The Big Breach - Index of

The Big Breach; From Top Secret to Maximum SecurityCompliments of http://www.192.comrolled up her copy of The Economist and jabbed it into her assailant'seye, quickly silencing him.We were also taught weapons-handling but, like self-defence, it wasmore for fun and fostering of team spirit than for any practicalpurpose. It was virtually unknown for MI6 officers to carry a weaponand no officer has ever used one in anger. Our instructor, Tom Nixon, aformer sergeant in the Special Air Service, participated in the May1980 Iranian Embassy siege at Prince's Gate. Under his expertsupervision, we practised twice weekly at the outdoor range at thewestern edge of the Fort and in the small indoor range, modelled on thefamous `killing house' range at the SAS barracks in Hereford. We mostlyused the Browning 9mm pistol, standard issue to the British armedforces, but also trained on foreign weapons like the Israeli Uzi andGerman Heckler & Koch sub-machine guns.The DS and lecturers taught us how to plan and mount buggingoperations, even though this is not the job of the IB. TOS has about ahundred officers trained in the specialist skills to carry out thesetasks: locksmiths, clandestine entry specialists, sound engineers,electricians. We just required an understanding of their skills andabilities. Ball gave us an exercise, PERFECT NEIGHBOUR, in which we hadto plan such an operation. Briefing us on the scenario, Ball said toimagine that the IRA had acquired a `safe house' in Gosport, near theFort, and that intelligence showed that the house was to be used toplan a bombing campaign. Over the next two weeks, we had to draw up adetailed portfolio of the house, its layout, its occupants and theirmovements, then make recommendations on how and when the house shouldbe entered to place covert listening devices. All of us were given adifferent house to recce. These belonged to innocent members of thepublic. `Are there any restrictions on what we can do?' asked Hare atthe end of the briefing.`No - you can do whatever you want,' replied Ball. `Just don't getcaught.'That evening I borrowed a covert shoulder-bag mounted camera from thephotographic laboratories and strolled round to my target, a mediumsizedfamily home set in a small garden and fronting on Gomer Lane. Tothe rear was a small garden, backing on to the grounds of Stanley Parkand Bay House School. Squeezing the bag to activate the Pentax SLRinside, I covertly photographed the house, shooting a roll of filmwhich I developed that evening. The following morning, a visit toGosport Town Hall on Walpole Road yielded a copy of the electoral roll,giving the names and occupations of the occupants. Posing as anarchitectural student, I borrowed the plans of their house from thebuilding regulations department on the fourth floor on the pretext thatit was for a design project at the polytechnic. The clerk would notrelease photocopies but allowed me to study them in the waiting-room.As soon as he was out of sight, an SLR with close-up lenses was used tophotographed them. Just as I finished, Castle walked in. He too hadthought of the same ruse. He got away with it but Spencer, who turnedup an hour or so later, was not so lucky. The clerk was by now wary ofthe rush of odd requests for plans of Fareham town houses. He calledhis superior, who refused to believe Spencer's protests that he was abuilder's jobber.page- 46 - To purchase the original limited edition hardback version of this bookplease call 08000 192 192 or go to http://www.192.com