Cobra
Page 10
SM: Do you know who he is?
X: Nobody knows this guy. He’s a ghost. Just bullshit stories . . .
SM: What stories?
X: Bullshit, man. Some say he was in the French Foreign Legion, and he lives in Amsterdam, or Madrid, or Marseilles, but they don’t know. Nobody knows. Lots of stories, lots of rumours. The wannabes, they talk about him, they want to be him, man. If you want a clean hit, no comebacks, you get the Cobra. (Expletive) psychopath, man, they say he has the eyes of a snake, you know? He never blinks, cold eyes . . . That type of shit, people make it up. They even say he killed his own father, I mean, you know, there’s a new . . . how do they say? A new . . . twist every time . . .
SM: How did he kill his father?
X: It’s crap, man.
SM: I’m sure. But let’s not waste a good story.
X: (Expletive.) Don’t write in that report that this came from me. I need the money, man . . .
SM:Of course . . .
X: OK. So . . . They say, he killed his father, because he needed a reference, you know? To get business. Three, four years ago, in Portugal. His father was this retired Russian Army colonel, worked in Africa most of his life teaching those baboons to shoot each other with an AK, you know? What do they call them? Military advisor? So this Russian colonel (expletive) some black woman in one of those hell-hole countries, got her pregnant. And then he just left, never cared for the kid or the woman. Big suffering. But she knew his name and everything. So this kid grew up and he joined the French Foreign Legion, became a real killer, you know? A badass soldier. No fear. Nobody (expletive) with him. And then he left, and became The (expletive) Cobra, man, they say it was his first hit. He traced his father, the guy had retired to Portugal with all his stolen African money, and that was the Cobra’s first hit with the snake on the bullets. That’s where it all started.
SM: So he’s a mulatto?
X: That’s what they say.
SM: Who?
X: You know. The rumours. Just guys talking shit.
SM: Guys in the trade?
X: Yes.
SM: Has anybody actually seen him?
X: Maybe the bosses.
SM: Capos?
X: Yes. They say, two of them have met the Cobra. But in the beginning, few years ago, when he was selling.
SM: Selling what?
X: His service. You know. He had to market himself, in the beginning. As an assassin.
SM: Anything else?
X: Not really. OK maybe ... But you know this is really all (expletive) crap. Because of the snake on the bullets, they make up new things.
SM:Tell me anyway.
X:They say there’s this tattoo he has. Bird and a snake. On his arm. Right here. Guy must love snakes.
SM: That’s it?
X: There’s nothing else to tell. Oh, they say, if you want to contact him, you place an ad on . . . what’s it called . . . . ? Loot. That’s it.
SM: Loot?
X: Yes. It’s a website in England where you can sell anything. So you place an ad and you use the word snake, like ‘snake for sale’ or something, some special code. And then he will contact you. (Expletive) snakes. I mean, you have to be a psycho man, to be that into snakes.
Griessel looked up at van Wyk. ‘There’s a lot of speculation.’
Van Wyk nodded. ‘It gets better. Read the next one.’
He picked it up and read.
INTERPOL
General Secretariat
200, quai Charles de Gaulle
69006 Lyon
France
Intelligence report: Cobra/B79C1/04/03/2007/27/6/2010
Report date: 27 June 2010
Report submitted by: Superintendent Marie-Caroline Aubert, InterpolGeneral Secretariat, Lyon
Investigation: Murder of Zakhar Perminov, Vila Praia da Ancora, Portugal on 13 September 2006
Source: Dossier of the Polícia de Segurança Pública, and personal interview with Superintendent Christóvã Formigo, Polícia de Segurança Pública, Lisbon, Portugal
(Translated by P. A. Shilling, Interpol, 28 June 2010)
At 07.55 on the morning of 13 September 2006, the body of Zakhar Ivanovich Perminov was found (by a Portuguese cleaning woman) in the living room of a villa on the outskirts of Vila Praia de ncora, a coastal holiday resort in northern Portugal, about five kilometres south of the Spanish border.
Perminov had been shot twice – once in the forehead, and once through the heart. Bullets recovered from the crime scene indicated a Heckler & Koch MK23 (a weapon popular with American Special Forces) and Cor Bon ammunition (45 ACP +P 230 grain).
Two shell casings that were found on the scene match this firearm and ammunition. The casings were engraved with the likeness of a snake with a flared head, and the initials/letters NM (capitalised, no full stops).
The villa had no security measures, and no sign of forced entry was found. According to a statement by the cleaning woman the villa’s glass sliding doors leading to the pool were never locked when Perminov was in residence.
No forensic evidence of the intruder, other than the shell casings and bullets, was found on the scene. No arrests were made, and the dossier is still open.
Perminov, the deceased, was a Russian citizen. The Russian Embassy in Lisbon supplied limited details about the deceased’s career, but it was confirmed that he was a retired former Russian paratroop colonel. Perminov served as reconnaissance squad leader for the 103rd Guards Airborne Division in Vitebsk in Belarus, and was deployed to Mozambique as military advisor to the Mozambique Liberation Front (FRELIMO) from 1978−1980. He also served in Angola as a member of the staff of the Soviet chief military advisor, Lieutenant-General Leonid Kusmenko, in 1986.
Re. Intelligence Report Cobra/B79C104/03/2007/19/03/2009:
After a written submission to the Mozambican Embassy in Paris, it was confirmed that Zakhar Ivanovich Perminov was registered as the father of Joaquim Curado. Joaquim Curado was born on 27 January 1979 in Cuamba, Mozambique, to Dores Branca Curado (herself born of a Makua mother and Portuguese father).
The Mozambican authorities also confirmed that the same Joaquim Curado is still a citizen of that country. A passport was issued to him (in the name of Joaquim Curado) in 1999, and was replaced by a new passport in 2003. (Note: It is common practice for the Légion étrangère [L.E. or French Foreign Legion] to confiscate enlistees’ passports, which might explain the replacement.)
This 2003 passport was used for a return journey from France to Mozambique in 2006, but no further legal entries/exits were logged.
It was further established that a Joaquim Curado, a Mozambican citizen (passport number corresponded with first issued Mozambican travel document), served in the Légion étrangère from 2000 to 2005 as Legionnaire 1e Classe (Lance Corporal/1st Class Legionnaire) in the 1st Foreign Regiment (1° RE).
(Note MCA:The insignia of the L.E.’s 1st Foreign Regiment [1° RE] is a framed bird of prey [black] and a snake [green]. See Intelligence Report: Cobra/B79C1/04/03/2007/19/03/2009, page 2:‘There’s this tattoo he has. Bird and a snake. On his arm. Right here. Guy must love snakes.’)
According to his partially and unofficially released L.E. records, Curado received special forces training, and showed no exceptional leadership skills. However, he was regarded as a proficient soldier and excellent marksman, and served with distinction in several African operations.
He is 1.89 metres (6 ft 2 inches) tall, and weighed 95 kg (209 lbs) at induction into the L.E.
Curado was honourably discharged from the Légion étrangère at his own request in 2005, having served his compulsory five-year term. In the same year, on the strength of his L.E. service, he was granted French citizenship, and thus now holds dual citizenship of Mozambique and France. A French passport was issued to him on 19 January 2006. The passport has not since been used for travel outside the European Union.
No current address was found for Joaquim Curado.
(Note MCA: A theory might b
e formulated that Joaquim Curado is the assassin known as ‘the Cobra’.)
* A photograph of Curado was supplied by the L.E. and is herewith attached. It was taken during his L.E. induction in 2000.
17
INTERPOL
General Secretariat
200, quai Charles de Gaulle
69006 Lyon
France
Intelligence Report Addendum: Cobra/B79C1/04/03/2007/04/ 07/2010
Report date: 14 September 2010
Report submitted by: Superintendent Marie-Caroline Aubert, Interpol General Secretariat, Lyon
Investigation: Series of murders in the European Union connected to ‘The Cobra’ (Original dossier Cobra/B79C1/04/03/2007)
(Translated by P. A. Shilling, Interpol, 15 September 2010)
With reference to the series of nine murders in the European Union
(2006−2010) where bullets recovered from the various crime scenes indicated a Heckler & Koch MK23 and Cor-Bon ammunition (45 ACP +P 230 grain), and shell casings were engraved with the likeness of a snake with flared head and the initials/letters NM (capitalised, no full stops): A theory might be formulated that the snake engraving represents the Mozambique Spitting Cobra:
1. The engraving shows a high likeness for Mozambique Spitting Cobra – also the scale and the size of the hood.
2. The genus name of Naja mossambica corresponds with the initials NM.
3. Interpol Intelligence Reports Cobra/B79C1/04/03/2007/19/03/2009 and Cobra/B79C1/04/03/2007/27/06/2010 indicate a credible link between the suspected hired assassin ‘The Cobra’, and Joaquim Curado, a Mozambican and French national.
4. It is believed that ‘The Cobra’ is mulatto in complexion. In every homicide where his involvement is suspected, the victims suffered at least one shot between, near, or through the eyes. Note the behaviour (accuracy, eyes as target) and the colouring (tawny brown) of the Mozambique Spitting Cobra:
(Source, quoted verbatim: http://www.africanreptiles-venom.co.za/mozambique_spitting_cobra.html )
The colour varies between olive-grey, tawny brown or grey, with the scales in-between a black colour. The distribution includes Natal, Lowveld, south-eastern Tanzania and Pemba Island, and west to southern Angola and northern Namibia.
Behaviour:
This snake is a nervous and highly strung snake (sic). When confronted at close quarters it can rear up to as much as two-thirds of its length, spread its long narrow hood and will readily ‘spit’ in defence, usually from a reared-up position. By doing this the venom can be ejected at a distance of 2–3 metres (5½–8¼ feet), with remarkable accuracy. The spitting cobra does not often actually bite despite its aggressive behaviour, and also displays the habit of feigning death to avoid further molestation.
Venom:
This is probably the most dangerous snake, second only to the Mamba. Its bite causes severe local tissue destruction (similar to that of the Puff Adder). Like the Rinkhals, it can spit its venom. The venom is ejected from two small holes near the tip of the teeth, usually aimed at the eyes. The effect is instantaneous causing intense smarting and inflammation and if not washed out with milk or water will cause permanent blindness.
The photograph of Joaquim Curado was small, scarcely two by three centimetres. It was printed in colour, but faded.
The face that stared out at Griessel was somewhere between boy and man. His hair was cropped very short, the features almost feminine in their refinement – high forehead, even, strong jawline, big dark eyes, straight nose, full lips, in the photo completely neutral. It reminded Griessel of a police drawing. There was no emotion – it was a face waiting to be filled in by life. But by no means the ‘cold eyes’ the Italian informant had speculatively described.
And there was something about the width and musculature of the neck that created the impression of an athlete.
Nearly 1.9 metres. Just under 100 kilograms. And that was before he started training with the French Foreign Legion. He would be a handful to arrest now.
‘Can we make a bigger photo?’ he asked van Wyk.
‘Not without losing resolution. Maybe a centimetre or two . . . It’s thirteen years old, Benny.’
‘I know . . .’
He had that light-headed feeling that came with only three hours of sleep, his thoughts erratic, flitting and floundering.
He wanted to read all the Interpol documents carefully. Then he wanted to compile a time line of Adair’s last week. He wanted to consider how the photo of the Cobra could help them.
He wanted more sleep.
He looked up at van Wyk, now pale, his bloodshot eyes weary. ‘Phil, I want to work through this stuff carefully first. You should go home now.’
‘OK, just two more things. Lithpel and the guys came back just after twelve. We managed to isolate Morris’s computers from the other farm people by the IP address . . .’
‘Computers?’
‘Technically speaking. It’s an Apple computer, and an iPad. Lithpel said Morris visited a lot of financial news websites. The Economist, Financial Times, Bloomberg . . . And then he was on his Google mail at least five times. Lithpel says you must talk to him when he gets back; he might be able to get into the emails.’
He nearly said ‘Adair’s email?’ Stopped himself in time and said ‘Morris’s email?’
‘That’s right. Lithpel says there is a way.’
‘But not through the channels?’
‘No.’
He sat in his office and started with the documents, right from the beginning.
He read the summary of each of the Cobra assassinations – sixteen since 2006 – concise descriptions of the victims and murder scenes. Some reports contained notes by ‘MCA’, whom he subsequently realised must be Marie-Caroline Aubert.
She sometimes speculated about the possible motive behind the murder, made comments about the quality of the investigations, and carefully suggested theories.
Slowly, he gained respect for the way her head worked. Griessel picked up his pen and circled two of her notes. The first was an insert, in brackets, to the murder of the American billionaire in New York in 2011: (Note MCA: One possible consideration is that the Cobra does not brand all his hits with the marked shell casings. If one takes into account the fact that he has averaged only two assassinations per annum since 2006, for an assumed (relatively modest for his skills and talents) yearly income of €200,000, there is the distinct possibility that he has completed other contracts on a more anonymous basis. An Interpol database search on H&K MK23 murders in Europe since 2006 shows eleven unconfirmed and forensically unmatched possibilities. For further investigation.)
The second was in the murder of an Iranian engineer in Warsaw in 2012: (Note MCA: During a telephone interview with the investigating officer, it became apparent that the victim, Omid Rostami, was involved with the Iranian uranium enrichment project. It is suspected that Rostami was in Warsaw to seek a black market uranium or nuclear equipment contract. It is further suspected that this was a Mossad hit, subcontracted to the Cobra.)
It reminded him of Cupido’s words: This was a professional hit, pappie, and jy wiet wie sanctions professional hits. Gangstas and governments.
Mossad. Intelligence Services. They knew about this hired assassin. And they were prepared to contract him.
What about other intelligence people? Such as Emma Graber of MI6?
Griessel pulled an A4 pad from his top drawer and paged past the
rough notes of his previous dossiers, till he had a clean page.
At the top he wrote Morris/Adair:
He consulted his notebook, then the calendar on his iPhone. He wrote:
Monday 24 June: Break in at Adair, Cambridge.
Tuesday 25 June:Adair reported missing.
Wednesday 26 June:Adair phones Body Armour (as Morris).
Thursday 27 June:Adair sends passport scan and flight number to Body Armour.
Friday 28 June:Adair arrives in Cape Town.
Sunday 30 June:Adair abducted/murdered, Franschhoek.
He sat staring at his timeline, trying to make sense of it.
So many things, such a short time. And his head wasn’t clear.
The break-in at Adair’s flat was just over a week ago. A back door was forced, and the interior left in complete disarray, Graber had said.
That meant someone had been looking for something.
The room in La Petite Margaux guesthouse was in the same condition. As if there had been a search.
He made a note: Who is looking for what? Bones Boshigo said everyone knows what the algorithm does, even the terrorists, and there’s nothing anybody can do to stop it. Why then were people searching through Adair’s flat and guesthouse room?
Last Monday Adair had got away just in time before the burglary at his home. Or perhaps he hadn’t been there at the time, maybe he came home after the incident, saw the chaos and fl ed? Where to? And why?
He wrote: False passport? The question was: Did Adair already have one at his disposal? Or did he acquire one in haste between Monday and Thursday last week? Both possibilities had interesting implications. A Professor of Mathematics who kept a false passport handy? Or knew where to get one at short notice?