Sunday, June 25, 2006

Monsters at work

EXCLUSIVE: ...and the only one around to keep an eye on them is News of the World

By Phil Whiteside and Luke Layfield

A CHILLING scene to strike terror into the heart of every parent—two dangerous paedophiles FILM little children feeding the ducks in a park.

One is a pervert awaiting sentence after admitting a string of sex attacks on girls as young as 11. The other is a child rapist just out of jail.

Just DAYS before, camera-wielding fiend David Ramsden, 73, who has six previous child-sex convictions, had been freed on bail.

Keeping watch is pot-bellied sicko pal Vincent Graham, who was jailed for 10 years in 2001 and is only just out on licence. He's at the same hostel.

The shocking pictures here and on Page One PROVE the need for Sarah's Law which would give parents and carers the right to know about child sex beasts in their area.

These two monsters should NOT be on the streets, they should NOT be out together and they should NOT be unsupervised. But the only people watching them at any time during their stomach-churning outing were News of the World investigators.

This highlights the scandal of predatory sex offenders released into the community in ill-supervised hostels.

Assault

The News of the World has successfully campaigned to get them banned from 11 bail hostels near schools. But many others are still allowed to house child-sex beasts.

Thankfully Ramsden was finally behind bars last night after being jailed for a year on eight counts of sexual assault on four girls aged 11 to 13. He'll be out in six months.

But just two weeks ago, days after he'd admitted the offences but before he was sentenced, the News of the World tracked him down to St Catherine's Priory bail hostel in Guildford, Surrey.

We watched as he left carrying a video camera and tripod and took a bus into the centre of the town and headed straight for a busy park on the edge of the town centre.

The wrinkly pervert, who was joined on the park bench by his pot-bellied pal Graham, 59, set up his tripod so the camera pointed at some ducks by the river. And the disgusting pair waited.

Before long a family with two young girls aged between four and seven came along and started throwing bread.

Every few minutes Ramsden leered through the viewfinder to make sure his innocent targets were still in shot as his rapist mate kept lookout.

Two more girls skipped around and laughed, happily feeding the ducks as Ramsden sneakily steered his lens. The cunning perverts remained at the site for more than an hour until the park began to empty. Over the following days, our investigators saw Ramsden visit Guildford town centre on several occasions.

Each time—in a variety of bizarre outfits, including military hats, a red waistcoat, jodhpurs and the regimental tie of the Blues and Royals—he mingled with families and children.

When approached, he denied being a child-sex offender and said he was a wildlife photographer who liked ducks.

Pal Vincent Graham is a Schedule One sex offender, the most serious category, who is known to be a danger to children. He was convicted in 2001 of raping children and placed on the sex offenders register for life.

Police regard him as a high-risk offender who ought to be closely monitored by probation staff.

Sources told the News of the World he moves around using an unusual walking stick with a monkey model attached to it which he uses to attract children's attention.

He also wears false flashing ears which provide an extra draw for fascinated youngsters. News of the World investigators spotted Graham with Ramsden on FIVE occasions outside the grounds of the hostel.

Four times they were seen together at a cafe in the Friary shopping centre and twice they were spotted in a park. Known paedophiles are not supposed to associate as it is well known they can swap tips on how to abuse and trick their victims.

Crazy

A source, whose identity is being kept secret for protection, told the News of the World: "These monsters are a danger to children. It's madness to have let them out.

"To put them in a hostel in the heart of a busy town full of families is simply crazy. They could strike again at any time and placing them here simply ensures plenty of potential victims."

Although he'd originally been sent to prison to await trial, Ramsden was granted bail by Recorder Stuart Lawson-Rogers when he appeared at Guildford Crown Court to admit his offences last month—despite previous convictions for six other sex assaults on children in 1993.

On Friday when he appeared for sentencing a different judge jailed him and banned him from mixing with youngsters under 18 when he comes out. He said: "Children have got to be protected."

Last night the mothers of two of Ramsden's little victims from the Surrey village where he lived backed the News of the World's fight for Sarah's Law.

One said: "If we had a Sarah's Law we'd have known about his previous convictions.

"We would have known straight away not to trust him. But as it was, he ended up abusing our children."

The other added: "If we knew where they were we would not have to lie awake at night wondering where they were and whether they were out there after our children."

# WE have altered the pictures of the girls in the park to conceal their identities. If you think they are YOUR children contact Surrey Police on 0845 125 2222.

Sunday, June 18, 2006

Sarah's Law victory

EXCLUSIVE: Major U-turn to protect our children - 11 hostels shut to paedos and 60 perverts shifted out

By Ian Kirby

The News of the World has scored a massive victory in its historic crusade to protect Britain's children from paedophile monsters.

Sarah's Law - which would give parents the right to information about dangerous paedophiles - is on the brink of being introduced in Britain.

After a six year battle by the News of the World Home Secretary John Reid ORDERED a review of our campaign and CLOSED 11 bail hostels to child sex offenders.

The U-turn follows our relentless campaign to expose the dangers of child sex fiends secretly housed in bail hostels close to schools.

In a surprise move Mr Reid this weekend:

# BANNED paedophile inmates from ELEVEN government hostels (pictured on this page) near to classrooms and nurseries,
# SHUNTED 60 child abusers out to less risky locations away from vulnerable youngsters,
# ANNOUNCED he is urgently sending a top minister to America to learn how their version of Sarah’s Law works,
# VOWED parents will be entitled to much more information about dangerous paedophiles in their area, and
# ACCEPTED a list be published pinpointing ALL bail hostels in Britain where paedophiles can still be placed.

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE OFFICIAL HOME OFFICE LIST

[Note from blog editor: I'm not going to link to this list. Nor am I going to present photos of a series of hostels as NOTW has done. But I will include this link to instructions for making your very own flaming torch... just in case you want to march on the house of a nearby paediatrician.]

In a huge sea change of government attitude, Dr Reid sent shock waves through the police, probation and prison system by declaring bluntly: “I start from the position that information should no longer remain the exclusive preserve of officialdom.

Safety

“I have also asked the minister to study specifically the News of the World’s Sarah’s Law proposals on controlled access to information.

“I believe the public have the right to protection and they have the right to information.

“We must make sure that we get the balance right though and that the free flow of information does not undermine the public’s safety.

“That’s why we will go to America to see how it’s done there and look hard at the Sarah’s Law proposals.”

Dr Reid's decisions are a massive breakthrough in our six-year For Sarah Campaign.

They came after we confronted the Home Office with damning evidence of how many official government hostels and halfway houses secretly take in newly-released paedophiles without the local community’s knowledge.

Last night he said: “I have instructed that no child sex offenders reside in accommodation directly adjacent to schools.” And on his orders Minister Gerry Sutcliffe will fly to the US to examine Megan’s Law — a system which publicises the whereabouts of paedophiles.

Mr Sutcliffe stressed he wanted to see children given the maximum amount of protection possible.

He said: “I want to learn how the system works in America and see how controlled access to the information can be used to protect families and children in the best public interest.”

After a nationwide probe we informed the Home Office about 11 paedophile hostels next to schools, play centres and nurseries.

They are located in Luton, Ellesmere Port, Blackburn, Leicester, London, Sheffield, Stafford, Nuneaton, Birmingham, Leeds and Lincoln.

On Friday Mr Sutcliffe asked for their status to be changed — effectively CLOSING them to child-sex offenders.

The Head of the Probation Service, Roger Hill, then signed an order changing the admissions policy.

That meant SIXTY inmates were immediately told they were being moved away from children.

Mr Sutcliffe told us: “The protection of the public and offender management are both priorities — but public protection comes first.”

Switched

Other hostels are now being reviewed and paedophiles may be switched from them, too, if they are deemed to be too close to schools.

Last night the Home Office agreed that their official list of around 75 remaining hostels where child-sex pests CAN STILL be housed could be published and so made available to parents and the general public.

This is further evidence of a giant change in the department’s attitude towards parents’ right to know.

The hostels are not sealed compounds with heavy security, but normal buildings in residential streets, often near busy town centres.

Many have nothing to identify them as Home Office-run buildings and those who use them are free to mix with unsuspecting parents and children on high streets up and down the country.

Time and again since we launched our For Sarah campaign in 2000, paedophiles on the Sex Offenders’ Register have been allowed to stike again.

Last night the parents of US victims praised our campaign and hailed the Home Office moves.

Mark Lunsford, 42 — responsible for Jessica's Law being introduced in America after his nine-year-old daughter was abducted, raped and buried alive — said: “The law has to be tough on sexual predators. This is a step in the right direction.”

Maureen Kanka, 47, who was responsible for Megan’s Law in memory of her murdered daughter, said: “I applaud the News of the World. The only way to keep children safe is for stronger laws.”

Sunday, June 11, 2006

Heather, the £5,000 hooker

EXCLUSIVE: How Lady Macca hid secret vice past from Sir Paul

By Phil Taylor

The News of the World can reveal the secret vice past of Sir Paul McCartney's wife Heather.

In an investigation spanning Europe and the Middle East we have tracked down the former high-class hooker who partnered her for an orgy in London's Dorchester Hotel—and later became convinced that Heather's bisexual games weren't just an act for her kinky clients.

In sworn affidavits we have evidence from the private secretary who paid Heather for pleasuring his billionaire master.

And we have testimony from Denise Hewitt, the ex-wife of the heir to the Berkeley Homes empire, that she joined Heather for lesbian games and group sex when they were both London prostitutes.

We can identify the madam who booked many of Heather's rich and famous clients for a 20 per cent fee.

And we reveal that Heather's vice trade wasn't simply a moment of madness in her life. It went on for years.

Heather, now 38, is locked in a split from ex-Beatle Paul and his £825 million fortune, Our revelations will have a shattering effect on her negotiations for a settlement.

Foursome

Her secret sex games with international arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi took place in Spain's Marbella and at the Lanesborough, Hilton, Dorchester and Grosvenor House hotels in London's Mayfair.

She was paid amounts totalling £2,000 in sterling plus another 8,000 US dollars—currently about £4,400. But this was just a fraction of a secret fortune she amassed.

Heather earned a further £1,000 for a foursome with two other escort girls and an Arab prince at the Dorchester on London's Park Lane.

A former escort girl named Petrina Montrose, who joined Heather for the Dorchester hotel orgy, told the News of the World: "Heather was a familiar face in our business.

"I worked with her when we were both hired for a party thrown by an Arab prince at the Dorchester."

Naked

The 37-year-old, who now lives in Essex, said that she and Heather had been booked by a girl named Ros Ashley who also modelled swimwear under the single professional name ‘Ashley'.

Petrina continued: "It was a really lavish affair. There was a buffet of Lebanese food and Ashley was already there with a group of about six working girls, including Heather.

"The prince was tall and greasy and I wanted to leave but I knew that to get my money I'd have to have sex with anyone in the room who picked me. Still, Heather was bubbling over with enthusiasm.

"All the girls separated and, after a while, a blonde girl opened the prince's bedroom door and beckoned me in. The prince was lying naked on the bed with his legs apart.

"The blonde girl lay on the bed between his legs, then I saw that Heather was already in there too. She was naked on the bed, kneeling next to the prince's midriff. I took off my clothes and joined everyone on the bed. I knelt facing Heather and we performed oral sex on the prince. Then all four of us played together on the bed before the blonde girl who called me in had full sex with him.

"When we'd finished, Heather made no attempt to put her clothes on. Instead she started parading naked around the room, trying to impress the prince even more. At the end, Ashley paid us £1,000 each."

Heather's sex trade is also detailed by Abdul Khoury, who was Adnan Khashoggi's private secretary from 1977 until last year.

Mr Khoury, who now lives in the Lebanon, has a great memory for detail. In precise language he told us: "I was responsible for organising all Mr Khashoggi's arrangements, including meetings, travel and his social diary.

Skin

"One of my duties was to look after Mr Khashoggi's guests, which would include looking after vice girls who were invited to see him. One was Heather Mills, who I know had sex with him on a number of occasions in return for money.

"I recall that one of those occasions was in Marbella where Mr Khashoggi has a villa. It was summer time and it would have been around 1988, I believe.

"Miss Mills, as she then was, was booked to attend a party with another lady. I arranged their flight tickets from London and met them personally when they arrived. I had arranged for accommodation at a hotel near Mr Khashoggi's estate.

"Mr Khashoggi's parties were always splendid affairs. At that gathering, I seem to remember, was the film star George Hamilton.

"I informed Mr Khashoggi that his guests had arrived. He asked me what the girls looked like and I told him that I thought Heather in particular was appealing. The day after the party I took Heather and her companion, a lady named Joanna as I recall, to see Mr Khashoggi. Before they left, Mr Khashoggi called me in, asked me to count out two amounts of £2,000, to put the money into envelopes and to give them to each of the girls.

"Sometimes Mr Khashoggi would make comments to me about the girls he paid to have sex with him.

"In Heather's case I remember his remark that she had soft skin. And she was very athletic in bed. Mr Khashoggi was always very pleased with Heather's performance."

But Joanna wasn't. It later became clear to those in Khashoggi's circle of women that when all three of them were in the bedroom Heather had ‘tried it on' with Joanna and suggested lesbian sex—and that it was much more than a performance for the arms dealer's benefit.

Petrina Montrose recalled: "I was told that Heather has come on to a girl in a threesome and that the girl was upset. It's completely out of order for one prostitute to make a lesbian approach to another unless it's been discussed beforehand.

"But Heather seemed as interested in the sexual side of things—even lesbian sex—as well making money."

In the early 90s Heather also had a series of sex sessions with Khashoggi at London hotels.

Mr Khoury revealed: "The model named Ashley invited Miss Mills to the Lanesborough Hotel where Mr Khashoggi was staying. There was also another girl.

Bedroom

"I recall that Mr Khashoggi took Heather's hand and led her into the bedroom while the other girl remained talking to me. After about an hour Heather returned and Mr Khashoggi came out and led the other girl into the bedroom.

"Heather and I talked during this time. It was clear they had had sex.

"After he had finished with the second girl, Mr Khashoggi called me into the bedroom and told me to count out 2,000 US dollars for each of the girls and to put the money into envelopes. I did so, and he then handed each one an envelope.

"About four months later Mr Khashoggi came to London and stayed at the Hilton Hotel.

"He said he would like to see Heather so I telephoned her. She told me she had a new friend. I said bring her along. Again, Mr Khashoggi led them to his bedroom one at a time and paid each 2,000 dollars.

"Heather and the same girl met Mr Khashoggi once more at the Dorchester hotel.

"This time he asked for Heather first and then, about half an hour later, he reappeared and collected the other girl to join Heather and him. All three were in the bedroom for about 45 minutes. Again, payment was 2,000 dollars in envelopes.

Custody

"About three weeks later Mr Khashoggi was once more in London. This time he stayed at the Grosvenor House Hotel but again was entertained by Heather and a girl, one at a time. Once again the payment was 2,000 dollars each."

Heather and Paul McCartney married in June 2002. Their baby Beatrice was born on October 30, 2003.

Early last month the News of the World exclusively revealed that the marriage was in crisis and they were living apart. Just 10 days later the pair confirmed they were separating, though no decision has been made on custody of Beatrice.

Meanwhile, Heather has sought to put the best gloss on her past and has always denied being a vice girl.

When we asked Abdul Khoury's for his view of her, he paused a moment to reflect then said: "She has lied through her teeth."

Sunday, June 04, 2006

Bomb suspect shot by brother

EXCLUSIVE:There was a scuffle.. the man grabbed at an officer's gun. It fired

By Lucy Panton and Ryan Sabey

THE News of the World has uncovered sensational details of the anti-terror raid which ended with one of the chemical bomb suspects shot.

After smashing their way into the Kalam brothers' East London home at 4.10am on Friday two armed police officers rushed up the stairs to seize the two men.

Security sources say the cops were confronted by the Muslim brothers, who were trying to run down the steps, and a scuffle broke out.

This is understood to have climaxed with 20-year-old Abdul Koyair making a grab for a police firearm, which already had its safety catch off.

In the desperate struggle that followed, the gun was fired and the bullet hit 23-year-old mail worker Abdul Kahar in the shoulder.

Impact

We can also reveal how police:

FEAR the explosive device they are hunting is designed to spray out deadly cyanide,

TESTED the gun for DNA evidence to confirm who fired the shot,

SEARCHED the brothers' workplaces for clues, and

DISCOVERED the men were planning a long-haul trip abroad for this weekend.

Initial reports assumed Kahar had been wounded by one of the officers.

But last night, as he lay under arrest and armed guard in the Royal London Hospital, cops were banking on the results of DNA tests from the weapon pointing the finger firmly at his brother.

Today we publish the first exclusive picture of the injured suspect and unveil how initial investigations centering on the trajectory of the bullet indicated that the officer did NOT pull the trigger.

Officials from the Independent Police Complaints Commission measured the angle of impact into the suspect's shoulder and also noted the spot where the officers stood at the time of firing.

A highly-placed Whitehall source told us: "We understand the officers are adamant that they did not pull the trigger and have told bosses at Scotland Yard the DNA evidence will prove this.

Toxic

"They are confident that this is not another Jean Charles de Menezes situation (the Brazilian shot in error by anti-terror cops on the London Underground) and that they are in the clear."

The brothers are being held under the Terrorism Act 2000 on suspicion of being "concerned in the commission, preparation, or instigation of acts of terrorism".

If the evidence proves that Tesco worker Koyair fired the weapon he could face charges of attempting to shoot a police officer.

The massive 300-strong force of specialist firearms officers and anti-terror cops—codenamed Operation Volga—swooped on the brothers' terraced house in Lansdown Road, Forest Gate, after "firm intelligence" from MI5 that terrorists were constructing a device laced with killer cyanide gas.

Cyanide can kill within seconds and a concentrated toxic cloud released over a wide area would have devastating consequences.

The threat was regarded as so serious that Dame Eliza Manningham-Butler, director general of MI5, personally informed Tony Blair and Home Secretary John Reid in advance of the operation. Expert scientists were called in to study a drawing obtained by the intelligence services and within days the raid was on.

We can also reveal that security services had been tipped off about a possible stash of firearms at the house along with the chemical bomb—at first thought to be a kind of vest or waistcoat, "primed and ready to go".

But incredibly, the hunt for the device had to be delayed after the shooting so that the police complaints investigation could take precedence at the scene.

That initial assessment took over FIVE HOURS before bio-chemical experts were finally allowed into the building at 9.30am.

The Porton Down specialists, along with health officials, then spent the rest of the day making the scene safe before forensic search officers were allowed in. Scotland Yard's search teams, in white forensic suits, were finally let in to begin hunting the bomb in the early hours of yesterday.

A doctor was on hand to administer an antidote to emergency service staff should anyone have come into contact with deadly gas.

Meanwhile other officers were trying to work out possible targets for the suspected plot.

Bailiffs

One line of inquiry was that the gas was to be released in a busy and enclosed shopping centre, which mirrors the current plotline in the Sky hit drama 24 starring Kiefer Sutherland.

The specialist officers searching the house have constructed scaffolding inside so they can probe wall cavities and the loft. They also plan to dig up the garden.

A security source said: "The intelligence suggested the property could have a number of hidey-holes where the device could have been stored.

"Right from the start we weren't taking any chances because our information indicated this device was primed and ready to go.

"It was a serious public safety issue."

Operation Volga spawned a series of other raids across the capital yesterday.

A statement from Scotland Yard last night said: "Anti-Terrorist Branch officers this afternoon have searched business premises in Tottenham and Whitechapel, where the two men arrested yesterday are employed. The searches have been carried out with the full co-operation of their employers."

The News of the World can reveal that the brothers' house was also raided two weeks ago—by bailiffs.

Although this was sparked by unpaid bills, insiders insist they were flush with money and planning to jet off on an expensive family holiday to the luxury island of Mauritius yesterday.

At least 10 people were living in the house including six men, three women and a child.

Some of them are believed to be relatives and were going on the Mauritius trip with the brothers.

A close friend said yesterday: "The boys' parents telephoned cops to ask if they could see one of the brothers—because they still planned to go on the holiday.

"They even asked if officers could retrieve their suitcases from the house as they needed them."

Sources have revealed that even before this week the brothers were well known to the police.

A neighbour, security engineer Ashish Khetani, 19, told us that there had been a number of violent incidents outside the house in recent years.

"There always used to be fights there," he said. One night one of the family got bottled over the head and the cops had to be called."

Last night Koyair was still being quizzed at Paddington Green police station, after the authorities were granted warrants by Bow Street Magistrates allowing the brothers to be held until Wednesday without charge.

Outside, wounded brother Kahar's solicitor Kate Roxburgh said that her client denied being involved in terrorism. "He has no involvement at all," she said. "He was woken up about 4am by screams downstairs. He got out of bed in his pyjamas, obviously unarmed, and began hurrying downstairs.

"As he came towards a bend in the stairway the police turned their gun up towards him and shot him without any warning at all."

Other members of the brothers' family who were rounded up in the swoop last night hinted they may sue police over their treatment. In a statement they said: "We would like to make it clear that we are completely innocent and in no way involved in any terrorist activity.

"However, we would like to express our deep shock and anger at the operation that took place.

"We were assaulted and detained for 12 hours. We're currently liaising with our legal team on the course of action to take."

But police on the street said last night that they were pleased with the cooperation they were receiving from the local community.

They described how neighbours were handing out tea and coffee to officers.

They admitted there was a natural hunger to know what was going on but denied there was any tension.