By Linda Hall • Published: 24 May 2019 • 13:40
UK detectives appealed for fresh information regarding the suspected contract killing of John “Goldfinger” Palmer.
They backed the appeal with a £100,000 reward for information. The 65-year-old, once described as Britain’s richest criminal, earned his nickname after smelting gold from the £26 million Brinks-Mat bullion heist at Heathrow in 1983.
Palmer was shot dead in the grounds of his Essex mansion in June 2015, a month after he was charged with timeshare fraud, money-laundering and firearms offences in Spain.
At the time police attributed Palmer’s death to natural causes and failed to notice that Palmer had been shot five times, believing that the wounds stemmed from recent gall bladder surgery.
Following the Madrid trial in which several of Palmer’s business associates were found guilty of selling spurious timeshares and package holidays, police hope for a change of heart and loyalties amongst career criminals.
“There is always nervousness within the underworld when a trial looms,” said Detective Superintendent Stephen Jennings who heads the investigation. “Now that it is over people might feel they can talk to us.” The key to solving Palmer’s murder lies within the criminal underworld, Jennings added.
The Superintendent also revealed that no evidence supports speculation that Palmer was a key player in the Hatton Garden jewel robbery two months before his death.
Nor was there any proof that Palmer was planning a deal with Spain’s Prosecution Department in a bid to have the fraud charges against him dropped, Jennings said.
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Originally from the UK, Linda is based in Valenca and is a reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering local news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com.
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