Mike, using a laser pointer, indicated on the screen the current position of the surveillance and firearms officers and added that Barbara Maddox would be able to inform them when Bradford left the flat from her observation point in the van. They expected Bradford would take the 97 bus route to New Malden. He would be followed on foot, with the surveillance officers continually changing places so that he remained unaware of what was happening. Surveillance vehicles, including a motorcycle, would also follow the bus. Mike impressed Langton when he raised the possibility that they might lose Bradford, and said that he had instructed a technical support officer and a detective to go to the bank to speak to the manager and have a tracking device put in the moneybag. Mike finished by stressing that no arrest was to be made unless authorized by him or DCS Langton. Langton again stepped forward and asked if there were any questions. No one spoke and in the silence the tension was obvious.
The monitored calls caused a flurry of activity when it was revealed that Timmy had called a local taxi company, Crown Cars, and asked them to send a taxi in fifteen minutes to pick him up by the row of shops. He wanted to be driven to the NatWest in New Malden and for the driver to wait and return him to the estate. The taxi company was based near the hotel, so Mike Lewis, who had not been seen by Timmy, would replace their driver.
Anna watched as the tech support officer fixed Mike up with a wire and gave him a small tracking device to put in the car. She moved closer.
‘Still worried about the lack of action?’
He didn’t answer as Langton took him aside.
‘Radio back to us as soon as you’re in position. When we hear you check with him where he wants to go we’ll be ready for the off. You’ll have a surveillance car on your tail.’
From the street map of New Malden, they could see that the NatWest Bank was on a corner. Langton told Mike to draw up outside the bank, drop Bradford off and wait in the street for him to return. There would also be an officer in the back of the bank monitoring everything on the CCTV.
‘What if a traffic warden turns up?’
‘Don’t worry about that, there’ll be a couple of surveil-lance officers in the street so if they see any they’ll soon get rid of them.’
Anna noticed that whenever Langton was in conversation with Mike he turned to the SO19 and tactical support teams immediately afterwards.
‘Okay, DCI Lewis has given the go-ahead.’
By doing this it seemed that all the decisions were coming from Mike Lewis, not himself.
Mike had instructed all surveillance units to use the code name ‘Silver’ for Bradford. Oates was to be referred to as ‘Gold’, should he be seen to leave the Kingsnympton premises.
Fifteen minutes flew past. Then came the message in from the surveillance officers in the van with Barbara watching Mrs Douglas’s flat.
‘This is OP one. Silver out of blue door, heading from premises… Fast pace… Towards lane by Block C.’
‘Here he comes,’ Langton said unnecessarily as it was pretty obvious.
‘Silver in black BB cap, dark donkey jacket, blue jeans, white sneakers, carrying black holdall… on foot towards shopping area.’
Mike had parked the Crown taxicab directly outside the small hair salon, where he sat reading a paper. He glanced up to see Bradford heading towards him. Bradford rapped on the passenger window, opened the door, got in and slammed it shut.
‘NatWest, New Malden, was it, mate?’ Mike asked.
Bradford nodded and as the taxi moved off, they could hear him telling Mike the direction he wanted to go, asking him to take a left and then go into Warren Road, and not to worry about it being a private road as the guy on the gates at the end would let a taxi through without stopping him. The surveillance car seamlessly moved into position behind the taxi.
Bradford told Mike to turn left out of Warren Road and then go right towards New Malden High Street. There was a slight moment of confusion as Bradford said Mike should pass the bank, keep on driving and turn left by Boots the Chemist, as he had to get something.
Mike knew that their conversation was being relayed back to base, but he nevertheless became concerned.
‘I got you down for the NatWest Bank and then back to the estate?’
‘Yeah, yeah, I know, but you just wait, I’ll only be a minute. Go left at the lights, mate, and park it there.’
The surveillance car continued to follow, but held back as the taxi turned left and parked. A plain clothes officer got out to tail Bradford as he left the cab.
Mike was now parked on a double yellow line a few yards from the traffic lights. There was a pause, then the surveillance officer following Bradford made contact, reporting that Bradford had gone to the hair-styling section and selected a box of red L’Oréal hair dye and was now at the checkout counter.
Langton, listening in, glanced at Anna, wondering if it was for his mother. She smiled.
‘I doubt it, dyeing it my shade? Quite clever: Oates’s blond hair will take the colour easily,’ she said.
Bradford paid for his hair dye and then came out from Boots to cross to a shoe shop on the opposite corner. Again he was tailed and back came the information that he was buying a pair of boots, which he hadn’t even tried on! They also got the nod that he was very agitated, had dropped his wallet and was very impatient with the assistant, swearing at her to hurry up.
Bradford came out and tossed the purchases into the taxi. Mike turned towards him.
‘Where to now?’
Bradford had his hand on the open door.
‘Go to the bank now.’
‘It’s a no right turn,’ Mike said.
‘Then do a fucking u-ey, pal… Wait, leave it… I’ll walk up to the bank, meet me outside on the corner.’
Mike let him slam the door shut and a different surveil-lance officer now took over as Bradford hurried along New Malden High Street towards the bank.
Mike did an illegal right turn, followed by the surveillance car, to the great annoyance of one irate driver who yelled out abuse as they came alongside the hurrying figure of Bradford.
‘Silver now into bank.’
Waiting in the bank was the surveillance officer monitoring the CCTV. It was a small local branch, with just four cashiers behind the plate glass and a cordoned area for the customers to queue. There were two Japanese women, and an elderly man with a wheelie cart. Bradford took out papers from his jacket and was visibly sweating as he waited.
A cashier became available and he stepped forwards in front of the old man, who pushed his cart in front of Bradford.
‘Get the fuck out of my way,’ Bradford snarled.
A second cashier spoke into her microphone to say position number three was now available and Bradford elbowed past the old man.
The bank manager had already been primed to let the transaction take place without too many questions, as they didn’t want Bradford to become at all suspicious.
‘I’m here on behalf of my mother. She called you and I’ve got all the signed forms and my passport here,’ Bradford explained.
In fact it would usually have taken considerably more time, with all the security questions and identification checks that were legally required, but Langton had preempted this. However, as with all carefully plotted and planned arrangements, there could always be a blip and this time it came from the cashier.
‘I will have to speak to the manager to clear this, one moment.’
If Bradford was nervous so was everyone else. He was breathing very heavily, constantly looking over his shoulder and back to the empty teller’s chair.