A history of the famed London police unit, by a former member and author who "knows how to bring his coppers to life on each page" (Joseph Wambaugh, New York Times–bestselling author of The Onion Field).Since 1919, Scotland Yard's Flying Squad has been in the forefront of the war against crime. From patrolling London's streets in horse-drawn wagons, it has progressed to the use of the most sophisticated surveillance and crime-fighting equipment. T...

David Ralph Martin was a cross-dressing criminal who carried out a string of sophisticated offences in the 1970s and '80s. A prolific burglar, car thief, fraudster and gunman, he possessed a deep loathing of anyone in authority. In addition, he was a master of disguise and a veritable Houdini when it came to escaping from prison. After shooting a policeman during a botched burglary, he escaped from court on Christmas Eve, 1982. When police believed him to be in a yellow Mi...

This true crime history reveals the shocking career of the London mafia family that ran a thriving prostitution empire for decades.From the mid-1930s into the 1950s, one immigrant Italian family ran London's thriving vice trade. The five Messina brothers imported prostitutes from the Continent on an industrial scale, acquiring British citizenship for the women by phony marriages. Taking 80% of these women's earnings, the Messina family became fabulously wealthy, pu...

When the Second World War ended, England was bombed-out and starving, with practically every saleable commodity rationed. It was the age of austerity and criminal opportunity. Thieves broke into warehouses, hijacked trucks and ransacked rail yards to feed the black market; others stole, recycled or forged ration coupons. Scotland Yard was 6,000 men under strength but something dramatic had to be done and it was.Four of the Yards best informed detectives were summoned to form the Special Du...

In the late 1960s the Richardson Torture Gang and the Kray Twins were removed from the London scene by ACC Gerry McArthur and DS Nipper Read respectively.Predictably it was not long before the vacuum this left was being filled. With McArthur retired and Read moved on, who was to sort out the new gangland threat.Step forward Detective Chief Superintendent Bert Wickstead. Having cut his teeth on young desperadoes and neo-Nazis in North London and solved Londons biggest post war bank robbery,...

In the summer of 1978, rumors emerged from the underworld that huge sums of money had been paid to the City of London Police to water-down evidence and arrange bail in cases of armed robbery. Then it was suggested that Scotland Yards Flying Squad was also involved.The Home Secretary appointed the Dorset Police to investigate but it became clear to the criminals upon whom they relied to provide evidence that they were completely out of their depth. One line of inquiry after another became h...

A former member of London's MP Flying Squad pays tribute to his fellow officers in a gripping and emotional true crime chronicle of duty and sacrifice.Dick Kirby of London's Serious Crime Squad shares ten stories of courage spanning fifty years of crime enforcement in the Metropolitan Police. In honoring the selfless men and women who gave their lives, Kirby sheds light on the ever-present dangers of street patrol—from confrontations at public protests to being cau...

Between 1959 and 1965, eight murders were carried out in and around west London. The victims, all of whom were prostitutes, were asphyxiated. The murders were linked: the last six were all carried out in the space of twelve months. The press dubbed the murderer 'Jack the Stripper' on account of the fact that the victims were all stripped naked. The legendary Scotland Yard investigator Detective Chief Superintendent John Du Rose was brought in to orchestrate the inquiry. Du...

"So if you're a fan of Peaky Blinders and want to read the true stories behind those characters and tales . . . this is the book for you." —Britain's Gangland MagazineBetween the two World Wars, there was a dramatic upsurge of violence as rival criminal gangs vied for rich pickings from bookmakers at racetracks throughout England.With ready access to cash, "bookies" were a magnet for mobsters' blackmailing demands. Refusal to pay resulted in severe p...

Real-life stories of cops vs. criminals from a veteran of the Metropolitan Police and author praised for his "engaging style" (Joseph Wambaugh, #1 New York Times–bestselling author of Harbor Nocturne).Dick Kirby, former long-serving Met officer and bestselling author, recounts the policing of the twentieth century, when uniformed officers were visibly part of the community, patrolling their beats and protecting the public's property. Detectives de...

During the 20th Century, Scotland Yard detectives and their uniform counterparts, rarely armed, needed to be physically tough and brave given the ruthless criminals they confronted.In this thrilling book the Author draws on his and his comrades’ experiences. Among the incidents vividly described is that of a detective known as ‘Pat the Cat’ who was awarded British Empire Medal for Gallantry and Bar after being shot on one occasion, surviving a fusillade of bullets from a escape con...

In his latest thrilling book, much published crime author Dick Kirby draws on his fast moving policing service, much of which was with Scotland Yard's Serious Crime Squad and the Flying Squad. As if that was not enough he brings in accounts of fellow coppers during the final decades of the 20th century to add a fresh dimension. It quickly becomes clear to the reader that Kirby and his colleagues practiced their art in a markedly different style than that prevailing today. Corners were cut,...