Free Buried in the Past by Bill Kitson Page B

adjoining office. Both men had multiple stab wounds. They also found Raymond Perry, standing over the body with the murder weapon in his hand. During the struggle to subdue and arrest him two officers received knife injuries, fortunately neither of them serious.’ Nash stood up. ‘I’ll make another coffee, then we’ll summarize what we’ve learned so far.’
    When they resumed, Nash said, ‘You know what intrigues me? That phone call. I’ll get to it in a minute. First, some facts. Raymond had been heard by several witnesses saying that “Callaghan’s got itcoming to him”. Presumably he was talking about revenge for his Uncle Max’s murder. Police never thought to look beyond Raymond for the killer. He had motive, means and opportunity and was quite literally caught red-handed. Everything very snug and watertight. But listen, this is the transcript of that phone call. “Go to Five Elms Car Sales. You’ll find Tony Callaghan’s body in the workshop. He’s been stabbed. If you get there sharp, you’ll find Ray Perry at the scene.” Now, what strikes you about that tip-off?’
    ‘The caller knew exactly how Callaghan had been killed,’ Viv replied.
    ‘That’s part of it. He also knew Perry would be at the scene. How did he know? And, he doesn’t at any point suggest Perry killed Callaghan. Only that he would be there. That phone call suggests an altogether different scenario. Which in turn poses two further questions : if Perry didn’t kill Callaghan, who did, and why? Was their motive to frame Perry, or was his being at the scene of the crime just a massive slice of good luck for the killer? And if he was innocent, why did Perry not defend himself? Why not do something to prove his innocence? Although, to be fair, with the evidence stacked against him that would have been almost impossible.
    ‘Anyway, that’s all speculation. The rest of the report deals with Perry’s time in jail. All the time he’s been in there, he’s reported to have been a model prisoner. Not involved in fights, no trouble at all. That hardly tallies with his reputation, which is intriguing, but doesn’t shed much light on why he was almost killed in a hit-and-run . One thing for certain’ – Nash closed the folder and rested his hand on it – ‘there’s absolutely nothing in here that gives any connection between Perry, his family and North Yorkshire, nothing to suggest a reason for him ending up here. We need more background information.’
    ‘How do we find that out?’
    ‘I don’t know,’ Nash admitted. ‘I’m open to any suggestions.’
    They sat in silence for several moments, sipping coffee as they considered their course of action. Eventually, Clara stirred. ‘I’ve had an idea. Why not get in touch with the Met? See if the file on Max Perry gives any more clues, or if there are any officers who might know more.’ She pointed to the folder. ‘The officer who compiledthat, for instance, must have known Perry quite well. It might be useful to know how Max was killed, or if anyone was ever charged with the crime. All we know at the moment is that rumour that Callaghan was involved.’
    ‘Good thinking, Clara. The more we can learn of Raymond Perry’s past, the likelier we are to get some clue as to the motive for the attack, and possibly who was responsible.’
    ‘That sounds quite a task,’ Clara commented.
    ‘If you think that’s hard, wait till you hear what I’ve got in store for you. Your job is to trace Raymond Perry’s mother, if she’s still alive. If not, find out when and where she died, even where she’s buried. In the meantime I’ll get on to the Met and order that other file and see what I can find out about the officers who worked the cases. Viv, you continue with Graham Nattrass’s background.’
     
    Nash picked up the phone and rang the Met. Having requested the Max Perry file and elicited a promise that it would be sent by courier that afternoon, Nash asked to be transferred to