Vera s10e01 Episode Script

1 We may need you to provide a statement, OK? Sure.
Kenny, when did they start building houses out here? Oh, a good ten years ago now, ma'am.
So, what have we got? Freddie Gill.
Owner of the house.
He was shot.
Twice.
What's with the heavy mob? Oh, bailiffs, ma'am.
They showed up at six this morning to repossess the property.
Right.
Is this the deceased's vehicle? It is.
I could see you in one of those.
I wouldn't drive that if you paid me.
Morning, Malcolm.
Mm.
Are you sure you've got enough lights? Well, the lighting is poor and the property doesn't have any power.
The electricity was cut off last week.
So, what can you tell us? He's been dead for 12 hours.
Maybe slightly less.
The victim's been shot twice in the chest.
We recovered two nine-millimetre casings.
Likely fired from a handgun.
We're still searching for the weapon.
Mm.
The diameters of both the entry wounds are fairly tight.
So, I would suggest the shooter was no more than six feet away when the gun was fired.
Roughly where DS Healy is standing now.
So, up close and personal.
Indeed.
Any witnesses? I've got a next-door neighbour.
She says she was home all night, but swears she didn't see or hear anything.
What? Didn't hear two gunshots? Is that his bag? Most likely.
There's a monogram on the inside.
Initials FG.
And was it open when you found it? Mm-hm.
He was obviously going somewhere.
Or coming back from somewhere.
The boxers are clean.
The shirts are pressed.
He was going.
So, we need to find out where to.
So, how did they get in? The bailiffs found the front door open.
It could be our man let his killer in.
But Forensics, they found a window open in the ground floor bedroom.
Anything? Prints on the outside of the glass.
Well, they're not the window cleaner's, are they? Mm, it could be the access point.
So, are we thinking burglary? Don't know.
No, it's doubtful.
Still had a wad of cash on him and a brand-new sports car in the drive.
And yet he's not paying his mortgage or his leccy bill.
Whose room's this? We think Gill's son.
Riley Gill.
According to the neighbour, Riley and his mum Jade moved out about eight months ago.
We're still trying to trace them.
Right, well, let's make that a priority.
What did he do for a living? A bit of an entrepreneur, by the looks of it.
His main interest was a used-car garage in the city.
He owned it with a partner, Nasir Ali.
Excuse me, have you touched that? The sun visor.
No, ma'am.
What is it? Well, it's been pulled down .
.
and the mirror flipped open.
Maybe he had a passenger.
Probably a woman.
Why probably a woman? It's a vanity mirror.
What, only women are vain, is that it? No.
But normally they use them You're right.
It could be a man.
Nah.
Probably a woman.
The question is, where is she now? Hm.
Right Let's go and see Nasir Ali.
That looks like it's done a few miles.
Looking to trade her in? Oh, we're not here to buy, sir.
Or sell.
DCI Vera Stanhope.
This is DS Healy.
We're looking for Nasir Ali.
That's me.
Is there a problem? Right, well, you could say that, love.
Can we go inside? Of course.
Follow me.
It's unbelievable.
I mean, why would anyone? He was such a good bloke.
When did you last see him? A few days ago, maybe.
And how did he seem? He seemed in good form.
He wasn't worried or anxious? Freddie? No.
I never saw him worried in all the time that I've known him.
And how long have you known him? About six years.
Although, it's me who's in charge of running the operation.
Had he been in any kind of trouble lately? What kind of trouble? Well, the sort of trouble that gets you killed in your own home, Mr Ali.
No.
Nothing like that.
He was just a businessman.
Everyone liked him.
Well, clearly, not everyone.
Did you know he was losing his house? He was being evicted this morning.
No.
But business here is good, is it? Aye, we're ticking over.
So, he'd have had some money coming in, if you're ticking over.
Of course.
What about family? He had a wife.
Jade.
But they've been separated a while now.
She and the son Riley had moved out.
She came by yesterday.
Jade did.
His wife was here? She was looking for him.
Why was she looking for him? I'm sorry.
No idea.
Well, thanks very much, Mr Ali.
Well, if this is the business ticking over, I should hate to see it when it's struggling.
Do you think we should check the books? Aye.
Let's see what the real story is.
Jac's traced the wife.
She and the son are living with her family, the Tripps.
Where? They run the pub on the road to Osterhead.
I know it.
Right.
The pub's closed this morning.
Arthur's friends and family only.
Ah, well, we're sorry to intrude, but I need to talk to Jade Gill.
Is this important? It's just, er .
.
we buried her dad today, so What's your name, love? Darren Tripp.
Arthur was me brother.
I'm Jade's uncle.
Well, I'm sorry for your loss, Mr Tripp.
But this can't wait.
Mrs Gill? Yeah.
What do you want? Is there somewhere quiet we can talk, love? Yeah, through here.
It's the police talking to our Jade.
When did this happen? Well, sometime last night, we think.
Now, in order to find out who did this, I need to ask you some questions.
Now, can you think of any enemies your husband might have had? I can think of plenty.
Obviously, I don't mean anyone who'd kill him, like.
I just meant Freddie had a reputation.
A bit of shark, when it came to business.
He liked getting one over on folk.
Anyone in particular? No.
Freddie wasn't fussy.
When did you last talk to him? A few weeks ago.
We broke up in October last year.
We've barely spoken since.
But you were looking for him yesterday.
What? Nasir Ali said you turned up at the garage, looking to talk to Freddie.
Yeah.
But I didn't find him.
Why did you need to see him? I wanted to make sure he didn't come to Dad's funeral.
I didn't want him upsetting Riley.
Riley being his son? Technically, yes.
But Freddie never showed much interest in him.
Jade, dear, you're needed back in here.
We're supposed to be mourning our dad.
I'll be there in a minute, Mum.
Mind telling us what's going on? It's about Freddie.
He's dead.
What do you mean, he's dead? I mean, he's dead.
Someone shot him.
Riley, love I'll get him.
Look, I know you've had a rough day, Mrs Gill.
But I have to ask .
.
where were you last night? She was with us.
Her family.
And where were you? My husband's body went into the chapel last night.
We were there and then we all came back here.
And can I ask, what time was that? The vigil finished at 6:30.
We were back in the pub by 7:00.
Now, there'll be time enough to mark Freddie's death.
But today, we're here to celebrate my Arthur.
A decent man.
And a loving father.
Freddie Gill.
49 years old.
Found dead in his home on the Morton Estate early this morning.
Now, Forensics are still processing the site, but they fast-tracked some prints found on the ground floor bedroom window, but they don't match anything on the system.
So, all we know .
.
is that he died from gunshot wounds.
Likely a handgun, but we're waiting on Ballistics to confirm.
As to who killed him and why, well .
.
we're in the dark.
So, I'm going to need everything about his life, right up to that shooting.
Mark.
Now, we know he was being evicted this morning and we found his overnight bag at the site.
Find out where he was going.
Ma'am.
Kenny.
Now, it seems he was a bit of a chancer, so maybe he made enemies.
Go through his bank records.
Ma'am.
I also want to look at his in-laws.
Hm? His estranged wife Jade and son Riley.
And finally .
.
there may have been a passenger in his car with him last night.
Now, maybe whoever that was saw what happened.
Maybe they're the killer.
Either way, we need to find 'em.
I think we may already have found them, ma'am.
They've just unlocked Gill's phone.
His last text was to a Laura Whitelock.
They arranged to meet last night.
Yeah, I told you it was a woman.
Have we got an address? I'm on it.
Ma'am, that was Jac.
SOCOs have found a third casing outside of Gill's house.
There's a bullet unaccounted for? The casing was found in the grass over here.
Identical to the other two.
Right, so, where's the bullet? Still looking.
But we did find some blood traces at the side of house.
Well, it looks like, whoever it was, was running.
It could be our mystery passenger.
Woods Jac, as many bodies as you can find.
Spread out and start searching.
Over here! Hey, can you hear me? Tell me your name.
I'm DS Healy from Northumberland City Police.
Ma'am! Ambulance! Now! It's, OK, we've got you.
You're going to be all right.
Are you ready? Yeah.
Can you hear me, love? Who did this to you? Raise and lift.
You're going be all right, pet.
It'll be all right.
Female.
Late 20s, early 30s.
Gunshot wound to the lower left leg.
Were on our way to ED.
Lift.
Right, Jac, get over to the hospital.
If she says anything, I want to know.
Kenny, get SOCOs into the woods.
I want them to sift that ditch for anything we might have missed.
It is Laura Whitelock.
She's 33 years old and she lives in Sandyford.
Aye, no doubt with her husband.
What? She was wearing a wedding ring.
Shot? Someone actually shot her? Your wife is alive, Mr Whitelock.
And right now, she's in very good hands.
There's a patrol car on its way to take you to the hospital.
You might want to change first, pet.
Why would anyone shoot Laura? Well, that's what we're going to find out.
Now, your wife wasn't the only victim.
Someone else was shot.
Someone who died of their injuries.
A Freddie Gill.
Do you know him? No.
Your wife never mentioned him? Never.
Well, we think she may have been with him last night at his house.
Can you think of any reason why she would have been with him? Well, I was worried when she didn't come home last night.
Aye, well, you would be.
I just figured that she'd had an emergency at work, had to stay on.
What does she do? She's a nurse.
And she was working yesterday?Yeah, picked up a shift at East Grove.
That's a care home.
So, where's this car, then? It'll be here.
Do you think he knew his wife was having an affair with Gill? We don't know they were having an affair.
Let's not speculate until we've talked to her, the second she's conscious.
But, yeah, get Jac to check him out.
Now, this care home, what was it? East Grove? Yeah.
It's a bit of a trek.
Poor Laura.
I can't believe it.
I was only talking to her yesterday.
So, she was at work yesterday? Till about 6:00.
How did she seem? Laura? Laura was fantastic.
She's always fantastic.
She's a great nurse.
We were lucky to get her.
Why's that, then? Normally, she works private.
One-on-one clients.
Where the money is.
But her most recent patient passed away last week, so we managed to get her in for a few shifts.
Who was this recent patient? Er, an elderly gentleman, I think.
Do you have a name? No, sorry.
But she did mention that he lived in a pub, if that helps.
Thanks very much, love.
How long had she worked for you? We brought her in about three months ago.
When Dad started to get bad.
Look, can you just leave that for a minute, love? Hm? Now, did you have any problems with her? She was all right.
Dad liked her.
What was she doing with Freddie? Well, I've not been able to talk to her yet, but it seems they knew each other.
Well, how did they know each other? Take a guess, Mam.
So, none of you were aware that Laura knew Freddie? Well, of course not.
If we had, you can bet your life we'd have sacked her.
It makes sense, though.
Thinking on it now, she was exactly Freddie's type.
How was she his type? Well, she had a pulse, for a start.
Ah, now, hang on, we don't know they were in a relationship.
No.
But I know me husband.
Even when we were together, he was always chasing round after someone else.
Well, that can't have been easy for you, sharing your husband with other women.
I got used to it.
Don't you think she seemed a bit casual? The wife, Jade.
Mm.
Cos she didn't seem too fussed about her husband being a serial cheat.
Well, maybe it's like she said, she got used to it.
No-one gets used to it, Aiden.
What's the story with the Tripps? Ordinary family.
Well known in the local area.
Er, well-liked, too.
Arthur Tripp, in particular.
A popular man.
How did he die? Er, cancer, as far as we're aware.
Hm.
Now, Laura Whitelock We know she was with Freddie Gill on the night he was murdered.
But we don't know why.
Now, his missus seems to think they were having an affair.
It seems he's got form, when it comes to other women.
But the question is this, who was the target? Hm? I mean, we've been assuming it was him and she was just collateral damage.
But it could be the other way round.
My money's on Gill.
Aye.
It's likely, isn't it? Given his reputation.
Oh, look, where's Mark? I'm starving! God knows.
Right, Kenny Finances.
What have we got? He had his fingers in lots of pies.
I mean, apart from the garage, he had a stake in a mobile phone shop, a software business.
We're looking into this lawyer, a Sean Forrest.
His signature appears on Gill's paperwork.
Hm.
Right, Kenny, I want to talk to him.
What if they were both the target? If they were having an affair, then Nathan Whitelock would have motive.
What, jealous husband? Yeah, it's possible, but According to his record, Nathan Whitelock has form.
Has he? He was charged with assault in 2012 after he punched a Mark Brooks in a club.
It seems Brooks had been dancing with Laura Whitelock at the time.
Oh, we checked something else.
Laura's call history.
Nathan Whitelock didn't try to contact his wife once last night.
Is that a fact? So much for him being worried.
Get your coat.
He'll still be at the hospital.
Oh You're too late now.
What kept you? The usual place was closed, so I had to go to the one on Blake Street.
But then there was roadworks and Oh, just shut up.
Give it here.
Where were you last night? I was at home.
All night? All night.
Worrying about Laura.
Yeah.
Ah, now, you say that.
But we've checked her phone record.
It's odd you didn't try to contact her last night.
So, if you were that worried, why didn't you try and call her to see if she was OK? Ah Cos he didn't have to.
Cos you already knew where she was.
Didn't you, love? Now, when we told you Laura was with Freddie Gill, you said you didn't know him.
But you didn't ask who he was.
And you didn't ask why she was with him.
So, how long have you known? She kept denying it.
Told me I was imagining things.
That I was paranoid.
Ah, but you weren't paranoid, were you? All I had to do was follow her one night.
She drove straight to his house.
Is that what you did last night? Did you go to his house last night, love? Look, I wouldn't hurt anyone.
No? What about Mark Brooks? You thumped him for dancing with her.
So, what would you do to the fella who was sleeping with her? All right, maybe I did want Gill dead.
But I'd never hurt Laura.
I love her.
Despite everything.
No way.
She's out with another man and he just sits home all night? Ah, it's hard to get your head around.
I reckon he's lying.
I reckon he went round there and shot them.
Look, his assault conviction means his prints are on the database.
Right? Mm.
And they don't match those found on the bedroom window.
We don't know the killer used the window.
The front door was unlocked.
Whitelock could've just walked in.
Aye.
But then there's the small matter of linking him to the gun.
The search team's over at his flat.
We might get lucky.
Oh, Mark.
Oh, that was lovely fish, Mark.
Thank you.
Right.
We're on our way.
What? 999 call from Nasir Ali.
The garage is on fire.
Please, stay back! We're police officers.
Where's the owner?We don't know where he is at this time.
Yeah, all right, love.
Look, I can't let you through.
Mr Ali? Mr Ali? It's all right, love.
Come on.
Pretty extensive damage, ma'am.
Aye, I can see that.
Well, the office has gone, obviously.
Six cars burnt-out.
All of the rest are smoke damaged.
Yeah, whoever did this meant business.
What about CCTV? The fire got to it.
So, what else is around here? There's a few businesses, ma'am.
There's a salvage yard, a storage centre.
Get over there, Mark.
See if they've got any cameras.
You never know, we might find a witness or two.
The hospital have sent Mr Ali home about an hour ago.
No life-threatening injuries, thankfully, but he took a bit of a thumping.
Oh, aye, he did.
Right, come on, let's go and see him.
I don't know who he was.
It was too dark.
He had a hoodie, a scarf.
I couldn't see his face.
But you're sure it was a fella? What about height, build? Accent? Not so tall.
Stocky.
Erm I can't remember anything about his accent.
What did he say to you? Hey.
My dad's the victim here.
He's a good man.
A peaceful man.
He doesn't deserve to be attacked like this.
Agrah, it's OK.
No.
You're meant to get justice, Dad.
He's meant to get justice! Now, listen, we're going to do everything we can to find out who did this to your dad.
But we think the attack might not have been random.
So, I have to ask questions.
I'm just doing me job, love.
You should get going.
I'm staying home today.
You've got exams.
You need looking after.
Saddiq, go.
Dad's right, get your arse to uni.
He said he wanted the money.
What money? Freddie's money.
He said he owed him money and now I owed it, too.
I told them I couldn't pay, I had nothing.
That's when the beating started.
So, had Freddie ever mentioned owing anyone any money? A few months ago, we were having cash flow problems.
The bank wouldn't help us.
But Freddie managed to find the money we needed from somewhere.
Well, did he say from where? How much did he borrow? 70 grand.
I want to know where Freddie Gill got that money.
And 70 grand, that's a motive.
Ah, Saddiq.
These exams your taking, they're important ones, are they? Finals.
Now, what are you studying? Dentistry.
There's a clever lad.
So, er, what about your mam? Is she not around? No, she left us.
Last year.
Ah, well, I'm sorry to hear that, pet.
It's no big loss.
Just one more person out to take advantage of my dad.
What, like Freddie Gill? I'm going to be late.
Right, listen up, everybody.
Now, this attack on Mr Ali and his business last night puts a whole new slant on the case.
Because whoever was behind this wasn't messing about.
Now, Mr Ali said his assailant asked for Money that Freddie Gill had borrowed.
So, if this attack and Freddie's murder are linked .
.
we might be looking at a case of organised crime.
Now, Kenny, Mr Ali said Freddie borrowed 70 grand a few months ago.
Have you got anything on that? Well, if he did, there's no sign he put it into the garage.
In fact, as far as I can make out, Gill was draining the business of any money it had.
Well, we've got to find out where he got it from.
What about this lawyer fella? Sean Forrest.
Mm.
Have you managed to make contact with him? According to his office, he's been at home sick for the last few days.
Yeah, well, find out his address.
We'll pay him a home visit.
If we're linking last night to the murder, we've got a problem.
What? Nathan Whitelock isn't our man.
He was at the hospital with Laura all night.
And the search team, they drew a blank at his house.
Ah, well, I thought as much.
OK, so we park Nathan for now.
And we'll go see this lawyer fella.
Yeah, sorry about the mess.
Your secretary told us you'd been unwell.
Yeah, a bit of a cold.
I thought I'd stay here and try and shake it off.
Er, so you won't have heard, then? Heard what? About Freddie Gill.
Er, actually, I did hear about that.
On the radio.
Bit of a shock.
He was a good man.
I liked him.
Have you got any idea who did it? Well, we were hoping you could help us with that.
Oh.
OK.
Why? Because he was your client.
Er, no.
Sorry, let's be clear.
Freddie Gill never engaged me as his lawyer.
Yes, I knew him.
But we weren't close.
But you were a named director in two of his companies.
Well, Freddie and I did some business together.
But we weren't friends.
OK? Well, one of the theories we're working on is that he was killed because of an unpaid debt.
Apparently, he borrowed a lot of money from someone.
Do you have any idea who that someone might be? No.
Sorry.
No? Well, whoever it was wants their money back.
And since they can't get it from Gill, they're going after his business associates.
Gill's garage was burned down last night and his business partner was attacked.
Nasir Ali.
Are you all right there, Mr Forrest? Yeah.
Yes.
I'm just shocked.
You're shocked? Yeah, I had no idea Freddie mixed with the sort of people who'd attack a man and his business like that.
Well, lesson learned.
In future, I'll pick my partners more carefully.
Thank you.
And where were you two nights ago? The night Freddie was shot.
I have to ask.
Two nights ago Er, I left work about 6:00.
I came straight home.
I just watched TV for the whole evening.
Anyone with you? No.
I was on my own.
Well, thanks for your time, Mr Forrest.
Er We will talk again.
I've got to admit, he's slick.
Well, I'll admit he's lying.
Whatever Freddie Gill was doing, he was involved, too.
Up to his neck.
Jac, anything on the Ballistics report? End of the day, they promised.
But Digital Forensics got back to us.
They've been through Gill's search history and they flagged this.
He was searching flights to Barcelona three days before his death.
Looking to leave next week.
Great, thank you.
Ma'am, that was the hospital.
Laura Whitelock's fit to talk.
Ah, at last! We'd been for a drive down the coast.
Freddie .
.
was taking me back home .
.
before booking into a hotel.
He said he needed to .
.
drop in at the house to pick up his overnight bag.
And what time was that? I'm not sure.
Sometime around 10:00.
He told me just to wait in the car.
And he went inside.
That's when I heard the bangs.
And how long was he inside before you heard the bangs? Not long.
Five minutes maybe.
I must've got out of the car.
It was dark.
I just started running.
I ran round the side of the house.
And there was another bang.
And a pain in my leg.
But I kept going.
And then I was in the trees.
And then, after that .
.
there's nothing.
I'll get you a drink of water, pet.
There you are, love.
Thank you.
How long had you known Freddie? We met about six weeks ago.
A terminal patient of mine asked me to find him.
And which patient? His name was Arthur Tripp.
And why did he want to see him? I think he just wanted to see him again.
I found Freddie .
.
and arranged for him to meet Arthur.
And Arthur's family were OK with that, were they? You're joking? They had no idea.
We had to sneak Freddie in one day when they were out.
We almost got away with it, but then Arthur's son came home early.
And what happened? Lee flipped.
He started laying into Freddie.
He threw him out of the pub.
Just cos Lee threw Freddie out of his pub - doesn't make him a murderer.
- No, it doesn't.
But I want to know why he didn't bother to mention it before.
Don't you? OK.
So, I threw Freddie out.
It's my pub.
I was within me rights.
Ah, well, Laura Whitelock said you did more than just throw him out.
We might've exchanged a few blows.
Freddie got handy, did he? Look, he had no business being in me dad's room.
He knew he was in the wrong.
Why didn't you mention this when we spoke yesterday? I didn't want me mam to know.
Why not? She'd have been upset if she knew Freddie was talking to Dad.
Why would she be upset? Because she hated Freddie's guts.
But your dad liked him, right? Not especially.
So, why did he ask Laura to track him down and then get him to come visit? That didn't mean anything.
Ah, but it meant something to your dad.
He insisted.
He even asked Laura to sneak him in while you lot were out.
Look, Dad was ill.
Do you understand? He wasn't himself in the end.
His mind had gone, gone to mush, cos of all the drugs they'd pumped into him.
So, whatever he said, whoever he asked for, it meant bugger all.
What are you thinking? I'm wondering why he was so angry.
Well, Freddie Gill, for a start.
Yeah, well, he obviously didn't like the fella, but would he shoot him? And then there's the debt.
The attack on the garage.
I mean, how does he fit in to any of that? Riley, come back here! I wouldn't read too much into it.
Riley's at a difficult age.
Ah, well, he has lost his dad and his grandad in the space of a week.
It can't be easy for him.
Mm.
Royal Marines.
Aye.
A lifetime ago.
Still .
.
best decision I ever made, joining up.
Oh, what, and now you're back here, hm? I came back to be with Arthur.
I'm glad I got to spend some time with him.
Mm, he sounds like a popular fella.
He was a friend to all.
Even Freddie Gill? Arthur loved a character.
And Freddie was certainly that.
Time to go play peacemaker.
Get some background on the uncle, Darren Tripp.
See if you can find any connection between him and Freddie Gill.
Aside from the obvious.
What are you doing here? Er, he's just delivered the Ballistics report, ma'am.
And to be honest, I've always been curious to see where you worked.
I have to say .
.
it is a little drab.
Oh, says the fella who works in a morgue.
So, they've identified the gun? Well, they've identified the bullets.
Which shows that the gun used to kill Freddie Gill was also used in a fatal shooting six years ago.
What? In 2013, ma'am.
Steven O'Neill was shot and killed by William Belmont in Hull in a drugs deal gone wrong.
So, what happened to the gun? Never recovered.
Belmont refused to tell anyone what he did with it.
Ah, but he might have told the lawyer who represented him.
Sean Forrest.
Who is it? It's the police! Open up! Mr Forrest, we have a warrant to search these premises.
You what? This is a joke.
No.
Hey! Hey! Hey! If you tell me what you're looking for, I might be able to help.
Save you destroying my house.
William Belmont.
What about him? He was your client.
I represented him.
Well, you didn't do a great job, did you? He's doing 12 years in Pengate.
Billy shot a man in front of three witnesses.
I'm a good lawyer, but I'm not a miracle worker.
Hm.
Why are you interested? Because the gun Belmont used to kill O'Neill is the same gun that killed Freddie Gill.
Doesn't look too shocked, does he? Well, why would I be? Two murders.
One gun.
And you're the only link between them.
I'm linked to a lot of weapons.
I'm a criminal lawyer.
Half the cases I take on involve something.
Guns, knives, baseball bats.
I represented one client who assaulted somebody with an iron.
Oh, I'm not interested in irons, pet.
I'm interested in Belmont's gun.
You both know as well as I do that handguns are always being moved on.
The same weapon can be used in lots of different, unconnected crimes.
Who knows where it is now? But it's obviously ended up in the hands of whoever shot Freddie Gill.
Or you could've had it all along.
I had no reason to kill Freddie.
He was my business partner.
You'd better not be lying to me, pet.
Hey! Hey! What about this lot? They'll be a bit quicker if you made 'em a brew.
He's a hard man to like.
Well, unfortunately, he's right.
We don't have a credible motive and we can't prove he ever had Belmont's gun.
The search team might come up trumps.
Well, he's not going to keep it in the house, is he? He's not that stupid.
Cheers.
Ma'am, Freddie Gill's debt What? Who'd he get the money from?I've got a source who said it was Gillespie.
Danny Gillespie Oh, a crossword? I'd have thought you were more of a sudoku fella, Danny, what with your head for figures.
DCI Stanhope.
Are you here to play? Well, that depends on you.
Freddie Gill.
I don't know him.
Of course you do, Danny.
Shot in his own home not three days ago.
It was all over the press.
Ah, I must've missed that.
Plus, he's the fella who owed you £70,000.
I run a snooker hall, DCI Stanhope.
My business is leisure, not loans.
Nah.
Yeah, you're one of the biggest illegal money lenders in the North East, Danny.
Well, that just isn't true.
But even if it was .
.
I doubt I'd lend 70 grand to somebody I didn't know.
Everything OK, boss? Are you all right, lads? The night before last, where were you? The question isn't that hard.
Why do you want to know? Because Gill's business partner was attacked over the debt.
They were both here that night.
You're vouching for them, are you? Only because it's the truth.
Nice seeing you again, Danny.
Danny Gillespie.
He's 52 years old and he's what I like to call Now, he's got a few legit businesses.
But his main source of income is from loan-sharking.
What's his connection to Gill? Gill owed him money.
Yeah, well, that doesn't necessarily mean he was involved in his murder.
But he does know something.
He's just not telling us.
Yeah, well, we need to persuade him to loosen his tongue.
Here's what I want, Aiden.
Get on to uniform.
I want two units.
One outside that snooker hall.
And another outside his house.
And I want them there 24 hours and I want them visible.
OK.
Isn't that harassment, ma'am? Well, technically, yes, Jac.
But we don't have to use the actual word.
Right, now, the next one up is this lawyer, Sean Forrest.
Now, we can link him to the murder weapon through his association with Belmont.
So, check out his alibi.
See if he was in the vicinity of Freddie Gill's house on the night he was murdered.
And what about Nasir Ali's attack? We pulled the CCTV footage from the storage centre across the road, but the camera doesn't cover the garage.
It's not all bad news, though.
We might have a witness.
This fella reckons he saw a male running away from the garage around the time of the attack.
Said he saw him get into a car and drive off.
Good work, Mark.
Did they give you the number plate? Er, no.
Did they give a description of the car?Yes, ma'am.
Right, well, get on to the traffic cameras in the area.
Ma'am, Gill's trip to Spain.
We found an overseas number in his call history.
It turned out to be a number for a hotel in Barcelona.
We rang it and the booking manager confirmed that Gill called last week about booking a twin room for a month.
She also said that he was asking Hang on.
Hang on, a twin room? Yeah.
So, he wasn't going alone.
Did she give you the name of the other guest? No.
Now, why would you book a twin room, hm? I mean, she also said what? That he was asking about getting tickets for a Barcelona game.
Football? Yeah.
I know who he was booking those for.
Get that down you.
Yeah, he sounds like he was quiet a character, your dad.
You must miss him.
He wasn't around enough to miss him.
Ah, well, even so .
.
you must be hurting.
He was a waste of space.
You couldn't count on him for anything.
He was a liar, a cheat and a loser.
Hm.
And what did you think of him? Hm? I mean, that little speech there, that's your mam talking, isn't it? So, what did you think of him? He was the only one who understood.
Understood what? How hard it is.
Living at the pub.
What about Spain? Barcelona It was just for a few weeks, that's all.
Just so I could get a break.
And your mam was all right with that, was she? It was a secret.
Dad said he'd call her when we got there and explain.
She must've gone through my phone, read the texts between me and Dad.
She went crazy.
Shouting and crying.
And when was this? After we saw Grandad's coffin go into the church.
Back at the pub.
So that was the day your dad died.
And what did your mam do, Riley? Hm? She went looking for him.
Jade Gill was out looking for her husband on the night he was killed.
Ma'am this just came through.
What? The search team at Forrest's house found this envelope behind some books on his shelves.
This flash drive was inside.
That's his front room.
Come on, don't be a lightweight.
Who's he talking to? Whoever's behind the camera.
Drugs and escorts.
What a classy guy.
Come on, have some of this, Freddie.
Freddie? Get Forrest in here.
Come on, don't be a lightweight.
Come on, have some of this, Freddie.
Now, then, we found that flash drive .
.
hidden away in an envelope addressed to you.
Now, we haven't analysed the handwriting yet, but .
.
I'm willing to bet it was Freddie Gill who sent you that.
Now, it might have been a little souvenir.
A memento of your night.
Hm? But given the fact you were taking cocaine, I'm more likely to think it was a blackmailing video.
We reckon there's enough on that flash drive to get you disbarred.
So, let's recap, shall we? You've a link to the gun that killed Freddie Gill.
You've no alibi for the night that he died.
And now this suggests he was blackmailing you.
OK.
A month ago .
.
I told Freddie I wanted to take my money out of the companies.
I should've known Freddie wouldn't let me quit that easy.
That was our celebration night.
Freddie made sure to get me good and drunk.
He brought the drugs.
He called the girls.
And then, three days later, that comes through the letterbox.
It's very subtle.
Why did you want out? Freddie overstretched himself.
Look, er .
.
the businesses were failing .
.
and he was running out of cash.
He'd started to run up debt with the wrong people.
Oh, people like Danny Gillespie? Hm? I'm not stupid.
Gillespie didn't get where he is today by letting people like Freddie fleece him.
So So what are you saying? That when I found out that Freddie was dead, I thought Gillespie had caught up with him.
I thought maybe I was next.
But then you showed up this morning talking about Belmont's gun.
And, er Well, now I don't know what to think.
Wait, wait, wait, wait OK.
This is all I will say.
The gun you say killed Freddie, the one my client used to shoot O'Neil .
.
I saw that gun in Freddie's house.
Freddie Gill had Belmont's gun? Oh, yeah.
For over a year.
Do you think that Forrest gave Gill the gun? Well, of course he did.
He obviously got it from Belmont and then passed it on to Gill.
But why not just say that? Because he's still hoping to slither his way out of this mess.
But if he is telling the truth .
.
our main line of inquiry is blown.
Cos we've been assuming this was a hit.
He was killed by career criminals.
Organised.
But if that gun has been in his house for the past year .
.
then anyone of this lot could've got their hands on it.
Maybe one of them found it at the house or wrestled it off Gill and shot him.
Or they already knew it was there.
Jade Gill was angry with Freddie because he was sneaking Riley off.
Hm? She was still living with Freddie till eight months ago.
So, it's quite possible.
She would have known about the gun.
Mm.
Jade Gill, you'll need to come with us.
I'm sorry, Mam.
Riley? What the hell did you do? I told you I went out looking for Freddie that day to make sure he stayed away from Dad's funeral.
And what about later, when you and the family got back from the chapel? We all went back to the pub.
Where you and Riley argued about him going to Spain with his dad.
What? No, that's not true.
You and Riley didn't argue? We did.
But only because Spain was never gonna happen.
Freddie was just stringing him along, as usual.
No, he was going through with it, love.
They'd been planning it for weeks.
Behind your back.
That must've rankled.
So, tell us about Freddie's gun.
What gun? The one that was at the house.
I don't know anything about that.
No? Or maybe Riley knew about it.
OK, fine.
Freddie had a gun.
I didn't like it being in the house, but he kept it hidden from Riley.
Where did he keep it? He had a bag.
He called it his get-away pack.
He kept the gun in it and some clothes and some cash.
So, a leather hold-all, monogrammed.
Is that the one? Yeah.
But Riley knew nothing about it.
But you did.
And you were angry with Freddie, cos he was taking Riley away.
And you went out looking for him to stop him.
And you knew where that gun was.
No! Maybe you didn't mean to shoot him, love.
Maybe you just wanted to scare him.
That's not true! I understand.
You wanted to keep your son.
I wanted to go with them! Yeah.
I was angry with Freddie.
But only because he wasn't taking me.
He called my bluff.
When I walked out, I thought This'll show him.
This'll make him change.
Give him a couple of months, he'll come crawling.
But he never did.
The last time I saw him was two weeks ago.
So, you went out looking for Freddie.
Yet your mam says you were all together at the pub.
I don't know why she said that.
She probably thought she was protecting us.
But you went out.
I went to the house.
But when I got there, Freddie wasn't in.
I waited for a while and then I went home.
What time was this? About 8:00.
Where did you go after? Back to the pub.
I got drunk.
And who was there? Just Riley.
Jade Gill says she got to Freddie's house at 8:00 and claims she didn't see him.
And I'm inclined to believe her.
Kenny, ANPR? They picked up Jade Gill's car heading away from the crime scene just after 8:00, ma'am.
So, we're back to square one.
Where are you going? ErI fancied a coffee.
Yeah, well, that can wait, love.
Get on to the lab.
Get them to fast-track the tests on Gill's overnight bag.
Apparently, our murder weapon had been in it.
Ma'am.
And Tina Tripp's story that the family were at the pub all night doesn't hold.
Because Jade says only Riley was there when she got home.
Darren Tripp, what's his story? I didn't find out much.
Darren and Arthur bought the pub in 1982.
But Darren sold his share to Arthur a year later when he joined the Navy.
He came back last year cos Arthur was dying.
What do you want to do about Jade? Well, we're going to have to let her go.
For now.
DCI Stanhope.
Where? Why are we meeting here? What's wrong with here? Well, it's freezing, for a start.
What is it you want? I want you to call off the dogs.
Oh, come on, Danny.
I'm not the Fraud Squad.
I don't care how you make your money.
I just want to know what happened to Gill.
I should never have lent him money.
So why did you? Because he talked a good game, because I didn't think he'd be stupid enough not to pay me back.
Ah, surprised you, did he?He didn't even make the first payment.
What do you know about his murder? I know it was nothing to do with me.
Shooting people isn't my style.
Ah, no.
Beating up garage owners and burning their premises to the ground, that's you style.
See .
.
that's what's been bugging me.
Gill's debt was paid back a week ago.
70 grand, plus interest.
Very funny.
We've been through his accounts.
He wasn't in a position to do that.
I didn't say Gill paid it.
Are you saying someone else settled the debt? Well, I'm going to need a name.
Evening, Mrs Tripp.
You've got some neck showing up here.
Dragging my daughter down to the station, like a common criminal.
Hardly dragged, Mrs Tripp.
Danny Gillespie, do you know him? I know of him.
Who doesn't? Well, he told us you gave him 70 grand last week.
He said it was to settle Freddie's debt.
Well, he's mistaken.
Ah, no.
Gillespie doesn't make mistakes when it comes to money.
So, I have to ask, since you didn't know Freddie very well .
.
why did you settle his debt? We're waiting for an answer.
I asked him to.
I paid Gillespie.
It was my money.
And Darren just delivered it for us.
Why? Well, why does it matter? What I do with my money is none of your business.
Oh, yes, it is, love, when you're settling the debt of a murder victim.
We made a deal, Freddie and me.
What kind of deal? I paid his debt.
He stayed clear.
Stayed clear of what? Jade and Riley.
You blackmailed Riley's dad? It wasn't blackmail.
It was a deal.
And one he jumped at.
That was the measure of Freddie Gill.
The lowlife, he'd sell out his own blood.
Where did you get the money? I took a loan out against the pub.
Did you know Arthur asked him to visit before he died? Well .
.
obviously, he just wanted to say goodbye.
Put everything in order, like.
Where did you go when you left the church? And don't say you were here all night, because I know that's a lie.
Tina came over to my house.
We were together for the rest of the night.
Is that true? She's lying through her teeth.
There's no way she'd part with that kind of money just to keep Freddie away.
Well, she might if she thought she could protect Riley from him.
No, she was scared.
Same as Lee was scared.
You think Freddie has something on them? That's what I want to find out.
Call the hospital.
See if we can talk to Laura Whitelock again.
And let's have another look at this attack on Nasir Ali.
Because if Gill's debt had been paid in full, why send the heavies round to torch the garage? Hm? Our witness described the man running from the garage as tall, wearing a hooded jacket.
So, I checked some traffic cameras in the area and found this.
A camera on Cannery Street.
Ah, you can't see his face.
Yeah, you can't see the reg plate, either.
Well, not from this angle, anyway.
Stop it! Rewind, Mark.
Rewind.
Now, what's that on the back windscreen? Is that a reflection? Or is it numbers? It could be.
It's a phone number.
It's a taxi.
Aye, and who do we know drives a cab like that? Agrah, I need you to come with us.
I'm just about to go out.
No, that's gonna have to wait, love.
Come on.
Agrah Ali, I am arresting you on suspicion of arson with intent to destroy property.
What's going on? We need to have a chat with your brother.
Why? He's not done anything.
.
.
which you later rely on in court.
What's going on? You have no right to arrest him! Go inside, will you? Do as your brother says.
Saddiq! Take him in.
No, please Don't take Saddiq! What can you tell us about that? Well, I think we can all agree that that's you, Agrah.
It's certainly your cab.
So, what were you doing there, hm? I must have had a hire.
Not according to the cab office.
You weren't working that night.
No.
So, what were you doing there? I don't remember.
OK.
Well, let's see if I can jog your memory.
Now, you see this here? That's a time stamp.
That tells us that this picture was taken not ten minutes after your dad made the 999 call on the night of the attack.
And this here gives us location.
Cannery Street.
Now, that's, what, DS Healy? 15 minutes' walk from the garage? Ten, if you're running.
And you were running, Agrah.
Hm? Plus, we have a witness who saw you.
So, I'll ask you one more time.
What were you doing there? Look, we know it was you who attacked your dad's garage.
The question is .
.
why? No comment.
All right.
Have it your own way.
Interview suspended at 9:08.
Let him stew for a bit.
Something from the search team? Ah, well, the taxi's clean.
I did find this, though.
What's that? When was this submitted? Yesterday afternoon.
And he's just turned up at reception, demanding we release his sons.
Well, that's handy.
Saves us going looking for him.
Kenny, put him in room two.
Ma'am.
Now, then, we believe Agrah was the man who attacked you and the garage.
Now, we don't know if anyone else was involved or why he attacked you.
Now, he's going to be charged, one way or the other.
But we just wondered if you had any thoughts .
.
on why he might have done it.
It wasn't his idea, was it? It's hard to explain.
No, it's not that hard.
The garage was going under.
Freddie had been using it like his own personal cash machine.
You owed everyone money, from the taxman to a valet company.
You've not paid a bill in months.
Except one.
And that was the insurance company.
You made sure those premiums were paid.
We contacted your provider.
You've started the claim process already.
I didn't know what else to do.
I had to salvage something.
So, you and Agrah staged the attack.
It was my idea.
I want that written down.
I want that recorded.
Agrah had nothing to do with this.
I started the fire on the cars and the garage.
The beating, your injuriesWhat, you did that to yourself, did you? I asked Agrah.
I knew it had to look right.
He didn't want to.
Oh, well, I can believe that.
And what about Freddie Gill? Was killing him part of your plan? What? No! I had nothing to do with that! Yes, I planned the fire on the garage .
.
after Freddie was killed.
That's why I did it.
Please, I was Freddie's friend! You tried to profit from his death.
That's not what I call a friend.
What about Saddiq? He's got an exam! He has to be at the university by 10:00! Have you calmed down yet? What's happening to Agrah? Well, you brother and your dad's going to be here for a few more hours yet, love.
Now, were you involved in any of this? No.
You're sure? There's no need to lie.
Your dad's told us all about it.
I knew they were planning something, but they wouldn't tell me.
They're probably just trying to protect you.
Now, this exam, come on.
No, I've missed it.
No, there's still time.
Come on.
Mark Now, then, DC Edwards here is going to take you to the university.
Get him there by 10:00.
Blues and twos if you have to.
Ma'am.
Well, go on.
Thank you.
Comforting to know you've got a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to one of your officers being assaulted.
Oh, give over.
He barely touched you.
Laura Whitelock.
Hospital say you can talk to her whenever you want.
You know, it's fine for you to say it's nothing.
But what about next time? Next time, learn to duck.
Oh, sorry, love.
Sorry.
I thought you were Nathan.
Oh, he's here, is he? On his way.
Says he wants to talk.
I'm hoping I still have a marriage.
What was it you wanted? Oh, I just wanted to see how you are, love.
And I was just wondering .
.
when Freddie went to see Arthur before he died .
.
what did they talk about? I don't know.
I was outside the room watching for the Tripps.
So, Freddie never mentioned what their conversation was about? No, there'd been nothing to mention.
Arthur's mind had gone.
One minute, he'd be talking about his school days.
And the next, he'd be describing what Tina liked in bed.
Why do you want to know, anyway? Well, I just wondered whether Arthur told Freddie something that perhaps he shouldn't have.
What? Go on, what? It's probably nothing, but .
.
when Lee beat him up, I tried to get Freddie to go to the police.
So, why didn't he? He said he didn't need the police.
That he had other ways to hurt Lee.
Thanks, love.
You've been a great help.
Right, listen up.
Arthur Tripp told Freddie something before he died.
I don't know what it was.
But it incensed Lee and scared the hell out of Tina.
What could possibly scare Tina? Well, what's the most important thing to her? Family? Aye, but not just family.
Blood.
Have you got the background on Darren Tripp? Yeah.
Thanks, love.
Aye, we need to talk to Tina.
Well, she's at the family solicitor's.
They're reading Arthur Tripp's will today.
The whole family will be there.
Have you got an address? It's Grey Street, ma'am.
Right, Aiden Hey, what's happened? It was Lee.
There was a bit of a shock after Dad's will.
A big one.
He's left the pub to Mam and after that it's going to Riley.
Lee gets nothing.
Where is your mam? She's in there.
And one day, Darren decides to join the Navy.
And six months later .
.
Lee is born.
Now, it may just be a coincidence.
But, erm .
.
25 is a bit late to be embarking on a life at sea, isn't it? Was Lee the reason Darren left? Hm? Darren thought it was best if he went away for a while.
Or did you ask him to leave? We made the decision together.
What happened between us was a mistake.
A stupid, clumsy one-off.
We both regretted it.
And we both loved Arthur too much to break his heart.
So Oh, we paid our penance.
Darren went and I stayed.
And I put everything I had into Arthur and our family.
And you passed Lee off as your husband's son.
Lee was his son.
He is his son.
Nah.
I'm sorry, love.
But that will says Arthur thought different.
Arthur must've known all along.
All those years.
And he said nothing.
Mm.
Till he told Freddie.
I can't believe he would've told him.
Not intentionally.
But he wasn't in his right mind towards the end.
It must have tumbled out of his mouth with all of his nonsense.
But .
.
oh, our Freddie caught it.
And as soon as he did, he came straight to me.
And what did he say? He knew Lee wasn't Arthur's son.
He said Riley had more right to the pub and that, er .
.
that he'd contest the will.
So, you offered to pay off Freddie's debt.
And in return he kept his mouth shut.
I was desperate.
What else could I do? I had to protect Lee.
And it was all for nothing.
It turns out Arthur .
.
had cut Lee out of the will, anyway.
I mean, what's that about? Huh? Who waits till they're dead to get their revenge? Someone who felt very wronged, love.
But it wasn't Lee who wronged him.
Why make him suffer? Why not punish me? Well, how do you feel about your son suffering? Hm? There's your punishment, love.
We need to find Lee.
Why? He hasn't done anything.
The pub's closed.
Everybody, out.
Everybody, out! Uncle Lee? Uncle Lee's smashing up the pub! Stay where you are.
Lee Get out! That's not going to help you, love.
Leave me alone.
I need you to calm down, Lee.
Calm down! Yeah? This is my pub.
Do you understand? It's my pub! I put my life into this.
I worked my guts out for it.
It's mine! It's mine Lee, love So, where did you go, Lee? Come on.
Were you on your way to Freddie's? Now, Freddie told you about your mam and Darren, didn't he? Hm? He told you Arthur wasn't your real dad.
Oh, that must've been hard.
It wasn't hard for Freddie.
He really enjoyed telling me.
And what a shock.
It wasn't a shock.
Well, it was at first, but .
.
when I thought about it, it made sense.
Dad and me, we never really .
.
clicked.
We weren't close.
I used to think, if I could just be more like him, if I took more of an interest in him, in the pub, that we'd .
.
that we'd come together.
At least now I know why we didn't.
At least I know it wasn't my fault.
That was taken on Osterhead Road.
On your way into Newcastle.
Heading to Freddie's.
About four miles outside the village, there's a junction.
The road takes you up to a car park.
There you can get onto the hill.
Do you know it? Aye, I do.
Dad used to take us up there when we were little.
That's where I was going.
I just sat in the car .
.
thinking.
Thinking about .
.
about Dad, about what it all meant.
And what did it all mean? Nothing.
I realised it didn't matter if I wasn't his son.
Obviously, it didn't matter to Dad.
He'd raised me as his own.
30-odd years without a word.
I figured, if he was happy to call me his son .
.
then it was OK.
But in the end, it wasn't OK, was it, Lee? I won't lie.
The will was a shock.
I guess you realise what's important to you when you're dying.
It seems blood was important to Dad.
It's as if I didn't exist.
There's no-one who can corroborate him being up at that car park.
No-one to contradict him, either.
Oh, come on, he's got the motive.
Freddie Gill blew up his life when he told him he wasn't Arthur's son.
No, he'd made his peace with that.
He thought it didn't matter.
Until today, when they read that will.
Ma'am, I ran Lee Tripp's prints against the ones we found at the crime scene.
No match.
But the lab did get back to us on Gill's bag, though.
They found identical prints to the ones on the bedroom window.
Well, great.
So, what does that tell us? It tells us it wasn't planned.
They came in through that window.
Found the bag.
Found the gun inside the bag.
And then shot Freddie Gill.
Yeah, but why? They didn't go there to kill him.
It was finding that gun that gave them that option.
So, what happened? Hm? What tipped them over the edge? Was it something Freddie Gill said to them? Or was it something else they found in the house? What? There was nothing in that house.
It was empty.
Gill was leaving.
What? They thought he was running away.
Now, who had the most to lose .
.
if Freddie disappeared? Mr Ali and his sons.
Jac, will you run those crime scene prints off the database again? Full search.
Mark, the lad you ran up to the university Oh, that was a waste of time.
They wouldn't let him in.
Why not? Well, it looks like you can't sit your second exam if you didn't show up for the first one.
Is that right? I'm, sorry.
Erm I was just wondering.
Saddiq's first exam .
.
when was that? Hm? His first exam.
The one before the one he's doing today.
When was that? A few days ago.
Was it the day Freddie Gill died? Saddiq? Why did you do it? For Dad.
Obviously.
I couldn't let Freddie run out on him, leave him with that bloody garage, all that debt.
He's on his knees as it is.
So why shoot him? He's no use to your dad dead, is he? I saw him coming.
I saw Freddie for what he was as soon as I met him.
Oh All talk.
Making a big show over Dad.
I tried to warn Dad.
But he didn't listen.
And look what happened.
The bastard cheated him! He's lost everything.
Look, I don't doubt that Freddie made your dad suffer.
But that didn't give you the right to shoot him.
No, I tried with Freddie.
I really did.
I gave him every chance.
I asked him countless times.
I pleaded with him.
Wind up the business if he had to, but just stop bleeding Dad dry.
Look You didn't go to Freddie's house to kill him.
Sowhy were you there? I wanted to talk to him again.
About what? To give him one last chance.
When I saw where he was living, I couldn't believe it when I got in there.
There's Dad killing himself every day at that poxy garage and .
.
Freddie's living like a king.
Mm.
I spent hours in that place .
.
going round every room, getting angrier.
And you found the gun.
I didn't plan on using it.
But when he came home .
.
all that rage justboiled up.
Mm.
And what about Laura? The lass waiting for him in the car.
Oh, no, no, I panicked.
I panicked.
I was I was on my way out.
I saw her running.
I just I didn't I didn't mean to hurt anyone.
I just wanted to help me dad.
The thing is, son .
.
your dad may have been going through a hard time, but .
.
he had one bright spot in his life.
And that was you.
He had such high hopes for you.
But now those hopes .
.
they're gone.
You've done more damage to your dad than Freddie Gill ever did.
Well I hear you got a share in the pub.
I don't want it.
Mam says I can sign it over to Uncle Lee if I want.
Well He made a mess of everything.
Dad, I mean.
He hurt everyone.
But he didn't deserve to die, pet.
No.
But it's hard to think of him without thinking of all the other crap.
I know how you feel.
So, come on, what's your best memory of your dad? What do you mean? The best memory of my dad? Erm, well, when I was a nipper .
.
he took me to see some bird's eggs hatching.
And, oh, that was so beautiful.
Mind you, I didn't know then he was gonna start nicking 'em.
So, come on, your best memory of your dad? I don't know.
Sitting in his car.
Him driving.
Singing along to some lame song he'd found on the radio.
Well, there you go, then.
That's how you think of him from now on.
Now, go on, hop it.
You're going to be late.