Free Outlaws: Inside the Violent World of Biker Gangs by Tony Thompson Page A

Hell’s Angel’s’ broke into his home and threatened to blow him in half with a sawn-off shotgun, he did what any normal person would do: ‘I ran straight to the phone and called the police.’
    The revelation came as something of a shock. So far as local detectives were concerned, Plymouth’s drug problem centred on persistent offender Eddie Szuluk, a big-time operator who sold millions of pounds worth of drugs from a fortified council flat. But as they began to investigate, they started receiving veiled complaints that another mob had taken over. One addict/dealer told how he had been ordered to leave town or face certain death after it was found that he had been buying from a rival source.
    Once the scale of the enterprise became apparent, the officer in charge, Detective Superintendent Malcolm Quick, realised that attempting to get any of the victims of violence into court would be a waste of time. The chances were that, under pressure from Scorpio associates, they would retract and the case would fall apart. Instead, he selected twenty-four officers, fifteen of them experts in surveillance, and launched Operation Enmesh to try to infiltrate the gang.
    It was an uphill struggle. In line with the ‘good practice’ code of biker crime, the Scorpios only ever dealt with those on an approved list of customers. New business was by introduction only and gaining the confidence of the gang’s associates would be a slow, expensive and dangerous process.
    Had it not been for a string of lucky breaks, the job might never have been completed. The first came when a few ofthe gang members found themselves arrested after clashing with some Hell’s Angels in Falmouth. The remaining Scorpios stepped up dealing to establish a ‘fighting fund’ and began to relax a few of their rules. The major breakthrough, however, came from a completely unexpected source.
    Helen White was the least likely member of the Scorpio entourage. Stunningly attractive, well educated and the daughter of a highly successful businessman, she had trained as a ballet dancer and was expected to have a glittering career before her. But the break-up of her marriage sent her into a spin. She became fascinated with the biker scene and began modelling for numerous motorbike magazines. She picked up a minor drugs conviction, allowed her blonde hair to become matted and tousled and finally had an eagle and FTW (Fuck The World) tattooed on her left shoulder. Then she fell in love with Snoopy.
    Beauty and the beast were not destined to live happily ever after. Helen rapidly developed a cocaine habit, which Snoopy readily agreed to support, provided she started working as a courier. The pair began living together and she was slowly taken more and more into the gang’s confidence, being entrusted with large sums of money and huge quantities of drugs, which she hand-delivered around the country.
    But as Helen became increasingly disturbed by the levels of violence being employed, and sickened by her own role in the business, she moved out of Snoopy’s flat to live on her own. She had also become fed up with Snoopy who continued to see other women during their relationship.
    Quick to exploit a chink in the chain, the police arrangedto meet with Helen and asked her to play a dangerous game. In return for immunity from prosecution, they wanted her to continue as a courier and feed them information about drug supply lines. She agreed and for the next six months lived a double life. She remained friendly with Dyce, and sometimes slept with him, but all the while she was making a note of times, dates and drop-off points for shipments, helping detectives to build up a picture of the international network.
    During this time, the Scorpios became even more successful. Having cornered the amphetamine market, they expanded, dealing in LSD, shipping in vast amounts of cannabis resin from North Africa, and liaising with Colombian cartel representatives to receive cocaine direct