Don't confuse him with James Bond: U.K. spy in a bag ‘killed himself by accident’
By Tom Whitehead | The Daily Telegraph | November 13, 2013
The MI6 spy found dead in a bag three years ago most likely locked himself inside, police are expected to announce Wednesday.
A fresh Scotland Yard review of the so-called “spy in a bag” case has concluded that Gareth Williams was able to climb into a sports bag unaided and there is little evidence of foul play, The Daily Telegraph understands.
The findings will contradict the conclusions of a coroner who last year said Williams had “probably” died at the hands of another.
It also raises the prospect of police closing or scaling back the investigation and ending, at least officially, the mystery that has prompted so many conspiracy theories.
BODY NAKED, DECOMPOSING
The naked, decomposing body of Williams, a codebreaker on secondment to MI6 from GCHQ, Britain’s signals intelligence agency, was found in a padlocked sports bag in the bath of his flat in Pimlico, London, in August 2010.
Despite an intensive police investigation, no one has been arrested and the circumstances surrounding his death have remained a mystery.
Following an eight-day inquest last year, coroner Dr. Fiona Wilcox concluded that Williams was probably “unlawfully killed” in a criminal act, after experts found it impossible to climb into a similar bag and lock it unaided.
Wilcox said his death most likely involved a third party and that he was either poisoned or suffocated.
She also said the possibility that a member of the intelligence services was involved in the math prodigy’s death remained a “legitimate line of inquiry” for police.
CORONER SPARKED REVIEW
The Metropolitan Police announced an urgent review of the case in the wake of the coroner’s findings, including concerns over how some evidence was handled by MI6 and counter-terrorism officers during the two-year investigation.
But it is understood the review has concluded that it was possible for Williams, whom the inquest heard had an interest in escapology, to lock himself in the bag unassisted, and that this was the most likely scenario.
A senior Whitehall source said: “It seems as though the coroner made a mistake in ruling out evidence that Williams could have climbed into the holdall without outside help.
“If it can be demonstrated that Williams was able to climb into the holdall unassisted, then all the other fanciful conspiracy theories start to fall apart.”
400 ATTEMPTS
On behalf of the coroner, two experts tried 400 times to lock themselves into the bag, and one claimed that even Harry Houdini “would have struggled” to squeeze himself inside.
But days after the inquest, a retired Army sergeant showed how it was possible to climb into a similar North Face bag and lock it from the inside.
The renewed investigation involved officers reinterviewing MI6 officers and taking their DNA samples.
However, The Daily Telegraph disclosed last year how detectives increasingly believed Williams probably locked himself in the bag and died accidentally.
Detectives were able to repeat the sergeant’s experiments with the lock in different positions, which matched how Williams was found.
A source close to the inquiry said at the time: “They have been unable to find any trace of anyone who should not have been in the flat, and have every reason to believe that Gareth may have climbed into the bag himself and had been unable to get out.”
© Copyright (c) The Daily Telegraph
Showing posts with label suffocation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label suffocation. Show all posts
Vancouver Sun : Don't confuse him with James Bond: U.K. spy in a bag ‘killed himself by accident’
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
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NOLA : Naked spy died at hands of mystery killer, British coroner says
Saturday, May 05, 2012
Naked spy died at hands of mystery killer, British coroner says
The Associated Press | May 5, 2012
LONDON -- Even after a coroner's verdict, it remains a mystery: A naked spy found dead in a locked bag, lurid details of a kinky sex life and allegations that someone in Britain's spy agencies may have been involved in his death.
A British coroner ruled Wednesday that another person was likely involved in Gareth Williams' death -- a finding that puts more pressure on police to uncover the cyberwarfare expert's killer and continue to investigate possibilities that include whether he could have died in a sex game gone awry or in a more sinister scenario that involved his counterterrorism work.
In Britain, coroners are asked to investigate unexplained deaths, and their findings can often carry weight as police investigations proceed.
Although Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the death of Williams, 31, will ever be "satisfactorily explained," she said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a "criminally meditated act." She also said it was possible that someone from one of Britain's spy agencies was involved.
Williams, described as an introverted math genius, worked for Britain's secret eavesdropping service GCHQ. But he was attached to the MI6 foreign spy agency when his remains were found in the bathtub at his London apartment on Aug. 16, 2010, just a few days after returning from a trip to the United States.
Forensic experts found about 20,000 thousand pounds, or $32,000, worth of luxury women's clothing, shoes and wigs in his apartment. Police also discovered that he had visited bondage and sadomasochism websites, including some related to claustrophilia -- a desire for confinement in enclosed spaces.
William's landlord testified during the coroner's hearing that she once found him handcuffed to his bed. She said he had appeared embarrassed after asking for help.
Still, Wilcox said there was no immediate evidence of a sexual encounter gone wrong, of suicidal intent, or that Williams' death was linked to a supposed interest in bondage. She said, however, that tales about his sex life could have been fueled in an attempt to "manipulate the evidence."
In the past, spy recruits were often cautioned that their sex lives could make them vulnerable to blackmail.
The case has frustrated Scotland Yard detectives who have been investigating the case for 21 months now and say that the secrecy surrounding Williams' job has thwarted their efforts.
"Obviously a lot of information has come out through the course of this inquest which we have not been party to," lead detective Jackie Sebire said.
But Wilcox also criticized the police detectives.
Time and resources were wasted, she said, when forensic teams investigating a DNA sample taken from Williams's hand later turned out to belong to one of the forensic scientists. She also questioned the handling of William's iPhone, which contained deleted images of him naked in a pair of boots.
Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who was the police liason with MI6, said he had seized it from the spy's workplace and kept it until the next day when he gave it to another officer.
"I find this is either not what occurred ... or it demonstrates disregard for the rules governing continuity of evidence," Wilcox said.
Wilcox also criticized officers who interviewed Williams' colleagues without taking any formal statements.
"I find that this did affect the quality of evidence that was heard before this court," she said.
Still, the coroner said she had seen no evidence to indicate his death was linked to his work.
When the case emerged, some had speculated that he could have been the target of Russian criminal gangs or an al-Qaida extremist. Other media reports had said there had been a break-in at the property where he lived -- a building sometimes used by MI6 to house its agents.
Wilcox said while there wasn't evidence to support a specific verdict of unlawful killing -- which would need a high burden of proof -- it was her opinion that the spy was probably unlawfully killed.
She said while it appeared unlikely, speculation that British intelligence agencies may have had a role in the death continued to be a "legitimate line of inquiry."
MI6 waited a week to investigate why Williams hadn't shown up for work -- a delay that made it difficult for Williams' family to identify his badly decomposed body.
John Sawers, the head of MI6, said in a statement following the corner's verdict that he apologized "unreservedly" to the Williams family for the spy agency's failure.
During the coroner's hearing, MI6 accepted that Williams disliked the agency's boozy culture of post-work drinking and tedious bureaucracy, and had requested to return to his job at GCHQ.
One MI6 officer claimed that Williams hadn't been reported as missing because colleagues assumed he was preparing for his return to the southern England headquarters of the eavesdropping service.
Wilcox said it appeared unlikely that Williams could have climbed inside the duffel bag and locked it himself. Two different specialists attempted to recreate the feat without success. Williams was discovered in the fetal position inside the bag with two keys to the bag's padlock underneath his buttocks.
Pathologists told the inquest that poisoning or asphyxiation may have killed Williams, but said his cadaver was too badly decomposed to be certain.
Williams' family, who have been left distraught by parts of the inquest, did not speak outside court but offered a statement.
The family, from Wales, described Williams as a "special and adored son and brother" and said they "cannot describe the depth of the sorrow his absence leaves in our lives."
The police investigation is ongoing.
By Paisley Dodds, Associated Press
David Stringer contributed to this report.
The Associated Press | May 5, 2012
LONDON -- Even after a coroner's verdict, it remains a mystery: A naked spy found dead in a locked bag, lurid details of a kinky sex life and allegations that someone in Britain's spy agencies may have been involved in his death.
A British coroner ruled Wednesday that another person was likely involved in Gareth Williams' death -- a finding that puts more pressure on police to uncover the cyberwarfare expert's killer and continue to investigate possibilities that include whether he could have died in a sex game gone awry or in a more sinister scenario that involved his counterterrorism work.
In Britain, coroners are asked to investigate unexplained deaths, and their findings can often carry weight as police investigations proceed.
Although Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the death of Williams, 31, will ever be "satisfactorily explained," she said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a "criminally meditated act." She also said it was possible that someone from one of Britain's spy agencies was involved.
Williams, described as an introverted math genius, worked for Britain's secret eavesdropping service GCHQ. But he was attached to the MI6 foreign spy agency when his remains were found in the bathtub at his London apartment on Aug. 16, 2010, just a few days after returning from a trip to the United States.
Forensic experts found about 20,000 thousand pounds, or $32,000, worth of luxury women's clothing, shoes and wigs in his apartment. Police also discovered that he had visited bondage and sadomasochism websites, including some related to claustrophilia -- a desire for confinement in enclosed spaces.
William's landlord testified during the coroner's hearing that she once found him handcuffed to his bed. She said he had appeared embarrassed after asking for help.
Still, Wilcox said there was no immediate evidence of a sexual encounter gone wrong, of suicidal intent, or that Williams' death was linked to a supposed interest in bondage. She said, however, that tales about his sex life could have been fueled in an attempt to "manipulate the evidence."
In the past, spy recruits were often cautioned that their sex lives could make them vulnerable to blackmail.
The case has frustrated Scotland Yard detectives who have been investigating the case for 21 months now and say that the secrecy surrounding Williams' job has thwarted their efforts.
"Obviously a lot of information has come out through the course of this inquest which we have not been party to," lead detective Jackie Sebire said.
But Wilcox also criticized the police detectives.
Time and resources were wasted, she said, when forensic teams investigating a DNA sample taken from Williams's hand later turned out to belong to one of the forensic scientists. She also questioned the handling of William's iPhone, which contained deleted images of him naked in a pair of boots.
Detective Superintendent Michael Broster, who was the police liason with MI6, said he had seized it from the spy's workplace and kept it until the next day when he gave it to another officer.
"I find this is either not what occurred ... or it demonstrates disregard for the rules governing continuity of evidence," Wilcox said.
Wilcox also criticized officers who interviewed Williams' colleagues without taking any formal statements.
"I find that this did affect the quality of evidence that was heard before this court," she said.
Still, the coroner said she had seen no evidence to indicate his death was linked to his work.
When the case emerged, some had speculated that he could have been the target of Russian criminal gangs or an al-Qaida extremist. Other media reports had said there had been a break-in at the property where he lived -- a building sometimes used by MI6 to house its agents.
Wilcox said while there wasn't evidence to support a specific verdict of unlawful killing -- which would need a high burden of proof -- it was her opinion that the spy was probably unlawfully killed.
She said while it appeared unlikely, speculation that British intelligence agencies may have had a role in the death continued to be a "legitimate line of inquiry."
MI6 waited a week to investigate why Williams hadn't shown up for work -- a delay that made it difficult for Williams' family to identify his badly decomposed body.
John Sawers, the head of MI6, said in a statement following the corner's verdict that he apologized "unreservedly" to the Williams family for the spy agency's failure.
During the coroner's hearing, MI6 accepted that Williams disliked the agency's boozy culture of post-work drinking and tedious bureaucracy, and had requested to return to his job at GCHQ.
One MI6 officer claimed that Williams hadn't been reported as missing because colleagues assumed he was preparing for his return to the southern England headquarters of the eavesdropping service.
Wilcox said it appeared unlikely that Williams could have climbed inside the duffel bag and locked it himself. Two different specialists attempted to recreate the feat without success. Williams was discovered in the fetal position inside the bag with two keys to the bag's padlock underneath his buttocks.
Pathologists told the inquest that poisoning or asphyxiation may have killed Williams, but said his cadaver was too badly decomposed to be certain.
Williams' family, who have been left distraught by parts of the inquest, did not speak outside court but offered a statement.
The family, from Wales, described Williams as a "special and adored son and brother" and said they "cannot describe the depth of the sorrow his absence leaves in our lives."
The police investigation is ongoing.
By Paisley Dodds, Associated Press
David Stringer contributed to this report.
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Ottawa Citizen : British spy likely killed, coroner says
Thursday, May 03, 2012
British spy likely killed, coroner says
Naked body found in padlocked bag in bathtub
By Katy Lee, Agence France-Presse | May 3, 2012
A British spy whose naked body was found padlocked in a bag in his bathtub was probably unlawfully killed, a coroner concluded Wednesday.
But it is "unlikely" that the full circumstances of the death in 2010 of Gareth Williams, a high-flying code breaker with the MI6 external intelligence agency, will ever be explained, coroner Fiona Wilcox added.
"I am satisfied on the balance of probabilities that Gareth was killed unlawfully," Wilcox said at the end of a dramatic inquiry into the death.
She said she was "satisfied" that "a third party moved the bag containing Gareth into the bath" of his London apartment.
MI6 chief John Sawyers apologized to the family after the inquest, admitting that his service should have reported the 31-year-old's absence from work more quickly.
The inquest heard that experts could not determine how the gifted mathematician had died because his body had been decomposing for a week by the time it was discovered.
London's Metropolitan Police said after the hearing they were pursuing new lines of inquiry raised by the inquest, after the coroner had criticized their handling of the case.
"I have always been satisfied that a third party may have been involved in his death, and the coroner has confirmed that in her findings," said Det. Chief Insp. Jackie Sebire.
"The inquest has raised several new lines of inquiry and the investigation will now refocus," she added. "I urge anyone who knew Gareth or who had contact with him to search their conscience and come forward."
Pathologists said in evidence that Williams likely died from poisoning or suffocation.
The hearings focused on whether he could have locked himself into the red North Face holdall as part of a lone sex act, after examination of his computer showed he had visited bondage websites.
But the coroner said it was "highly unlikely" that Williams could have got inside the bag alone and observed that the surfaces around the bathtub were strangely clear of any evidence.
"If Gareth had been carrying out some kind of peculiar experiment, he wouldn't care if he left any foot or fingerprints," Wilcox concluded.
The inquest heard last week from experts who had failed to padlock themselves into bags identical to Williams' holdall, despite several hundred attempts.
One expert said escapologist Harry Houdini "would have struggled" to pull off the feat.
Wilcox ruled out the possibility that Williams' apparent interest in bondage had an impact on his death, and observed: "I would have expected much more Internet activity to have been recovered."
The coroner also questioned leaks of details about Williams' private life, adding: "I wonder if this was an attempt by some third party to manipulate the evidence."
Police found women's clothing worth more than $30,000 in the flat as well as makeup, but Wilcox said there was no evidence to suggest Williams was a transvestite.
There was some suggestion that his interest in female footwear could have been of a sexual nature, but this was not particularly unusual, she argued.
© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen
Naked body found in padlocked bag in bathtub
By Katy Lee, Agence France-Presse | May 3, 2012
A British spy whose naked body was found padlocked in a bag in his bathtub was probably unlawfully killed, a coroner concluded Wednesday.
But it is "unlikely" that the full circumstances of the death in 2010 of Gareth Williams, a high-flying code breaker with the MI6 external intelligence agency, will ever be explained, coroner Fiona Wilcox added.
"I am satisfied on the balance of probabilities that Gareth was killed unlawfully," Wilcox said at the end of a dramatic inquiry into the death.
She said she was "satisfied" that "a third party moved the bag containing Gareth into the bath" of his London apartment.
MI6 chief John Sawyers apologized to the family after the inquest, admitting that his service should have reported the 31-year-old's absence from work more quickly.
The inquest heard that experts could not determine how the gifted mathematician had died because his body had been decomposing for a week by the time it was discovered.
London's Metropolitan Police said after the hearing they were pursuing new lines of inquiry raised by the inquest, after the coroner had criticized their handling of the case.
"I have always been satisfied that a third party may have been involved in his death, and the coroner has confirmed that in her findings," said Det. Chief Insp. Jackie Sebire.
"The inquest has raised several new lines of inquiry and the investigation will now refocus," she added. "I urge anyone who knew Gareth or who had contact with him to search their conscience and come forward."
Pathologists said in evidence that Williams likely died from poisoning or suffocation.
The hearings focused on whether he could have locked himself into the red North Face holdall as part of a lone sex act, after examination of his computer showed he had visited bondage websites.
But the coroner said it was "highly unlikely" that Williams could have got inside the bag alone and observed that the surfaces around the bathtub were strangely clear of any evidence.
"If Gareth had been carrying out some kind of peculiar experiment, he wouldn't care if he left any foot or fingerprints," Wilcox concluded.
The inquest heard last week from experts who had failed to padlock themselves into bags identical to Williams' holdall, despite several hundred attempts.
One expert said escapologist Harry Houdini "would have struggled" to pull off the feat.
Wilcox ruled out the possibility that Williams' apparent interest in bondage had an impact on his death, and observed: "I would have expected much more Internet activity to have been recovered."
The coroner also questioned leaks of details about Williams' private life, adding: "I wonder if this was an attempt by some third party to manipulate the evidence."
Police found women's clothing worth more than $30,000 in the flat as well as makeup, but Wilcox said there was no evidence to suggest Williams was a transvestite.
There was some suggestion that his interest in female footwear could have been of a sexual nature, but this was not particularly unusual, she argued.
© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen
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Big Pond News : Death of spy 'may never be explained'
Thursday, May 03, 2012
Death of spy 'may never be explained'
May 3, 2012
It is unlikely the death of a British spy whose naked body was found padlocked in a bag in his bath will ever be fully explained, the coroner told the final day of his inquest.
Coroner Fiona Wilcox said on Wednesday it was 'unlikely' the circumstances of Gareth Williams' 2010 death 'will ever be satisfactorily explained' given that 'most of the fundamental questions in relation to how Gareth died remain unanswered'.
Wilcox said she did not have enough evidence to give a verdict of unlawful killing in the death of Williams, a high-flying codebreaker with the MI6 external intelligence agency, despite a plea from his family's lawyer.
She will instead deliver a narrative verdict, listing the possibilities but failing to reach a conclusion?
Williams' family have previously said they believe secret agents versed in the 'dark arts' tried to cover up his death, while the detective heading the investigation said Tuesday she was convinced someone else was involved.
'My strongest belief is that a third party was involved and I would ask people to search their consciences and come to us to find some resolutions to this case and some peace for his family,' Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire said.
The inquest looked into whether Williams could have padlocked himself in the bag alone, after speculation he might have done so as part of a sex game, but one expert said even escapologist Harry Houdini 'would have struggled' to pull off the feat.
Pathologists said Williams likely died from poisoning or suffocation, but decomposition of his body reduced the scope for pinpointing the cause of death.
The spy's employers at MI6 failed to report him missing for a week, the inquest has heard.
Police also told the inquest they had not examined some of Williams' possessions including nine memory sticks because his bosses at MI6 said they were irrelevant.
Police found women's clothing worth about STG20,000 ($A31,545.74) in Williams' flat, while the inquest also heard he visited bondage sites, filmed himself nearly naked, and was once found tied to a bed.
His sister, Ceri Subbe, told the inquest Williams had been unhappy at MI6, where he was seconded from Britain's intelligence monitoring centre.
May 3, 2012
It is unlikely the death of a British spy whose naked body was found padlocked in a bag in his bath will ever be fully explained, the coroner told the final day of his inquest.
Coroner Fiona Wilcox said on Wednesday it was 'unlikely' the circumstances of Gareth Williams' 2010 death 'will ever be satisfactorily explained' given that 'most of the fundamental questions in relation to how Gareth died remain unanswered'.
Wilcox said she did not have enough evidence to give a verdict of unlawful killing in the death of Williams, a high-flying codebreaker with the MI6 external intelligence agency, despite a plea from his family's lawyer.
She will instead deliver a narrative verdict, listing the possibilities but failing to reach a conclusion?
Williams' family have previously said they believe secret agents versed in the 'dark arts' tried to cover up his death, while the detective heading the investigation said Tuesday she was convinced someone else was involved.
'My strongest belief is that a third party was involved and I would ask people to search their consciences and come to us to find some resolutions to this case and some peace for his family,' Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire said.
The inquest looked into whether Williams could have padlocked himself in the bag alone, after speculation he might have done so as part of a sex game, but one expert said even escapologist Harry Houdini 'would have struggled' to pull off the feat.
Pathologists said Williams likely died from poisoning or suffocation, but decomposition of his body reduced the scope for pinpointing the cause of death.
The spy's employers at MI6 failed to report him missing for a week, the inquest has heard.
Police also told the inquest they had not examined some of Williams' possessions including nine memory sticks because his bosses at MI6 said they were irrelevant.
Police found women's clothing worth about STG20,000 ($A31,545.74) in Williams' flat, while the inquest also heard he visited bondage sites, filmed himself nearly naked, and was once found tied to a bed.
His sister, Ceri Subbe, told the inquest Williams had been unhappy at MI6, where he was seconded from Britain's intelligence monitoring centre.
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ABC (Australia) : MI6 kept evidence related to dead spy
Wednesday, May 02, 2012
MI6 kept evidence related to dead spy
May 2, 2012
Britain's MI6 intelligence agency failed to hand over to police the belongings of a spy found dead inside a bag in his home, including computer memory sticks, an inquest has heard.
Gareth Williams, 31, whose naked corpse was discovered padlocked inside a sports bag, was on secondment to MI6 at the time of his death in 2010.
Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire told an inquest in London that MI6 agents searched Mr Williams's electronic media without informing police, the BBC reported.
Police only learned of the memory sticks on Monday, it said.
"Had I known of their existence, I would have expected them to be at least reviewed or audited by (the counter-terrorism unit) and if information was available, then sent to my team," Chief Inspector Sebire was quoted by the Guardian newspaper as saying.
She testified last week that she believed someone else was involved in Mr Williams getting inside the bag. A small amount of unknown DNA not belonging to Mr Williams was found on the bag.
Mr Williams, a mathematics prodigy, was trying to develop technologies that could be used in gathering information for MI6, Britain's foreign intelligence service.
One police officer, Detective Superintendent Michael Broster of the counter-terrorism branch SO-15, was quoted by the BBC as saying his team should have examined the memory sticks before giving them to MI6 but that he had taken what evidence he believed was relevant to the case.
Police also did not take an inventory of the contents of Mr Williams's office cabinet because of the "sensitive nature of the documents", fellow counter-terrorism officer Colin Hall was reported by the Guardian as saying.
Pathologists believe the likeliest cause of death was either poisoning or suffocation but say they cannot be sure which.
The strange death has puzzled investigators who have found little forensic evidence that would point to a culprit.
Last week the inquest was told that if proper procedures had been followed by Mr Williams's supervisors at MI6, his absence would have been reported and acted upon within hours.
Instead, they waited days to report him missing and Mr Williams's body was found a week after he had first failed to show up to work.
Reuters
May 2, 2012
Britain's MI6 intelligence agency failed to hand over to police the belongings of a spy found dead inside a bag in his home, including computer memory sticks, an inquest has heard.
Gareth Williams, 31, whose naked corpse was discovered padlocked inside a sports bag, was on secondment to MI6 at the time of his death in 2010.
Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire told an inquest in London that MI6 agents searched Mr Williams's electronic media without informing police, the BBC reported.
Police only learned of the memory sticks on Monday, it said.
"Had I known of their existence, I would have expected them to be at least reviewed or audited by (the counter-terrorism unit) and if information was available, then sent to my team," Chief Inspector Sebire was quoted by the Guardian newspaper as saying.
She testified last week that she believed someone else was involved in Mr Williams getting inside the bag. A small amount of unknown DNA not belonging to Mr Williams was found on the bag.
Mr Williams, a mathematics prodigy, was trying to develop technologies that could be used in gathering information for MI6, Britain's foreign intelligence service.
One police officer, Detective Superintendent Michael Broster of the counter-terrorism branch SO-15, was quoted by the BBC as saying his team should have examined the memory sticks before giving them to MI6 but that he had taken what evidence he believed was relevant to the case.
Police also did not take an inventory of the contents of Mr Williams's office cabinet because of the "sensitive nature of the documents", fellow counter-terrorism officer Colin Hall was reported by the Guardian as saying.
Pathologists believe the likeliest cause of death was either poisoning or suffocation but say they cannot be sure which.
The strange death has puzzled investigators who have found little forensic evidence that would point to a culprit.
Last week the inquest was told that if proper procedures had been followed by Mr Williams's supervisors at MI6, his absence would have been reported and acted upon within hours.
Instead, they waited days to report him missing and Mr Williams's body was found a week after he had first failed to show up to work.
Reuters
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Isle of Wight Radio : Coroner To Announce Spy Death Verdict
Wednesday, May 02, 2012
Coroner To Announce Spy Death Verdict
May 2, 2012
Dr Fiona Wilcox has spent seven days listening to evidence from 39 witnesses.
She has questioned all of those who appeared in person and listened as lawyers for Gareth Williams family, as well as lawyers representing both the Metropolitan Police and MI6 cross examined the witnesses.
Tuesday's evidence included some surprising revelations, including the disclosure that MI6 had failed to pass over some of Mr Williams belongings from his office at MI6.
The officer in charge of the investigation into his death only found out about the existence of some of the items on Tuesday.
"Had I known about their existence, I would have expected them to be disclosed and any relevant information to be sent to my team. I would have expected to have been told," DCI Jackie Sebire told the court.
A senior Metropolitan Police officer also admitted that he had relied on MI6 to decide which of Mr Williams belongings were relevent to the investigation into the death.
Detective Superintendent Michael Broster said that he trusted MI6 to give him all the information he needed.
Responding to that admission, the coroner said: "Shouldn't the investigators be examining the items, not the people providing them?
"I would suggest that you are not being an impartial investigator in this case. An impartial investigator would have seized the items themselves."
The lawyer for Mr Williams family, Anthony O'Toole, put it more directly to Supt Broster.
"If the person who killed Gareth was a member of the Secret Intelligence Service, you did nothing to investigate because you believed that the organisation was trustworthy?"
The wide range of witnesses in this inquest began with Mr Williams sister Ceri Subbe who talked fondly of her brother.
She described him as "a country boy" who had expressed frustration with his secondment from GCHQ in Gloucestershire to MI6 in London.
Friends of Mr Williams also gave evidence. Among them was Sian Jones, a fashion consultant.
"We were childhood sweethearts and I would just say we were very very close." she told the court last week.
She, and other witnesses were asked how they could explain the fact that £20,000 of women's clothes and shoes were found in the flat where Mr Williams body was discovered.
Ms Jones and Ms Subbe both told the inquest that Mr Williams was a very generous man and that the clothes were likely to be gifts. Ms Jones said that he had frequently bought her clothes and handbags.
"He was a truly generous person. It wouldn't surprise me if they were gifts." she said.
His family listened as other uncomfortable details about his private life were discussed. He had visited bondage websites, the court was told, but only on 4 occasions in two years.
The inquest was also told that he had once tied himself to a bed and and had to rely on his landlord to free him.
Mr Williams' professional life was examined in minute detail as well. He was described as a brilliant man, highly intelligent and part of a team whose "Herculean efforts" in cryptology had won departmental awards at GCHQ.
Staff at MI6 gave evidence anonymously from behind a screen. They were pressed on why it took them eight days to report Mr Williams missing.
One MI6 officer, identified only as witness G said he first thought Mr Williams was stuck on a train, then thought perhaps there had been a mix up with holiday.
"In hindsight, knowing what I know now, should I have taken action? Absolutely." witness G said.
Another witness, SIS-F, apologised for Witness G's lack of action.
"SIS are profoundly sorry about what happened. It shouldn't have happened. We recognise the delay [of a week] in finding Gareth's body has made it harder to come to terms with his death." SIS-F said.
The delay in reporting him missing made the pathologists work very hard, the court heard. When Mr Williams' body was eventually discovered it was badly decomposed.
The three post mortem examinations could not establish the cause of death. Three pathologists told the inquest that the decomposition hindered their work.
Benjamin Swift, a Home Office pathologist, said that although the cause of death was "unascertained", he believed that poisoning or asphyxiation such as suffocation were "probably rather than possibly" to blame.
The police officer in charge of the investigation said at the start of the inquest that she believed the crux of the case surrounded the bag Mr Williams was found in.
The police still do not know how Mr Williams came to be in that bag. If he was alone, they do not know how he locked it from the outside.
If he was not alone, then who else was there and what motive did they have to kill him?
The police investigation had drawn a succession of blanks.
New evidence heard in this inquest for the first time might help them draw new leads in the coming months.
The police have repeatedly said there is still a chance of the breakthrough they need.
But now it is the turn of coroner Dr Wilcox to deliver her verdict on a case that remains, for now, a mystery.
May 2, 2012
Dr Fiona Wilcox has spent seven days listening to evidence from 39 witnesses.
She has questioned all of those who appeared in person and listened as lawyers for Gareth Williams family, as well as lawyers representing both the Metropolitan Police and MI6 cross examined the witnesses.
Tuesday's evidence included some surprising revelations, including the disclosure that MI6 had failed to pass over some of Mr Williams belongings from his office at MI6.
The officer in charge of the investigation into his death only found out about the existence of some of the items on Tuesday.
"Had I known about their existence, I would have expected them to be disclosed and any relevant information to be sent to my team. I would have expected to have been told," DCI Jackie Sebire told the court.
A senior Metropolitan Police officer also admitted that he had relied on MI6 to decide which of Mr Williams belongings were relevent to the investigation into the death.
Detective Superintendent Michael Broster said that he trusted MI6 to give him all the information he needed.
Responding to that admission, the coroner said: "Shouldn't the investigators be examining the items, not the people providing them?
"I would suggest that you are not being an impartial investigator in this case. An impartial investigator would have seized the items themselves."
The lawyer for Mr Williams family, Anthony O'Toole, put it more directly to Supt Broster.
"If the person who killed Gareth was a member of the Secret Intelligence Service, you did nothing to investigate because you believed that the organisation was trustworthy?"
The wide range of witnesses in this inquest began with Mr Williams sister Ceri Subbe who talked fondly of her brother.
She described him as "a country boy" who had expressed frustration with his secondment from GCHQ in Gloucestershire to MI6 in London.
Friends of Mr Williams also gave evidence. Among them was Sian Jones, a fashion consultant.
"We were childhood sweethearts and I would just say we were very very close." she told the court last week.
She, and other witnesses were asked how they could explain the fact that £20,000 of women's clothes and shoes were found in the flat where Mr Williams body was discovered.
Ms Jones and Ms Subbe both told the inquest that Mr Williams was a very generous man and that the clothes were likely to be gifts. Ms Jones said that he had frequently bought her clothes and handbags.
"He was a truly generous person. It wouldn't surprise me if they were gifts." she said.
His family listened as other uncomfortable details about his private life were discussed. He had visited bondage websites, the court was told, but only on 4 occasions in two years.
The inquest was also told that he had once tied himself to a bed and and had to rely on his landlord to free him.
Mr Williams' professional life was examined in minute detail as well. He was described as a brilliant man, highly intelligent and part of a team whose "Herculean efforts" in cryptology had won departmental awards at GCHQ.
Staff at MI6 gave evidence anonymously from behind a screen. They were pressed on why it took them eight days to report Mr Williams missing.
One MI6 officer, identified only as witness G said he first thought Mr Williams was stuck on a train, then thought perhaps there had been a mix up with holiday.
"In hindsight, knowing what I know now, should I have taken action? Absolutely." witness G said.
Another witness, SIS-F, apologised for Witness G's lack of action.
"SIS are profoundly sorry about what happened. It shouldn't have happened. We recognise the delay [of a week] in finding Gareth's body has made it harder to come to terms with his death." SIS-F said.
The delay in reporting him missing made the pathologists work very hard, the court heard. When Mr Williams' body was eventually discovered it was badly decomposed.
The three post mortem examinations could not establish the cause of death. Three pathologists told the inquest that the decomposition hindered their work.
Benjamin Swift, a Home Office pathologist, said that although the cause of death was "unascertained", he believed that poisoning or asphyxiation such as suffocation were "probably rather than possibly" to blame.
The police officer in charge of the investigation said at the start of the inquest that she believed the crux of the case surrounded the bag Mr Williams was found in.
The police still do not know how Mr Williams came to be in that bag. If he was alone, they do not know how he locked it from the outside.
If he was not alone, then who else was there and what motive did they have to kill him?
The police investigation had drawn a succession of blanks.
New evidence heard in this inquest for the first time might help them draw new leads in the coming months.
The police have repeatedly said there is still a chance of the breakthrough they need.
But now it is the turn of coroner Dr Wilcox to deliver her verdict on a case that remains, for now, a mystery.
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shoes,
Sian Lloyd-Jones,
SIS F,
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CNN : British spy in bag was poisoned or suffocated, coroner rules
Wednesday, May 02, 2012
British spy in bag was poisoned or suffocated, coroner rules
NEW: MI6 chief apologizes "unreservedly" to spy's family for failure to act quickly
Gareth Williams was poisoned or suffocated in the bag in which he was locked, coroner says
The bag containing his naked body was put into a bath by an unknown person, coroner rules
His family calls for an investigation into the secret services' role in the investigation
By Laura Smith-Spark, CNN | May 2, 2012
London (CNN) -- A British spy found dead at his home in 2010 -- his naked body padlocked inside a large red carrying bag stowed in the bathtub -- was either suffocated or poisoned, but it is unlikely his death will ever be satisfactorily explained, coroner Fiona Wilcox said Wednesday.
Gareth Williams' death was "unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated," she ruled.
He probably entered the bag alive, Wilcox said, reading her ruling to a court around the corner from the home of the world's most famous fictional detective, Sherlock Holmes.
But she was sure an unknown person put the bag containing his body into the bath and probably locked it, she said.
The case has gripped the British public for more than a year and a half, since Williams, an MI6 agent known for his mathematical genius and codebreaking talent, was found dead at age 31 in August 2010.
But after a weeklong inquest at which evidence from hundreds of expert witnesses, security camera images and police interviews was presented, the "most fundamental questions as to how Gareth died remain unanswered," Wilcox said Wednesday.
There was "endless speculation but little real evidence," she said.
And in unusual criticism of the Secret Intelligence Service, as MI6 is formally known, she said a delay in reporting his death and in providing relevant evidence added to the uncertainties about the case. Some of that evidence came to her only in the last 48 hours of the inquiry, Wilcox said.
The coroner appeared briefly overcome with emotion as she came to the end of reading her ruling, her voice faltering as she announced her findings.
The cause of death remains unknown, but experts agreed it was either from suffocation or poisoning, she said. "I am therefore satisfied on the balance of probabilities that Gareth was killed unlawfully," she concluded.
Among the theories aired by UK media were that Williams might have died at the hands of foreign intelligence agents or as a result of a kinky sexual encounter gone wrong, neither of which was supported by the evidence, the coroner said.
She also cast doubt on suggestions that he was into bondage or transvestism, fueled by the discovery of women's clothes, wigs and cosmetics in his apartment, saying she thought Williams bought them out of an interest in fashion, rather than any sexual motivation.
Expressing her sympathies to his family, Wilcox said the inquest could not bring him back, but she hoped it had at least allowed them to see the evidence out in the open.
A lawyer for Williams' family said that losing a much-loved son and brother would have been a tragedy in any circumstances but that the nature of Williams' death had made it all the worse.
"Our grief is exacerbated by the failure of his employers at MI6 to take even the most basic inquiries as to his whereabouts and welfare, which any reasonable employer would have taken," he said.
"We are also extremely disappointed at the reluctance and failure of MI6 to make available relevant information."
The family has called for the Metropolitan Police to review the role of the intelligence services in the investigation.
MI6 head John Sawers apologized "unreservedly" to Williams' family for the service's failure to act more swiftly and said measures have been put in place to make sure it doesn't happen again.
The detective leading the police investigation, Jackie Sebire, said new lines of inquiry had resulted from the inquest and would now be "actively pursued."
"His naked body was found in the most suspicious of circumstances," Sebire said. "It is highly likely that a third party was involved in Gareth's death, and I urge anyone who knew Gareth or who had contact with him to search their conscience and come forward with any information about what happened that night."
Inside the court, a picture emerged of a man who had few friends but was very close to his family, highly intelligent and physically fit thanks to his love of cycling.
A math prodigy who had completed his mathematics degree and master's by the age of 21, he was someone who relished a challenge and had received an award for his "world-class" work for the intelligence services.
Summing up the evidence, Wilcox said it was "extremely unlikely," but not impossible, that Williams had worked out a technique to get into the bag -- measuring just 32 inches by 19 inches (81 by 48 centimeters) -- and lock it from the inside.
But, she said, there was no evidence of footprints or handprints on the walls of the bathroom or the bath itself, as might have been expected if he had done that.
He was not a risk taker, she said, and that made it unlikely in her view that he would have put himself into the bag even as a personal challenge without making sure he could get out.
Of the four keys belonging to the padlock that secured the bag in which Williams was found, one pair was found inside it with him. A second pair was found on a key ring in his apartment, Wilcox said.
There was no sign that evidence had been tampered with, such as traces of bleach. There was also no sign of a break-in or robbery in his neat, tidy apartment, she said.
She described his body as "peaceful" and said there was no indication of a struggle.
Wilcox also said there were no indications that Williams was feeling suicidal.
However, tests that might have revealed unusual or volatile poisons were ruled out by the decomposition of the body. Traces of alcohol and a chemical matching the party drug GHB were found, but both can occur naturally as part of the decomposition process, she said.
British media have reported that Williams' Internet history showed an interest in sex games and bondage, but Wilcox said the codebreaker had made only a handful of visits to bondage sites.
The coroner said there was no evidence of interest in claustrophilia, a fetish for enclosure in very confined spaces.
His apartment contained 20,000 pounds ($32,000) worth of high-fashion women's clothing, unworn and packed as purchased, Wilcox said, but she said she found no connection between his death and his interest in fashion and women's shoes and clothing.
There also was no indication that his death was connected to his work, she said.
He had not taken on any high-risk operations, and he worked only in the UK. There was no evidence of threats arising to him from his work, his employers testified.
Wilcox was highly critical of Williams' line manager, who did not report that he was missing for about a week after he died August 16. She said the inability of the manager to recall certain key bits of evidence concerning the week of Williams' death "is beginning to stretch the bounds of credibility."
When questioned, the manager said he assumed Williams was absent for a legitimate reason that he had forgotten about, even though he missed several meetings. They worked on a small team of four people.
The manager and other SIS employees testified from behind a screen and were identified only as SIS, plus a letter.
Williams was finally reported missing by a co-worker August 23, more than a week after the normally punctilious employee had last shown up at work.
"I can only speculate as to what effect this had on this investigation," Wilcox said.
The decomposition of Williams' body was hastened by the fact it was in a top floor apartment, where the temperature soared in the summer heat. The heating was mysteriously also turned on, despite it being a hot August, she said.
Police did not secure the scene until eight or nine days after Williams died.
Reports about the "body-in-a-bag spy" describe how two experts spent days trying to figure out whether Williams, who was athletic and of medium height, could have contorted himself in such as way as to lock himself into the North Face holdall bag, with a key to the padlock inside.
Video provided to the court shows one of them, Peter Faulding, folding himself laboriously into an identical bag placed in a bathtub.
Faulding, who specializes in rescuing people from confined spaces, told the inquest that he had tried to lock himself into the bag 300 times without success. A second expert witness, also of a size and build similar to Williams, tried 100 times to re-enact the feat without succeeding.
Neither ruled out definitively the possibility that Williams could have somehow done it alone. But a small trace of someone else's DNA was found on the bag, helping spawn all kinds of theories about who else might have been there.
Williams was recruited into the intelligence services straight from university, working with Government Communications Headquarters before MI6. The nature of his work and questions around why his spy agency bosses took so long to raise an alert about his absence have added to the intrigue surrounding his death.
Concerns about national security have been a factor in the 20-month delay in holding Williams' inquest, and an agency more used to working in the shadows has had an uncomfortably bright light shone into its practices.
A series of photographs provided by the Metropolitan Police show the tidy, impersonal interior of the spy's Pimlico home and the small white-tiled bathroom where his body was found.
A bicycle parked in the hallway is a clue to Williams' passion for cycling. A glimpse through a bedroom door shows a bed half-made, clothes lying on it. But little else can be gleaned from the images.
The Metropolitan Police says it is continuing its investigation, particularly in light of the coroner's findings and the concerns raised by his family.
But for now, the identity of the unknown person who apparently put the bag holding Williams into the bath, exactly how he died and the reason why, remain as much a mystery as ever.
CNN's Atika Shubert contributed to this report.
NEW: MI6 chief apologizes "unreservedly" to spy's family for failure to act quickly
Gareth Williams was poisoned or suffocated in the bag in which he was locked, coroner says
The bag containing his naked body was put into a bath by an unknown person, coroner rules
His family calls for an investigation into the secret services' role in the investigation
By Laura Smith-Spark, CNN | May 2, 2012
London (CNN) -- A British spy found dead at his home in 2010 -- his naked body padlocked inside a large red carrying bag stowed in the bathtub -- was either suffocated or poisoned, but it is unlikely his death will ever be satisfactorily explained, coroner Fiona Wilcox said Wednesday.
Gareth Williams' death was "unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated," she ruled.
He probably entered the bag alive, Wilcox said, reading her ruling to a court around the corner from the home of the world's most famous fictional detective, Sherlock Holmes.
But she was sure an unknown person put the bag containing his body into the bath and probably locked it, she said.
The case has gripped the British public for more than a year and a half, since Williams, an MI6 agent known for his mathematical genius and codebreaking talent, was found dead at age 31 in August 2010.
But after a weeklong inquest at which evidence from hundreds of expert witnesses, security camera images and police interviews was presented, the "most fundamental questions as to how Gareth died remain unanswered," Wilcox said Wednesday.
There was "endless speculation but little real evidence," she said.
And in unusual criticism of the Secret Intelligence Service, as MI6 is formally known, she said a delay in reporting his death and in providing relevant evidence added to the uncertainties about the case. Some of that evidence came to her only in the last 48 hours of the inquiry, Wilcox said.
The coroner appeared briefly overcome with emotion as she came to the end of reading her ruling, her voice faltering as she announced her findings.
The cause of death remains unknown, but experts agreed it was either from suffocation or poisoning, she said. "I am therefore satisfied on the balance of probabilities that Gareth was killed unlawfully," she concluded.
Among the theories aired by UK media were that Williams might have died at the hands of foreign intelligence agents or as a result of a kinky sexual encounter gone wrong, neither of which was supported by the evidence, the coroner said.
She also cast doubt on suggestions that he was into bondage or transvestism, fueled by the discovery of women's clothes, wigs and cosmetics in his apartment, saying she thought Williams bought them out of an interest in fashion, rather than any sexual motivation.
Expressing her sympathies to his family, Wilcox said the inquest could not bring him back, but she hoped it had at least allowed them to see the evidence out in the open.
A lawyer for Williams' family said that losing a much-loved son and brother would have been a tragedy in any circumstances but that the nature of Williams' death had made it all the worse.
"Our grief is exacerbated by the failure of his employers at MI6 to take even the most basic inquiries as to his whereabouts and welfare, which any reasonable employer would have taken," he said.
"We are also extremely disappointed at the reluctance and failure of MI6 to make available relevant information."
The family has called for the Metropolitan Police to review the role of the intelligence services in the investigation.
MI6 head John Sawers apologized "unreservedly" to Williams' family for the service's failure to act more swiftly and said measures have been put in place to make sure it doesn't happen again.
The detective leading the police investigation, Jackie Sebire, said new lines of inquiry had resulted from the inquest and would now be "actively pursued."
"His naked body was found in the most suspicious of circumstances," Sebire said. "It is highly likely that a third party was involved in Gareth's death, and I urge anyone who knew Gareth or who had contact with him to search their conscience and come forward with any information about what happened that night."
Inside the court, a picture emerged of a man who had few friends but was very close to his family, highly intelligent and physically fit thanks to his love of cycling.
A math prodigy who had completed his mathematics degree and master's by the age of 21, he was someone who relished a challenge and had received an award for his "world-class" work for the intelligence services.
Summing up the evidence, Wilcox said it was "extremely unlikely," but not impossible, that Williams had worked out a technique to get into the bag -- measuring just 32 inches by 19 inches (81 by 48 centimeters) -- and lock it from the inside.
But, she said, there was no evidence of footprints or handprints on the walls of the bathroom or the bath itself, as might have been expected if he had done that.
He was not a risk taker, she said, and that made it unlikely in her view that he would have put himself into the bag even as a personal challenge without making sure he could get out.
Of the four keys belonging to the padlock that secured the bag in which Williams was found, one pair was found inside it with him. A second pair was found on a key ring in his apartment, Wilcox said.
There was no sign that evidence had been tampered with, such as traces of bleach. There was also no sign of a break-in or robbery in his neat, tidy apartment, she said.
She described his body as "peaceful" and said there was no indication of a struggle.
Wilcox also said there were no indications that Williams was feeling suicidal.
However, tests that might have revealed unusual or volatile poisons were ruled out by the decomposition of the body. Traces of alcohol and a chemical matching the party drug GHB were found, but both can occur naturally as part of the decomposition process, she said.
British media have reported that Williams' Internet history showed an interest in sex games and bondage, but Wilcox said the codebreaker had made only a handful of visits to bondage sites.
The coroner said there was no evidence of interest in claustrophilia, a fetish for enclosure in very confined spaces.
His apartment contained 20,000 pounds ($32,000) worth of high-fashion women's clothing, unworn and packed as purchased, Wilcox said, but she said she found no connection between his death and his interest in fashion and women's shoes and clothing.
There also was no indication that his death was connected to his work, she said.
He had not taken on any high-risk operations, and he worked only in the UK. There was no evidence of threats arising to him from his work, his employers testified.
Wilcox was highly critical of Williams' line manager, who did not report that he was missing for about a week after he died August 16. She said the inability of the manager to recall certain key bits of evidence concerning the week of Williams' death "is beginning to stretch the bounds of credibility."
When questioned, the manager said he assumed Williams was absent for a legitimate reason that he had forgotten about, even though he missed several meetings. They worked on a small team of four people.
The manager and other SIS employees testified from behind a screen and were identified only as SIS, plus a letter.
Williams was finally reported missing by a co-worker August 23, more than a week after the normally punctilious employee had last shown up at work.
"I can only speculate as to what effect this had on this investigation," Wilcox said.
The decomposition of Williams' body was hastened by the fact it was in a top floor apartment, where the temperature soared in the summer heat. The heating was mysteriously also turned on, despite it being a hot August, she said.
Police did not secure the scene until eight or nine days after Williams died.
Reports about the "body-in-a-bag spy" describe how two experts spent days trying to figure out whether Williams, who was athletic and of medium height, could have contorted himself in such as way as to lock himself into the North Face holdall bag, with a key to the padlock inside.
Video provided to the court shows one of them, Peter Faulding, folding himself laboriously into an identical bag placed in a bathtub.
Faulding, who specializes in rescuing people from confined spaces, told the inquest that he had tried to lock himself into the bag 300 times without success. A second expert witness, also of a size and build similar to Williams, tried 100 times to re-enact the feat without succeeding.
Neither ruled out definitively the possibility that Williams could have somehow done it alone. But a small trace of someone else's DNA was found on the bag, helping spawn all kinds of theories about who else might have been there.
Williams was recruited into the intelligence services straight from university, working with Government Communications Headquarters before MI6. The nature of his work and questions around why his spy agency bosses took so long to raise an alert about his absence have added to the intrigue surrounding his death.
Concerns about national security have been a factor in the 20-month delay in holding Williams' inquest, and an agency more used to working in the shadows has had an uncomfortably bright light shone into its practices.
A series of photographs provided by the Metropolitan Police show the tidy, impersonal interior of the spy's Pimlico home and the small white-tiled bathroom where his body was found.
A bicycle parked in the hallway is a clue to Williams' passion for cycling. A glimpse through a bedroom door shows a bed half-made, clothes lying on it. But little else can be gleaned from the images.
The Metropolitan Police says it is continuing its investigation, particularly in light of the coroner's findings and the concerns raised by his family.
But for now, the identity of the unknown person who apparently put the bag holding Williams into the bath, exactly how he died and the reason why, remain as much a mystery as ever.
CNN's Atika Shubert contributed to this report.
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USA Today : Coroner: U.K. spy found in sports bag likely killed
Wednesday, May 02, 2012
Coroner: U.K. spy found in sports bag likely killed
May 2, 2012
LONDON (AP) – A coroner said Wednesday a British spy whose naked body was found inside a locked sports bag was likely killed in a criminal act, but acknowledged the riddle of how he met his mysterious death may never be solved.
Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the demise of code breaker Gareth Williams, 31, would "ever be satisfactorily explained," despite a 21-month police inquiry, and seven days of expert evidence to an inquest hearing.
Williams worked for Britain's secret eavesdropping service GCHQ but was attached to the MI6 overseas spy agency when his remains were found in August 2010 at his London apartment, in the bag and inside a bathtub.
Wilcox said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a "criminally meditated act" and acknowledged it was possible that an intelligence agency colleague may have been involved.
It is "likely that Gareth entered the bag alive and then died very soon afterwards," the coroner said as Williams' family listened to her verdict inside Westminster Coroner's Court.
The coroner moved to dispel wild theories that have swirled around the case — insisting there was no evidence of a sexual encounter gone wrong, of suicidal intent, or that Williams' death was linked to a supposed interest in bondage.
She said there was no evidence that the death was tied to work, amid speculation the spy could have been the target of Russian criminal gangs or an al-Qaeda extremist.
Wilcox said it appeared "extremely unlikely" that Williams could have climbed inside the sports bag and locked it himself. Two different specialists attempted to recreate the feat hundreds of times without success.
Given testimony that described Williams as deeply private — shunning his colleagues outside of work — and wary of strangers as a result of his secret work, she said a potential killer must have been a friend, or entered his home uninvited.
Williams was discovered in the fetal position inside the bag, his arms calmly folded across his chest and with two keys to the bag's padlock underneath his buttocks.
Pathologists told the inquest that poisoning or asphyxiation may have killed Williams, but acknowledged they can't be certain because his cadaver badly decomposed as it lay undiscovered for several days.
Wilcox said that while there wasn't evidence to support a specific verdict of unlawful killing — which would need a high burden of proof — it was her opinion that the spy was probably unlawfully killed.
She said that while it appeared unlikely, it continued to be a "legitimate line of inquiry" that British intelligence agencies may have had a role.
MI6 colleagues failed to report Williams as missing for a week, meaning that police and medical experts lost vital chances to gather evidence. Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire also told the inquest that British spy services had failed to pass on evidence in the case until this week: nine computer memory sticks that had been found at Williams' workplace.
John Sawers, the head of MI6, said in a statement released following the verdict that he apologized "unreservedly" to the Williams family for the spy agency's failure.
Police are uncertain exactly how Williams died and have so far made no arrests, though their investigation into the spy's death remains active.
Family lawyer Anthony O'Toole has previously said Williams' relatives suspect "the dark arts of the secret services" may have been behind a cover up of the true circumstances of his death.
Wilcox dismissed claims that a fetish for sadomasochism or transvestitism may have been behind Williams' death. There was no evidence the spy was interested in any such thing, Wilcox concluded. She added that she believed rumors may have been stoked by a "third party to manipulate the evidence," without elaborating.
Wilcox delivered a so-called "narrative verdict" — a lengthy but inconclusive ruling which is available when there isn't clear evidence of natural causes, suicide or enough proof of unlawful killing.
In Britain, a corner's task is to outline the circumstances of how and when a person died — rather than apportion blame, or recommend criminal charges.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
May 2, 2012
LONDON (AP) – A coroner said Wednesday a British spy whose naked body was found inside a locked sports bag was likely killed in a criminal act, but acknowledged the riddle of how he met his mysterious death may never be solved.
Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was unlikely that the demise of code breaker Gareth Williams, 31, would "ever be satisfactorily explained," despite a 21-month police inquiry, and seven days of expert evidence to an inquest hearing.
Williams worked for Britain's secret eavesdropping service GCHQ but was attached to the MI6 overseas spy agency when his remains were found in August 2010 at his London apartment, in the bag and inside a bathtub.
Wilcox said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a "criminally meditated act" and acknowledged it was possible that an intelligence agency colleague may have been involved.
It is "likely that Gareth entered the bag alive and then died very soon afterwards," the coroner said as Williams' family listened to her verdict inside Westminster Coroner's Court.
The coroner moved to dispel wild theories that have swirled around the case — insisting there was no evidence of a sexual encounter gone wrong, of suicidal intent, or that Williams' death was linked to a supposed interest in bondage.
She said there was no evidence that the death was tied to work, amid speculation the spy could have been the target of Russian criminal gangs or an al-Qaeda extremist.
Wilcox said it appeared "extremely unlikely" that Williams could have climbed inside the sports bag and locked it himself. Two different specialists attempted to recreate the feat hundreds of times without success.
Given testimony that described Williams as deeply private — shunning his colleagues outside of work — and wary of strangers as a result of his secret work, she said a potential killer must have been a friend, or entered his home uninvited.
Williams was discovered in the fetal position inside the bag, his arms calmly folded across his chest and with two keys to the bag's padlock underneath his buttocks.
Pathologists told the inquest that poisoning or asphyxiation may have killed Williams, but acknowledged they can't be certain because his cadaver badly decomposed as it lay undiscovered for several days.
Wilcox said that while there wasn't evidence to support a specific verdict of unlawful killing — which would need a high burden of proof — it was her opinion that the spy was probably unlawfully killed.
She said that while it appeared unlikely, it continued to be a "legitimate line of inquiry" that British intelligence agencies may have had a role.
MI6 colleagues failed to report Williams as missing for a week, meaning that police and medical experts lost vital chances to gather evidence. Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire also told the inquest that British spy services had failed to pass on evidence in the case until this week: nine computer memory sticks that had been found at Williams' workplace.
John Sawers, the head of MI6, said in a statement released following the verdict that he apologized "unreservedly" to the Williams family for the spy agency's failure.
Police are uncertain exactly how Williams died and have so far made no arrests, though their investigation into the spy's death remains active.
Family lawyer Anthony O'Toole has previously said Williams' relatives suspect "the dark arts of the secret services" may have been behind a cover up of the true circumstances of his death.
Wilcox dismissed claims that a fetish for sadomasochism or transvestitism may have been behind Williams' death. There was no evidence the spy was interested in any such thing, Wilcox concluded. She added that she believed rumors may have been stoked by a "third party to manipulate the evidence," without elaborating.
Wilcox delivered a so-called "narrative verdict" — a lengthy but inconclusive ruling which is available when there isn't clear evidence of natural causes, suicide or enough proof of unlawful killing.
In Britain, a corner's task is to outline the circumstances of how and when a person died — rather than apportion blame, or recommend criminal charges.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Wilkes Barre (PA) Times-Leader : Coroner: UK spy found in sports bag likely killed
Wednesday, May 02, 2012
Coroner: UK spy found in sports bag likely killed
AP | May 2, 2012
LONDON (AP) — A coroner says a British spy whose naked body was found inside a locked sports bag was likely killed in a criminal act, but acknowledged the riddle of how he met his mysterious death may never be solved.
Coroner Fiona Wilcox said Wednesday it was unlikely that the demise of codebreaker Gareth Williams, 31, would “ever be satisfactorily explained,” despite a 21-month police inquiry, and seven days of expert evidence to an inquest hearing.
Williams worked for Britain’s secret eavesdropping service GCHQ but was attached to the MI6 overseas spy agency when his remains were found in August 2010 at his London apartment, in the bag and inside a bathtub.
Wilcox said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a “criminally meditated act.”
AP | May 2, 2012
LONDON (AP) — A coroner says a British spy whose naked body was found inside a locked sports bag was likely killed in a criminal act, but acknowledged the riddle of how he met his mysterious death may never be solved.
Coroner Fiona Wilcox said Wednesday it was unlikely that the demise of codebreaker Gareth Williams, 31, would “ever be satisfactorily explained,” despite a 21-month police inquiry, and seven days of expert evidence to an inquest hearing.
Williams worked for Britain’s secret eavesdropping service GCHQ but was attached to the MI6 overseas spy agency when his remains were found in August 2010 at his London apartment, in the bag and inside a bathtub.
Wilcox said the spy was likely killed either by suffocation or poisoning in a “criminally meditated act.”
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Independent : Gareth Williams 'was probably killed unlawfully'
Wednesday, May 02, 2012
Gareth Williams 'was probably killed unlawfully'
John Hall | May 2, 2012
A spy found dead inside a locked holdall, was probably killed unlawfully and it is unlikely his death “will ever be satisfactorily explained” a coroner said today.
Dr Fiona Wilcox said she was sure a third party padlocked MI6 codebreaker Gareth Williams in the red holdall, and that "on the balance of evidence" he was probably alive when he was put in the bag.
She suggested that Mr Williams was suffocated by carbon dioxide, possibly as an onset of a short-acting poison adding "the cause of his death was unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated”.
She dismissed speculation that Mr Williams died as a result of some kind of "auto-erotic activity", also denying there was any evidence to suggest claustrophilia - the love of enclosed spaces - was of any interest to him.
"I find on the balance of probabilities that if he had got into the bag and locked himself in, he would have taken a knife in with him… He was a risk assessor," she said.
Dr Wilcox said it remained a "legitimate line of inquiry" that the secret services were involved in Mr Williams' death, but added there was no actual evidence to support that he died at the hands of spies.
The coroner was highly critical of the 21-month investigation into Mr Williams’ death, saying it would appear that many agencies fell short" during the inquiries.
Dr Wilcox said "most of the fundamental questions in relation to how Gareth died remain unanswered", and questioned why details of Mr Williams' private life were leaked to the press.
MI6 apologised for waiting a week before raising the alarm about Mr Williams’ disappearance, something Dr Wilcox said hampered the investigation into his death.
Breakdowns in communication by her own office in ordering a second post-mortem examination, a DNA mix-up by forensics, and the late submission of evidence by MI6 were singled out for blame.
Referring to the suggestion Mr Williams has climbed into the bag himself, Dr Wilcox said she found the it "highly unlikely", adding "If Gareth had been carrying out some kind of peculiar experiment; he wouldn't care if he left any foot or fingerprints."
On claims Mr Williams was interested in bondage, the coroner added: "I would have expected much more internet activity to have been recovered."
The coroner ruled out Mr Williams's interest in bondage and drag queens as having any bearing, before adding: "I wonder if this was an attempt by some third party to manipulate the evidence."
Dr Wilcox said today there was no evidence to suggest the spy was a transvestite "or interested in any such thing".
The make-up found in his flat was more likely to reflect his interest in fashion, she argued and the wigs that were found there were "far more consistent with dress-up such as attendance at a manga conference".
There was some suggestion that his interest in female footwear could have been of a sexual nature, but this was not unusual, Dr Wilcox observed. "Gareth was naked in a bag when he was found, not cross-dressed, not in high-heeled shoes," she added.
Speaking outside court after the end of the inquest, Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, in charge of the investigation, said: "I've always been satisfied a third party may have been involved in his death and the coroner has confirmed that in her finding today.
"The inquest has raised several new lines of inquiry and the investigation will now refocus and actively pursue all the evidence heard and all the new lines of inquiry."
Scotland Yard said it will review new lines of inquiry, with fresh attention on Mr Williams’ colleagues.
John Hall | May 2, 2012
A spy found dead inside a locked holdall, was probably killed unlawfully and it is unlikely his death “will ever be satisfactorily explained” a coroner said today.
Dr Fiona Wilcox said she was sure a third party padlocked MI6 codebreaker Gareth Williams in the red holdall, and that "on the balance of evidence" he was probably alive when he was put in the bag.
She suggested that Mr Williams was suffocated by carbon dioxide, possibly as an onset of a short-acting poison adding "the cause of his death was unnatural and likely to have been criminally mediated”.
She dismissed speculation that Mr Williams died as a result of some kind of "auto-erotic activity", also denying there was any evidence to suggest claustrophilia - the love of enclosed spaces - was of any interest to him.
"I find on the balance of probabilities that if he had got into the bag and locked himself in, he would have taken a knife in with him… He was a risk assessor," she said.
Dr Wilcox said it remained a "legitimate line of inquiry" that the secret services were involved in Mr Williams' death, but added there was no actual evidence to support that he died at the hands of spies.
The coroner was highly critical of the 21-month investigation into Mr Williams’ death, saying it would appear that many agencies fell short" during the inquiries.
Dr Wilcox said "most of the fundamental questions in relation to how Gareth died remain unanswered", and questioned why details of Mr Williams' private life were leaked to the press.
MI6 apologised for waiting a week before raising the alarm about Mr Williams’ disappearance, something Dr Wilcox said hampered the investigation into his death.
Breakdowns in communication by her own office in ordering a second post-mortem examination, a DNA mix-up by forensics, and the late submission of evidence by MI6 were singled out for blame.
Referring to the suggestion Mr Williams has climbed into the bag himself, Dr Wilcox said she found the it "highly unlikely", adding "If Gareth had been carrying out some kind of peculiar experiment; he wouldn't care if he left any foot or fingerprints."
On claims Mr Williams was interested in bondage, the coroner added: "I would have expected much more internet activity to have been recovered."
The coroner ruled out Mr Williams's interest in bondage and drag queens as having any bearing, before adding: "I wonder if this was an attempt by some third party to manipulate the evidence."
Dr Wilcox said today there was no evidence to suggest the spy was a transvestite "or interested in any such thing".
The make-up found in his flat was more likely to reflect his interest in fashion, she argued and the wigs that were found there were "far more consistent with dress-up such as attendance at a manga conference".
There was some suggestion that his interest in female footwear could have been of a sexual nature, but this was not unusual, Dr Wilcox observed. "Gareth was naked in a bag when he was found, not cross-dressed, not in high-heeled shoes," she added.
Speaking outside court after the end of the inquest, Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire, in charge of the investigation, said: "I've always been satisfied a third party may have been involved in his death and the coroner has confirmed that in her finding today.
"The inquest has raised several new lines of inquiry and the investigation will now refocus and actively pursue all the evidence heard and all the new lines of inquiry."
Scotland Yard said it will review new lines of inquiry, with fresh attention on Mr Williams’ colleagues.
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News 24 (SA) : UK spy death remains a mystery
Wednesday, May 02, 2012
UK spy death remains a mystery
May 2, 2012
London - It is unlikely the death of a British spy whose naked body was found padlocked in a bag in his bath will ever be fully explained, the coroner told the final day of his inquest on Wednesday.
Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was "unlikely" the circumstances of Gareth Williams' 2010 death "will ever be satisfactorily explained" given that "most of the fundamental questions in relation to how Gareth died remain unanswered".
Wilcox said she did not have enough evidence to give a verdict of unlawful killing in the death of Williams, a high-flying codebreaker with the MI6 external intelligence agency, despite a plea from his family's lawyer.
She will instead deliver a narrative verdict, listing the possibilities but failing to reach a conclusion.
Williams' family have previously said they believe secret agents versed in the "dark arts" tried to cover up his death, while the detective heading the investigation said on Tuesday she was convinced someone else was involved.
"My strongest belief is that a third party was involved and I would ask people to search their consciences and come to us to find some resolutions to this case and some peace for his family," Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire said.
The inquest looked into whether Williams could have padlocked himself in the bag alone, after speculation he might have done so as part of a sex game, but one expert said even escapologist Harry Houdini "would have struggled" to pull off the feat.
Pathologists said Williams probably died from poisoning or suffocation, but decomposition of his body reduced the scope for pinpointing the cause of death.
The spy's employers at MI6 failed to report him missing for a week, the inquest has heard.
Police also told the inquest they had not examined some of Williams' possessions including nine memory sticks because his bosses at MI6 said they were irrelevant.
Police found women's clothing worth about £20 000 in Williams' flat, while the inquest also heard he visited bondage sites, filmed himself nearly naked, and was once found tied to a bed.
His sister, Ceri Subbe, told the inquest Williams had been unhappy at MI6, where he was seconded from Britain's intelligence monitoring centre.
- SAPA
May 2, 2012
London - It is unlikely the death of a British spy whose naked body was found padlocked in a bag in his bath will ever be fully explained, the coroner told the final day of his inquest on Wednesday.
Coroner Fiona Wilcox said it was "unlikely" the circumstances of Gareth Williams' 2010 death "will ever be satisfactorily explained" given that "most of the fundamental questions in relation to how Gareth died remain unanswered".
Wilcox said she did not have enough evidence to give a verdict of unlawful killing in the death of Williams, a high-flying codebreaker with the MI6 external intelligence agency, despite a plea from his family's lawyer.
She will instead deliver a narrative verdict, listing the possibilities but failing to reach a conclusion.
Williams' family have previously said they believe secret agents versed in the "dark arts" tried to cover up his death, while the detective heading the investigation said on Tuesday she was convinced someone else was involved.
"My strongest belief is that a third party was involved and I would ask people to search their consciences and come to us to find some resolutions to this case and some peace for his family," Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire said.
The inquest looked into whether Williams could have padlocked himself in the bag alone, after speculation he might have done so as part of a sex game, but one expert said even escapologist Harry Houdini "would have struggled" to pull off the feat.
Pathologists said Williams probably died from poisoning or suffocation, but decomposition of his body reduced the scope for pinpointing the cause of death.
The spy's employers at MI6 failed to report him missing for a week, the inquest has heard.
Police also told the inquest they had not examined some of Williams' possessions including nine memory sticks because his bosses at MI6 said they were irrelevant.
Police found women's clothing worth about £20 000 in Williams' flat, while the inquest also heard he visited bondage sites, filmed himself nearly naked, and was once found tied to a bed.
His sister, Ceri Subbe, told the inquest Williams had been unhappy at MI6, where he was seconded from Britain's intelligence monitoring centre.
- SAPA
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ABC (Australia) : MI6 kept evidence related to dead spy
Wednesday, May 02, 2012
MI6 kept evidence related to dead spy
May 2, 2012
Britain's MI6 intelligence agency failed to hand over to police the belongings of a spy found dead inside a bag in his home, including computer memory sticks, an inquest has heard.
Gareth Williams, 31, whose naked corpse was discovered padlocked inside a sports bag, was on secondment to MI6 at the time of his death in 2010.
Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire told an inquest in London that MI6 agents searched Mr Williams's electronic media without informing police, the BBC reported.
Police only learned of the memory sticks on Monday, it said.
"Had I known of their existence, I would have expected them to be at least reviewed or audited by (the counter-terrorism unit) and if information was available, then sent to my team," Chief Inspector Sebire was quoted by the Guardian newspaper as saying.
She testified last week that she believed someone else was involved in Mr Williams getting inside the bag. A small amount of unknown DNA not belonging to Mr Williams was found on the bag.
Mr Williams, a mathematics prodigy, was trying to develop technologies that could be used in gathering information for MI6, Britain's foreign intelligence service.
One police officer, Detective Superintendent Michael Broster of the counter-terrorism branch SO-15, was quoted by the BBC as saying his team should have examined the memory sticks before giving them to MI6 but that he had taken what evidence he believed was relevant to the case.
Police also did not take an inventory of the contents of Mr Williams's office cabinet because of the "sensitive nature of the documents", fellow counter-terrorism officer Colin Hall was reported by the Guardian as saying.
Pathologists believe the likeliest cause of death was either poisoning or suffocation but say they cannot be sure which.
The strange death has puzzled investigators who have found little forensic evidence that would point to a culprit.
Last week the inquest was told that if proper procedures had been followed by Mr Williams's supervisors at MI6, his absence would have been reported and acted upon within hours.
Instead, they waited days to report him missing and Mr Williams's body was found a week after he had first failed to show up to work.
Reuters
May 2, 2012
Britain's MI6 intelligence agency failed to hand over to police the belongings of a spy found dead inside a bag in his home, including computer memory sticks, an inquest has heard.
Gareth Williams, 31, whose naked corpse was discovered padlocked inside a sports bag, was on secondment to MI6 at the time of his death in 2010.
Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire told an inquest in London that MI6 agents searched Mr Williams's electronic media without informing police, the BBC reported.
Police only learned of the memory sticks on Monday, it said.
"Had I known of their existence, I would have expected them to be at least reviewed or audited by (the counter-terrorism unit) and if information was available, then sent to my team," Chief Inspector Sebire was quoted by the Guardian newspaper as saying.
She testified last week that she believed someone else was involved in Mr Williams getting inside the bag. A small amount of unknown DNA not belonging to Mr Williams was found on the bag.
Mr Williams, a mathematics prodigy, was trying to develop technologies that could be used in gathering information for MI6, Britain's foreign intelligence service.
One police officer, Detective Superintendent Michael Broster of the counter-terrorism branch SO-15, was quoted by the BBC as saying his team should have examined the memory sticks before giving them to MI6 but that he had taken what evidence he believed was relevant to the case.
Police also did not take an inventory of the contents of Mr Williams's office cabinet because of the "sensitive nature of the documents", fellow counter-terrorism officer Colin Hall was reported by the Guardian as saying.
Pathologists believe the likeliest cause of death was either poisoning or suffocation but say they cannot be sure which.
The strange death has puzzled investigators who have found little forensic evidence that would point to a culprit.
Last week the inquest was told that if proper procedures had been followed by Mr Williams's supervisors at MI6, his absence would have been reported and acted upon within hours.
Instead, they waited days to report him missing and Mr Williams's body was found a week after he had first failed to show up to work.
Reuters
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International Business Times : Spy in the Bag Gareth Williams Inquest: MI6 Failed to Pass Memory Sticks and Other Evidence to Police
Tuesday, May 01, 2012
Spy in the Bag Gareth Williams Inquest: MI6 Failed to Pass Memory Sticks and Other Evidence to Police
Ewan Palmer | May 1, 2012
MI6 did not hand over to police nine computer memory sticks belonging to spy Gareth Williams during the investigation into his death, an inquest has heard.
Officers discovered that MI6 withheld a North Face bag similar to the one Williams was found and the memory sticks.
The intelligence service had examined electronic media belonging to the code-breaker but failed to pass on a full inventory of his possessions at work.
The existence of the memory sticks was only revealed on the final day evidence at the inquest.
The body of Williams, 31, was found locked in a North Face holdhall at his Pimlico flat in London in August 2010.
DCI Jackie Sebire, the police officer leading the investigation, told Westminster's coroner's court that she "would have expected to have been told" about the belongings in 2010.
"What I knew was that Gareth's email accounts had been checked, but I did not know that other media had been checked," said Sebire.
She added that she was not surprised that Williams had memory sticks at his office given his line of work.
It is not clear how relevant they could be to the investigation.
DC Colin Hall, of the counter-terror SO15 branch, was questioned about his search of Williams's MI6 office.
Hall told the court he did not seize the memory sticks from Williams's office because they contained information "of a sensitive nature" and the bag did not hold any information about his death.
"The bag was looked through and searched but nothing was seized. It contained work-related items, it contained personal items," said Hall.
The inquest previously heard how Williams would have suffocated within three minutes of getting inside the sports bag.
Pathologist Benjamin Swift said Williams probably died because of suffocation or an unknown poison which disappeared in his system during decomposition.
Ewan Palmer | May 1, 2012
MI6 did not hand over to police nine computer memory sticks belonging to spy Gareth Williams during the investigation into his death, an inquest has heard.
Officers discovered that MI6 withheld a North Face bag similar to the one Williams was found and the memory sticks.
The intelligence service had examined electronic media belonging to the code-breaker but failed to pass on a full inventory of his possessions at work.
The existence of the memory sticks was only revealed on the final day evidence at the inquest.
The body of Williams, 31, was found locked in a North Face holdhall at his Pimlico flat in London in August 2010.
DCI Jackie Sebire, the police officer leading the investigation, told Westminster's coroner's court that she "would have expected to have been told" about the belongings in 2010.
"What I knew was that Gareth's email accounts had been checked, but I did not know that other media had been checked," said Sebire.
She added that she was not surprised that Williams had memory sticks at his office given his line of work.
It is not clear how relevant they could be to the investigation.
DC Colin Hall, of the counter-terror SO15 branch, was questioned about his search of Williams's MI6 office.
Hall told the court he did not seize the memory sticks from Williams's office because they contained information "of a sensitive nature" and the bag did not hold any information about his death.
"The bag was looked through and searched but nothing was seized. It contained work-related items, it contained personal items," said Hall.
The inquest previously heard how Williams would have suffocated within three minutes of getting inside the sports bag.
Pathologist Benjamin Swift said Williams probably died because of suffocation or an unknown poison which disappeared in his system during decomposition.
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AFP : MI6 withheld evidence on codebreaker death
Monday, April 30, 2012
MI6 withheld evidence on codebreaker death
April 30, 2012
LONDON — MI6 failed to disclose evidence to police investigating the death of a spy whose body was found locked in a bag in his bathtub, the inquest into his death has heard.
Britain's external spy agency kept nine memory sticks belonging to codebreaker Gareth Williams, 31, after he was found dead, and also failed to give police a black holdall from his office that was similar to the bag in which he was found dead.
The detective heading the case said she had been unaware of the items until Monday, although police have been investigating since Williams' naked and decomposing body was found in August 2010.
"I would have expected to have been told," Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire told the inquest Tuesday.
Detective Constable Colin Hall, of the Metropolitan Police's counter-terror squad, said he had searched Williams' office but did not seize the memory sticks because he was told they contained material "of a sensitive nature".
Hall did not take the black sports bag because "I was told there was nothing there about Gareth's death", he added.
Police were asked to leave Williams' office when they made their first visit three days after he was found dead, without being given a reason, Hall said.
"We had not completed our search," he said, later adding: "I will do what I'm told."
Counter-terror police liaised with MI6 because they are the only police with the required security clearance.
Intelligence officers also searched Williams' "electronic media" without telling police, the inquest heard.
Williams' death has so far remained unexplained, and the inquest also examined whether he could have padlocked himself in the holdall alone -- a feat one expert said "Houdini would have struggled" to achieve.
Pathologists said Williams likely died from poisoning or suffocation, but the decomposition of his body reduced the scope for pinpointing the cause of death.
MI6 did not report Williams missing for a week after he failed to arrive at work.
Police found women's clothing worth about £20,000 ($32,400, 24,500 euros) in Williams' flat, while the inquest also heard he visited bondage sites, filmed himself naked apart from a pair of boots, and was once found tied to a bed.
But his family have said they believe secret agents versed in the "dark arts" tried to cover up the codebreaker's death.
His sister, Ceri Subbe, earlier told the inquest Williams had been unhappy at MI6, where he was seconded from Britain's intelligence monitoring centre.
The coroner said Monday she was aiming for a verdict on Wednesday in the inquest, which has gripped Britain and sparked a series of conspiracy theories.
Copyright © 2012 AFP. All rights reserved.
April 30, 2012
LONDON — MI6 failed to disclose evidence to police investigating the death of a spy whose body was found locked in a bag in his bathtub, the inquest into his death has heard.
Britain's external spy agency kept nine memory sticks belonging to codebreaker Gareth Williams, 31, after he was found dead, and also failed to give police a black holdall from his office that was similar to the bag in which he was found dead.
The detective heading the case said she had been unaware of the items until Monday, although police have been investigating since Williams' naked and decomposing body was found in August 2010.
"I would have expected to have been told," Detective Chief Inspector Jackie Sebire told the inquest Tuesday.
Detective Constable Colin Hall, of the Metropolitan Police's counter-terror squad, said he had searched Williams' office but did not seize the memory sticks because he was told they contained material "of a sensitive nature".
Hall did not take the black sports bag because "I was told there was nothing there about Gareth's death", he added.
Police were asked to leave Williams' office when they made their first visit three days after he was found dead, without being given a reason, Hall said.
"We had not completed our search," he said, later adding: "I will do what I'm told."
Counter-terror police liaised with MI6 because they are the only police with the required security clearance.
Intelligence officers also searched Williams' "electronic media" without telling police, the inquest heard.
Williams' death has so far remained unexplained, and the inquest also examined whether he could have padlocked himself in the holdall alone -- a feat one expert said "Houdini would have struggled" to achieve.
Pathologists said Williams likely died from poisoning or suffocation, but the decomposition of his body reduced the scope for pinpointing the cause of death.
MI6 did not report Williams missing for a week after he failed to arrive at work.
Police found women's clothing worth about £20,000 ($32,400, 24,500 euros) in Williams' flat, while the inquest also heard he visited bondage sites, filmed himself naked apart from a pair of boots, and was once found tied to a bed.
But his family have said they believe secret agents versed in the "dark arts" tried to cover up the codebreaker's death.
His sister, Ceri Subbe, earlier told the inquest Williams had been unhappy at MI6, where he was seconded from Britain's intelligence monitoring centre.
The coroner said Monday she was aiming for a verdict on Wednesday in the inquest, which has gripped Britain and sparked a series of conspiracy theories.
Copyright © 2012 AFP. All rights reserved.
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This Is London : MI6 spy was poisoned or suffocated after he was put in bag alive, says pathologist
Monday, April 30, 2012
MI6 spy was poisoned or suffocated after he was put in bag alive, says pathologist
Paul Cheston | April 30, 2012
MI6 spy Gareth Williams was “likely” to have been alive when he was put in the holdall where his body was found, an inquest heard today.
Pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd said that it would be “extremely difficult” to place a dead body inside a bag, either immediately after death, because of the floppy nature of the body, or after rigor mortis had set in.
Dr Shepherd said he was “confident” that Mr Williams’s death was unnatural and that the most likely causes were poisoning or suffocation.
But there was also no evidence that he was “manhandled” into the bag, and it could have been that “Gareth placed himself in due to an external threat. But I think to get in that bag so neatly requires some skill at manoeuvring.”
He said: “The handling of a body immediately after death is extremely difficult. I would have thought it would be an extremely difficult process to achieve in such a neat way.”
Asked by coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox: “Do you think Gareth was likely to be alive or dead when he got into the bag?”
He replied: “From a pathologist’s point of view, it is a difficult line to try to draw. I could conceive of situations where he could be placed in the bag, but it would be difficult. I think it is more likely than not he was alive.”
Dr Wilcox said: “It could have been that Gareth voluntarily got in the bag … but there would have been a point at which he needed to get out. It is possible that he could have got into the bag unaided, lost consciousness and then someone else put it in the bath.”
Dr Shepherd replied: “Yes, but the difficulty is the lock. It would be possible for him to get in the bag and do the zips up on his own.” He agreed that increasing unawareness of his surroundings as the air ran out could have led to his death.
Dr Wilcox asked: “Do you think it is more likely that he was prevented from getting out?”
He replied: “Once the lock was placed on it, there was no possibility of him escaping from the bag. So the question is, did he lock the bag or did another?”
Consultant forensic pathologist Dr Benjamin Swift, who conducted the post-mortem examination on 25 August 2010, said the level of decomposition “would be consistent with 10 days since he was last seen alive”.
Dr Swift said bodies could sometimes show injuries in decomposition which mimic actual injuries, but that “sometimes injuries that have occurred at the end of someone’s life can almost disappear as a result of the decomposition. It is possible to grab someone and move them without causing injury.”
The inquest continues.
Paul Cheston | April 30, 2012
MI6 spy Gareth Williams was “likely” to have been alive when he was put in the holdall where his body was found, an inquest heard today.
Pathologist Dr Richard Shepherd said that it would be “extremely difficult” to place a dead body inside a bag, either immediately after death, because of the floppy nature of the body, or after rigor mortis had set in.
Dr Shepherd said he was “confident” that Mr Williams’s death was unnatural and that the most likely causes were poisoning or suffocation.
But there was also no evidence that he was “manhandled” into the bag, and it could have been that “Gareth placed himself in due to an external threat. But I think to get in that bag so neatly requires some skill at manoeuvring.”
He said: “The handling of a body immediately after death is extremely difficult. I would have thought it would be an extremely difficult process to achieve in such a neat way.”
Asked by coroner Dr Fiona Wilcox: “Do you think Gareth was likely to be alive or dead when he got into the bag?”
He replied: “From a pathologist’s point of view, it is a difficult line to try to draw. I could conceive of situations where he could be placed in the bag, but it would be difficult. I think it is more likely than not he was alive.”
Dr Wilcox said: “It could have been that Gareth voluntarily got in the bag … but there would have been a point at which he needed to get out. It is possible that he could have got into the bag unaided, lost consciousness and then someone else put it in the bath.”
Dr Shepherd replied: “Yes, but the difficulty is the lock. It would be possible for him to get in the bag and do the zips up on his own.” He agreed that increasing unawareness of his surroundings as the air ran out could have led to his death.
Dr Wilcox asked: “Do you think it is more likely that he was prevented from getting out?”
He replied: “Once the lock was placed on it, there was no possibility of him escaping from the bag. So the question is, did he lock the bag or did another?”
Consultant forensic pathologist Dr Benjamin Swift, who conducted the post-mortem examination on 25 August 2010, said the level of decomposition “would be consistent with 10 days since he was last seen alive”.
Dr Swift said bodies could sometimes show injuries in decomposition which mimic actual injuries, but that “sometimes injuries that have occurred at the end of someone’s life can almost disappear as a result of the decomposition. It is possible to grab someone and move them without causing injury.”
The inquest continues.
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Guardian : Gareth Williams probably died by suffocation or poisoning, inquest told
Monday, April 30, 2012
Gareth Williams probably died by suffocation or poisoning, inquest told
MI6 officer could have lost consciousness within two to three minutes due to buildup of CO2 inside bag, says pathologist
Caroline Davies | April 30, 2012
The MI6 officer Gareth Williams probably suffocated to death in a locked sports holdall or died from an unknown poison, his inquest heard.
The 31-year-old codes and ciphers expert would have been overcome very rapidly by CO2, losing consciousness within two to three minutes, if the bag was sealed while he was alive.
Cause of death could not be ascertained because of the level of decomposition by the time his body was found, which meant certain poisons or volatile agents would not be detected, Dr Benjamin Swift, a consultant forensic pathologist, told the inquest. The "foremost contenders" were asphyxiation by suffocation or poisoning, he said.
The naked body of Williams was found in a padlocked holdall in his bath at his top-floor flat in Pimlico, central London, on 23 August 2010.
The Home Office pathologist Richard Shepherd said it was "more likely than not" that Williams was alive when he entered the bag, but it was "an extremely difficult call". Because of the "floppiness" of a newly dead body, it was not easy to place a body as neatly as Williams was found, he said.
Postmortem examinations revealed no evidence of "restraint, gripping or holding" marks inflicted before death. There was no evidence of strangulation or physical trauma. Williams could have entered the bag voluntarily or been coerced into it under threat, Shepherd agreed.
The independent pathologist Ian Calder, who carried out a second postmortem, said hypercapnia – carbon dioxide poisoning – would have caused a soporific effect with "gradual fading away with no pain and an increasing lack of awareness".
Asked by the coroner, Fiona Wilcox, how long that might have taken, Calder said: "Two to three minutes at best for the level to become toxic."
Small abrasions on the tips of Williams's elbows were discovered. The hearing was told these could be consistent with him moving his arms inside the bag, possibly in an attempt to escape. "Once the lock is placed on it there was no possibility of getting out of that bag," said Shepherd. "The question is: did he place the lock or did another?"
Williams would have had "a period of awareness" of being overcome by CO2, and the grazes could represent an attempt to get out, the inquest heard. "Death will come so fast, leaving little or no chance even in fit young people for there to be a response," said Shepherd. Hypercapnia was a "sign-free death", he added.
The inquest heard that the postmortem examinations were hampered by decomposition caused by heat. Despite it being summer, the radiators in the flat were on. The degree of decomposition suggested Williams had been dead for 10 days at the time of postmortem, consistent with the last time he was seen alive on CCTV on 15 August 2010.
Two hairs were recovered from the back of Williams's right thumb and his right little finger. The coroner said no forensic analysis of them had been submitted to the inquest, and she asked for any details to be disclosed.
DNA from another person was found on Williams's left hand. The inquest was told that details of the DNA were erroneously inputted into a database by LGC, the forensic company analysing samples, an error only discovered a year after Williams's death. The DNA sample was from one of the forensic scientists at the scene. Paul Allen, of LGC, expressed his "very deep regret" to Williams's family for the error.
MI6 officer could have lost consciousness within two to three minutes due to buildup of CO2 inside bag, says pathologist
Caroline Davies | April 30, 2012
The MI6 officer Gareth Williams probably suffocated to death in a locked sports holdall or died from an unknown poison, his inquest heard.
The 31-year-old codes and ciphers expert would have been overcome very rapidly by CO2, losing consciousness within two to three minutes, if the bag was sealed while he was alive.
Cause of death could not be ascertained because of the level of decomposition by the time his body was found, which meant certain poisons or volatile agents would not be detected, Dr Benjamin Swift, a consultant forensic pathologist, told the inquest. The "foremost contenders" were asphyxiation by suffocation or poisoning, he said.
The naked body of Williams was found in a padlocked holdall in his bath at his top-floor flat in Pimlico, central London, on 23 August 2010.
The Home Office pathologist Richard Shepherd said it was "more likely than not" that Williams was alive when he entered the bag, but it was "an extremely difficult call". Because of the "floppiness" of a newly dead body, it was not easy to place a body as neatly as Williams was found, he said.
Postmortem examinations revealed no evidence of "restraint, gripping or holding" marks inflicted before death. There was no evidence of strangulation or physical trauma. Williams could have entered the bag voluntarily or been coerced into it under threat, Shepherd agreed.
The independent pathologist Ian Calder, who carried out a second postmortem, said hypercapnia – carbon dioxide poisoning – would have caused a soporific effect with "gradual fading away with no pain and an increasing lack of awareness".
Asked by the coroner, Fiona Wilcox, how long that might have taken, Calder said: "Two to three minutes at best for the level to become toxic."
Small abrasions on the tips of Williams's elbows were discovered. The hearing was told these could be consistent with him moving his arms inside the bag, possibly in an attempt to escape. "Once the lock is placed on it there was no possibility of getting out of that bag," said Shepherd. "The question is: did he place the lock or did another?"
Williams would have had "a period of awareness" of being overcome by CO2, and the grazes could represent an attempt to get out, the inquest heard. "Death will come so fast, leaving little or no chance even in fit young people for there to be a response," said Shepherd. Hypercapnia was a "sign-free death", he added.
The inquest heard that the postmortem examinations were hampered by decomposition caused by heat. Despite it being summer, the radiators in the flat were on. The degree of decomposition suggested Williams had been dead for 10 days at the time of postmortem, consistent with the last time he was seen alive on CCTV on 15 August 2010.
Two hairs were recovered from the back of Williams's right thumb and his right little finger. The coroner said no forensic analysis of them had been submitted to the inquest, and she asked for any details to be disclosed.
DNA from another person was found on Williams's left hand. The inquest was told that details of the DNA were erroneously inputted into a database by LGC, the forensic company analysing samples, an error only discovered a year after Williams's death. The DNA sample was from one of the forensic scientists at the scene. Paul Allen, of LGC, expressed his "very deep regret" to Williams's family for the error.
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by Winter Patriot
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Independent : MI6 spy Gareth Williams 'poisoned or suffocated'
Monday, April 30, 2012
MI6 spy Gareth Williams 'poisoned or suffocated'
Tom Morgan, Rosa Silverman | April 30, 2012
MI6 spy Gareth Williams would have suffocated within three minutes after getting inside his sports holdall, an inquest heard today.
Poisoning and asphyxiation are the "foremost contenders" in solving the death riddle, pathologists said.
It also emerged scientists found traces of "at least" two unknown people in his upmarket London apartment despite evidence Mr Williams rarely invited people over.
Forensic expert Ros Hammond said there were hopes of a breakthrough "within a matter of weeks" from DNA tests on a green towel discovered in his kitchen.
"There's hope," she told Westminster Coroner's Court. "The tests are still in progress and there may be some promising results from those tests."
Ms Hammond said a third party would not necessarily have left any DNA on his red North Face bag and padlock.
But she added: "There's certainly evidence of at least two people other than Mr Williams on the samples tested."
The 31-year-old was probably suffocated or killed by a poison which disappeared in his system during decomposition, pathologist Benjamin Swift said.
Dr Swift said his post-mortem examination was hampered by levels of heat within the bag after radiators were mysteriously turned on in Mr Williams's top-floor flat in the middle of summer.
Ian Calder, who performed the second post-mortem examination, observed that the build-up of carbon dioxide would have become poisonous to Mr Williams within about two or three minutes, had he been alive when he entered the bag.
"The toxic effect of the carbon dioxide... plays some considerable havoc with the chemistry of the body and so as a result of that the accumulation of carbon dioxide has quite a considerable effect on the wellness of the individual," he said.
The results would include headaches, then confusion and eventually unconsciousness and cardiac arrest, he added.
A soporific state would have been induced before the spy lost consciousness, which could have prevented him from trying to escape, he explained.
"He would get into a situation of not being aware, of not being able to react to getting himself out of the environment," Dr Calder said.
Hypercapnia - a high level of carbon dioxide in the blood - would be a "reasoned explanation" of what might have happened to Mr Williams, the pathologist noted.
"I think it's a very likely possibility considering we have a healthy person with no damage, as far as we know no drugs, no trauma, no natural disease," he said.
Examinations on August 25 2010 - two days after Mr Williams was found in a holdall in his bathroom - gave cause of death as "unascertained".
But under questioning today, Dr Swift said poisoning or asphyxiation such as suffocation were "probably rather than possibly" to blame.
Dr Swift said the two causes of death "were certainly two of the more prominent" beliefs as he conducted examinations.
When family lawyer Anthony O'Toole asked if there were any other possible causes of death, Dr Swift replied: "I would never say never but those are the foremost contenders."
Another pathologist, Richard Shepherd, also said it was "more likely (Mr Williams) was alive when he entered the bag than that he was dead".
There was, however, "no suggestion" the spy's body had been manhandled into the holdall and were he to have been forced into it either alive or straight after he died, marks on his body would have been expected, Mr Shepherd said.
Dr Swift said he believed Mr Williams would have died shortly after his last-known movements on August 15 in his top-floor apartment in Pimlico, central London.
The evidence came after bag experts said even Harry Houdini would have struggled to lock himself in the bag.
The inquest was adjourned until tomorrow. Coroner Fiona Wilcox is likely to deliver her verdict on Wednesday.
PA
Tom Morgan, Rosa Silverman | April 30, 2012
MI6 spy Gareth Williams would have suffocated within three minutes after getting inside his sports holdall, an inquest heard today.
Poisoning and asphyxiation are the "foremost contenders" in solving the death riddle, pathologists said.
It also emerged scientists found traces of "at least" two unknown people in his upmarket London apartment despite evidence Mr Williams rarely invited people over.
Forensic expert Ros Hammond said there were hopes of a breakthrough "within a matter of weeks" from DNA tests on a green towel discovered in his kitchen.
"There's hope," she told Westminster Coroner's Court. "The tests are still in progress and there may be some promising results from those tests."
Ms Hammond said a third party would not necessarily have left any DNA on his red North Face bag and padlock.
But she added: "There's certainly evidence of at least two people other than Mr Williams on the samples tested."
The 31-year-old was probably suffocated or killed by a poison which disappeared in his system during decomposition, pathologist Benjamin Swift said.
Dr Swift said his post-mortem examination was hampered by levels of heat within the bag after radiators were mysteriously turned on in Mr Williams's top-floor flat in the middle of summer.
Ian Calder, who performed the second post-mortem examination, observed that the build-up of carbon dioxide would have become poisonous to Mr Williams within about two or three minutes, had he been alive when he entered the bag.
"The toxic effect of the carbon dioxide... plays some considerable havoc with the chemistry of the body and so as a result of that the accumulation of carbon dioxide has quite a considerable effect on the wellness of the individual," he said.
The results would include headaches, then confusion and eventually unconsciousness and cardiac arrest, he added.
A soporific state would have been induced before the spy lost consciousness, which could have prevented him from trying to escape, he explained.
"He would get into a situation of not being aware, of not being able to react to getting himself out of the environment," Dr Calder said.
Hypercapnia - a high level of carbon dioxide in the blood - would be a "reasoned explanation" of what might have happened to Mr Williams, the pathologist noted.
"I think it's a very likely possibility considering we have a healthy person with no damage, as far as we know no drugs, no trauma, no natural disease," he said.
Examinations on August 25 2010 - two days after Mr Williams was found in a holdall in his bathroom - gave cause of death as "unascertained".
But under questioning today, Dr Swift said poisoning or asphyxiation such as suffocation were "probably rather than possibly" to blame.
Dr Swift said the two causes of death "were certainly two of the more prominent" beliefs as he conducted examinations.
When family lawyer Anthony O'Toole asked if there were any other possible causes of death, Dr Swift replied: "I would never say never but those are the foremost contenders."
Another pathologist, Richard Shepherd, also said it was "more likely (Mr Williams) was alive when he entered the bag than that he was dead".
There was, however, "no suggestion" the spy's body had been manhandled into the holdall and were he to have been forced into it either alive or straight after he died, marks on his body would have been expected, Mr Shepherd said.
Dr Swift said he believed Mr Williams would have died shortly after his last-known movements on August 15 in his top-floor apartment in Pimlico, central London.
The evidence came after bag experts said even Harry Houdini would have struggled to lock himself in the bag.
The inquest was adjourned until tomorrow. Coroner Fiona Wilcox is likely to deliver her verdict on Wednesday.
PA
Filed under
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asphyxiation,
Benjamin Swift,
blood,
DNA,
Fiona Wilcox,
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Ian Calder,
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Richard Shepherd,
Ros Hammond,
suffocation
by Winter Patriot
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