Bundu, the Beat & Beyond

During late 1986 or early 1987 the BAA reported to a Senior Officer of Sussex Police at Gatwick that they had experienced a number of small arsons on the construction site of the North Terminal. Fortunately no one had been injured and damage was minimal. Prior to reporting these matters to us the affected areas had been cleaned up and any damaged property had been disposed with. This left us with no possibility of any forensic evidence, there was no CCTV evidence and the only witness was a Security Guard who had found the seats of fire and had extinguished the flames and smoke before reporting the incidents to his Control. I was delegated to investigate these matters and I was fortunate to have the assistance of an excellent Detective called Jerry Ormsby who was then on the strength of Gatwick CID. Jerry had previously been with the Regional Crime Squad and was a very experienced and tenacious investigator. We decided that the only positive thing to do was to invite the Security Officer who had found the fires in to the Police Station for an informal chat. This we did and he arrived on time at the Police Station early one evening. We took him to the Detective Inspector’s office on the first floor where we knew that it would be quiet at that time of day and we would not be disturbed. This was just before the Police and Criminal Evidence Act was ratified and brought into law which meant that procedures were somewhat easier and less formal. We sat him down and gave him a cup of coffee and began a general chat about his personal life and his work as a Security Officer at the North Terminal. Nothing too heavy but just very light chat designed to place him at ease. We gradually introduced the subject of the fires but again nothing too serious. This went on for some time when all of a sudden he said, “ I need to go to the toilet”. We said that was just fine and he then said, “ And I suppose that you will have to come with me?” Jerry and I looked at each other thinking to ourselves, “ We have a right one here”. We agreed that we would have to accompany him to the toilet and we showed him the way to the Gents toilet on the first floor situated at the end of a corridor. We entered the toilet thinking that he wanted to use the urinals but, no, he needed to sit down in one of the cubicles and do what men do when they sit on the toilet. As he sat himself down on the toilet he then said to us, “ And I suppose that I have to keep the door open?” Jerry and I exchanged glances with each other acknowledging silently that we may be onto something. We agreed that he should leave the toilet door open whilst he went about his business. We continued chatting in a similar vein as before until there came a point when I said to him, “ You started these fires didn’t you?” Before I had time to say anything else he strained again and said “ Yeeeesss” We said no more at that stage but permitted him to finalise his job with the paperwork after which I told him that he was being arrested on suspicion of arson. He was also cautioned in the required manner which was, at that time, “ You do not have to say anything unless you wish to do so but anything you say will be written down and may be given in evidence”.