Gloucestershire Echo : GCHQ codebreaker Gareth Williams was 'murdered', believes author and MI6 operative Frederick Forsyth

GCHQ codebreaker Gareth Williams was 'murdered', believes author and MI6 operative Frederick Forsyth

By Corrie Bond-French | September 25, 2015

Internationally best-selling author and former MI6 operative Frederick Forsyth has revealed that he believes former GCHQ worker Gareth Williams' death was 'clearly murder'.

The author, famous for thrillers including The Day of The Jackal, The Odessa Files and Dogs of War, spoke to the Gloucestershire Echo's GL magazine in an exclusive interview ahead of his appearance at Cheltenham Literature Festival next Friday.

The death of Gareth Williams divided opinion after conflicting conclusions were drawn by the coroner and Scotland Yard.

The naked body of the 31-year-old codes and ciphers expert was found in a padlocked holdall in the bath of his top-floor flat in Pimlico, central London, on August, 23, 2010.

Agreeing that the unresolved case bore similarities to a fictional plot, Frederick Forsyth said: "It might have been, because obviously it was weird, and inexplicable, and I don't think we ever got to the bottom of it properly and we never will now.

"And occasionally murders, and it was clearly murder I think, but there are murders of course that are never ever solved and this may well be one."

Gareth, who was on secondment to MI6 from GCHQ, was due to return to Cheltenham the week after he died.

A coroner concluded that Williams was probably unlawfully killed and his death the result of a criminal act following an eight-day inquest in 2012,

Westminster coroner, Dr Fiona Wilcox, said he was probably either suffocated or poisoned, before a third party locked and placed the bag in the bath.

But Scotland Yard's three-year inquiry concluding in 2013 stated that Williams was 'most probably' alone when he died.

The author and former journalist also spoke about his recent admission that he was an agent for the Secret Intelligence Service, or MI6, in the past.

"Well, it's called asset or agent but really it's errand runner. I just ran a few errands, that's all."

The author will make a rare appearance at Cheltenham Literature Festival on Friday, October 2. Read the full interview in this weekend's new GL magazine, free exclusively with the Gloucestershire Echo and Gloucester Citizen.

Courier Mail : Forensic experts question MI6 body-in-bag theories five years after mystery death

Forensic experts question MI6 body-in-bag theories five years after mystery death

ROHAN SMITH | news.com.au | September 21, 2015

WHEN nobody had heard from Gareth Williams for seven days, alarm bells rang.

The maths genius, who graduated from university at just 17, had secrets — plenty of them — but no one was prepared for what they found. Five years on, experts still have trouble explaining it.

The MI6 spy’s life was a mystery covered up by the British government because his work was so secretive. But his death may end up being the greatest mystery of all, throwing up salacious theories involving sex games, cross-dressing and a hit planned and executed to perfection by the UK’s best trained spooks.

On August 23, 2010, colleagues told police they hadn’t seen 31-year-old Williams for a week. A welfare check led Scotland Yard to a disturbing scene at his immaculately-kept apartment in Pimlico, a small area of central London bound by the Thames.

In his home was a woman's wig, lipstick and makeup and a cutting from The Observer newspaper headlined "Top five regrets of the dying”.

In the bathroom they found his body, zipped inside a red and black duffel bag that had been padlocked from the outside and placed in the bath. Without a mark on him and no sign of a struggle, was it possible he got into the bag himself?

‘EVEN HOUDINI WOULD HAVE STRUGGLED’

Williams was a smart guy, no doubts about it.

Always ahead of the curve, he graduated with a first-class degree as a teen, completed his PhD at one of England’s top universities and scored a job he couldn’t talk about in the murky world of espionage — as a codebreaker for the British Secret Service.

But forensic investigator Peter Faulding says Williams would have had “to be Houdini” to have locked himself in a duffel bag the size of the one he was found in.

To prove the point, Mr Faulding tried to lock himself in the same bag, in the same bath, 300 times without success.

“I couldn’t say it’s impossible, but I think even Houdini would have struggled with this one,” Mr Faulding told UK newspaperThe Sun.

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

“I am used to confined spaces, and once I’m in that bag, it is a very unpleasant place to be.”

He said a person could only survive for 30 minutes inside the bag and is convinced Williams met with foul play. Others agree.

But if Williams was overpowered, his killers did not leave a scratch on his body. Coroner Fiona Wilcox said in 2010 that Williams showed no signs of injury or struggle and he was neither under the influence of drugs or alcohol in the week that he died.

The New York Times wrote in 2012 that Britain was “riveted” by the country’s “strangest real-life spy mystery”. Three years later the mystery endures. Without conclusive evidence, the theories continue to multiply, including fresh claims that the discovery of $43,000 worth of women’s designer clothes found in William’s wardrobe were not a personal peccadillo but all part of his work as a spy.

THE THEORIES

On the street, Gareth Williams was a keen cyclist with a clean-cut look and a good job. Inside his apartment, some say he was a different person altogether.

Among his collection of high-priced women’s clothes were wigs and underwear.

On his computer they found information that led some to the conclusion that his death was the result of a sex fetish.

According to police, Williams visited websites for people interested in bondage and claustophilia — a fetish whereby one derives sexual pleasure from being locked in tight spaces.

Detective Constable Simon Warren, investigating the case, said the websites were an “isolated incident among a sea of other data”.

Williams shaved his legs and kept a trim figure, leading some to believe he was a cross-dresser.

Mr Faulding, still on the case after all these years, said this week he was convinced Williams kept the clothes not for pleasure but for work: “The key question never asked was: ‘Were these clothes used for his job?’” he told The Sun.

“I am certain they were.”

The Sun in August broke news that Williams had, in the weeks before his death, hacked into US President Bill Clinton’s computer “as a favour to a friend”.

In doing so, Williams breached his security clearance and reportedly provoked the ire of his bosses at MI6.

The information gave weight to theories from early in the investigation suggesting Williams was killed by agents who not only did the deed but returned to cover their tracks.

The Daily Mail reported that forensic equipment placed at the crime scene was moved despite the building being under armed police guard. Scotland Yard concluded someone “must have scaled the building’s walls and broken in through the skylight to cover their tracks”.

CHILDHOOD SWEETHEART TELLS ALL

Williams’ life was a closely guarded secret but he did let one person in. Her name was Sian Lloyd-Jones and she was Williams’ childhood sweetheart and confidante.

In an interview in 2010, Lloyd-Jones said the man she knew was not the same person she was seeing portrayed in the media. She said the womens’ clothes he bought were for her and his sister.

“The person everyone talks about I don’t recognise him at all,” she told Mail on Sunday. “He was the complete opposite of everything that has been said about him. It’s been awful for everyone but particularly his family. They’re at breaking point, to be honest.”

She said Williams was a “lovely guy, a true, old school gentleman”.

“He had an excellent sense of humour and, from the bottom of my heart, he was the most charming, sensitive, gorgeous man. Truly, he was one in a million. He was somebody who really had a sound judgment for life.”

She said he was a workaholic but he was happy and content.

“He wasn’t a loner and he wasn’t lonely.”

Originally published as ‘Even Houdini would’ve struggled’

Sun : Spy in the drag

Spy in the drag

EXCLUSIVE: New claim on MI6 bag death

by ALISON SMITH-SQUIRE | September 20, 2015

THE MI6 spy whose body was found in a bag worked undercover as a woman, an expert claims.

It would explain why Gareth Williams, 31, had £20,000 worth of ladies’ designer clothes and shoes and a red wig at his home.

The theory also answers why his neighbours saw only a woman coming and going to his flat.

Forensic investigator Peter Faulding, who has probed the mystery death, said: “The key question never asked was, ‘Were these clothes used for his job?’. I am certain they were.”

Peter claims the expensive items were bought by Williams’ bosses.

He added: “I’m certain he made a very convincing female. He was slim, with feminine features. And as a cyclist he shaved his legs.”

It has been suspected the clothes were part of a secret lifestyle.

Gareth was found naked in a locked bag at his flat in Pimlico, central London, in 2010. An inquest ruled he was probably killed unlawfully.

New Zealand Herald : Spy found dead in bag 'had infuriated his MI6 bosses'

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

Sun : Clinton secrets hacked by spy in bag

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

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.

Breitbart : MI6 Spy Found Dead in Bag in Bath Had Hacked Clinton Data

MI6 Spy Found Dead in Bag in Bath Had Hacked Clinton Data

by Breitbart London | August 30, 2015

The MI6 spy who was found dead inside a holdall bag in his bathtub in London hacked into secret data held on former U.S. President Bill Clinton, The Sun newspaper has sensationally claimed today.

Gareth Williams was 31 years old when he was found naked, dead in his own bathtub in Pimlico, just a few minutes walk away from Britain’s Houses of Parliament.

Speculation has been rife ever since his death in September 2010 about the circumstances surrounding his death. A Metropolitan Police investigation revealed predictably, though suspiciously, that Mr Williams’ death was “probably an accident”. This was despite an initial inquest concluding that his death was “unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated.”

Since then the unexplained death has been the subject of investigation by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The BBC reported as early as December 2010 that Mr Williams had been on secondment from Britain’s signals intelligence operation GCHQ to MI6, and then subsequently to the United States’ National Security Agency.

The Sun reports that Williams had “dug out the guestlist for an event the former American president was going to as a favour for a pal.”

The Murdoch-owned paper reports:

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.

…

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.

…

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.

A number of theories exist about Mr William’s death, including that of a scorned ex-lover, a “Kremlin car” driving past his house, and some bizarre sexual fantasies that Mr Williams may have played out and taken too far.

Mr Williams had no alcohol or drugs in his system when he was found, and the inquest found that he would not have been able to seal himself in the bag alone.

The Metropolitan Police refused to comment on the new revelations that Mr Clinton’s security details may have been breached by Mr Williams.

Gloucestershire Echo : Claims GCHQ's Dr Gareth Williams 'hacked into data on former US President Bill Clinton'

Claims GCHQ's Dr Gareth Williams 'hacked into data on former US President Bill Clinton'

August 30, 2015

The Metropolitan Police are refusing to speculate on fresh claims about the death of Cheltenham codebreaker Dr Gareth Williams, who was found dead in a padlocked holdall in 2010.

According to a report in The Sun on Sunday, GCHQ's Dr Williams had 'hacked into secret data on Bill Clinton', the former United States President.

The paper reported that the 31-year-old, who was on secondment to MI6, 'dug out the guestlist for an event the former American president was going to as a favour for a pal."

This, the paper said, was handed to the friend who was also going to the event.

And it is claimed MI6 bosses were furious about the alleged breach.

A source said: "The Clinton diary hack came at a time when Williams's work with America was of the most sensitive nature."

A Met spokesman told The Sun on Sunday: "The death of Gareth Williams was subject to a thorough investigation and coroner's inquest. We are not prepared to speculate."

The 31-year-old MI6 codebreaker's body was¬ found in a large holdall in the bath of his flat in Alderney Street in Pimlico, London, on August 23, 2010.

The bag was locked, from the outside.

In 2013, the Metropolitan Police issued a report following further inquiries into Dr Williams' death which concluded that he was probably alone when he died.

Previously an inquest had decided that another person or persons were probably involved, as the mathematician was found locked, from the outside, in the bag.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox ruled that the spy would not have been able to lock himself in the bag and was therefore likely to have died at somebody else's hands.

She concluded: "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."

Dr Williams was coming to the end of a three-year secondment to MI6 in London in August 2010, when he was reported missing by GCHQ, just days before he was due to return to Cheltenham.

Dr Williams, who rented a flat in Bouncers Lane for many years and was a keen cyclist and member of Cheltenham and County Cycle Club, was originally from North Wales.

His family have said they believed the coroner's view "accurately reflects the circumstances of Gareth's death.

Earlier this month, there were claims someone had broken into Dr Williams' flat to remove evidence after his death.

Mirror : MI6 spy found in holdall 'hacked into secret data about Bill Clinton'

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".

Daily Mail : Spy found dead in a bag 'had infuriated his MI6 bosses by illegally hacking into secret US data on Bill Clinton'

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.'

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.

Wales Online : Claims that Welsh MI6 spy who was found dead in holdall 'hacked into secret data about Bill Clinton'

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”.

Mirror : M16 spy found in holdall mystery: Human mole crime expert reveals the secrets

M16 spy found in holdall mystery: Human mole crime expert reveals the secrets

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 Rachael Bletchly | August 18, 2015

When the naked, decomposing body of MI6 spy Gareth Williams was discovered inside a padlocked bag in his bathtub it sparked a real-life mystery worthy of any 007 thriller.

Had the 31-year-old codebreaker been killed by foreign spooks? Was he eliminated by fellow agents? Or had the maths genius with a taste for cross-dressing suffocated when a sex game went disastrously wrong?

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 this week it was shockingly claimed unknown secret service agents DID kill the Welsh cryptographer after all – before 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.

This latest twist in the Spy in the Bag story will sound far-fetched to many.

Not to Peter Faulding.

He 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.

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 in 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, goes 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.”

Peter has been called in to offer expert advice on many other high-profile cases after a childhood hobby led to a fascinating career in the world of murder, danger and dark secrets.

From the age of five he spent his weekends deep underground, digging through rocks and burrowing through collapsed tunnels.

In the 1960s his caver dad, John, had rediscovered a network of ancient flint mines under the Surrey countryside and Peter inherited his passion for exploring the subterranean wonderland.

Speaking from his home in West Sussex, dad-of-three Peter says: “I was very close to my dad and just loved being underground with him.

“Whenever we found an opening in the rock falls dad would use a candle to check the oxygen levels were OK and then he’d squeeze me though a small gap to see what was on the other side. Some people might think it was an odd pastime for a kid, but I thought it was amazing.

“I’d find myself walking down passages no one else had been in since the 1400s. I was so comfortable underground I even got nicknamed the Human Mole.”

Today the Human Mole is the man emergency services call on to help them out of tight spots – whether it’s evicting environmental protesters from tunnels, locating bodies, digging survivors from collapsed buildings, or rescuing people from perilous cliff faces.

In 1995 the former Parachute Regiment reservist founded Specialist Group International. He now employs 40 people, many ex-military, with an arsenal of cutting-edge kit, including boats, 4x4 vehicles, a helicopter, remote control submarines, side-scanning sonar, diving and camera equipment.

He has advised the Home Office and FBI on search techniques and helps train police, fire and ambulance services.

Peter trained as a radar engineer and worked for the Civil Aviation Authority before training as a commercial diver.

In 1996 he advised police during high-profile protests against the Newbury by-pass. Around 7,000 environmental campaigners, including the notorious “Swampy” (Daniel Hooper), occupied trees and dug tunnels and Peter helped bailiffs evict them safely.

Then he got a call from police in Devon, where Swampy and his pals were dug in again, trying to stop another road.

“They were in real danger of suffocation but didn’t believe the police,” says Peter.

“As we dug towards them they’d fill their tunnel with soil and the oxygen levels were dangerously low. They were also smoking dope. I was pleading with them to come out but they were saying ‘We’re OK, man, we’re fine’.

“Eventually I managed to build a rapport and convinced them I really wasn’t bluffing – they were going to die. So they came out and we shook hands.”

But Peter has worked on many cases which ended in tragedy.

In October 2012 he joined the hunt for missing five-year-old April Jones in Machynlleth, Wales. He says: “We did a lot of river work then aerial reconnaissance.

“We found a remote caravan which we went to search hoping she might be there – abducted, but alive. We did what we could, but poor April was never going to be found.”

Local man Mark Bridger, 46, was found guilty of her abduction and murder in May 2013.

Peter tells the story of two divers who died at a specialist centre in Chepstow.

He says: “Police realised they had snuck in on a Friday evening after the place had shut, rather than pay. That cost them their lives. The man was only an average diver and the woman with him was a beginner.

“But the lake – an old quarry – is used to train commercial divers and was too deep even for police teams to search.

“I used our mini-submarine to dive down and found them at 230ft, tied together with a buddy line. We had to drag their bodies, suspended from the boat, to a platform to recover them.”

Peter adds: “Afterwards we were exhausted and sitting around a table when the mum arrived. Very emotionally, she thanked us for finding them – and every single one of us had tears rolling down our cheeks.

“Then there was the chap who disappeared after a row with his wife. He was missing for 18 months. Police searched the river 12 times but found nothing. They were about to close the case when I reviewed it with the senior investigating officer.

“Within 10 minutes of starting a scan up the river with the sonar I found two cars. The first was a stolen vehicle from years back but the second one contained the missing man’s body.

“He’d committed suicide by driving into the water.”

As the Human Mole continues saving lives and digging out the truth of bizarre deaths and disappearances, he admits he will always be baffled by that Spy in the Bag Case.

“I don’t think we’ll ever know why he was killed but I’ll always be wondering,” he says. “It’s the most puzzling case I have ever dealt with.”

Swampy's protest, 1996

Bypass construction protester Swampy (Daniel Hooper) dug himself into a tunnel in Honiton, Devon, and Peter was brought in to get him out safely.

“As we dug towards them they’d fill their tunnel with soil and oxygen levels were dangerously low. They were also smoking dope. I used a chimney rod with a hose to pump air through. They would have died within about two hours without it.”

Missing April Jones, 2012

“We had a team of five, our helicopter, diving gear and a remote submarine with side-scanning sonar equipment.

We did a lot of river work then aerial reconnaissance. We found a remote caravan which we went to search hoping she might be there, alive. But poor April was never going to be found.”

RT : ‘Body-in-a-bag’ MI6 spy: Was he killed by secret service after uncovering money laundering?

‘Body-in-a-bag’ MI6 spy: Was he killed by secret service after uncovering money laundering?

August 17, 2015

Police investigating the mysterious death of an MI6 agent, whose body was discovered in unusual circumstances in his London flat, suspect he was murdered and that his killers returned to his apartment through a skylight to hide the evidence.

The body of British spy Gareth Williams, 31, was found padlocked in a holdall bag in his bath by detectives in August 2010.

Precise details of his work remain cloaked in secrecy, but sources allege he worked with equipment that tracked financial flows from Russia to Europe. The technology supposedly allowed MI6 to analyze money trails from Russian bank accounts to criminal syndicates in Europe.

Fresh revelations relating to his death surfaced Saturday, after a source told the Daily Mail that Scotland Yard officials believe an agent from another secret service broke into his apartment to conceal the evidence.

The new claim alleges that forensic equipment laid down in the flat after Williams’ body was discovered was moved while the building remained under the surveillance of armed police.

Special footplates, which enable detectives to make their way across a crime scene without causing contamination, were repositioned just over a day into the investigation.

After discovering this fact, Scotland Yard officials concluded the building’s walls had been scaled and Williams’ flat had been broken into via the skylight.

The force also drew the conclusion that those who had intruded had done so out of desperation to cover their tracks.

The police investigation at the time concluded that Williams died accidentally after a sex game went wrong.

But this latest line of inquiry contradicts these findings and raises fresh questions about how Williams, a skilled cryptographer with a high aptitude for mathematics, was killed.

The spy had been working alongside the US National Security Agency (NSA) in Washington before making his way to London, where he was given specialist training and dispatched on spy missions.

It has been suggested Williams was murdered by CIA or MI6 agents after uncovering sensitive data or after threatening to publish clandestine intelligence.

Another theory discussed in the UK media is that Williams may have disrupted a crime ring linked to Russian officials. Cars registered to the Russian Embassy were seen near his Pimlico apartment several days before his body was found, while a Russian-linked car was reportedly seen near his flat the day he was murdered, the Daily Mail reports.

Both theories were dismissed by Scotland Yard in late 2010.

Coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox sharply criticized MI6 for neglecting to report that Williams had been missing for seven days. Wilcox, who presided over the 2012 inquest into his death, said MI6’s failure to contact his family sooner caused them additional suffering and led to a loss of valuable forensic evidence.

The delay, for which MI6 offered an apology, also meant a pathologist hired by the Home Office was unable to uncover the cause of Williams’ death.

Wilcox came to the conclusion that Williams’ death was “unnatural and likely to have been criminally meditated.” She added that “on the balance of probabilities … Gareth was killed unlawfully” because it was unlikely he had locked himself inside the bag in which he was found.

However, in 2013 the Met’s investigation into Williams’ death came to a close, after detectives concluded he had locked himself in the bag as part of a sex game.

Despite this, Williams’ family has long believed his flat was “steam-cleaned” by spies after his death. Since the spy’s case was reopened, Scotland Yard’s latest inquiry appears to support this theory. The Williams’ family lawyer, Anthony O’Toole, previously told a pre-inquest hearing he believed a third party was present when Williams died and subsequently removed the evidence.

“The impression of the family is that the unknown third party was a member of some agency specializing in the dark arts of the secret services, or evidence has been removed post-mortem,” he told the Westminster Coroner’s Court in 2012.

In the aftermath of Williams’ death, the coroner was not informed that the footplates had been moved or of detectives’ suspicion that the spy’s flat had been broken into.

“The forensics officer was adamant that nobody was allowed in or out of the crime scene, so when he turned up the following day to find the footplates had been moved an investigation was launched. The only way anybody could have got into that building was to have scaled the walls and got in through the skylight,” an intelligence source told the Daily Mail.

“This was never revealed, as it was pretty embarrassing for the Met. Somebody appears to have broken in, perhaps cleaned up and got out again while officers were guarding the entrance to the flat.”

Daily Star : Spy killers 'returned to the scene' according to cops

Spy killers 'returned to the scene' according to cops

By Benjamin Russell | August 16, 2015

Detectives reckon they may have finally cracked the five-year mystery of Gareth Williams, who was found padlocked in a holdall in the bath at his London flat in 2010.

Investigators claim spooks from a secret crime cell killed him – and then broke back into his home through a skylight to get rid of the evidence.

Sources close to the probe even suggested they may have tried to make it look like he died in a sex game gone wrong.

It comes after it was revealed forensic equipment put in place after his body was found was moved – even though the flat was being guarded by armed police.

After the first day of the investigation, footplates which allow investigators to walk without contaminating the crime scene were found to have been disturbed.

A coroner’s inquest said the code-breaker was “unlawfully killed” but it is still unknown how he met his end.

His family believe he was murdered by “agents specialising in the dark arts of the secret services”.

Gareth was employed by Government listening post GCHQ in Cheltenham, Glos.

But he was working temporarily at the HQ of the MI6 Secret Intelligence Service near his Pimlico flat.

Detectives believe his work, gathering secret information on Britain’s enemies abroad, would have made him a target for terrorists and rival spies.

Mirror : Gareth Williams: Was M16 body-in-the-bag spy 'killed by agents who crept into his home through a skylight'?

Gareth Williams: Was M16 body-in-the-bag spy 'killed by agents who crept into his home through a skylight'?

By Richard Wheatstone | August 16, 2015

The MI6 spook who found dead inside a padlocked holdall could have been killed by agents who broke into his flat through a skylight, detectives believe.

Mystery has surrounded the death of Gareth Williams since the discovery of his body in a sports bag in his bath.

Met Police concluded he most likely died alone after locking himself inside it.

But detectives who probed the 2010 case believe spies may have broken back into Mr Williams’ Central London flat through a skylight to destroy evidence after his body had been removed.

A source said to be at the heart of the probe allegedly claimed footplates placed inside the flat appeared to have been moved after the first day of the investigation.

The forensic equipment allows officers to cross a crime scene without contaminating it.

And detectives concluded someone must have scaled the walls of the building – which was under armed guard – then entered through the skylight to clear up their tracks.

It supports a theory from Mr Williams’ family that a third party was involved in the spy’s death.

Their lawyer Anthony O’Toole told a 2012 pre-inquest hearing at Westminster coroner’s court: “The impression of the family is that the unknown third party was a member of some agency specialising in the dark arts of the secret services, or evidence has been removed postmortem.”

And a coroner’s inquest into the death later said the spy was “unlawfully killed”.

But a Scotland Yard review into the case said Mr Williams, who had a wardrobe full of women’s clothes, was likely to have died alone and may have been taking part in a solo sex game.

Gloucestershire Echo : Did killers of GCHQ codebreaker Gareth Williams break back into his flat to destroy evidence?

Did killers of GCHQ codebreaker Gareth Williams break back into his flat to destroy evidence?

August 16, 2015

GCHQ codebreaker Gareth Williams, who was found dead in a padlocked bag in his London flat, was 'murdered' and then someone broke back into his home to cover their tracks,

The Mail on Sunday reported today that a senior detective claims it was an agent from an' unknown secret service' that broke into Dr Williams' home to destroy or to remove evidence.

The 31-year-old MI6 codebreaker's body was­ found in a large holdall in the bath of his flat in Alderney Street in Pimlico, London, on August 23, 2010.

The bag was locked, from the outside ­­

Now, it is claimed some forensic equipment, footplates to allow officers to move through a crime scene without contaminating it, that were left in the flat by investigators had been moved.

The Mail on Sunday said this was despite the flat being under armed guard.

And it led Scotland Yard to think that someone had climbed up the building's wall and gained entry through the skylight to clear evidence.

An intelligence source told the paper: "The forensics officer was adamant that nobody was allowed in or out of the crime scene, so when he turned up the following day to find the footplates had been moved an investigation was launched.

"The only way anybody could have got into that building was to have scaled the walls and got in through the skylight."

The source added that someone appears to have broken in, potentially cleaned up, and then got out again while the entrance to the flat was under guard.

In 2013, the Metropolitan Police issued a report following further inquiries into Dr Williams' death which concluded that he was probably alone when he died.

Previously an inquest had decided that another person or persons were probably involved, as the mathematician was found locked, from the outside, in the bag.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox ruled that the spy would not have been able to lock himself in the bag and was therefore likely to have died at somebody else's hands.

She concluded: "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."

Dr Williams was coming to the end of a three-year secondment to MI6 in London in August 2010, when he was reported missing by GCHQ, just days before he was due to return to Cheltenham.

Dr Williams, who rented a flat in Bouncers Lane for many years and was a keen cyclist and member of Cheltenham and County Cycle Club, was originally from North Wales.

His family have said they believed the coroner's view "accurately reflects the circumstances of Gareth's death.

Wales Online : MI6 spy Gareth Williams 'killed by agents who then broke into his flat to destroy evidence'

MI6 spy Gareth Williams 'killed by agents who then broke into his flat to destroy evidence'

Gareth Williams was found dead in a padlockled bag in his flat in 2010 and his death remains a mystery

By Ruth Mansfield | August 16, 2015

Detectives believe an MI6 spy found dead in a padlocked bag was killed by agents who broke back into his flat after the body was found to cover their tracks.

Mystery has surrounded the death of Welshman Gareth Williams ever since his body was found inside a padlocked bag in his central London flat in 2010.

The Met Police concluded Mr Williams, from Valley, near Holyhead on Anglesey, is most likely to have died alone after locking himself in the holdall.

But detectives who probed his mysterious death believe agents may have broken back into his flat through a skylight to destroy evidence to cover their tracks after his body has been moved.

According to the Mail on Sunday, a source ‘at the heart of the investigation’ is said to have claimed forensic equipment placed in the flat was removed, despite the fact the property was under armed guard.

The source said 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 concluded someone must have 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.

The claims also tie in with a coroner’s inquest into the death which said he was “unlawfully killed”

But a Scotland Yard review into the death of Mr Williams – who had a wardrobe full of women’s clothes - said he was likely to have died alone and may have been taking part in a lone sex game.

Daily Mail : Agents ‘killed the body-in-bag spy... then got into flat through skylight to destroy evidence’: New theory could solve the mystery five years later

Agents ‘killed the body-in-bag spy... then got into flat through skylight to destroy evidence’: New theory could solve the mystery five years later

Gareth Williams' body was found in his London flat in August 2010
But Mail on Sunday can now reveal unknown agent may be behind death
Special footplates were moved after the first day of the investigation
Led Scotland Yard to believe someone had broken into the crime scene

By Robert Verkaik for The Mail on Sunday | published: August 15, 2015 | updated: August 16, 2015

Detectives who investigated the mysterious death of a British spy found padlocked in a bag in his flat believe he was murdered and that his killers then broke back in through a skylight to cover their tracks.

Gareth Williams, 31, was discovered in a holdall in the bath at his London home five years ago this month. Now a source at the heart of the investigation has told The Mail on Sunday that Scotland Yard detectives believe an agent from an unknown secret service broke into the victim’s flat to destroy or remove evidence.

The new 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.

Special footplates, which allow officers to walk across a crime scene without contaminating it, were moved after the first day of the investigation. This led Scotland Yard to conclude that someone must have scaled the building’s walls and broken in through the skylight to cover their tracks. This so far unknown line of inquiry raises questions about how Mr Williams, a maths genius and expert cryptographer, really met his end. It also 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 Met 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.

However, the latest line of inquiry supports the family’s belief that the flat was ‘steam-cleaned’ by secret agents – which may be why no DNA evidence was found. Their lawyer, Anthony O’Toole, told a pre-inquest hearing they believed a third party was present at the time of death or later destroyed evidence.

Mr O’Toole told Westminster Coroner’s Court: ‘The impression of the family is that the unknown third party was a member of some agency specialising in the dark arts of the secret services, or evidence has been removed post-mortem.’

It now appears the coroner was not told about the tampering with the footplates, or the belief by detectives that someone had broken into the building.

An intelligence source said: ‘The forensics officer was adamant that nobody was allowed in or out of the crime scene, so when he turned up the following day to find the footplates had been moved an investigation was launched. The only way anybody could have got into that building was to have scaled the walls and got in through the skylight.

‘This was never revealed as it was pretty embarrassing for the Met. Somebody appears to have broken in, perhaps cleaned up and got out again while officers were guarding the entrance to the flat.’

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

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.

Guardian : MI6 chief Sir John Sawers to step down

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.

Daily Post : Gareth Williams: MI6 spy from Anglesey may have been poisoned says detective

Gareth Williams: MI6 spy from Anglesey may have been poisoned says detective

Former Metropolitan Police murder squad detective Colin Sutton has shared his theory on the death of the Anglesey spy found dead in a holdall

By Rhodri Barker | June 23, 2014

A former senior murder squad detective claims an Anglesey spy whose body was found in a holdall may have been poisoned in a “perfect killing”.

The riddle of Gareth Williams’s death appeared resolved last year after a top-level police probe concluded that he probably died alone in an accident.

But former Metropolitan Police murder squad detective Colin Sutton has now challenged that view with a sensational new theory of his own.

Sutton, who was the most senior detective at the scene on the day of the gruesome discovery almost four years ago, revealed he has lingering doubts about the code-breaker’s death.

His view chimes with that of Westminster coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox, who recorded two years ago that Mr Williams was unlawfully killed. Her verdict was later overturned.

Police broke into Mr Williams’s flat in Pimlico in London in August 2010, and found his decomposing remains in a red bag padlocked from the outside.

Mr Sutton has now voiced fears that the flat may well have been "cleaned" of all incriminating traces while any poison in Mr Williams’s system may have been impossible to detect by then.

“The first thing that struck me was how hot it was. It was August yet the heating was on full blast,” he said, recalling arriving on the scene on the day of the discovery.

“It made me think immediately that the heating could have been left on to accelerate the decomposition of Gareth's body.

“If he had been poisoned then the chemical compounds might have vanished by the time toxicology tests were conducted.”

He added: "There is also the possibility that something very unusual and hard to detect was used to poison Gareth. It may seem far fetched but we know that Alexander Litvinenko was killed four years earlier in London with a rare radioactive isotope.

“I remain convinced the flat was tidied up after his death. That may have been to protect national security - or it might have been something more sinister. If that is the case, then it could have been the perfect murder."

Mr Williams, from Valley in Anglesey, was a maths PhD graduate who began working at GCHQ in Cheltenham in 2001.

Western Daily Press : Detective Colin Sutton thinks GCHQ worker Gareth Williams was drugged

Detective Colin Sutton thinks GCHQ worker Gareth Williams was drugged

By JEFF WELLS | June 23, 2014

GCHQ worker Gareth Williams could have been poisoned, a retired murder squad detective has said.

The MI6 codebreaker's body was found in a large hold-all in the bath of his flat in Alderney Street in Pimlico, London, in August, 2010.

The bag was locked, from the outside.

Former Detective Chief Inspector Colin Sutton was the most senior officer on the scene and he told The Sun newspaper that the flat was unusually warm when he arrived.

He claimed the heating was turned up to the maximum, possible to help with decomposition.

He said: "If he had been poisoned, then the chemical compounds might have vanished by the time toxicology results were conducted."

According to Mr Sutton if some unusual form of poison had been used it would have been difficult to detect. He added: "I remain convinced the flat was tidied up after his death. That may have been to protect national security or it might have been something more sinister. If that's the case, then it could have been the perfect murder."

Last year, the Metropolitan Police issued a report following further inquiries into Dr Williams' death which concluded that he was probably alone when he died.

Previously an inquest had decided that another person or persons were probably involved, as the mathematician was found locked, from the outside, in the bag.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox ruled that the spy would not have been able to lock himself in the bag and was therefore likely to have died at somebody else's hands.

She concluded: "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."

Dr Williams was coming to the end of a three-year secondment to MI6 in London in August 2010, when he was reported missing by GCHQ, just days before he was due to return to Cheltenham.

Dr Williams, who rented a flat in Bouncers Lane, Cheltenham, for many years and was a keen cyclist and member of Cheltenham and County Cycle Club, was originally from North Wales.

His family have said they believed the coroner's view "accurately reflects the circumstances of Gareth's death.

"We remain very disappointed over the failure of his employers at MI6 to take even the most basic of enquiries concerning Gareth's welfare when he failed to attend for work on August 16, 2010," they said.

"This lack of concern for Gareth's wellbeing remains an overriding feature of our thoughts following the death of a dear son and brother."

Daily Mail : MI6 spy whose body was found stuffed in a bag 'was poisoned', says first murder squad detective on the scene

MI6 spy whose body was found stuffed in a bag 'was poisoned', says first murder squad detective on the scene

* Gareth Williams was found locked in a sports bag in his flat in August 2010
* Retired DCI Colin Sutton said the spy's death could be the 'perfect murder'
* Police claim Mr Williams' most likely died after locking himself in the bag

By Darren Boyle | June 21, 2014

A retired murder squad detective who attended the scene of 'body in the bag spy' Gareth Williams said he believed the MI6 man could have been 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.

An inquest at Westminster Coroner Court found Mr Williams was most likely 'unlawfully killed', but police officially believe the spy died after padlocking himself inside the bag.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox ruled that the spy would not have been able to lock himself in the bag and was therefore likely to have died at somebody else's hands.

She concluded: '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.'

However, speaking about the case, former DCI Sutton told The Sun 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.'

The inquest had heard that there had been significant delays between the report of Mr Williams' disappearance and the eventual discovery of his body in his flat, leading to fears of a possible cover up.

According to Mr Sutton if some unusual form of poison had been used it would have been difficult to detect.

He added: 'I remain convinced the flat was tidied up after his death. that may have been to protect national security or it might have been something more sinister. If that's the case, then it could have been the perfect murder.'

Scotland Yard chiefs said they thought Gareth Williams died alone – but were forced to admit that gaps in the evidence made it impossible to be sure.

His furious parents rejected that verdict and said they stood by a coroner’s ruling that the brilliant codebreaker was probably killed unlawfully. They also accused MI6 of allowing the circumstances of his death to be covered up.

The body of the 31-year-old lay undiscovered in a red holdall in the bath of his Pimlico flat for a week before security service bosses raised the alarm. Significantly, ten to 15 DNA traces found in the apartment are still unidentified, despite the efforts of leading forensic experts.

Police have also been unable to explain why his DNA was not on the lock on the bag and his prints were not found on the rim of the bath.

In a statement, Mr Williams’ parents Ian and Ellen said: ‘We are naturally disappointed it is still not possible to state with certainty how Gareth died, and the fact that the circumstances of his death are still unknown adds to our grief. We consider that on the basis of the facts at present known, the coroner’s verdict accurately reflects the circumstances of Gareth’s death.

‘We still, however, 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.’

‘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.’

Mr Williams’ naked body was found on August 23, 2010.

Dr Wilcox said it ‘remained a legitimate line of inquiry’ that the secret services may have been involved – and Mr Williams was probably killed unlawfully by a third party.

But Martin Hewitt, a deputy assistant commissioner in the Metropolitan Police, insisted his investigation showed Mr Williams probably locked himself inside the bag without help.

He admitted however that ‘evidential contradictions and gaps in our understanding’ meant no theory – police or coroner’s – could be proved ‘beyond all reasonable doubt’.

Scotland Yard accepted that its investigation had been flawed from the outset.

Detectives were unable to access the spy’s personnel and vetting files and formally interview GCHQ and MI6 staff until after the inquest because all liaison with MI6 was carried out through the counter-terrorism squad.

But Mr Hewitt said it was ‘beyond credibility’ that the secret services had covered up the death.

‘I do not believe that I have had the wool pulled over my eyes,’ he said. ‘I believe that what we are dealing with is a tragic unexplained death.

‘I am absolutely satisfied that every question we have had to ask has been asked, and every person we felt it necessary to talk to we have spoken to.

‘No evidence has been identified to establish the full circumstances of Gareth’s death beyond all reasonable doubt.

‘With the conclusion of the investigation, 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. I’m convinced that Gareth’s death was in no way related to his work.’

Mr Hewitt added: ‘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.

'We recognised that fact and we changed it fundamentally for the subsequent two years of the investigation. I don’t think that process stopped us getting any evidence that we needed to get.’

'Three years of extensive investigative activity have developed a very clear profile of Gareth. He was, without doubt, a private person who was very close to his family and had few other close friends.

'That said, the universal view of colleagues was of a conscientious and decent man with a few well-known hobbies such as his cycling and climbing. There is no evidence of any animosity towards Gareth, and it has not been possible to identify anyone with a motive for causing him harm.'

The investigation included interviews with 27 officials from both MI6 and GCHQ, from where Mr Williams, who was originally from Anglesey, had been seconded.

Police said that Dr Wilcox has accepted their findings, but decided that there is insufficient new evidence to justify re-opening the inquest.

Gloucestershire Echo : GCHQ codebreaker Gareth Williams 'could have been poisoned' says former murder squad detective

GCHQ codebreaker Gareth Williams 'could have been poisoned' says former murder squad detective

By Gloucestershire Echo | June 21, 2014

GCHQ worker Gareth Williams could have been poisoned, a retired murder squad detective has said.

The MI6 codebreaker’s body was found in a large hold-all in the bath of his flat in Alderney Street in Pimlico, London, on August 23, 2010.

The bag was locked, from the outside.

Former Detective Chief Inspector Colin Sutton was the most senior officer on the scene and he told The Sun newspaper that the flat was unusually warm when he arrived.

He claimed the heating was turned up to the maximum, possible to help with decomposition.

He said: “If he had been poisoned, then the chemical compounds might have vanished by the time toxicology results were conducted.”

According to Mr Sutton if some unusual form of poison had been used it would have been difficult to detect.

He added: “I remain convinced the flat was tidied up after his death. that may have been to protect national security or it might have been something more sinister. If that’s the case, then it could have been the perfect murder.”

Last year, the Metropolitan Police issued a report following further inquiries into Dr Williams’ death which concluded that he was probably alone when he died.

Previously an inquest had decided that another person or persons were probably involved, as the mathematician was found locked, from the outside, in the bag.

Coroner Fiona Wilcox ruled that the spy would not have been able to lock himself in the bag and was therefore likely to have died at somebody else’s hands.

She concluded: “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.”

Dr Williams was coming to the end of a three-year secondment to MI6 in London in August 2010, when he was reported missing by GCHQ, just days before he was due to return to Cheltenham.

Dr Williams, who rented a flat in Bouncers Lane for many years and was a keen cyclist and member of Cheltenham and County Cycle Club, was originally from North Wales.

His family have said they believed the coroner’s view “accurately reflects the circumstances of Gareth’s death.

“We remain very disappointed over the failure of his employers at MI6 to take even the most basic of enquiries concerning Gareth’s welfare when he failed to attend for work on 16th August 2010.

“This lack of concern for Gareth’s wellbeing remains an overriding feature of our thoughts following the death of a dear son and brother.”

Mirror : MI6 spy found dead in a bag 'may have been poisoned' says retired detective

MI6 spy found dead in a bag 'may have been poisoned' says retired detective

By Alex Wellman | June 21, 2014

Gareth Williams' decomposed body was found inside a padlocked bag inside his London home in a case which has still not been solved

The MI6 spy who was found dead in a bag may have been poisoned, says the first detective to arrive on the scene.

Mystery has surrounded the death of British spook Gareth Williams ever since his body was found inside a padlocked bag in his central London flat in 2010.

Conspiracy theories have swirled around ever since but the most senior detective who was on the scene on the day Gareth’s body was found fears it could have been poisoning.

Retired murder squad detective Colin Sutton revealed that when he first entered the flat he was struck by how hot it was.

This made him think the heating could have been left on to speed up decomposition of the body.

He said: “If he had been poisoned, then the chemical compounds might have vanished by the time toxicology results were conducted.”

Speaking to The Sun, he added that with the deaths of Alexander Litvinenko and Georgi Markov, there are previous examples of spies being poisoned.

He said: “If the motive for Gareth’s death was around his job then poison become much more likely.”

The claims tie in with a coroner’s inquest into the death which said he was “unlawfully killed” but are in stark contrast to a police review which said the spy – who had a wardrobe full of women’s clothes - may have died in a lone sex game.

Independent : Top detective claims British spook found dead in padlocked bag could have been poisoned

Top detective claims British spook found dead in padlocked bag could have been poisoned

Senior officer who was first on the scene claims Gareth Williams was poisoned and left to rot in a bag in an over-heated room

Tom Payne | June 21, 2014

An MI6 spy whose decomposed body was found in a padlocked bag could have been poisoned, a senior detective on the scene has claimed.

The death of British spook Gareth Williams has been steeped in mystery ever since his body was found locked inside a North Face bag in a flat in Pimlico, London, in August 2010.

The coroner found that Mr Williams’ death was likely to have been “criminally mediated” on the balance of probabilities, but was unable to provide definitive answers as to the cause.

Speaking to The Sun today, Colin Sutton, a retired murder squad detective, revealed how the spook’s flat was very hot when officers first broke in.

He suggested that the heating could have been left on to speed up the decomposition of the body.

He said: “If he had been poisoned, then the chemical compounds might have vanished by the time toxicology results were conducted.

“If the motive for Gareth’s death was around his job then poison become much more likely.”

The fresh claims align with the coroner’s verdict that Mr Williams was “unlawfully killed”.

But they are in stark contrast to a separate police investigation which suggested the spy may have died in a sex game gone wrong.