So it was with this as a background that Colin Bryant, Benny and Jenny Freeman arrived at the front door of the Donnelly household. Lee Donnelly answered the doorbell and instantly he was almost swept aside by a large Alsatian dog which was barking and baring its teeth. He just managed to force the door shut and Benny could see through the opaque glass of the front door that Donnelly was dragging the animal through to the kitchen.
Having shut the kitchen door he returned to speak to the officers.
Lee Donnelly was a man in his late 30s. About 5 feet 11 inches tall. He went about 18 stones in weight, most of which was muscle. He had dark greasy hair which was in the 1950’s DA style much favoured by members of the “Travelling fraternity.” His arms were a mass of tattoos and most of his teeth, at some time or other, had been punched from his head.
‘What do you lot want?’ said Donnelly, through gritted gums.
‘Lee, this is my colleague Jenny Freeman and this is Mr Colin Bryant of Social Services. You and I have met before, haven’t we?’
‘Yeah we have, but what’s happened this time?’
‘We have come about your daughter Bridget.’
‘She’s at school,’ said Donnelly.
‘Thing is Lee, we have had a report from the school and we need to speak to you about her welfare.’
‘What’s wrong with her welfare?’
‘Well Lee, it’s a bit confidential. Can we come in and have a word with you?’
‘No, you fucking can’t. Whatever you have to say, you can say here.’
‘Lee, I don’t want to discuss it on the doorstep. You have dealt with me before and I treated you fairly didn’t I? You know that I wouldn’t try to stitch you up or anything,’ said Benny.
‘Okay. But only you.’
Pointing at Colin Bryant, Donnelly said, ‘I don’t want any Social Workers in my house. I had enough of you lot when I was in care as a kid and I don’t trust you.’ ‘You can stay outside.’
Lee Donnelly showed Benny into the living room where his wife, Patience, was already sitting on the sofa. ‘Paishe, Dc Cohen’s come about Bridget,.’
‘She should be at school. What’s happened?’
‘Don’t worry Patience, she’s ok,’ said Benny.
‘Yesterday, she was at school, wasn’t she Patience?’
‘Yes, she was.’
‘She’s at Coltrane’s High School?’
‘Yes.’
‘And I understand that she had games yesterday?’
‘Yes. After lunch.’
‘Well we got a report that one of the teachers noticed some bruising at the top of her legs and she asked Bridget how the bruises happened. Bridget apparently said that Lee had caused them.’
‘Lee wouldn’t hurt her. True, she’s been a little cow lately and she’s been bullying her brothers and sisters. She’s the oldest and she’s at that age now where she won’t do as she’s told,’ said Patience.
‘Whereabouts in the house does she sleep?’ asked Benny.
‘What’s that got to do with anything,’ said Lee Donnelly.
‘She sleeps down here on the sofa,’ said Patience.
‘Lee, I am going to say something now and I want you to know that I am not pre-judging anything. Not only that but I would go as far as to say that although you have had your run- ins with the law your kids have not, which is a great credit to you and Patience. But when the teacher asked Bridget she said that she had got them when she slept by you.’
‘What!’ ‘I’m no fucking nonce!’ cried Donnelly.
‘Lee, I know that,’ said Benny, ‘but, we need to speak to Bridget and have her examined by a doctor to understand what the true position is and to make sure she is alright.’
Lee and Patience then went into a rant about the School, the teachers and Social Services. Benny said nothing but nodded as if in agreement. He let the rant subside and then said in almost conspiratorial tones, ‘Thing is Lee, this is for your protection as much as hers so we need to get it done quickly. And don’t worry, it will be entirely confidential.’
Lee Donnelly eventually relented and later that day Patience took Bridget to the Surgery of a Female Police Surgeon. Bridget was examined by the doctor in the presence of a specially trained female detective. Other than some bruises on the outside of her left thigh, nothing was found to cause grounds for concern.
Bridget herself put the bruises down to her father who had slapped her legs when she had taken some chocolate from her sister. She said that she had never slept near or by her father other than when she used to jump into her parent’s bed as an infant. Benny was satisfied that the matter had been exaggerated but how had this come about?
Benny made enquiries with Mrs Norris, the teacher who had noticed the bruises in the first instance. She confirmed that the explanation given by Bridget to her was the same as that given to the Police Surgeon. There had been no sexual connotation at all. He had to go back to the entry in the Night CID book that had been written by Dc Adrian Cooper.
At 6pm Adrian Cooper arrived at the Station for his shift. He saw Benny sitting in the main office.
‘Hello Benny. You on late turn?’ said Cooper.
‘No just a bit of overtime,’ said Benny. ‘I’ve been working on that Indecent assault that you left for us this morning.’
‘What Indecent assault was that?’
‘Quite,’ said Benny.
‘Excuse me?’
‘Lee Donnelly and his daughter.’
‘That wasn’t an Indecent assault,’ said Cooper.
‘Well it says so in the Night book Ada.’
Benny threw the book to him. Adrian took it up, turned to the relevant page and he read his entry of that morning.
‘Oh shit! Sorry Benny that should be “Slapped by her father. Not, slept by her father,” I was obviously tired mate.’
‘For Christ’s sake get a grip Adrian!’ said Benny, in exasperation. He then detailed, for Cooper’s benefit, the steps that they had had to take to investigate the matter and to pacify Lee and Patience Donnelly. Furthermore, they had been made to look stupid and incompetent in the eyes of Social Services.
Luckily Benny had been able to steer Lee and Patience Donnelly through the process without incident. He did not disclose to them that the indecency connotation was erroneous. He quietly gave them advice on lawful chastisement and they were content that Benny had helped them through their perceived difficulty.
It had been an unnecessary episode that could have gone horribly wrong. Benny knew that the relationship between the Police and Social Services was not one of trust.
Maybe their scepticism was well placed after all.
Chapter 31 – Ferrari Beano.
It was a Sunday and Danny Webb was sitting in the Sales Office of Deben Motors with his colleague Simon Hyde making paper aeroplanes. Nothing was doing. At a recent sales meeting the sales team had “the Riot Act” read to them by Felicity Graham, the Director and daughter of the owner, Fred Graham. The company was a dealership for high performance cars, such as Ferrari, Maserati and Porsche but lately they had not been turning over the stock fast enough. The team were encouraged to be more aggressive and creative in their sales pitches. Danny was the first to see the two likely customers who were walking along the lines of vehicles and he was out of the office door and onto the forecourt like a greyhound.
Terry Carter had driven up from Surrey with Taff Davis who was his business associate and minder. They had with them Carter’s six year old daughter Sandy. Carter was the owner of various pubs and clubs in Kent which in reality were a front for his supply of Cannabis, Cocaine and other controlled drugs. He was also engaged with others in the theft of lorry loads.
Carter was looking for a red Ferrari S Registration which was identical to his own. He had had his own Ferrari badly damaged by Taff who had borrowed it so that he could take out a woman he was trying to impress. On the way back from a club in Chichester Taff was so intent on getting her knickers off tha
t he lost control of the vehicle and had run off of the road ruining the suspension. It was going to cost Carter heavily to have the car repaired, quite apart from the fact that Taff was not actually insured to drive it. Taff owed him “big time” and he was not going to be allowed to forget it.
That being the case Carter had had the vehicle collected and hidden away. He’d thought up a plan. He was going to obtain an identical vehicle and “Ring it” against the identity of his own, which apart from changing the number plates meant having the engine and chassis numbers re-stamped. However, this would not prove to be a problem as he happened to know somebody who could do a good job on that for him.
On his tour of the car front Carter saw that Deben Motors had the exact vehicle to suit his requirements so he requested a test drive. Danny agreed and he quickly went to the office to collect some Trade Plates.
‘I’ve got a bite I think Si,’ said Danny.
‘Bet you a fiver he’s a time waster,’ said Simon.
‘You are on,’ said Danny disappearing with the Plates under his arm.
Whilst Davis stayed with Sandy on the site Danny sat alongside Carter as he drove off of the forecourt. They covered a three mile circular route at Danny’s direction during which Carter enthused about the quality of the ride.
Carter made a brief attempt to haggle the price but there was no real leeway in which Danny could strike a deal. Carter then said that he would pay the asking price if Danny would agree to have the vehicle delivered to the White Hart Hotel in Maidenhead where he was the Proprietor. Carter gave his name as Gerald Osborne.
Carter also told Danny that he would arrange for a Bankers Draft for the full £32,000. Danny, rather rashly, confirmed that this arrangement would be acceptable. He’d had payment by Bankers Draft made to him before on other deals and he told himself that they were considered to be as good as cash. Danny was already dreaming of the fat commission that was going to come his way.
The following morning Danny put the car into the workshop for a service and valeting. Later in the day he received a phone call from “Gerald Osborne” who informed him that he had arranged for the Draft to be prepared and requested that the car be delivered the following afternoon when he would hand it to him. Danny agreed. He sought the permission of his sales manager who did not question the method of payment. He was more concerned with the possibility of having something to talk about at the next sales meeting and keeping Miss Felicity Graham off his back.
So the following afternoon Danny found himself parking the Ferrari in the rear yard of the White Hart in Maidenhead. It appeared to be very upmarket and the hotel was clearly an old Coaching Inn. Even though he was on time he had had to fight the urge to put the Ferrari through its paces on the way down from Essex.
Danny entered the main door to reception and as he did so he noticed that the Licensees name was shown above the door as,” Gerald Osborne- Licensed to sell beers, wines and spirits.” Although he had not really thought that deeply about it, this gave him some comfort that he was indeed dealing with an accomplished individual who was good for the money.
Danny then made his way across the reception area towards the bar where he was greeted by “Gerald Osborne” who was seated at one of the tables. He was immaculately dressed in a business suit and tie and he had evidently been dealing with a file of papers.
‘Danny welcome. You found us without too much difficulty then, did you?’
‘Yes Mr Osborne. I’ve got an AA Map Book and it was quite straightforward really. I’ve got the car outside in the car park,’ said Danny
‘Can I get one of the girls to get you a coffee or maybe something stronger?’
‘No I’m fine thanks. I want to get a train and get through London to beat the rush hour if I can.’
‘As you wish. I’ll give you a lift to the station if you like. That should save you a bit of time.’
They then walked together to the car park.
‘Look at that beauty!’ “Osborne” walked around the vehicle inspecting it. He then opened the file and pulled out the Bankers Draft with a flourish. Danny examined it for value and the details of Payee. All were correct and he was satisfied.
‘Thank you Mr Osborne. That will do nicely,’ said Danny who handed the documents across and briefly explained the warranty. After the various signatures were obtained Danny handed over the car keys. He was then driven to the Railway station by “Mr Osborne” who, surprisingly, appeared to be handling the Ferrari with some confidence, for a novice.
Danny did not have long to wait for the London train. He settled back in his seat and a feeling of triumph swept over him. He had completed the biggest deal of his career and he felt that, at last, he was making some progress.
Chapter 32 – Wind up.
Benny was gaining in both experience and reputation and for one with such short service he was beginning to be accepted by the more established members of the Department. He had made a point of following Terry Connor’s advice to keep his mouth shut, listen and learn and this attitude had stood him in good stead.
One evening Benny was on the late shift when he went out with Brian Wells to the Greenwood Estate to carry out house to house enquiries in relation to a series of burglaries that had taken place in recent days. Brian, who was always a reluctant passenger, claimed seniority and grabbed the keys of the CID mini. There were two other detectives on duty that evening, Vic Woodward, who was in the office when they had left, and Ds Kevin Kelly who had gone out earlier that evening in the CID Escort. Benny and Brian conducted their enquiries in the relevant roads on the estate and it took them only about 20 minutes.
On this occasion they gained very little from the exercise but it was something that had to be covered as sometimes house-to-house would turn up an unexpected gem of information. After they left the estate the road took them through one of the more prosperous areas of the town where Benny spotted the CID Escort parked at the side of the road and he pointed this out to Brian.
‘Looks like that lucky sod Kelly is having coffee with the delectable Daphne Rogers again,’ said Brian.
Brian then explained that Daphne, who was a member of the Police committee and an attractive divorcee, had lost some jewellery in a burglary some months before and that Kevin Kelly had managed to clear the job up recovering all of the stolen items in the process. Daphne thought that Kevin was wonderful. He had continued to liaise with Daphne ever since and why not? He was a single man
‘Let’s wind him up,’ said Brian.
They drove back to the Police station and Brian quickly ran into the chauffer’s office where he collected the spare keys for the Escort. Benny and Brian then returned to the vicinity of Daphne’s address and whilst Brian kept observation behind some garages Benny jogged to the Escort. He climbed into the vehicle and drove it away making a circuit of the block before joining Brian behind the garages. They then got on the radio to the local Control room.
‘Control from Delta Charlie 3.’
‘Delta Charlie 3 go ahead,’ replied the controller.
‘Control, can you raise Delta Charlie 2 Ds Kelly and ask him to rendezvous with Dc Wells at Pier Gap as soon as he can? Over.’
‘Stand by Delta Charlie 3. Delta Charlie 2, Delta Charlie 2, are you receiving, over?’
Control passed the message and Ds Kelly agreed an ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) for ten minutes time.
Benny and Brian then waited. After a couple of minutes Kevin Kelly emerged from Daphne’s front door still tucking his shirt in. He walked to the side of the road obviously expecting to find the Escort. No car. He looked stunned rigid. He then mouthed the words, ‘Oh No!’ He walked to the junction and looked along the adjacent road. No car. Kevin Kelly’s mind was racing. It was written all over his face. Had it been stolen? What would he say? How could he cover it? It was plain to see that he was losing his bottle, fast!
Benny and Brian knew how far they could go with this particular prank in order that it didn’t get out of
hand and cause a problem. So they drove their car to the entrance of the garage area and out onto the road. They sounded their horn and waved at Kelly, who looked at them and shook his head. Clearly he had been “Had” and he was embarrassed. But, ‘Oh, the blessed relief!’
Kevin Kelly walked to the garage block to collect his car. He would see them in the office and say nothing about it. He would take his revenge at some suitable time. What was that, about a dish served cold?
The Force wide radio was installed in all of the vehicles and it operated separately from the local Pye Pocket phone system. It worked on the basis that the controllers in the Force Control Room could hear units in the force area but the individual units were unable to hear each other, unless the controller allowed them to use the “Talk-through” facility. It was a matter for the controller to decide which unit had priority in “Air time.”
Dependant on their location some units had a weaker signal than others and the operator would have to attempt to clarify the message. This of course left room for the occasional “wind up.” Also, most of the controllers were women. This was a Disciplinary offence but provided the unit did not identify themselves they could not be traced. Naturally they would only indulge in such “naughtiness” during quiet periods.
A well-known, and oft quoted example was the following:-
‘Control from Echo Alfa blah blah blah,’
Female Controller ‘Unit calling say again.’
An Oik's Progress Page 13
