One of our policemen was missing - now we know he is dead. Did he fall ? ..... Or was he pushed ?

Chief Constable Michael Todd took the responsibility to investigate the possibility that planes rented by the CIA which had transited the UK and stopped at airports nationwide on over 300 instances were carrying people for rendition elsewhere - he wrote to Ex - Home Office lawyer Ms Shami Chakrabarti of Liberty on the 5th June 2007 which was received on 8th June - by extraordinary coincidence the day that Senator Dick Marty issued the Council of Europe’s official report finding European collusion with extraordinary rendition and blanket “overflight clearances” for US military flights after 19 months of investigations.

This was not, we must remind ourselves, in any way an official enquiry, he was not empowered to seek out evidence or witnesses, no crimes had been reported or recorded, no Minister had officially sanctioned such an enquiry, it had not been approved by anybody. ACPO has no legal authority to sanction any such enquiry. Indeed the letter he wrote to doe eyed media star Sami, was on Greater Manchester Police notepaper.

"On behalf of ACPO, " Mr Todd wrote, " I agreed to look at the issues. None of the airports involved are located within my own police area and, consequently, I was able to look at the issues with a degree of independence." Ho.Ho.Ho.

"UKIS and HMRC’s respective interests in General Aviation Reports relate to identifying risk in relation to passengers declared on the form and on movement of prohibited and restricted smuggled goods. Passengers who remain on board an aircraft that lands on UK soil, for example to refuel, are regarded as airside transit passengers and not normally subject to immigration or customs control unless they seek to enter the UK. Both Services firmly point out that if their staff suspected that passengers were being transported illegally or in breach of their human rights, this would be passed to the relevant authority – most likely the Police in the first instance."

"I am encouraged by the reassurances from my colleagues in HMRC and UKIS about the action their staff would take if they thought that these offences were being committed at a UK airport. I can add that police officers would take such allegations made to them, whether from UKIS, HMRC or any other source seriously and take appropriate action including boarding aircraft, if necessary, to investigate."

It appears that no aircraft were boarded, or if they were Chief Constable Todd had not discovered any evidence that they had.

Mind you, he didn't spend a lot of time or effort in looking. Or did he ?

Perhaps Mr Todd had a very troubled mind when set out alone on his walk on Snowdon in some of the worst weather for many years - it is unclear whether he set out on the Saturday / Sunday or the Monday . (It now appears(WEd aftrenoon) it was Monday but this is not certain) Perhaps Mr Todd had a very troubled mind when we are told he leapt off that cliff on Snowdon, scattering letters to be carried away on the 100 mph winds. Then because of the impossibility of using a helicopter being carried on a bruising and lengthy stretcher journey down the mountain which must make any examination of his wounds a difficult problem.

His colleagues at GMP only became aware he was missing on Monday afternoon (Daily Telegraph today)- he was due with others at the Home Office on Tuesday morning - and raised the alarm, it was not until Tuesday afternoon his body was discovered by the Mountain Rescue Team. (watch Sky News Video link at Update at bottom of story - officers at Home Office meeting were not told why Todd was not present nor aboutthe search and learnt from Sky News of his death)

By The Way

Newsniffer has 12 versions of the BBC Online story this appeared in Version 9 at 19.20
The Llanberis Mountain Rescue Team began the task of taking his body off the mountain on foot at about 1800 GMT

Mr Henderson confirmed that the alarm was raised by walkers who found "personal effects" belonging to Mr Todd while out on the mountain.

Spokesman Ian Henderson said teams had been hampered by "appalling" weather conditions, including heavy rain and high winds, which meant rescuers could not use a helicopter

His body was spotted later about 200 yards away from the spot where the items were found, he added.

Sources at Greater Manchester Police said that among the items found with him were personal letters written to his loved ones, the BBC's Nick Ravenscroft said.

No news yet of the heroic walkers, or their pictures, or their names, or why they were out there in that dreadful weather, or why the personal items were 200yds away, or why they hadn't blown away, or why they looked.

Rgeular readers may remember Saturday, August 06, 2005 Scotsman who embarassed Tony Blair dies on a country walk. about Robin Cook who died on a highlands walk ... and those who take an interest in these matters remember ......

"Who were the so-far unidentified group of walkers (or hunters(?)) who, we were told, came to Gaynor Cook's aid? If it's not an obvious question, what were they doing on Ben Stack? For, according to the landlady of Scourie Lodge, where the Cooks had spent their last night,

"She was lucky another walker was in the area to be with her at such a time.
"You could be on Ben Stack ninety times and not see a soul, so for someone
to be within shouting distance and with a mobile phone was very fortunate."

and ...

" Although most reports spoke of a 'group of walkers', in this Times article there was only one.
Neither of the Cooks was carrying a mobile phone but Mrs Cook's cries for help were answered by a walker, who called the emergency services at about 2.23pm.

Between them, Mrs Cook, 48, and the man, who has not been named, gave Mr Cook mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and chest compressions under the telephone guidance of Inverness ambulance staff, until rescuers arrived by Coastguard helicopter at 3.01pm.

How come that heroic walker kept his anonymity? Did he, at least, give a statement to police? What about the party he belonged to, mentioned by the Sunday Times, the Herald and many others? I find it odd that no one in that group of walkers spoke to, or was spoken to by, anyone in the media or, as far as we know, the police. Was even their nationality ever revealed?"

... more fascinating details, conjecture and thought provocations at Shapan and of course nobody will forget what happened when Dr Kelly went for a walk...er..... on his own.

UPDATE : 3.00 pm GMT Curiouser and Curiouser watch this SKY video news item from yesterday announcing the news of his death we have a recording so it won't go away.


Here is the Snowdonia weather forecast issued Tuesday .. we have not yet found the one issued on Sunday ... seems just the right weather for a solitary walker on the hills. Click to enlarge.

Read what Llanberis Moutain rescue give as advice to walkers in the winter

1. Keep an eye on the Met office weather for Snowdonia for a few days before your planned a trip, as it has information of the freezing level as well as weather outlook. If the freezing level has stayed below 900 metre for a day or more you can expect some icy condition high up on the mountains.

2. If it has been below freezing we recommend that you take with you both an ice axe and crampons, as even the PYG track becomes a inclined ice rink after even a short peiod of frost due to the amount of running water on it. ....

UPDATE Michael Todd - A death has been reported - Curiouser and curiouser