectively pointed towards murder by a “third party” who had apparently managed to eliminate any evidence of their complicity. However, because of a series of blunders, one of the most high profile murder investigations in recent times may never be solved.
“It is unlikely this death will ever be satisfactorily explained” Dr Wilcox, told a packed hearing with Mr Williams’ family, representatives of intelligence services, and senior Scotland Yard officers among those attending. “Most of the fundamental questions in relation to how Gareth died remain unanswered”.
She continued: "I find it more likely than not that Gareth entered the bag alive and then died very soon afterwards either from the toxic effects of carbon dioxide and heat before he was able to make a concerted effort to escape from some unknown poison dioxide and heat. “I am satisfied so that I am sure that a third party on the balance of probabilities locked the bag placed the bag in to the bath where it was found.”
The Coroner maintained that it remained a "legitimate line of inquiry" that the intelligence services were involved in the death of 31 year old Mr Williams, who was on secondment to MI6 from GCHQ at the time, although she stressed "there was no evidence to support that he died at the hands” of a government agency.
But there had been repeated revelations of shortcomings in the inquiry and this week Westminster Coroner’s Court heard that potentially critical evidence, including nine memory sticks belonging to Mr Williams and a bag of the same make in which he was found, was only handed to police this week, 21 months after his killing in August 2010.
Dr Wilcox had been particularly severe in her criticism of the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism command (SO15) which had been tasked with liaising between the murder squad and MI6. At one stage she accused a senior officer, Detective Superintendent Michael Broster of collusion with MI6 and “not being impartial” in the case.
The inquest had also heard that Mr Williams’ immediate superior at the intelligence service did not raise an alert for seven days after he had failed to turn up for work and basic procedures in such a situation were not adhered to. The resulting delay of seven days, decomposition of the body in the Summer heat, enclosed in a holdall, meant that vital forensic evidence was lost and Mr Williams’ parents could not view their dead son.
At the end of proceedings the inquest heard an unprecedented personal apology from Sir John Sawers, the head of the Secret Intelligence Service [MI6] to Mr Williams’ family.
In a statement Sir John acknowledged that the “Service’s failure to act more swiftly when Gareth first became absent from work has contributed to the anguish and suffering of his family.
“On behalf of the whole organisation, we regret this deeply and apologise unreservedly. Lessons have been learned, in particular the responsibility of all staff to report unaccounted staff absences".
Sir John continued: "Gareth Williams was a man of remarkable talents, talents which he devoted to public service. The work that Gareth undertook during his career both at Cheltenham and London made a real contribution to the security of this country and of its citizens. Gareth continues to be mourned by his friends and colleagues."
Members of Mr Williams’ family, in particular his mother, had been unable to sit through some of the more harrowing evidence. Yesterday, in a statement read out by their solicitor, Robyn Williams, they said, "To lose a son and brother in such circumstances as have been outlined during the course of this inquest only compounds the tragedy.
"Our grief is exacerbated by the failure of his employers at MI6 to take even the most basic inquiries as to his whereabouts and welfare, which any reasonable employer would have taken. We are also extremely disappointed at the reluctance and failure of MI6 to make available relevant information.
"We would like to ask Metropolitan Police Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe to look into and review how this investigation will proceed in light of the total inadequacies of the SO15 investigation into MI6 during the course of this inquiry."
Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sabire, in charge of the team investigating Mr Williams death, said” "I've always been satisfied a third party may have been involved in his death and the coroner has confirmed that in her finding today. "The inquest has raised several new lines of inquiry and the investigation will refocus and actively pursue all the evidence heard and all the new lines of inquiry. I urge anyone who knew Mr Williams or had contact with him to search their conscience and come forward with any information about what had happened.”
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Independent,
Jackie Sebire,
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SO15
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3 News (NZ) : Coroner: Spy Gareth Williams likely slain by mystery killer
Thursday, May 03, 2012
Coroner: Spy Gareth Williams likely slain by mystery killer
By Paisley Dodds | May 3, 2012
Even after a coroner's verdict, it remains a mystery: A naked spy found dead in a locked bag, lurid details of a kinky sex life and allegations that someone in Britain's spy agencies may have been involved in his death.
A British coroner has ruled that another person was likely involved in Gareth Williams' death - a finding that puts more pressure on police to uncover the cyberwarfare expert's killer and continue to investigate possibilities that include whether he could have died in a sex game gone awry or in a more sinister scenario that involved his counterterrorism work.
In Britain, coroners are asked to investigate unexplained deaths, and their findings can often carry weight as police investigations proceed.
Although Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the death of Williams, 31, will ever be "satisfactorily explained," she said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a "criminally meditated act". She also said it was possible that someone from one of Britain's spy agencies was involved.
Williams, described as an introverted math genius, worked for Britain's secret eavesdropping service GCHQ. But he was attached to the MI6 foreign spy agency when his remains were found in the bathtub at his London apartment on August 16, 2010, just a few days after returning from a trip to the United States.
Forensic experts found some £20,000 worth of luxury women's clothing, shoes and wigs in his apartment. Police also discovered that he had visited bondage and sadomasochism websites, including some related to claustrophilia - a desire for confinement in enclosed spaces.
William's landlord testified during the coroner's hearing that she once found him handcuffed to his bed. She said he had appeared embarrassed after asking for help.
Still, Wilcox said there was no immediate evidence of a sexual encounter gone wrong, of suicidal intent, or that Williams' death was linked to a supposed interest in bondage. She said, however, that tales about his sex life could have been fuelled in an attempt to "manipulate the evidence".
In the past, spy recruits were often cautioned that their sex lives could make them vulnerable to blackmail.
The case has frustrated Scotland Yard detectives who have been investigating the case for 21 months now and say that the secrecy surrounding Williams' job has thwarted their efforts.
"Obviously a lot of information has come out through the course of this inquest which we have not been party to," lead detective Jackie Sebire said.
But Wilcox also criticised the police detectives.
Time and resources were wasted, she said, when forensic teams investigating a DNA sample taken from Williams's hand later turned out to belong to one of the forensic scientists. She also questioned the handling of William's iPhone, which contained deleted images of him naked in a pair of boots.
Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who was the police liason with MI6, said he had seized it from the spy's workplace and kept it until the next day when he gave it to another officer.
"I find this is either not what occurred ... or it demonstrates disregard for the rules governing continuity of evidence," Wilcox said.
Wilcox also criticised officers who interviewed Williams' colleagues without taking any formal statements.
"I find that this did affect the quality of evidence that was heard before this court," she said.
Still, the coroner said she had seen no evidence to indicate his death was linked to his work.
When the case emerged, some had speculated that he could have been the target of Russian criminal gangs or an al-Qaida extremist. Other media reports had said there had been a break-in at the property where he lived - a building sometimes used by MI6 to house its agents.
Wilcox said while there wasn't evidence to support a specific verdict of unlawful killing - which would need a high burden of proof - it was her opinion that the spy was probably unlawfully killed.
She said while it appeared unlikely, speculation that British intelligence agencies may have had a role in the death continued to be a "legitimate line of inquiry".
MI6 waited a week to investigate why Williams hadn't shown up for work - a delay that made it difficult for Williams' family to identify his badly decomposed body.
John Sawers, the head of MI6, said in a statement following the corner's verdict that he apologised "unreservedly" to the Williams family for the spy agency's failure.
During the coroner's hearing, MI6 accepted that Williams disliked the agency's boozy culture of post-work drinking and tedious bureaucracy, and had requested to return to his job at GCHQ.
One MI6 officer claimed that Williams hadn't been reported as missing because colleagues assumed he was preparing for his return to the southern England headquarters of the eavesdropping service.
Wilcox said it appeared unlikely that Williams could have climbed inside the duffel bag and locked it himself. Two different specialists attempted to recreate the feat without success. Williams was discovered in the foetal position inside the bag with two keys to the bag's padlock underneath his buttocks.
Pathologists told the inquest that poisoning or asphyxiation may have killed Williams, but said his cadaver was too badly decomposed to be certain.
Williams' family, who have been left distraught by parts of the inquest, did not speak outside court but offered a statement.
The family, from Wales, described Williams as a "special and adored son and brother" and said they "cannot describe the depth of the sorrow his absence leaves in our lives".
The police investigating is ongoing.
AP
By Paisley Dodds | May 3, 2012
Even after a coroner's verdict, it remains a mystery: A naked spy found dead in a locked bag, lurid details of a kinky sex life and allegations that someone in Britain's spy agencies may have been involved in his death.
A British coroner has ruled that another person was likely involved in Gareth Williams' death - a finding that puts more pressure on police to uncover the cyberwarfare expert's killer and continue to investigate possibilities that include whether he could have died in a sex game gone awry or in a more sinister scenario that involved his counterterrorism work.
In Britain, coroners are asked to investigate unexplained deaths, and their findings can often carry weight as police investigations proceed.
Although Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the death of Williams, 31, will ever be "satisfactorily explained," she said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a "criminally meditated act". She also said it was possible that someone from one of Britain's spy agencies was involved.
Williams, described as an introverted math genius, worked for Britain's secret eavesdropping service GCHQ. But he was attached to the MI6 foreign spy agency when his remains were found in the bathtub at his London apartment on August 16, 2010, just a few days after returning from a trip to the United States.
Forensic experts found some £20,000 worth of luxury women's clothing, shoes and wigs in his apartment. Police also discovered that he had visited bondage and sadomasochism websites, including some related to claustrophilia - a desire for confinement in enclosed spaces.
William's landlord testified during the coroner's hearing that she once found him handcuffed to his bed. She said he had appeared embarrassed after asking for help.
Still, Wilcox said there was no immediate evidence of a sexual encounter gone wrong, of suicidal intent, or that Williams' death was linked to a supposed interest in bondage. She said, however, that tales about his sex life could have been fuelled in an attempt to "manipulate the evidence".
In the past, spy recruits were often cautioned that their sex lives could make them vulnerable to blackmail.
The case has frustrated Scotland Yard detectives who have been investigating the case for 21 months now and say that the secrecy surrounding Williams' job has thwarted their efforts.
"Obviously a lot of information has come out through the course of this inquest which we have not been party to," lead detective Jackie Sebire said.
But Wilcox also criticised the police detectives.
Time and resources were wasted, she said, when forensic teams investigating a DNA sample taken from Williams's hand later turned out to belong to one of the forensic scientists. She also questioned the handling of William's iPhone, which contained deleted images of him naked in a pair of boots.
Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who was the police liason with MI6, said he had seized it from the spy's workplace and kept it until the next day when he gave it to another officer.
"I find this is either not what occurred ... or it demonstrates disregard for the rules governing continuity of evidence," Wilcox said.
Wilcox also criticised officers who interviewed Williams' colleagues without taking any formal statements.
"I find that this did affect the quality of evidence that was heard before this court," she said.
Still, the coroner said she had seen no evidence to indicate his death was linked to his work.
When the case emerged, some had speculated that he could have been the target of Russian criminal gangs or an al-Qaida extremist. Other media reports had said there had been a break-in at the property where he lived - a building sometimes used by MI6 to house its agents.
Wilcox said while there wasn't evidence to support a specific verdict of unlawful killing - which would need a high burden of proof - it was her opinion that the spy was probably unlawfully killed.
She said while it appeared unlikely, speculation that British intelligence agencies may have had a role in the death continued to be a "legitimate line of inquiry".
MI6 waited a week to investigate why Williams hadn't shown up for work - a delay that made it difficult for Williams' family to identify his badly decomposed body.
John Sawers, the head of MI6, said in a statement following the corner's verdict that he apologised "unreservedly" to the Williams family for the spy agency's failure.
During the coroner's hearing, MI6 accepted that Williams disliked the agency's boozy culture of post-work drinking and tedious bureaucracy, and had requested to return to his job at GCHQ.
One MI6 officer claimed that Williams hadn't been reported as missing because colleagues assumed he was preparing for his return to the southern England headquarters of the eavesdropping service.
Wilcox said it appeared unlikely that Williams could have climbed inside the duffel bag and locked it himself. Two different specialists attempted to recreate the feat without success. Williams was discovered in the foetal position inside the bag with two keys to the bag's padlock underneath his buttocks.
Pathologists told the inquest that poisoning or asphyxiation may have killed Williams, but said his cadaver was too badly decomposed to be certain.
Williams' family, who have been left distraught by parts of the inquest, did not speak outside court but offered a statement.
The family, from Wales, described Williams as a "special and adored son and brother" and said they "cannot describe the depth of the sorrow his absence leaves in our lives".
The police investigating is ongoing.
AP
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poisoning,
shoes,
Sir John Sawers,
wigs
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Wales Online : Secret service members could come under scrutiny following MI6 spy death
Thursday, May 03, 2012
Secret service members could come under scrutiny following MI6 spy death
May 3, 2012
Members of the secret services are expected to come under scrutiny as detectives redouble their efforts to solve the mystery of spy Gareth Williams’s death.
MI6 came under fire as a coroner said she was sure a third party locked the code-breaker inside the red holdall in which his naked body was found in his bathtub.
Police strongly suspect a member of MI6 or GCHQ was in his flat the day he died and will take DNA samples from up to 50 of his colleagues, the Daily Mail reported.
Giving her verdict in the inquest into the 31-year-old’s death, Dr Fiona Wilcox said he was probably killed and it “remained a legitimate line of inquiry” that the secret services may have been involved in the death.
But the 21-month investigation has yet to yield a culprit, with forensic experts still hoping for a breakthrough from DNA tests on a green towel discovered in his kitchen.
Mr Williams would have been unlikely to invite a third party who was not a family member into his home, Dr Wilcox observed, adding: “If a third party was present at the time of his death, in my view that third party would have to have been someone he knew or someone who was there without an invitation.”
Mr Williams’s relatives later attacked failures by secret services and police after the coroner said “many agencies fell short” in their investigation of the death riddle.
Criticising the inquiry, she warned it was unlikely the mystery would “ever be satisfactorily explained”.
But she said: “The cause of his death was unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated.
“I am therefore satisfied that on the balance of probabilities that Gareth was killed unlawfully.”
The lack of hand and footprints in the bathroom was “significant”, she said, telling the court: “In relation to the prints found within the bathroom, in my view what was more significant was what was not found rather than what was found.”
It was “highly unlikely” Mr Williams died alone, and had he been “carrying out some kind of peculiar experiment, he wouldn’t care if he left any foot or fingerprints”, Westminster Coroner’s Court heard.
As the eight-day hearing ended, relatives spoke out for the first time about their grief being “exacerbated” by MI6’s “reluctance and failure” to assist the police inquiry.
In a statement read out by their solicitor, they said they were “extremely disappointed” at “total inadequacies” in the probe into the death of their son and brother, who was on secondment to MI6 from GCHQ at the time.
Scotland Yard meanwhile vowed to explore new evidence that has come to light and Sir John Sawers, chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, apologised “unreservedly” for delays in raising the alarm about the death.
Mr Williams, a fitness enthusiast originally from Anglesey, North Wales, was found in the bag in his flat in Pimlico, central London, on August 23 2010.
Pathologists said he would have suffocated within three minutes if he was alive when he got inside the 32-inch by 19-inch holdall.
The coroner agreed that Mr Williams was suffocated by carbon dioxide, possibly as an onset of a short-acting poison.
She dismissed speculation that Mr Williams died as a result of some kind of “auto-erotic activity”, also denying there was any evidence to suggest claustrophilia – the love of enclosed spaces – was of any interest to him.
But despite leaving open the possibility of secret service involvement, she said “there was no evidence to support” that he died at the hands of spies.
Several factors had hampered inquiries, she observed, including breakdowns in communication by her own coroner’s office, a DNA mix-up by forensics and the late submission of evidence by MI6 to police.
However, she said, “taking all these shortfalls together, I am satisfied that the evidence is reliable and that we do not have to adjourn at this point”.
Revelations that MI6 failed to raise the alarm about Mr Williams’s disappearance for more than a week prompted elaborate conspiracy theories about his job and private life.
Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, who is leading the investigation, said the inquest had raised “several new lines of inquiry and the investigation will now refocus and actively pursue all the evidence heard and all the new lines of inquiry”.
May 3, 2012
Members of the secret services are expected to come under scrutiny as detectives redouble their efforts to solve the mystery of spy Gareth Williams’s death.
MI6 came under fire as a coroner said she was sure a third party locked the code-breaker inside the red holdall in which his naked body was found in his bathtub.
Police strongly suspect a member of MI6 or GCHQ was in his flat the day he died and will take DNA samples from up to 50 of his colleagues, the Daily Mail reported.
Giving her verdict in the inquest into the 31-year-old’s death, Dr Fiona Wilcox said he was probably killed and it “remained a legitimate line of inquiry” that the secret services may have been involved in the death.
But the 21-month investigation has yet to yield a culprit, with forensic experts still hoping for a breakthrough from DNA tests on a green towel discovered in his kitchen.
Mr Williams would have been unlikely to invite a third party who was not a family member into his home, Dr Wilcox observed, adding: “If a third party was present at the time of his death, in my view that third party would have to have been someone he knew or someone who was there without an invitation.”
Mr Williams’s relatives later attacked failures by secret services and police after the coroner said “many agencies fell short” in their investigation of the death riddle.
Criticising the inquiry, she warned it was unlikely the mystery would “ever be satisfactorily explained”.
But she said: “The cause of his death was unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated.
“I am therefore satisfied that on the balance of probabilities that Gareth was killed unlawfully.”
The lack of hand and footprints in the bathroom was “significant”, she said, telling the court: “In relation to the prints found within the bathroom, in my view what was more significant was what was not found rather than what was found.”
It was “highly unlikely” Mr Williams died alone, and had he been “carrying out some kind of peculiar experiment, he wouldn’t care if he left any foot or fingerprints”, Westminster Coroner’s Court heard.
As the eight-day hearing ended, relatives spoke out for the first time about their grief being “exacerbated” by MI6’s “reluctance and failure” to assist the police inquiry.
In a statement read out by their solicitor, they said they were “extremely disappointed” at “total inadequacies” in the probe into the death of their son and brother, who was on secondment to MI6 from GCHQ at the time.
Scotland Yard meanwhile vowed to explore new evidence that has come to light and Sir John Sawers, chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, apologised “unreservedly” for delays in raising the alarm about the death.
Mr Williams, a fitness enthusiast originally from Anglesey, North Wales, was found in the bag in his flat in Pimlico, central London, on August 23 2010.
Pathologists said he would have suffocated within three minutes if he was alive when he got inside the 32-inch by 19-inch holdall.
The coroner agreed that Mr Williams was suffocated by carbon dioxide, possibly as an onset of a short-acting poison.
She dismissed speculation that Mr Williams died as a result of some kind of “auto-erotic activity”, also denying there was any evidence to suggest claustrophilia – the love of enclosed spaces – was of any interest to him.
But despite leaving open the possibility of secret service involvement, she said “there was no evidence to support” that he died at the hands of spies.
Several factors had hampered inquiries, she observed, including breakdowns in communication by her own coroner’s office, a DNA mix-up by forensics and the late submission of evidence by MI6 to police.
However, she said, “taking all these shortfalls together, I am satisfied that the evidence is reliable and that we do not have to adjourn at this point”.
Revelations that MI6 failed to raise the alarm about Mr Williams’s disappearance for more than a week prompted elaborate conspiracy theories about his job and private life.
Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, who is leading the investigation, said the inquest had raised “several new lines of inquiry and the investigation will now refocus and actively pursue all the evidence heard and all the new lines of inquiry”.
Filed under
claustrophilia,
DNA,
Fiona Wilcox,
grief,
Jackie Sebire,
Sir John Sawers
by Winter Patriot
on Thursday, May 03, 2012 |
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