Page 61 of Twisted Lies
Kim bit back her obvious retort and remained silent.
‘The UK Protected Persons Service, UKPPS, is responsible for approximately three thousand people and is governed by the National Crime Agency. The service is delivered regionally by local police forces. When witnesses enter the scheme, they become a protected person, which has a legal status and places a duty on police for protection.’
She wondered how that was working out for Keith Phipps or whatever his real name was.
‘So how does this work locally?’ Kim asked, wondering how it could be going on under their very noses.
‘Regional Protected Persons Units will work to keep the location discreet and help a family rebuild a life in the new area. The UKPPS is part of UK law enforcement. It works independently of police forces in providing protection arrangements and concentrates solely on keeping people safe. The Central Bureau, the national headquarters of the NCA, provides strategic and practical assistance to officers supporting protected persons.’
‘Matrix Enterprises?’
He nodded with an element of surprise that she’d got that far.
‘The budget for the scheme comes directly from the NCA. Referrals can only be made to UKPPS by police forces, NCA and other law enforcement bodies.’
‘Well, the Phipps family didn’t get rich out of the scheme,’ she observed. She too had heard stories of crooks and criminals being set up in luxury for their co-operation.
‘Doesn’t happen. Big payments can’t be made, as defence lawyers could argue that witnesses have been induced to provide false testimony. An average case can cost up to fifty thousand a year. Much of that is spent paying rent and bills and wages until a new home and job can be found, sometimes a car. If there’s a shortfall in house sale, the difference will be paid, but actually giving someone a new name costs as much as buying a new passport. The witness chooses a new name and signs a memorandum of understanding that there will be no criminal activity. Once in the scheme, a witness is assigned a police officer who doesn’t work on criminal investigations but is solely committed to protecting and hiding vulnerable witnesses.’
‘Leanne King?’ she asked.
‘Yes, she is a trained protection officer. One of about two hundred around the country.’
That explained so much that Kim had picked up on: the absence of the bond between the sisters; Leanne’s take-charge attitude; the obstruction to all her questions. The woman hadn’t been trying to stop Kim doing her job – she had simply been trying to do her own. Though Kim hadn’t liked her one little bit and that was not going to change, whatever the superintendent told her.
‘But what about the family’s history?’ Kim asked, thinking of all the dead ends they’d found along the way.
‘Destroyed. Witnesses are removed from the electoral roll and other publicly accessed databases. You see, the knowledge of someone being found and killed is catastrophic. No one outside the scheme knows where witnesses are located, and officers use different computer systems to prevent corrupt officers getting access to data.’
‘Weren’t a couple killed some years ago?’ she asked.
‘John and Joan Stirland were shot dead in 2004 by gangsters in retribution for a murder their son had committed. They’d moved house but weren’t put into witness protection. Many murders remain unsolved due to great reluctance for people to enter the scheme. The witness is provided with new medical records, national insurance numbers, bank accounts so that it minimises the chance of someone stumbling by chance on the person’s true identity. Some are given a panic button or a programmed phone to bring police assistance with one touch.
‘Of the thousands granted since 1978 when records first began, only a few have been spotted. Almost always because they didn’t follow advice. The scheme is an unprecedented success.’
Tell Keith Phipps that, Kim thought but instead said, ‘Until now.’
He opened his hands expressively.
‘Our killer found the Phipps family somehow. The information has to be recorded somewhere,’ Kim said.
‘A WS1 and WS2 threat assessment is completed for every family member that needs one. Completion, storage and movement of documents is done in accordance with strict protocols. The forms must be downloaded onto disc and then uploaded onto a secure stand-alone computer for completion. Referrals must be supported by at least DCI status. Signed copies are hand delivered, and all Protected Persons Unit operatives identify themselves by first name only, to minimise the risk of compromise. The degree of protection measures will differ in each case and are dependent on threat levels.’
Kim had heard enough about the process and now cared only about how all this affected her efforts to find the killer of Keith Phipps.
‘Is someone having this same conversation with DI Lynes right now?’
Wexford shook his head.
She looked from one to the other.
‘You’re not going to tell him?’
‘The less people that know the better. It is imperative that—’
‘Yeah, I get it. I heard it the first three times, but how is he supposed to run a murder investigation when he doesn’t have access to the full facts?’
‘He’ll continue to run it like normal. He’ll gather witness statements, forensic evidence and personal details about the victim, all of which might lead to the killer; but only you will have full knowledge and access to everything.’
