with muscle.
As he was introduced to Walsh, Cooper thought he might actually have seen him playing against the Derbyshire Police first XV. He recalled a gap-toothed tight head with bandaged knees who’d tried to maim his opposing prop in the scrum every time the referee looked the other way. Even cleaned up and wearing a suit and tie, Walsh was still a bit scary.
The CID team had crowded into the small conference room to hear the Trading Standards officers. The room was nearly full and overly warm.
‘So what exactly is Trading Standards’ interest?’ asked Hitchens, looking happy to be involved in co-operation with partner agencies. It was probably something he could add to his PDR. ‘Can we help you? Or are you here to help us?’
‘It’s largely a question of background information which might be useful in your present enquiry,’ said Walsh.
‘The suspicious death of Mr Patrick Rawson.’
‘Yes.’
‘Please explain.’
‘Well, two years ago, a series of prosecutions were brought by Trading Standards with the help of one of the national horse protection organizations. We achieved several convictions. One defendant was fined sixteen thousand pounds and ordered to pay six thousand pounds costs, when he was found guilty of breaching trading standards legislation, and certain other offences.’
‘What other offences?’ asked Fry.
‘Selling a horse without a valid passport.’
There was a moment of silence. Some of the officers fidgeted uncomfortably, as if they thought they might have something more important to be doing. Cooper could see that Fry was one of them.
‘I don’t understand,’ she said.
Walsh held up a hand. ‘Please, let me explain. This all started when our animal health team launched an investigation on the back of a complaint from a first-time horse buyer, who said she wanted a mature, quiet horse for her children. She purchased an eight-year-old Irish cob mare for three thousand five hundred pounds over the internet, only to find the horse lame on delivery. The mare was returned, but the replacement, a gelding advertised as “four, rising five” and “quiet”, bucked her off on the first ride. Her vet said the horse was obviously immature.’
‘Do people really buy horses on the internet?’ said Fry.
‘People buy everything on the internet,’ said Cooper, who had bid successfully for some Mike Scott CDs on eBay just the night before.
Fry looked amazed. ‘Sight unseen?’
Walsh shrugged. ‘If they think they’re getting a bargain, buyers can be easily duped. It’s always been the same way. The internet just makes it a bit simpler.’
‘It’s like buying a house or a car on the internet.’
‘People do that, too.’
Patel was handing around a set of data sheets, listing the details of complainants. Names and addresses, allegations of breaches of consumer protection legislation. And the names of companies and individuals the complaints had been made against.
Cooper scanned the list. The companies concerned weren’t quite called ‘Nags R Us’, but they certainly had names designed to reassure customers that they were getting a docile mount, something suitable for a happy hack around the paddock.
‘This was a full-scale investigation,’ said Walsh. ‘We raided the defendants’ business premises. We followed up more than fifty complaints, dating back five years. As you’ll see from the lists, horses had been advertised for sale under a variety of trading names, claiming they were suitable for novice riders or had perfect temperaments for children. Some of them even came with money-back guarantees.’
‘And?’
‘And, in reality, many of those animals were unsound, or unsafe to be ridden. Buyers alleged that horses were delivered lame, malnourished, or covered in bite or kick marks. Some of them had coughs, back problems — and, in one case, navicular disease diagnosed at a post-sale vet check. At least four of the horses had to be euthanased after purchase.’
‘You can have a horse vetted before you buy it, though.’
Walsh looked up. ‘Of course. But vets don’t come cheap. If you’re looking for an inexpensive horse, the vet’s bill on top of the asking price can put it out of reach. Perhaps worse than all that, we turned up several personal injury cases involving children thrown from their horses — one suffered neck injuries, another a broken arm. Buyers who complained said that, instead of refunds, they got abuse and insults. These were members of the public who found themselves thousands of pounds out of pocket, and facing huge vets’ bills.’
‘Some of these purchases were face to face, though,’ said Cooper, running his finger down the list. ‘Not online.’
‘The trouble with the equine trade is that face-to-face deals are verbal, and payment is usually in cash,’ said Walsh. ‘There aren’t many businesses where that’s still true these days. As you know, anything that involves piles of cash and a minimum of paperwork is bound to attract a few rogue traders. There are lots more cases. Too many for me to mention.’
There were certainly plenty of them. Cooper could see an example of a couple who bought a horse for? 1,500, which was described as being an Irish hunter, aged nine or ten, and in generally good condition. Vets who had examined the horse after purchase said he was nearer twenty years old and not fit to ride. He had a wound in his mouth that would have made the bit very painful.
‘It’s like a car dealer “clocking” his cars,’ explained Walsh. ‘People buy a horse thinking they’re going to get x number of years out of it, but if the animal is ten years older than they’ve been told, then they won’t get the same value out of it. It’s always been a case of caveat emptor in this trade — “buyer beware”. But buyers need to be very careful where they take their business. Very careful.’
‘Was the website closed down?’ asked Cooper.
‘Yes. We managed to get an order under the Enterprise Act, plus the sellers took a hit on legal costs. That means contempt of court and possible imprisonment, if they commit any further breaches of the act.’ Walsh looked around the table. ‘This was a very lengthy investigation by the time it came to court. I was personally involved in the enquiry for nearly two years. I’ve got a file of paperwork on this a mile high — you wouldn’t believe it.’
‘Oh, I think we would,’ said Fry, perhaps remembering the officers still processing the files from the E Division strike day.
Walsh smiled at her. Cooper noticed that he had a full set of teeth when he was off the rugby pitch. Presumably thanks to an NHS bridge or two, like many of the rugby players he knew.
‘But I don’t see Patrick Rawson’s name on any of these allegations,’ said Hitchens, who had been listening patiently.
‘No. Sadly, Mr Rawson was never named in any of the charges. Our enquiries with Companies House revealed from the beginning that Patrick Rawson was listed as a director in several of the businesses that complaints had been made against. He was also a known associate of all the other named dealers, even where he wasn’t a director. But so many of the arrangements were verbal that we were never able to build a strong enough case against him. Not enough to put him in court with the other defendants. The evidence just wouldn’t stick.’
‘He’s either a very lucky man, or very clever,’ said Hitchens.
Walsh nodded. ‘Both. Believe me, we tried very hard to tie in Mr Rawson with these offences. We were convinced that he was personally responsible for many of the frauds, but Rawson seems to have avoided putting almost anything in writing that could have been incriminating. This is a very slippery customer indeed. I interviewed him myself on several occasions, and he was always extremely plausible. Charming, even.’
‘What did Rawson have to say for himself?’
‘He dismissed the allegations against him as scare-mongering by rival dealers,’ said Walsh. ‘Mr Rawson’s solicitor said his client was disappointed that matters couldn’t have been sorted out privately. If he’d been contacted with complaints, he would have responded, he said. But, as far as I’m concerned, Rawson showed all the typical signs of a dodgy trader.’
