New Tricks s07e06 Episode Script

Mr Standing? Yes, yeah.
You certainly pick your moment, don't you? Well, if it's not a good time Oh, no, no.
It's taken eight years to get you here.
I'm not letting you out of my sight.
This way.
Can I take those? Oh, yeah, thank you.
Who said chivalry was dead? Just dump them down there.
Okey-doke.
Oh, you actually MAKE things here? Well, it is a fashion college! Yeah.
Hey.
Oh, you like that, do you? Yeah.
Yeah, it's by one of my most promising students.
Try it on.
No, no, no, no.
Yeah, go on, I think it'd suit you.
Do you? Yeah, you may as well.
You could do with losing a couple of inches but I think you can pull that off.
Still, you have to play the part, don't you? What do you mean? I suppose you have to look like a policeman.
Well It's a shame.
It took ten years off you.
Now I've finally got you here I don't really know what to say.
I assumed my letters were going in the bin.
No way, they're all on file.
We can't re-open cases every time someone writes us a letter.
Please, Mr Standing.
Gerry.
Gerry.
# It's all right, it's OK # Doesn't really matter if you're old and gray # It's all right, I say, it's OK # Listen to what I say # It's all right, doin' fine # Doesn't really matter if the sun don't shine # It's all right, I say it's OK # We're gettin' to the end of the day! # Ah, Guv'nor, hold on.
Good morning in court? Joyful as ever.
How was Sarah Levene? Whoa! Cracking and interesting! I knew I should have sent Jack.
Guv, Guv? Do you think I look? Oh, never mind.
What? No, no, forget it, forget it.
Fashion designer Ritchie Levene.
Oh yes, The Fashion Victim.
The CID nicknamed him.
Quite good for them.
April, 2002.
He was killed on his 40th birthday.
Yup, during a party at his home in Shoreditch.
His body was discovered around 2am in his private studio at the back of the house.
He'd been stabbed in the neck.
The murder weapon was never found, but the pathologist reckoned from the size of the wound it could have been scissors.
Big wound for scissors.
Dress making scissors, like shears, really.
There were several pairs lying around the studio.
So why are we looking at it now? Because of this woman - Sarah Levene.
Ritchie's first wife.
They married in '85, divorced in '98.
It's funny, all this fashion stuff, you think he would have been a bit light on his loafers, eh? Good to see that you're entering this with your usual open mind, Gerry.
Yeah, well Sarah had been petitioning the CPS for years, and in her last letter she said she was going to picket this retrospective exhibition of all Ritchie Levene's fashion stuff.
So, don't tell me, Strickland got nervous? Precisely.
Now the original investigation centred around Levene's She was seen running from the studio just before the body was discovered and her finger prints were all over the room.
If she was his PA, that's where they would be.
No, no, no, her fingers made prints with his blood.
Ah! She later admitted finding the body but said that she panicked and fled.
I'd like you two to talk to her.
Just now you said that Sarah was Ritchie Levene's first wife, so Yeah, he married again, just months before his murder, this time to Alison Henninghem, a former model.
Were either of the wives suspects? They were both at the party and neither of them had alibis for the half hour or so that Ritchie was reportedly in his studio.
The same could be said for dozens of other people at the house.
So there are too many potential suspects and not enough forensic evidence? Except for this Melanie girl.
No, there was a series of psychiatric evaluations which concluded that it was "highly unlikely" that she could have killed him.
And after that the case stalled.
So why does Sarah Levene want to picket this exhibition? Because it's been organised by Levene's younger brother, Adrian.
And Sarah believes that Adrian killed Ritchie.
Why? Well, after Ritchie died he got the business and made a fortune.
You know, I need to make sure that they put it absolutely right above the door, OK? OK.
All right, well go and do it.
Mr Levene? > Yeah.
Got a moment to talk? You can see I'm busy? Well, no we can see everybody else is busy.
What's this about? Your brother.
I don't understand.
We're reopening the investigation into his death.
Well, I'm staggered.
You didn't do anything last time when his murderer was right in front of you.
Meaning? Melanie Higgs.
The original investigation looked closely at Melanie but there was never enough evidence.
She was seen running from his studio with his blood on her.
What more do you want? A motive.
She was obsessed with him.
Yeah, you said that in your statements.
How did you get on with your brother? He was wonderful.
Um, I was very proud of him.
You were close? Yeah, very.
You took over the label after he died, is that right? Yes.
And before that? We worked together.
But Ritchie was in charge? It was his name, they were his designs and I dealt with the business side.
Since Ritchie died, the label has become very successful, hasn't it? Yeah, very.
But I just built on the foundations of my brother's work.
Melanie Higgs? Yes? We'd like to talk to you about Ritchie Levene, if you have a moment.
I don't.
And I don't know who sent you or what you want, but I've got nothing to say.
We're with the police.
You think I did it? No.
We're not here to judge you.
We just want to hear your version of events.
You were never interested in what I had to say before.
You just wanted to lock me up.
You did flee the murder scene and Ritchie's blood was found on your dress.
I explained that at the time.
Well, this is a new investigation.
We want to start with a clean slate.
Sounds like it.
How did you come to meet Ritchie? Work experience.
What, making tea? Answering the phones? Yeah, at first.
And then he made you his PA? You did well.
Ritchie needed me, it just worked.
Did you two of you have a sexual relationship? Here we go again.
No.
You say he "needed" you? Yeah, well Ritchie never knew what was best for him.
And you did? I was there to protect him.
From? He was famous, everyone wanted a piece of him.
I was there to keep them away, all those people that wanted to use him.
That's why when I found him that night I didn't know who to turn to.
There was no-one you could trust? Not really.
And back at the party, it was dark and the music was really loud and there were lots of faces I didn't recognise.
It was like being trapped in some kind of horror film.
So that's why I ran away.
I'm sorry if you don't approve of my behaviour but I was terrified.
You were obviously very close to Ritchie.
Did that cause any problems between you and Alison? No.
She never loved him anyway.
Why do you say that? You should have seen the way she was with men.
Flirting all the time.
With who? Everyone.
Ritchie said he liked that other men found her attractive, but how could he? Did she seem close to anyone in particular? Men were always falling over themselves to get in with her, especially Tyler, that junkie ex-boyfriend of hers.
You know he lived at the house, too? Yes, Tyler Curtis.
Alison was more interested in getting him off drugs than being a good wife to Ritchie.
No wonder he started drinking.
Who? Ritchie? Yeah, he'd been teetotal for years, hadn't he? But then he changed, he seemed worried and started again.
It was all her fault.
Alison was Ritchie always liked pretty young things.
The one drawback of being married to a designer, they're easily distracted by something shiny and new.
Doubt if that just applies to designers? Yeah, but you were divorced three years before he married Alison.
Oh, Ritchie loved women and he took every opportunity to love as many as he could.
That applied throughout our marriage.
He cheated on you? God, yeah.
Frequently? Habitually.
Did that make you feel angry? Well, in the end, defeated more than angry.
During the divorce, Ritchie's lawyer said that you made threats.
It was a public divorce, I felt humiliated.
So you WERE angry with him.
Well, yeah, but anything I said was in the heat of the moment.
If you think I killed him Why are you so convinced it was his brother? Because Adrian always wanted to control the label.
The name, the flair, the talent - was all Ritchie's.
Adrian couldn't bear that.
But did they get on together OK as brothers? Adrian was ambitious, always wanted everything done his way and Ritchie always wanted to see the best in people, but even he lost patience with him.
Over what? How the label should be run.
Adrian wanted to turn it into a mass market product, use cheaper fabrics, cut corners, farm the labour out to sweat shops.
And did he? Not while Ritchie was alive because he owned the majority stake.
Which Alison inherited? No.
It was in Ritchie's will that his share of the business would pass to Adrian.
I always said he should do something about that, but He never got round to it.
Who did you think the beneficiary should be? Well, anyone but Adrian.
But as Ritchie didn't alter his will, then maybe their disputes weren't as serious as you say? Well, Ritchie thought he was going to live forever.
He didn't change it because he didn't think he needed to.
But the situation was serious.
I know he tried to buy Adrian out of the label just before he died.
Sarah is very keen to point the finger at Adrian.
Maybe rightly so, he does have the most to gain and maybe that's why he's trying to push us towards Melanie, try and throw us off.
Talking of which? Well, by the sound of it I'm with Adrian or Melanie.
There's something not quite right with her.
Bunny boiler? Not half! She's obsessed with him.
Maybe she felt if she couldn't have Ritchie, she didn't want Alison to have him either.
You could say the same for Sarah.
Well, the way Melanie put it, Alison was more interested in her ex, Tyler Curtis.
He's got an alibi, but it's probably worth speaking to him.
Melanie also said that Ritchie had changed towards the end.
He seemed to be worried about something.
And he fell off the wagon.
I'm not surprised the poor sod's worried.
Probably wondering what his wife's getting up to with her ex! Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
And this? Don't come to me with anything like this again.
Alison Levene? Where did you get that coat? Me wife bought it in Parkin and Wickes, 1984.
I love it.
So retro.
I know why you're here Ritchie.
How come? Adrian called, told me you'd been to see him.
There were over 100 people at that party.
No expense had been spared, yet according to the company accounts the Levene label had been losing money steadily since 1999.
By the time he died he was virtually broke, so how did he afford it? Well, he was like me when I went bankrupt.
There's always one last round at the boozer even when you know you are stoney broke.
But it wasn't just the party.
If he was going to buy his brother's share in the company Like Sarah said, Adrian knew he didn't have the wedge to do it.
Then there's this - that was three weeks before his death.
Interesting to know how he did it.
Any luck with Tyler Curtis? No, nothing.
No social security, DVLA, bank account, passports - total blank.
Missing persons? No, same.
A tenner says he died years ago and nobody identified the body.
Yeah, well if he was a heroin addict and no-one had reported him as missing.
Who was his alibi on the night of the party? A bloke called Colin Beck and I've got his address - you want to come? Yeah, why not.
We understand your late husbands' PA Melanie Higgs was very protective of him.
How did you get on with her? How would you get on with the woman who's in love with your husband? You think they were having an affair? The newspapers tried to suggest that something was going on.
Thought they knew his reputation.
Were they right? No.
Ritchie and I were very happy.
So whose idea was it to have your previous boyfriend move in with the pair of you? Mine.
Tyler needed somewhere to clean up.
How long had he been an addict? Years.
I thought that that "elegantly wasted" look was romantic at first.
Did he clean up? Yes.
Are you still in touch? No.
I haven't seen him for years.
How did your husband feel about Tyler Curtis being in the house? It's no secret that Ritchie had been through a lot with drink and drugs himself.
He wanted to help.
That was Ritchie.
Even so, it can't have been an easy situation.
You don't think that he was concerned, worried? No.
It was easier when Tyler left, sure, but you know, he was happy.
What is it you do here now? I'm a creative consultant.
And what does that involve? Ensuring that the label stays true to Ritchie's vision.
It's what he would have wanted.
Hiya, we've come to see Colin Beck.
Is he expecting you? No.
Your names? Jack Halford, Gerry Standing.
Metropolitan Police.
First floor.
Well, that's got him wondering.
I'm not sure if I'd like a bloke like that knowing all my comings and goings.
I bet you wouldn't! Are you sure you won't have coffee? No, I'm fine, thank you.
Thank you very much.
Please, take a seat.
Thank you.
Yes, poor Ritchie.
It's hard to believe even now.
You were best man at both his weddings.
You must have been very close? Terribly, I think Ritchie looked up to me as a sort of uncle, bless him.
But you weren't in the same game? No, I ran a Trust Fund business in the City.
My girlfriend at the time dragged me along to one of Ritchie's first collections.
We met afterwards and got on like a house on fire.
But you didn't go to his 40th birthday party? No, I was looking after a mutual friend.
Tyler Curtis? Yes.
How come? Well, he'd been staying with Ritchie's for quite a while.
God knows it can't have been easy for any of them.
I just took Tyler in for a week or so.
An unlikely friendship? Have much in common? Not really, but Alison asked if I could help.
She's a charming woman, very hard to refuse.
I was just trying to do my bit.
Was Tyler using drugs while he was here? God, no! I still don't understand why you chose not to go to the party that night.
I was a bit long in the tooth for Ritchie's parties even then.
Where did Tyler go when he moved out of here? I really don't know.
He was a drifter and Ritchie's death had hit us all so badly.
When did you last see Ritchie? A few weeks before he died.
And how was he? High spirits, as usual.
You didn't notice anything different about him, he wasn't worried or anything? No, not at all.
We understand he was having some financial problems.
We never discussed that.
Ritchie was a friend, not a client.
I always draw a line between friendship and business.
Why is it only Melanie telling us Richie was unhappy before he died? Maybe that's what she wants us to believe.
Or the others don't want us to know he had any problems.
Men confide all kind of things to their secretaries that they wouldn't admit to their family or friends.
Look, he was broke and he had Alison's junkie ex-boyfriend hanging around.
If you ask me, that's plenty to be unhappy about.
Talking of which, where are we with Tyler? Off the radar.
I'm running out of places to look.
You've obviously tried rehab centres, retreats, hostels? Yeah, dozens and there's still loads more.
OK, that'll keep you busy tomorrow.
Tonight however, I think we deserve a little outing.
Where? Style Icon, The Genius of Ritchie Levene.
You'll love it, Brian, you'll fit right in.
Right.
Where do you want to start? I don't know.
I've been dying to do this for so long, you've got no idea.
I can't believe you're still going around in clothes that your ex-wife bought you 20 years ago! How about this? I need something to go to work in not skateboarding! I thought you were going out tonight? Yeah, I'm not going to spend 50 quid on something I only wear once.
Don't answer that.
Come and have a look at these.
You know, I don't think this was such a good idea.
We just need to find you something you feel comfortable in.
Yeah, but.
How about this? How much?! Just try it on.
Look, I know I used to be a detective, but I wasn't Inspector bleeding Clouseau.
Oh, hold on.
Hmm.
Where's Gerry? It's not like him to miss out on a free drink.
Cheers.
Sandra, where are you going? No reception.
Don't leave us here! Just mingle.
Use your retro charms! You'd look a right prat going round the shops in that lot! I don't think you've quite got the hang of haute couture.
It's not meant to be accessorised with a supermarket trolley.
Fashion(!) It's daft though, isn't it? Folk spending their lives chucking out perfectly good clothing only to buy same stuff again 10 years later.
Good grief! What's all this? What do you think, tasty, eh? Don't tell us, you met some scrubber and you're trying to impress her? No, I did this for me.
Don't you ever look at us and think maybe we should do something about ourselves? No.
Come on, come on.
Well, well, well, what a surprise! Oh, God it's her.
What's she doing here? I take it your wife doesn't know about this, then? No, of course not.
Look, I know what you must be thinking.
That something was going on between us while Ritchie was alive.
It wasn't.
We'd known each other for years before anything happened, I swear.
We went through hell when Ritchie died - I lost my husband, Adrian lost his brother.
I hadn't even looked at another man.
My wife doesn't need to know anything about this, please.
No, of course not, that really wouldn't be good for the image, would it? Excuse me.
Have you seen this, our very own Style Icon! Very nice, guess who I just caught snogging behind the bike sheds? Who? The plot thickens.
Hello, good evening.
Thank you for coming tonight on behalf of myself, Alison and our wonderful staff at Ritchie Levene.
We're going to be showcasing our new season here over the next week, as well as celebrating the genius of my late brother.
Thank you to everybody here for giving us this opportunity to demonstrate why we're still Hypocrite! Both of you should be ashamed.
We hope you have a very wonderful evening.
Thank you very much.
How can you stand there, when all you've done is cheapen everything your brother stood for! She's off.
Get back here, you coward! I am talking to you.
It is typical of you to try something like this.
Ritchie was your brother not a brand! Although considering everything you've done to trample over his name he'd want even less to do with you now than he did when he was alive! Oh, and here's your partner in crime.
No wonder Ritchie couldn't wait to be shot of you.
What would you know? I made him happy which is more than you.
You're another one who just used him.
Don't forget, wearing clothes doesn't qualify you to make them.
OK, Sarah, this isn't helping, come with me.
Get them back to the party.
Look at you now.
You are nothing without Ritchie and you know it.
That's enough, come on.
What's this all about? I shouldn't have come.
Look, I'd told you we'd look into the case, there was no need for all this.
I know.
I'm sorry.
I just How can they parade themselves in front of his name when all they've done is exploit it? You really ought to go home, you know.
I'm being stupid.
I just couldn't bear seeing them up there like that, basking in it all.
I thought we needed each other, me and Ritchie.
I always imagined he'd come back.
I'm glad to see you took my advice.
Well, if she was expecting him to come back to her, but he married Alison instead? Nah, I don't buy that.
Sarah's no killer.
We've got Adrian and Alison now.
How do we know they haven't been at it for years? If they were having an affair while Ritchie was still alive, then maybe Alison was in on the murder? She's certainly been a busy girl.
Tyler, Ritchie, Adrian.
Tyler's still the missing piece.
You're in danger for feeling sorry for Sarah.
Yeah, I am actually! Morning.
Morning.
What? I'm updating the old image, all right? What image? A hard drinking, heavy smoking, foul mouthed, ex-detective? Gerry, mate.
Why didn't you tell us you were going through a mid life crisis? Strickland's furious.
Last night's bust up's already made the papers.
It's on the internet an all! Coffee? Yeah, urghh.
Let's go through everything again.
What've we got? Well, we still haven't eliminated Melanie and she was the last person in that studio before the body was discovered.
Oh, I don't know, Jack.
The original investigation team fancied her.
Maybe they were right.
I mean, suppose she told Ritchie how she felt about him.
You know how people get at parties.
He rejected her, she picked up the nearest thing at hand and But she was shorter than him.
The lab report says the blade went in straight, not at an angle.
And if she did do it, why risk going back through the house when she could have left through that door there? It might not have been anyone at the party.
He could have let anybody in through that door.
Yeah, someone he recognised.
That doesn't discount anyone.
None of this lot had a clear alibi when Ritchie was in that studio.
Any one of them could have walked through the front door and come back in there.
Alison? Adrian? Alison and Adrian? I'm going to go and talk to Melanie and see if she noticed anything going on between them at the time.
What else? Well, we know Ritchie was worried at the time.
And I'm sure this Tyler was involved in some way.
Yeah, well, I'm always suspicious of someone we can't find AND there's this! How did it happen? Some fight with Adrian over control of the company, maybe? Why don't we go and have a little chat with Adrian and Alison? Yeah, get some straight answers out of them.
Good idea.
Here we are.
Cor, it's a bit grim, isn't it? Yeah.
It's amazing, when I was a kid we couldn't wait to get out of here, now all the arty farty lot can't wait to get in so they can live amongst the working classes.
Having spent half a million converting it! Yeah.
You would have thought Alison would've wanted to move, after what happened here.
Maybe it's her way of hanging onto the past? The way Sarah talks about her, I would have thought she would have flogged it and pocketed the cash.
Perhaps Sarah hasn't quite got the measure of Alison.
Good morning, we called the office but they said you were working from home today.
It's weird though, innit? Here, what does that remind you of? No, it can't be.
Alison said his coat was retro.
I always said that Brian was the height of fashion! I know it can't be easy to talk about these things.
I have talked about it.
To you.
Yesterday.
I know, but I wonder if you ever really reconciled yourself to what happened.
It's a bit early for analysis.
My appointment's not till Thursday.
Are you seeing a psychiatrist? Yeah, that's what happens when your life's turned upside down by people like you.
I know the last thing you need is an old sod like me telling you how you should and shouldn't feel, but I wonder if you're not blaming yourself in some way for Ritchie's death? Do I have to listen to this? Why don't I buy you a coffee? Dr Lane here can look after the stall.
You wanted to ask me something? Yes.
Your relationship with Adrian.
I told your boss last night about us.
You said you'd only been together for a short time.
Four months.
Can you prove that? Ask about.
You can't keep secrets for long in this business.
We weren't going to say anything until Adrian had Well, he's got a lot to sort out.
You're not kidding.
But you can see why we're asking.
I mean, after Ritchie died you inherited all this, got the good job, nice office And, what, that would be a reason for me to murder my husband? And Adrian gets the company.
Nice little package.
How can you even think that? Well, look at it from Adrian's point of view.
He's ended up with everything he ever wanted.
Except I lost my brother.
Does your missus know you're here? If you want a divorce lawyer, I know three to avoid.
OK, if you have any questions to ask us, why don't you just ask them? We don't have any secrets from each other.
You never liked Alison, did you? Because of the way that she was with other men? I said she never loved him.
You mentioned Tyler, but thinking back was there anyone else in particular that she was close to? No, she was like that with all blokes.
How is she with Adrian? I don't know.
He just did the money stuff, I didn't really see much of him.
What are you saying? Nothing, nothing, I was just asking.
Apparently you were very protective of Ritchie - so presumably you'd have looked out for him? Yeah, I tried to.
He was very charismatic, wasn't he? Talented, good looking, kind.
I can see why you felt the way you did about him.
What do you mean? I wasn't in love with him.
Nothing wrong with it if you were.
Is it true Ritchie wanted to buy you out of the company? Ritchie often said things he didn't really mean.
So he did, or he didn't? He mentioned it.
Did he make an offer? Yes, 200 grand.
Adrian? That doesn't sound like very much.
Well, the company was on its knees and it was barely worth anything.
Ritchie couldn't even find 200 grand.
He did tell me he was going to come into some money though.
He said he had a plan.
I never knew what it was.
I guess it might have come through if Why did he want you out of the company? He wasn't a businessman.
I was trying to help him but he didn't like my plans for the label.
Lucky you took over when you did then.
Well, not really.
My brother DIED.
Do you think I didn't care? Am I right in thinking that shortly before his death he started boozing again? Yes.
It wasn't anything serious.
An alcoholic falling off the wagon is always serious.
Well, he wasn't drinking heavily.
Yes, he was.
Why? I don't know.
There's always a reason? Do you think he suspected that there was something going on with you two? Oh, for God's sake! Why aren't you finding out who killed my brother instead of asking us these bloody stupid questions?! I'm sorry.
Ritchie broke his arm a few weeks before his death.
How did that happen? He fell off a motorbike, I think.
You think? Life with Ritchie was full of surprises.
I lost track of everything he got up to.
I told him he should be more careful on the bike.
Was Mr Lane right, about you never having forgiven yourself for not being able to help Ritchie that night? Yeah.
I'm telling you, you look a picture.
You go down the disco tonight you'll really get noticed.
What's going on? I'm minding your stall for you, love.
What have you done? If you don't mind me saying so, you weren't making the most of your presentation.
So I've organised everything in units and I've colour coded things, you see.
It's my stall! Well, yes, I know.
Hang on a minute.
.
.
Are you buying that, love? How much is it? Have a look at the tag! It's £35.
£35, love.
Yeah, go on.
Yes, sold to the lady.
Thank you.
Very nice Bolero is that.
That's rabbit fur is that, or maybe its mink And the bag is free.
£35.
Thank you very much.
Thank you, enjoy.
Bye.
Now what were you saying? Come on, Brian.
Right, here's your money.
I enjoyed that.
I might get me own stall.
I could make a fortune.
Wait What? There's something else.
When I found Ritchie I took something.
What did you take? His notebook.
It was on his desk.
I'd seen him writing in it all the time, personal stuff he said.
You know, thoughts, ideas.
Why did you take it? Because I hoped he might have written about me.
And did he? I couldn't give it back before, I knew I'd get in trouble But I don't want it any more.
OK, where is it now? At my place.
Where's that? Five minutes from here.
Lead the way! There you go.
Where's? Ah.
That was interest Oh, what you got there? It's a notebook belonging to Ritchie.
Where did you find that? Melanie.
Took it from the studio after finding the body.
What, she nicked it? I knew she wasn't telling us everything.
So what's in there? Oh, sketches, ideas Some terrible poetry! There might be something in here.
How were Alison and Adrian? He's hiding something, playing down how his brother was during those last few weeks.
And he's got a hell of a temper.
I thought he was going to thump Gerry at one point.
You all right? 'Course I am.
But she did give us one thing, a picture of Tyler Curtis.
Oh, good! And Ritchie's broken arm - she said she thought he fell off a motorbike.
When I was married I might have been a bit vague about a few things, you know, anniversaries, birthdays.
Whose bed you should be sleeping in.
But even I would remember how one of my exes broke an arm.
Ah, you old romantic.
What about if Ritchie had had enough, tells Tyler to get out of the house.
There's an argument, a fight.
Bosh! Circulate that.
I want to talk to him.
Yeah, yeah.
Nothing! Jack? Have a look at this.
.
.
OK, well thanks again for checking.
Cheers, bye.
The accident report from when Ritchie broke his arm.
Now, Alison said that he fell off his bike, right? It was a clean break with no bruising to the ribs or his chest.
There's no grazing or cuts either! Yeah, which might explain her reaction.
Ritchie did not fall off a bike.
Guv? I think we've got something! Here.
"TS 75K"? There are a dozen or so more exactly like this.
Here dated 26th of January; "SP 120K.
" "KM 60K", that's on the 30th January.
They go on.
Alison said Ritchie had some scheme for making money.
Now, the last entry was here on the 17th March, three weeks before his murder, "CD".
If they're initials who's are they? We could ask Alison, she might have an idea.
No, the person to speak to is Sarah.
She knew Ritchie better than anyone.
What are they? That's what we want to know.
Well They could be Could be? AC that could be Alex Clarke, he's another designer.
Hang on.
Alex Clarke, OK.
"SP", that might be Sean Pate, he's a film maker Ritchie knew.
"IA"? No not sure about that one, but "ER" could be Eleanor Rodley.
I'm only guessing, but these could be the initials of some of Ritchie's best friends.
Cheers.
No, no, that's fine I'll hold.
This is interesting.
What's that? Minutes of a board meeting that Ritchie convened on the 3rd of January, 2002 where he proposed removing his brother from the company.
And there were and I quote "Insufficient funds to offer an appropriate financial settlement" so the idea was rejected.
Hello.
Yeah.
Oh, that's terrific.
Nah, thanks very much.
I owe you one! Whey, now we're getting somewhere.
That was Sutton Nick.
They think they've identified Tyler.
Really? Well, they couldn't confirm his surname, but there's a Tyler matching our description who's working at some rehab commune in Kingswood.
So come on, I'll take you for a nice ride in the country.
Right.
'Hello?' Sandra Pullman, Metropolitan Police.
Is Alex Clarke there? 'Hello?' I wonder if I could have a word with Sean Pate? Are you sure this is the place? Ah, I bloody hope so! He's in there.
Cheers.
Tyler Curtis? Eight years, I've been here eight years.
It's the best thing that ever happened.
But why did you shut yourself away from everyone? Just easier that way.
We're all ex-addicts here on the farm, we keep each other out of trouble.
Do any of you two smoke? Yeah, yeah.
Thanks.
It's the one addiction we're allowed, you know.
Here y'are.
Why did you leave Ritchie's place? Because it was just too hard.
I had thought that Alison might change her mind and take me back.
So you went to stay with Colin Beck? I had nowhere else to go.
Colin was kind, you know, but Well, I had no money and I needed to score.
So you stole from him? No, no, he gave it to me.
Did he? Yeah, yeah.
Well, look Look, it's not his fault, is it? Colin's a straight guy, he doesn't know how to handle a junkie.
I gave my life to that shit.
I even chose it over Alison.
That is the biggest mistake of my life.
You didn't go to Ritchie's to clean up.
You went there to be near her.
Yeah.
Although I did try for a while, you know, for her sake to show her that I could change.
But it was just was too hard.
Ritchie, man, he he killed me with kindness.
Did you argue? Yeah, yeah, once or twice.
Did it get physical? No.
Come on.
He's married to your ex, the woman you loved.
Now don't tell me that didn't hurt? Yes, it did hurt, that's why I left.
Nah, I think you couldn't handle it any more.
Seeing them all happy and loved up, I think you snapped.
It only happened the once.
Is that how he ended up with a broken arm? Yeah, I was wound up.
We had an argument and I pushed him and he fell over.
Even then he forgave me.
That was Ritchie, you see, he wanted to see the good in everyone.
Even if it wasn't there.
Where were you on the night Ritchie died? I was with Colin.
Where? I was in his flat.
All night.
We'll be in touch.
It would be a lot easier for us if you didn't do one of your vanishing acts again.
Where would I go? This is my home.
Well, Tyler certainly had a motive.
He was in love with Alison and wanted her back.
And he was high on smack, and he admitted he had this fight with Ritchie and Ritchie fell over.
But it's a hell of a leap from there to killing a man.
Plus he's got an alibi.
All right, let's park that for a minute and take a look at this.
we have nine possible names.
Now, Brian and I tracked down seven of them and they all had one thing in common.
Each of them invested money through Ritchie into a company called Tempestas Capital Management.
And that is? Bloody difficult to track down.
Whatever it is, it's offshore.
How does this figure with Tyler? I don't know.
Well, we better have another word with Colin Beck, he gave Tyler his alibi.
Yeah, all right, but in the mean time I'd like you two to speak to Peter Glyn, the OIC at Specialist Crime and see if he can figure what this is all about.
Tempestas Capital Management's a new one on me.
It might take some time to find it.
I can call you when I've got news.
We'll wait.
Mr Beck.
Where were you on the night Ritchie was murdered? Well, here at my flat.
With Tyler? Yes.
You never left him? No.
We were here all night.
What did the two of you do all night? I couldn't tell you exactly.
But you remember enough to know that he never went out? Yes.
Not even to score any smack? Now you told me he wasn't using when he lived here.
That wasn't true, was it? You gave him money.
Yes.
I wish I could deny it but the truth is I felt out of my depth with him.
I didn't know what to do.
Why did you agree to help him? Loyalty to Ritchie.
As I told you before, I really just wanted to help.
Well, as you didn't buy the drugs yourself we can't nick you for it, but I'm sure you realise it was an incredibly irresponsible thing to do.
I do.
I accept that.
It is fascinating, isn't it? Forensic accountancy? What's that? A cash flow statement.
Oh.
Brian, could you leave them, please? Sorry.
I always fancied dabbling in the markets meself.
But Esther, my wife, she was dead against it.
Silly, I could have been a tycoon.
No, not there, Jack! Any joy? It's very technical.
Thank you.
Cheers.
Tyler must have got out of the flat without him knowing.
Either that or Beck's covering for him.
Why would he do that? Jack? OK, we'll be right there.
Tempestas Capital Management was established in 2000 by Colin Beck and it's still going today, which is remarkable.
Beck specifically told us he never had any financial dealings with Ritchie.
Well, he'd hardly have mentioned this to you.
Why? And why's it remarkable that Tempestas is still going? Because of the nature of what this scheme is.
Just look at the company's cash flow statements.
Now do you see? No, Brian, I don't.
All I see are a lot of numbers.
To make sense of that you need to know what the stock market was doing at the time.
And what was it doing? Fluctuating.
But the returns from Tempestas weren't.
Do I have to bang my head against this desk before you start speaking English? Maybe I should explain this.
Yes, please.
With any investment, the returns reflect changes in the money markets.
The markets rise, so do profits, markets fall, share values follow.
OK.
But here the investors are getting consistently large returns, independent of any global financial patterns.
Which means? It's It's a Ponzi.
What, you mean like that American bloke? Bernie Madoff.
What exactly is a Ponzi? Oh, for! Essentially, it's just piles of cash.
They all start with a promise of very high returns, probably something like 50%.
So you persuade Person A to invest.
Then Person B.
You take Person B's money and use that to pay out to Person A.
But then you need Person C to pay out to person B, and so it goes on.
And those investors are the people whose names we found in Ritchie's diary? Eight years ago, yes, but now there's hundreds of people involved.
That's why they're illegal, they can only end one of two ways.
Either the person behind it pockets the cash and skips the country or it collapses under its own weight.
And this is where Ritchie was hoping to get his money from? Do you think he and Beck cooked it up together? I don't know.
OK, so Colin Beck is a very dodgy investment broker, right? But how does this tie in with the murder? We're beyond that now.
There's tens of millions tied up.
We need to talk to the SFO and the FSA.
No, hold on, hold on, if the Fraud boys come in, they'll take it right out of our hands.
No way.
It's our case.
What if Alison knew all about this.
Could she have killed Ritchie for the money? I'm not so sure she did know.
After his death, the dividends were transferred into another account.
Whose? Adrian's.
Ever heard of Charles Ponzi? Let me give you a clue.
Tempestas Capital Management.
A certain fraudulent investment scheme.
Which you're still making money from.
I don't know what you're talking about.
Yeah, you do.
I'm now showing Mr Levene a copy of his personal bank statement.
Quite a tidy sum.
You were there the night of Ritchie's party.
Who's to say that you didn't follow him into his studio? We've seen it all before.
You'd both been drinking, an argument gets heated That's ridiculous.
When I asked you about Ritchie wanting you out of the company, you said he "mentioned" it.
He did more than that, he spoke to the board.
He couldn't force you out because he was broke, but if you discovered that he was about to come into some serious money, you'd know he could, so kill him, transfer the investment to your name, you get the company and the cash.
And the girl.
How long had you had feelings for Alison? How much easier would it have been with your brother out of the way? I did not kill him! Then why's this money in your account? Because I didn't want Alison knowing about it.
I knew what it was and I didn't want it going near her.
Oh, you were just looking after it for her, were you? Did Ritchie set this scheme up? No.
No, he was just an investor.
He didn't have any money.
He forged our parents' signatures on some of their share certificates.
Why would he do that to your parents? Because Colin Beck convinced him it was a chance in a lifetime, exclusive investment that would rescue the label and make him rich again.
That was all my brother needed to hear.
And that's why he got his friends involved.
Yeah, Beck encouraged him to.
My brother thought he was onto a good thing and he wanted to share it with them.
So this whole thing was Colin Beck's idea? Of course, my brother didn't have a clue what he was getting into.
It was only when I looked at it I could see that his money was all tied up and he was unlikely that he'd ever get it back.
Why not? Because you can't withdraw your original stake without endangering the whole scheme.
So, what did you do? We confronted Colin, but he knew that we wouldn't want to risk a scandal.
The label was in enough trouble And Ritchie was terrified that his friends would find out what he got them into.
But then he changed his mind and he told Colin that he was going to expose the whole thing anyway.
Why? He was an honest man.
He couldn't live with himself knowing that Colin had taken them all for a ride.
After Ritchie's murder, why didn't you go to the police and tell them all this? I was thinking of his friends.
They were good people.
They'd have lost everything.
Nice try, but that's not it.
You arranged with Beck to transfer the Ponzi account to your name.
You wanted that scheme to keep going.
Look, all along you have treated me like a criminal, so, yes I hold my hands up, I knew what it was and I didn't say anything.
But if you think that I had something to do with Ritchie's death I loved him.
But he was the artist, and I was just a money man.
In the end though, I was the one who saved his company, not him.
I just wish that he was here so that he could see that I could have helped.
That's all I wanted to do.
If Ritchie was about to blow the whistle on the Ponzi, it gives Beck a hell of a motive for wanting him dead.
We mustn't loose sight of Tyler, he's the one with the oldest motive in the world - jealousy.
Convenient then that our two suspects are each other's alibis, eh? And we know that Tyler was capable of being physically violent with Ritchie.
We'll bring them both in.
You're retired, is that right? Yes, happily.
You don't still, what's the word, dabble? No, no.
When you were working, what was it exactly that you did? I was a financier.
I dealt in capital growth programs.
More specifically? Well, it's rather complicated.
I employed a system of financial instruments.
I traded futures, stock options, derivatives, leverages.
This is fascinating I could listen to it all day! And Ponzi's - what do you know about them? When Ritchie found out what you'd got him into, he threatened to expose you, so you wanted shot of him.
Ritchie was my friend, and besides, I wasn't at the party that night.
And your alibi is Tyler Curtis? Now the question is, which one of you is lying for the other? Well, if you found him, we could sort all this out.
Oh, we have.
We should be picking him up any minute.
Tyler? Tyler! .
.
Call for back up.
This is Jack Halford from UCOS.
I need urgent assistance at Fairchurch Farm, Kingswood.
My colleague is pursuing a suspect on foot.
I need back up immediately.
Stay where you are, it's all right, stay where you are.
It's all right.
I just need to talk.
Shit! Look, son, it doesn't look good when you keep running away.
Now, it's just the two of us, all right? So, come on, tell me what really happened that night? I don't know I don't know, I can't remember.
Oh, come on.
No, really.
I can't remember.
I was completely out of the game.
I woke up the next morning, it's all over the news, Ritchie's dead.
I don't know what happened.
I don't know.
It's not good enough, son.
Why? Why did you have to come and find me? Why did you have to bring all this back to me? It's my job.
Come on, let's go.
Tyler! Tyler, give it up! Come down.
We need to talk about this.
Tyler? Tyler! No! Shit! He obviously thought we were there to arrest him for Ritchie's murder.
There you go.
Well, I suppose that's as close to a confession as we're going to get.
He didn't do it.
What do you mean? I don't think he did it.
Look, if it's all right with you I want to check something.
Faced with exposure, you saw your chance with Tyler.
You made sure that he'd enough drugs to knock him out for the night, then went to the party where it was dark and crowded, making it nice and easy for you to slip in unnoticed.
Either that or Ritchie opened the back door of the studio for you.
And then you killed him.
This is ludicrous.
What does Tyler have to say about all this? He's dead.
Dead? Well, then he can't contradict my alibi even if he wanted to.
He doesn't have to.
Do you know a Graham Moss? No.
Well, you should, he's opened a door for you pretty much every week day for the last 12 years.
He's the concierge at your flats.
Yeah, I just went to see him - really nice bloke - and him and the other porters keep very thorough records.
You see, the night Ritchie died one of the neighbours complained about loud music coming from your flat.
They phoned the council helpline who sent someone round and one of the night porters unlocked the door for them.
Where they found "A young man, known to be a guest of Mr Beck's, asleep on the floor.
" "Assuming he was drunk, "they turned off the music and left" And YOU weren't there.
What was that about alibis? Well, none of that proves I killed Ritchie.
True, but the FSA are going to be fascinated to see what we've got on you.
How long did they send Madoff down for? Madoff, oh, 150 years, wasn't it? Of course, that's America.
We don't hand out sentences like that.
We keep it simpler.
We call it life.
Do you think you have enough evidence? Well, I can't promise anything, but he had the motive and he gave us a false alibi.
I mean, we're fairly certain we'd get him on financial wrong-doings, but that's how it goes sometimes, just get them the best way you can.
I was so sure it was Adrian.
I've wasted all that time blaming him.
You didn't really waste any time.
You got an answer.
Besides, we both made mistakes on this one.
Yeah, I'm sorry.
That must have been terrible.
It was, it was really horrible.
You can't blame yourself for what happened.
So, you're back to the old look, then? Yeah.
I'm retro and proud of it.
# It's all right, it's OK # Doesn't really matter if you're old and gray # It's all right, I say, it's OK # Listen to what I say # It's all right, doin' fine # Doesn't really matter if the sun don't shine # It's all right, I say it's OK # We're gettin' to the end of the day! #