The Great Train Robbery (19 page)

Further C11 information was to quickly lead to Home Office permission to tap the line:

Memo.

As a result of information received from DI Pickles, C11, I arranged for the Supervisor, Wanstead Exchange, to trace calls incoming to Wanstead 5078. The subscriber on Wanstead 5078 is Edith B Simons, 85 Hermitage Court, Woodford Road, Wanstead, E18.

At 10.05 pm I was informed that a call was in progress and that an attempt was being made to trace the origin. The trace was lost at Toll B Exchange. The callers were heard to say:

Male voice: ‘Things are a bit fresh. Would you take it over the road and put it in the fridge in case it goes off.’

At 10.55 pm there was a further call with a message from Barney’s girl friend:

Male voice: ‘Thanks for getting the message through, will try and get another message later.’

Female voice: ‘Thanks, it’s a pleasure’.

Again the trace was lost although engineers at the Toll B were on duty. These engineers traced a call on the Wanstead No1 Junction in which a female voice said, ‘Get clothes ready will arrive in the morning’.

At 10.58 am 23 August the subscriber of Wanstead 5078 called Renown 3592 (Mrs Doris May Golding), 42 Winchester Road, Fulham, SW6) and spoke to Mr Brand re picking up a coat. Called subscriber (Mr Brand) said; ‘Coat will be ready today, make arrangements to pick it up tomorrow.’ Mention made of Mr Heller and phone No Primrose 0218 and address 69 Belsize Park Gardens. Arrangements made for meeting 8 pm – 9.30 pm tomorrow (Saturday). Information passed to C11.
10

While none of this new intelligence led to the arrest of Reynolds, it did open the door on a new line of enquiry. As a result of the telephone taps, teams of IB ‘tailers’ were assigned to all the new persons of interest and C11 began looking in earnest at these individuals and their movements. As a result of further enquiries, police concluded that George Stanley, the managing clerk at the solicitors Lessor & Co., was the common denominator linking these new suspects.

Stanley, real name George Albert Sturley, was the brother of Arthur Leonard Sturley, a man with a criminal record and known to the police in connection with a number of fraud offences in and around London. George Stanley had apparently bought his way into Maurice Lessor’s business after the war, possibly with his brother’s money, and although not qualified, now held a pivotal position within the company as managing clerk. His cousin Charles Sturley had been a suspect in the 1952 Eastcastle Street TPO robbery.

According to an IB summary report written by R.F. Yates, entitled ‘Stanley, Simons, Isaacs, The Millbanks and Heller’ C11’s information and the IB’s observations had led to the following interim conclusions:

(i)  This group of suspects have been kept under observation from time to time by IB officers and this has produced proof of association. Police believe that stolen money is being held or controlled by this group of suspects. Detailed reports are given in File 10, but the brief facts are as given in (ii) below.

(ii)  
Mr George Stanley
is the Managing Clerk for Messrs Lessor & Co, Solicitors, London, E15 and came to notice very early in the inquiries. Stanley is a shrewd man and the Police know him as an able advocate for the criminal classes. The actual part he was called upon to play is not known but there is reason to think he may be controlling some part, at least, of the stolen monies. Observations on Stanley by Assistants of this Branch established that he made regular visits to 85 Hermitage Court, Wanstead, a flat owned by
Miss Edith Simons
in a luxury block. Other persons who have also visited the flat (sometimes when Stanley was present) were
Harry Isaacs
(CRO 19314/41) and
Albert Millbank
(CRO 2019/39).
Isaacs
was traced by the IB to 10 Saddleton Road, Whitstable, Kent.
Millbank
was traced to 69 Belsize Park Gardens, NW3, also occupied by a German
Mrs Heller
who is believed to be in touch with Reynolds. Both Isaacs and Millbank are known receivers, or minders, of stolen property and both are associates of James Edward White who is wanted for questioning.
Isaacs
is somewhat of a mystery man. For some considerable time
Albert Millbank
has been suspected by Chief Inspector Peattie of receiving property stolen as a result of Post Office break-ins. His brother,
George Milbank
[sic] has, in fact, been convicted for Post Office break-ins. Another relative is
Amy Millbank
who has been seen in White’s café at 36 Aldersgate Street, London EC1. Further inquiries need to be made about this group of suspects.
11

While George Stanley lived at Tinkers End, Red Oakes, Theydon Bois, Essex with his wife Marjorie, C11 soon came to the conclusion that Edith Simons was Stanley’s mistress and that she was acting as the conduit between him, Isaacs, Millbank and Heller. A man matching Harry Isaacs’s description had been identified as having visited Leatherslade Farm with Jimmy White before the robbery, although the identification by Lionel Hopcraft was not considered sufficiently strong to take matters further.
12
Isaacs’s tailers also observed him visiting Bruce Reynolds’s associate Mary Manson at her address in Wimbledon on several occasions during the weeks and months after the robbery.
13

With George Stanley able to operate behind the shield and legal privilege of Lessor & Co., it seems that the IB focused most of their tailing efforts on Albert Millbank in the hope of furthering the investigation and indeed recovering more of the stolen money:

Observation Maintained by Officers of the PD/IB

At 1.45 pm on 27 August, 1963, Mr Gray observed a man later identified as Albert Millbank to leave the address, 69 Belsize Park Gardens, Hampstead, NW3. Mr Millbank drove away in a Ford Zephyr Saloon AMH 536 which is registered in his own name. Mr Millbank was seen to frequent the Belsize Park Gardens address on a number of occasions between 27 August and 1 September, 1963, in the company of a blonde woman who appeared to have a close connection with a perfumery shop at 14 Sicilian Avenue, London, WC2.
14
The motor vehicle 996 ELW was frequently to be seen at the Belsize Park Gardens address. The registered owner of this vehicle is Stanley Alfred Gooch, 19 Parliament Hill Mansions, London, NW5. Observation maintained on this address however, proved negative.
15

The ‘blonde’ referred to in the observation reports was one Catherine Mary de Guilio. She was also mentioned by informant Bernard Makowski (who refers to her as the ‘Julian woman’) in the account he related on 10 August 1963 to Inspector Peattie.
16
According to IB controller Clifford Osmond she apparently lived in Brighton and had a club in Soho’s Gerrard Street.
17
The IB, with police assistance, therefore turned their attention to the Brighton area, the results of which are outlined in a report written by Inspector Forsyth to Clifford Osmond:

On the 28 August, 1963, I commenced observations on the residential premises situated at numbers 5 and 27 Goreham Way, Telscombe Cliffs, near Newhaven, Sussex. Those observations were continued until the 6 September 1963, but were broken for intermittent periods as a result of relative enquiries being made in the surrounding district the result of some of these being subsequently reported herein.

Number 5 Goreham Way is a detached bungalow at present occupied by a Mrs Mary Catherine De Guilio widow of Anthony Paul De Guilio CRO No 14406/61, who died on the 25 September, 1962. They previously resided at No 3 Goreham Way, a semi detached bungalow next door to No 5 and Mrs De Guilio is at present endeavouring to sell No 3 at approximately £5,000. Apparently, as a result of discreet enquiries, she would also appear to be the owner of No 7 Goreham Court, a self contained flat in a block of flats opposite Nos 3 and 5 Goreham Way. No 7 Goreham Court is at present occupied by a Heather and Leslie Gale (not known to local Police).

27 Goreham Way is a detached chalet bungalow and is occupied by Dominic and Josephine De Guilio. The former is the registered owner of a blue Vauxhall motor car index No 443 AUF. It was hoped that these observations might well reveal a link between the occupants of these premises and Albert Millbank, CRO 2019/39. However, those hopes have not been fulfilled to date as at no time during the observation has Albert Millbank been seen visiting any premises in Goreham Way.

Before leaving London, Mr Yates, Assistant Controller, discovered that Albert Millbank was the registered owner of a blue Zephyr motor car index AMH 536A, which I ascertained was bought new by Millbank on the 22 March, 1963. However, when registering this vehicle Millbank used his usual ‘covering up’ address, namely, 127 Arlington Road, London, NW1, which is his mother’s. It is well known that any Police enquiries thereat concerning Millbank meet with negative results.

During my observations and enquiries I have had the utmost co-operation from the local Police and in particular Superintendent Taylor of the East Sussex Constabulary. At my request he circulated the description of Millbank’s motor car in an endeavour to ‘house’ or discover what places Millbank visited.
18

With no sign of Millbank in the Brighton area, the search returned to London the following day:

Date 29 August 1963

Officer(s) Reporting Fowler and Rees

Address on which observation kept - 69 Belsize Park Gardens, NW3

Time commenced 10.45 am

Blue Zephyr Reg Number AMH 536A arrived at above address at 1.30 pm driver of car (Millbank) entered house. At 2.50 pm, Blue Fiat 600, Reg Number 996 ELW arrived. Driver a man about 6’ six tall, fair hair and a full beard alighted from this car, carrying a briefcase, and entered the house (Reg owner of 996 ELW is Stanley Alfred Gooch, 19 Parliament Hill Mansions, Lissenden Gardens, London, NW5). At 2.10 pm Millbank and a woman, aged about 40 years, height about 5’6”/7”, silvery blonde hair and carrying a white poodle, left the house. We followed and temporarily lost them in traffic. Zephyr was again picked up at Bloomsbury Square. Woman left the car carrying white poodle and went into 14 Sicilian Avenue, off Southampton Row. 14 Sicilian Avenue is a shop, Perfumery and Cosmetics. Apparently the woman works in or owns this shop. The Zephyr was then lost. At 6.30 pm Millbank arrived at Sicilian Avenue. At 6.50 pm Millbank and the woman left in the Zephyr and went to 69 Belsize Park Gardens, NW1. Observation was maintained on this address but they were not seen again.

Time observation ceased 10 pm.
19

Having lost Millbank’s Zephyr in traffic, and not having located him elsewhere, Fowler and Rees returned to Belsize Park Gardens the following day, patiently waiting for him to reappear:

Date 30 August 1963

Officer(s) Reporting Fowler and Rees

Address on which observation kept - 69 Belsize Park Gardens

Time commenced 10.45 am

Driver of car 996 ELW arrived at 4.45 pm left car and entered house. At 4.56 pm Blue Zephyr with Millbank and silvery blonde woman carrying white poodle, left car and entered house. Millbank was carrying a few parcels. At 5.40 pm Millbank left in blue Zephyr on his own. We followed but lost him at Regents Park. We then went to 14 Sicilian Avenue but could not find him. We then went back to Belsize Park Gardens. 996 ELW had left. Millbank was not seen to return.
20

Having lost Millbank in traffic for a second time in two days, the IB was no doubt relieved to receive a brief report from the East Sussex Constabulary two days later:

As a result of Millbank’s photograph being circulated by East Sussex Police, a sighting was made on 1 September: 9.45 am – believed car (AMH 356A) seen travelling from Newhaven to Seaford. Driver only occupant.
21

Millbank’s driving skills were in evidence the next day when he made a quick exit from the house, catching Fowler and Gray off-guard:

Date 2 September 1963

Officer(s) Reporting LV Fowler and BA Gray

Address on which observation kept: 69 Belsize Park Gardens, NW3

Time commenced 11.30 am

At 1.25 pm Ford Cortina 154 FLN arrives. Male and female enters above address i.e. Garden Flat. At 2.08 pm blonde woman carrying white poodle dog leaves address and enters taxi No PUV 148; we follow. She pays off taxi at Selfridges, Oxford Street; then we lost sight of her in Oxford Street. Later return to the above address. Blue Zephyr No AMH 536A parked outside. At 4.45 pm Millbank enters car and drove off at speed, unable to follow. 5.10 pm blonde woman seen at door. At 6.30 pm Austin Cambridge 940 FYX parks outside. Man enters house: Age 30-35 yrs. Height 5’.8”–9”. Dark hair, ruddy complexion, dark suit. At 7.05 pm taxi 138 EEU arrives at address. Woman enters house. Description: - Age 25–30 years, height 5’3”, dark hair, carrying suit case. Car not seen any more.

Time observation ceased 9 pm.
22

Back in East Sussex, Millbank was again spotted by the local police:

On 3 September – at noon AMH 356A seen travelling south in Cooden Sea Road, Bexhill. Driver only occupant, boxes in back of car. When driver saw police constable he turned round and travelled off in opposite direction. Unfortunately, in both of these cases the PCs were unable to follow the car and the wireless cars upon receiving the relative messages were unable to make contact with AMH 356A. Photographs of Millbank have been circulated to the local CID officers and any developments as a result of these steps will be passed to this branch immediately.
23

On the same day that Millbank had once again eluded his tailers on the streets of Bexhill, a new witness, Reginald Billington, came forward. He had spent the best part of three weeks mulling over whether or not he should do so. Being a post office employee he eventually spoke to his supervisor, who called in the IB. Clifford Osmond decided to interview Billington personally:

Memorandum

On the 3 September 1963, Mr R N Billington, Inspector of Wireless Telegraphy, Wireless Telegraphy Section, RSD came to see me in order to appraise me of some happenings which occurred on the 8 August 1963, at a house next door to him – ie, 99 Pollards Hill South, Norbury, London, SW, occupied by a Mrs Willard who is supposed to be a physiotherapist.
24
Mr Billington said that at 9.10 pm on the 8 August an open Mini-bus drew up outside 99, Pollards Hill South, Norbury. He was unable to see the registration number but he thought that it was a blue Volkswagen. He saw that it contained about 30 pillow cases (stripped ticking) and each of them was filled with something or other and each had its neck tied with string or rope. He said that two men were in the Mini-bus and that his wife saw the men take the pillow cases, together with some sacks or bags, into the house. He wondered whether this had any significance in view of the fact that he knows Mrs Willard to be a prostitute and that some 18 months ago he was instrumental in assisting the police to arrest a criminal who had frequented that house and who eventually was prosecuted to conviction for violence. Mr Billington explained that this background story was necessary in order to show that his next door neighbour is no ordinary neighbour. At about the same time a Mini-van, green in colour, stopped on the other side of the road with two men in it. He could not say whether or not those two men had any connexion with 99 Pollards Hill South. There is apparently a son of Mrs Willard about 16 years of age and there are two friends who call frequently at the house – a blonde woman and a balding man, middle aged.
25
Mr Billington says that he thought there might be something extraordinary going on because he had seen a black Anglia car some distance from the house with a man in it who seemed to be keeping observation on his next door neighbour’s house. He emphasised that this information was given for what it is worth and that in no circumstances should his name or his wife’s be made known to the police without his consent. I promised that his wishes should be met and that we would look into the possibility that the pillow cases might have contained some of the proceeds of the mail train robbery, although I did point out to Mr Billington that the information so far received suggests that the money was taken in bulk to Leatherslade Farm and kept there until Friday the 9 August.