But Graham drew his thin lips into an even thinner line. ‘I’m not prepared to say anything more, Inspector. I must have time to think.’601
Kirkpatrick was not prepared to leave matters there, however. Aware that Graham could indeed retract everything he had already said – as he did, sometime later – he consulted Chief Superintendent Harvey. Together with Detective Inspector Alan Newton, Harvey then returned to Kirkpatrick’s office to speak to Graham himself. In his hand he clutched the blue-backed notepad. He then began, ‘I cautioned you this morning and that still stands. I’ve been doing some work on your diary and I believe I have identified the persons you refer to –’
Graham interrupted, ‘May I say something, Inspector, I’m sorry, Superintendent, I do assure you that was a genuine mistake.’ He went on boldly, ‘I like you. You have a forthright manner, no sugaring up. We understand each other. What have you learned from your work?’
Harvey replied, ‘I think the initial is that of the first Christian name and the symptoms described are those suffered by these people. The dates also correspond to their illnesses.’
‘Very well. I’ll tell you if you are right.’
Harvey gave a nod, ‘So . . . is “B” Bob Egle?’
‘Yes.’
‘And is “D” David Tilson?’
‘Correct.’
‘You gave him something different to Bob Egle.’
‘Yes, I did.’
‘Is “J” Batt?’
‘It is.’
‘“Di” is Mrs Smart?’
Graham nodded, ‘Yes, what I gave her was something quite different to the others, relatively harmless in fact.’
Harvey went on, ‘Is “F” Fred Biggs?’
‘Yes.’
Harvey paused, ‘I haven’t been able to work out “R”. Is it Ronald Hewitt?’
Graham shook his head, ‘No, he did have something, but R did not.’
Harvey thought a moment, ‘In the diary you say “R” should visit in the week 12th October.’
‘Yes, he is one of Ryman’s drivers. I don’t know his name but he didn’t come.’
‘You also mention getting information from “P” and “M” and of “M” having spoken to “D’s” mother. Who are they?’
He replied, ‘M is Margaret [Mary] Berrow and P Peter Buck.’
‘Are you now admitting that you poisoned these people?’
Graham stared back at him, ‘Yes.’
‘Are there any others?’
He responded, ‘I’ve told you of Ronald Hewitt. There’s also Peter Buck and Trevor Sparkes. I met him at the Slough government training centre. I believe he comes from Welwyn Garden City.’
‘I have not previously heard of Sparkes. Is he dead?’
‘No, he had several doses but none were lethal.’
‘What about your father and Uncle Jack at Sheerness? Have you done anything to them?’
Graham looked genuinely shocked, ‘Good Lord, no, I think the world of Uncle Jack.’
Harvey frowned, ‘Didn’t you also like Fred Biggs?’
‘Yes, it was a pity about Fred,’ Graham said without a trace of irony.
Harvey pointed to the diary, ‘In here, on page five, about October 14th, you write of having time to leisurely study the effect on “D” having had only previous experience of lethal dose. You say both died. Here, read it.’
Harvey passed the diary to Graham, who read the relevant passage.
‘This entry seems to have been on 13 October,’ Harvey said. ‘Only Bob Egle was dead then. Who had the other lethal dose?’
With breathtaking candour, Graham stated calmly, ‘I’m referring to my stepmother. I killed her, but that was in 1962.’
Harvey stared at him, then warned he could be charged with Molly Young’s murder; all of his previous offences could be brought up if he pleaded not guilty to his recent crimes. Graham made no reply.
Harvey asked, ‘You’ve told Detective Chief Inspector Kirkpatrick the antidote to the poison used on Batt and Tilson. What was the poison?’
‘Antimony.’
‘Did Egle and Biggs have a different poison?’
‘Yes, I gave them thallium.’
‘Was it just thallium? In your diary you write of a special compound.’
Graham corrected himself, ‘Well, to be precise, thallium chloride.’
‘You’ve admitted giving poison to Bob Egle and Fred Biggs. Their symptoms before they died indicate they died of poison. That is murder. You’ve also given poison to several other people, six that we know of. That may be attempted murder.’
‘That’s an academic point,’ Graham said dismissively. ‘I could have killed them if I had wished, as I did with Biggs and Egle, but I allowed them to live.’
Harvey paused, then went on, ‘In our earlier conversation you told me that I had to find the means, opportunity and motive. You’ve told Mr Kirkpatrick the opportunity, by putting poison into drinks. You’ve told me the means, thallium and antimony, but what is or was the motive? None of these people were your enemies. In fact, Batt and Biggs were your friends. Why did you want to hurt them?’
Graham hesitated, then spoke slowly, as if weighing each word. ‘I suppose I’d ceased to see them as people, or more correctly, a part of me had. They became guinea pigs.’
Harvey was silent for a moment. Then he ran a hand over his forehead and said, ‘Look, this has been a lengthy conversation. I’ve made notes as I was able, but at present I’ve only got a fraction of what we’ve talked about. Would you like to make a written statement?’
‘What would be the purpose of that, now that I’ve told you everything?’
‘It would ensure that what you have said is accurately recorded and perhaps resolve any disagreement.’
Graham gave a sharp laugh and said scornfully, ‘A statement is not conclusive. I could claim that it was made under duress.’
‘It’s up to you,’ said Harvey. ‘Any statement I take will be entirely voluntary.’
Graham nodded, ‘Yes, you seem a fair man.’ He leaned back in his chair, glancing up at the ceiling. ‘I’ll sleep on it and let you know tomorrow.’602
Chapter Twenty-one
THE LEPEROUS DISTILMENT
G
RAHAM SPENT A long and dull Monday morning in his cell at Hemel Hempstead police station. At lunchtime he was escorted to the medical room, where Chief Superintendent Harvey waited to question him again. They were joined at 1:30pm by Chief Inspector Kirkpatrick, who enquired of Harvey, ‘Is everything alright, sir?’
Harvey nodded towards Graham, ‘I think he’s feeling some remorse.’
Graham looked up. ‘No, Mr Harvey, that would be hypocritical. What I feel is the emptiness of my soul.’
The two detectives exchanged a glance. Kirkpatrick sat down and asked Graham, ‘What intrigues me is your knowledge of chemistry and poisons. You must have done a lot of studying?’
‘Very little since I was 14, actually,’ Graham responded. ‘I haven’t had the opportunity. But I am fortunate in having a retentive memory. I can give you a complete rundown of the effects of thallium on the human body. Would you like to hear it?’
‘Go ahead,’ said Harvey.
For over 20 minutes, Graham talked. He spoke in much the same way that a lecturer might address a class, explaining that after taking a fatal dose of thallium, death was inevitable, unless a strong emetic were taken within half an hour of ingestion. After several hours, the person might vomit, but it would be too late: thallium was already in their system. Vomiting was often followed by diarrhoea, although sometimes constipation could occur. Other symptoms included a loss of sensation in the extremities, in the fingers and toes, which would quickly extend to all limbs, caused by the poison breaking down tissue and nerves. He then outlined the effect on the respiratory system, the eyes and the brain, until the afflicted person died. Finally, he told them that in the case of a large dose, death usually occurred before the hair fell out, while fingernails
and toenails would display white lines.
Graham paused. ‘You must feel repulsion for me.’
Harvey asked, ‘Do you know what you have described means in human terms?’
‘Not completely,’ Graham said. ‘I have never seen death.’603
Graham’s defence counsel later claimed their client had been asked to explain the effects of thallium, rather than volunteering to do so. Harvey told the court: ‘He quite spontaneously suggested it. In fact, he seemed eager and proud to tell us of his knowledge of this particular subject.’604 He added that over the course of questioning, Graham had become more cooperative. Graham stated otherwise, declaring that he had initially maintained his innocence but as time wore on it became apparent that ‘we were in a state of impasse’.605 He claimed to have told Harvey in confidence that he would give him a set of plausible answers to his questions ‘in order that and providing that I was then given clothing, food, sleep and access to a solicitor’.606 Under those circumstances, his statement was a ‘mere convenience’ and he had expected scientific analysis to demonstrate his innocence ‘and therefore my statement was a false one’.607 He told the court that his intention had been to withdraw his statement at the earliest possible opportunity. When it was put to Harvey in court that Graham had cooperated with detectives in return for the ‘amelioration of his conditions of confinement and clothing and so forth’, Harvey replied, ‘Absolutely not. There was no question of any form of deal with him in any respect.’608
To gain more insight into how to handle Graham, and for greater knowledge about his background, Detective Inspector Newton was dispatched to Broadmoor on a fact-finding mission. His visit proved futile: the medical superintendent, Dr Patrick McGrath, refused to divulge anything. Despite being told why such information was necessary, he sent Newton away, citing the unwritten confidentiality clause between patient and doctor.
The police inquiry into Graham’s crimes continued apace, including the taking of witness statements from his former colleagues and acquaintances. Detective Inspector Ratcliff had also called at Hadlands that morning, Monday, 22 November, to collect Graham’s silver-coloured snuff box, while Constable Frank Fuller measured Graham’s room at 29 Maynard Road for a scale plan.
In central London, a 30-year-old man from Watford entered the public mortuary on Canley Street in St Pancras, where he was met by Detective Inspector Newton. John Biggs was the eldest son of Fred and Annie Biggs; he viewed his father’s poison-ravaged body in Newton’s presence. The grieving family had been told that funeral arrangements would have to be delayed while further investigations were conducted.
A larger group of people gathered at the mortuary at 2:30pm. Professor Hugh Molesworth-Johnson was responsible for carrying out the post-mortem on Fred Biggs. Senior lecturer in forensic medicine at St Thomas’ hospital medical school, the pathologist had spent his previous weekend reading everything he could about thallium after Chief Superintendent Harvey had explained the case to him. Molesworth-Johnson had already read the Agatha Christie mystery The Pale Horse, which led him to strongly suspect that thallium had killed Fred Biggs. He later told the court: ‘I was the first to suggest thallium poisoning. I had studied it closely before carrying out my investigation and had heard about its effects before I began. I had also read the thriller and knew something of its effects on people from that book.’609 Although Molesworth-Johnson was not, in fact, the first to suggest thallium poisoning, he had both an interest and knowledge of the subject, sparked after hearing a professor of forensic medicine at Ghent University read a paper on it. The Belgian expert had dealt with an outbreak of thallium poisoning in the Low Countries during the 1950s; Molesworth-Johnson consulted this same professor, declaring, ‘I happened to be interested in poisoning cases and the very bizarre nature of this poison had stuck in my mind.’610
Also present at the post-mortem were Professor John Cavanagh, neuropathologist at the University College London Institute of Neurology, Chief Superintendent Harvey, another chief superintendent named Hughes, Chief Inspector Kirkpatrick, Detective Inspector Alan Newton, Detective Constable Michael Grinsted, police photographer John Mackintosh, coroner’s officer Police Constable Bell, Mr Nigel Fuller of the Metropolitan Police Forensic Science Laboratory and Dr Rudge of the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery (NHNN).
Molesworth-Johnson got to work. Describing Biggs as ‘a well-built man, 5’10” in height, in a shroud’, he pointed out the discoloration and thickening of the face, particularly the red, scaly skin flaking around the nose and mouth.611 The same effect was visible on the scrotum and there were other noticeable changes in pigmentation, where the skin had turned purple-brown. The hair on his head came away like that of a moulting animal, even when very lightly touched. These were all signs consistent with thallium poisoning, although there were no tell-tale white Mees’ lines on either fingernails or toenails, which led the pathologist to assume that this was due to the relative brevity of the victim’s illness and the fact that he had been a healthy man beforehand.
Professor Cavanagh examined sections of the brain, spinal cord and nerves. He found evidence of degeneration of nerve fibres and reactive changes in nerve cells in the spinal cord, together with changes in cranial nerves. His subsequent report examined a number of possible causes, culminating in a superlative description of thallium neuropathy:
This intoxication is characterised by widespread involvement of cranial and peripheral nerves, commonly accompanied by optic neuritis with defects in vision and often associated with bizarre mental disturbances. The onset of the neuropathy is associated with severe and often intense sensory disturbances of the hands and feet, weakness of the limbs following this and progressively affecting the limbs. Most post-mortem examinations have been done within a few weeks of poisoning and have shown peripheral nerve degeneration of varying degrees of severity with chromatolysis of associated nerve cells. Other changes have been described in various regions of the brain but these have been non-specific in nature. Scharer’s (1933) case examined many months after poisoning showed distinct loss of fibres in the dorsal columns. There is in fact no specific feature to the neuropathological changes in acute thallium poisoning. The changes in this case are, however, not inconsistent with thallium intoxication, and are consistent with the clinical features noted in this case.612
But neither he nor Molesworth-Johnson could find traces of the poison itself. Thus, the pathologist recorded that the cause of death could not be established. He prepared the organs to be handed over to Nigel Fuller of the Metropolitan Police Forensic Science Laboratory for further scientific examination, including toxicology tests which, it was hoped, might confirm the presence of thallium in the body.
But Chief Superintendent Harvey had heard enough. He headed back to Hemel Hempstead.
Graham was brought from his cell to Detective Chief Inspector Kirkpatrick’s office for questioning again that evening. Lined up neatly on the desk were a number of bottles collected from Graham’s room on Maynard Road.
Although Kirkpatrick himself was present, along with Detective Inspector Ratcliff, Chief Superintendent Harvey led the interview. ‘I wish to put some questions to you about the offences with which you will be charged,’ he began. ‘You’re not obliged to answer any of these questions, but if you do, the questions and answers will be taken down in writing and may be given in evidence.’
Graham then signed the caution on the first page of the questions Harvey had prepared earlier. Before dealing with those, Harvey wanted to know about the bottles on the desk. Kirkpatrick took notes as the two men parried back and forth.
‘When we searched your room, we took possession of certain items over here.’ Harvey pointed towards the desk: ‘These three tins were found in your drawer. What are they?’613
‘It’s the stores drawer.’
‘Is that your drawer?’
‘Yes, but I don’t know where it comes from. I disclaim ownership.’
‘Right.’ Har
vey then pointed to another item. ‘This box. You know its contents. What is this?’
‘Potassium ferrocyanide and concentrated sulphuric acid. Just for an experiment.’
‘The experiment in question?’
There was no hesitation in Graham’s response: ‘I wanted to see if the heat on ferrocyanide and sulphuric acid would produce any effect. I was expecting none.’
‘Okay.’ Harvey pointed again, ‘This bottle?’
‘Tincture of aconite, purchased relatively recently.’
‘What purchased for?’
‘Merely as a stock item for experiments. It’s a tincture for toothache remedy.’
‘How did you sign for it?’
‘I used the name M E Evans.’
‘What reason did you give?’
‘I said I required it for alkaline extraction of aconite.’
Harvey pointed to another bottle. ‘This?’
‘Oxalic acid. It can be used for many things. I kept it merely as stock. It isn’t a Schedule 1 item. It’s used in the manufacture of straw hats.’
‘This dropper?’
‘Merely to obtain a specific amount.’
‘Will there be traces of thallium?’
Graham shook his head, ‘No, certainly not. Merely traces of various harmless chemicals, possible traces of ferrocyanide.’
Harvey ran his finger down a row of containers. ‘These nine bottles of ether. What used for?’
‘They were all empty. I used them purely for inhalation.’
‘Why?’
Graham hesitated, ‘I’m not addicted, but its effects are similar to alcohol – the subjective effect is a kind of intoxication.’
Harvey pointed again: ‘This?’
‘An empty bottle which contained potassium.’
‘This?’
‘Iodine.’
‘This?’
‘Lead acetate solution. Merely as a stock item.’
‘This?’
‘Acetic acid – it looks as if it’s leaked. It can be used in the production of acetates.’
A Passion for Poison Page 27