Chapter 6: This Is For Robert

His groin was completely clear of any marks showing he had never used them himself. Inserting the canula, he unpacked the large syringe with the fifty doses of heroin in. Showing it to Russell he saw the fear in his eyes. He pushed the needle of the syringe into the canula then laid it down on his leg.

Looking down at him, Brian said, ‘I am ready to carry out your death sentence. Unlike all the thousands of people that you have made suffer and die over long periods, your suffering will be horrific but relatively short.’

‘In the last few moments of your miserable life, the last words you will ever hear, is this message from your arresting officer. This is for Robert.’ As he picked up the syringe and pressed the plunger home, Brian said ‘This is for Robert.’

Nothing happened for a moment, then Russell’s whole body went rigid. He was clearly screaming but his gag muffled it. His body started shaking and convulsing as violently as it could within the restraints of the straps.

His agonised screams continued for almost two minutes, then he suddenly stopped as his body relaxed. He was dead. Brian left him for a few more minutes, then confirmed his vital signs had gone. He unstrapped him, rolled him into a body bag and left it sealed on the bench.

Leaving the garage he sent the text, ‘Item Ready for Collection,’ As Brian headed back to Widnes, Paul received a text, ‘Two Items Ready for Collection.’

The next day they all assembled at ten o’clock. Over coffee Brian set out his plan. ‘Aiden and Glenda, I want you two to search Martin Lewis’s house. Aiden, you know what to offer her. Reg and Alan, you take Russell’s. Len, you and I will deal with Ryding’s. Everything should be straight forward today,’ he said.

They all set off in different directions. Ryding didn’t have a trace on his car, so Brian and Len had to park close enough to see the entrance to his house.

Aiden and Glenda arrived at Lewis’s and knocked on the door. Mrs Lewis answered it and almost collapsed when they told her why they were there. They took her through to the lounge and sat her down. Glenda sat with her whilst Aiden went to the kitchen and made her a cup of tea.

Once they were sure she was ok, Aiden told her, ‘You sit still there. We’ll do our search, then I’ll come back and explain everything to you.’ Whilst Glenda started upstairs, Aiden went into the downstairs study that Lewis used as an office.

He had brought Lewis’s keys with him, so he had no problem unlocking the roll top desk, or the safe he found set in the wall behind an electric fire on a surround which opened from the wall on a hinge. Opening the safe he found it packed with cash, plus a folder full of papers.

He bagged roughly a third of the cash for the Supers fund, locked the safe and closed the fireplace back. He took the bag out to the boot of his car, then as he came back in, he called Glenda down and asked Mrs Lewis to join them.

When he showed Mrs Lewis the safe, she was clearly astounded. Then when he opened it and she saw all the cash, she started crying. Glenda immediately went to her to console her. Through her sobs she said, ‘I didn’t believe what you told, me, I was so sure it must be a mistake.’

‘But I can’t think of any honest reason why Martin would have that sort of money hidden from me.’ After she had regained her composure, she watched in a daze as they counted it all out. When the total came to a hundred and five thousand pounds, she burst into tears again.

Aiden and Mrs Lewis both signed to confirm the amount. Then the receipt and the cash were placed in a bag. Opening the envelope, they discovered two bank accounts. One had a balance of sixty-seven thousand pounds. The other seventy-three thousand pounds. There were also the deeds to a terraced house and deeds to a semi-detached house, both within a mile of the address.

Aiden told her the money and the property were being seized under the proceeds of crime act. He gave her a receipt specifying what he was taking. ‘Glenda, will you carry on with your search please,’ he said. After she had left, Aiden said, ‘Everything I have listed, plus this house and the transport yard will be seized.’

‘A court hearing will then confirm that seizure. Now it is clear to me that you had no idea what your husband was doing. We don’t want to penalise you for his actions, so I’m going to make you an offer which could get me into trouble if my superiors found out.’

‘If you agree to voluntarily surrender all your husband’s assets, I will make sure you are left with enough money from the sale of this house to buy yourself a new smaller property. You may also keep the smaller bank account.’

‘If you do that there will be no court case and therefore no publicity. Take any advice you wish. A police officer will contact you within the next week to sort everything out with you. You should also know that we already have your husband’s car, which was left at the mainline railway station, unlocked with its keys in it.’

‘Clearly, he has done a bunk. If he is ever caught, he will get at least twenty years in prison. If you have any problem, give me a call,’ he said giving her his card. Glenda returned soon after to say there were no other valuable assets in the house. Aiden and Glenda left, telling her how sorry they were. They returned to the station.

Reg and Alan arrived at Russell’s house to find no one in. They had a look around the outside, then sat in their car to wait. An hour later Mrs Russell arrived home from shopping. When they explained why they were there, she seemed upset but didn’t seem completely surprised.

‘I knew he had been involved with drugs in the past,’ she said, ‘But he swore all that was behind him, and he now had a good business going.’ She let them in and said, ‘You better get on with it. Where is my husband?’

‘We don’t know,’ Reg told her. ‘We have his car, it was left at the main line railway station, unlocked and with the keys in it. Clearly, he has done a bunk. There is a warrant out for his arrest, and he will get at least twenty years when he is caught.’

‘Does he use any room as an office?’ Reg asked? ‘The small bedroom upstairs.’ she told them. ‘I’ll take that,’ Reg said, ‘Alan, will you do the other rooms upstairs.’ ‘I’ll be in the kitchen if you want me.’ Mrs Russell told them.

Alan and Reg went upstairs. Reg went into the small bedroom and first of all searched the room for hiding places. He couldn’t find any trace of a safe at first, then after his second search, he took hold of the electric fire hanging on the wall. It lifted off in his hand and revealed the door to a safe.

Opening it with the keys Brian had given him, he found it full of cash. As Brian had given him the keys that morning he had said, ‘Finding funds for any operation is always difficult.’ He wouldn’t say any more and Reg had been puzzled at the time. Seeing all that cash in the safe made him wonder if that was what Brian had meant.

He pulled out roughly half of the cash and put it into one of the cupboards. Locking the safe and putting the fire back, he went downstairs to his car and fetched a couple of bin bags. He put the cash he had put in the cupboard into one bag and took it down to his car. Then he called Mrs Russell and Alan to join him.

Once they were all in the room, he asked Mrs Russell if she knew where the safe was. ‘We haven’t got one,’ was her immediate reply. Reg lifted the fire off the wall and stood aside so she could see the safe door. She was clearly surprised.

Reg opened the door to reveal lots of cash. He emptied the safe onto the desk then he and Alan counted it up whilst Mrs Russell watched with amazement. It came to eighty thousand pounds. With the money were three bank account statements. One had a hundred thousand pounds in it, one had seventy thousand and the third one had sixty-five thousand pounds. Mrs Russell was even more amazed.

‘I’m seizing the contents of the safe under the proceeds of crime act,’ he told her, ‘I’ll give you a receipt before we go. We will also be seizing this house. Alan, will you carry on searching.’ he said. ‘Mrs Russell would you like to come down to the kitchen, I think you need a drink.’