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.’