Alphon--The A6 "hit man"?

[Natalie Severn]

In my view Alphon got off the murder charge very lightly given his unstable state in the Vienna Hotel and Alexandra Hotels .This makes me think he must have gathered himself together by the time Supt Acott and Oxford interviewed him.When I read through their interview notes I was surprised at Alphon"s gall and that he got away with not letting them near the contents of his suitcase, which he said was in a locker at Victoria Station.All I can think is that when Valerie failed to identify him,Acott simply "moved on". But I can"t help thinking someone apart from Nudds planted the idea of Hanratty in their heads.
Jean Justice saw the gaps and determined to get to the bottom of the Alphon mystery and in my view this is what was badly needed.Trouble is I tend to think he bit off more than he could chew and that Alphon outwitted him--as he did the police.
Norma

[jimornot?]

if alphon wsa a hit man

dear all

what evidence / theory is there which shows alphon would be a prime candidate to do a job for someone?

I have doubts as to where he got the money in his account but £5k was so much money then and I am sure more 'professional' thugs could have been hired at far less money.

Did Alphon ever explain satisfactorily how he was approached, why etc?

atb

viv

[jimornot?]

In my view Alphon got off the murder charge very lightly given his unstable state in the Vienna Hotel and Alexandra Hotels .This makes me think he must have gathered himself together by the time Supt Acott and Oxford interviewed him.When I read through their interview notes I was surprised at Alphon"s gall and that he got away with not letting them near the contents of his suitcase, which he said was in a locker at Victoria Station.All I can think is that when Valerie failed to identify him,Acott simply "moved on". But I can"t help thinking someone apart from Nudds planted the idea of Hanratty in their heads.
Jean Justice saw the gaps and determined to get to the bottom of the Alphon mystery and in my view this is what was badly needed.Trouble is I tend to think he bit off more than he could chew and that Alphon outwitted him--as he did the police.
Norma

Hi Norma

I don't (now) believe Alphon was guilty of the murder etc but his presence in the case is disturbing for all the reasons outlined by others before. He certainy seems to have got away lightly with his actions and the police investigation appears as questionable as it was inept at times

I haven't read Justice's book so can't really judge him. that said even if he (JJ) had an agenda to get back at the establishment, I have to think he was entirely sincere in his belief that Alphon did the crime

atb

viv

[Natalie Severn]

Hi Viv, How do you explain the statement on 13 September by Juliana Galves that when she opened the door of his room ,Alphon, as well as looking dishevelled and distracted at 11.45 am on the day of the murder,she saw he had a pair of Black nylon gloves on top of his suitcase?

[Natalie Severn]

dear all

what evidence / theory is there which shows alphon would be a prime candidate to do a job for someone?

I have doubts as to where he got the money in his account but £5k was so much money then and I am sure more 'professional' thugs could have been hired at far less money.

Did Alphon ever explain satisfactorily how he was approached, why etc?

atb

viv

No never Viv!

[jimornot?]

Hi Viv, How do you explain the statement on 13 September by Juliana Galves that when she opened the door of his room ,Alphon, as well as looking dishevelled and distracted at 11.45 am on the day of the murder,she saw he had a pair of Black nylon gloves on top of his suitcase?

I'm afraid I can't Norma but I am not so sure if Julian Galves was leaned on by the police as Nudds appears to have been. i personally don't think eitehr of their testiomnies are particularly reliable

I do agree it odd that Alphon didn't have to comply with a request to see the contents of his suitcases though

atb

viv

[jimornot?]

No never Viv!

hi Norma

but wouldn't that have made his case stronger? it just seems so implausible that with no aparent expereince or expertise that he would have been approached to do the job or paid so much for it

all the best

Viv

[Natalie Severn]

hi Norma

but wouldn't that have made his case stronger? it just seems so implausible that with no aparent expereince or expertise that he would have been approached to do the job or paid so much for it

all the best

Viv

Hi Viv, No I never said he received the 5000 thousand pounds for doing the job:I think he got that amount to keep him quiet so blackmail money mostly,because it went so terribly wrong and Alphon had to be kept from blabbing?How much for the job itself ? £2000 perhaps?

[Victor]

I think he got that amount to keep him quiet so blackmail money mostly,because it went so terribly wrong and Alphon had to be kept from blabbing?How much for the job itself ? £2000 perhaps?

Hi Norma,

£2,000 to kill someone. You've said before there's lots of small time crooks that'd do it for a tenth the amount. Even that much for a professional hit is ridiculous.

KR,
Vic.

[Limehouse]

Hi Norma,

£2,000 to kill someone. You've said before there's lots of small time crooks that'd do it for a tenth the amount. Even that much for a professional hit is ridiculous.

KR,
Vic.

It was also a ridiculous amount of money for a man of Alphon's habits to have stashed away in his bank account.

[Victor]

It was also a ridiculous amount of money for a man of Alphon's habits to have stashed away in his bank account.

Hi Julie,

That is true, but just because he was never required to account for the money, that doesn't imply that it was either illegitimate nor specifically paid to him to "scare" MG and VS.

And then there's the problem of explaining how an umbrella salesman managed to get that amount of money to casually throw away like that.

KR,
Vic.

[Limehouse]

Hi Julie,

That is true, but just because he was never required to account for the money, that doesn't imply that it was either illegitimate nor specifically paid to him to "scare" MG and VS.

And then there's the problem of explaining how an umbrella salesman managed to get that amount of money to casually throw away like that.

KR,
Vic.

Not such a problem if it wasn't the umbrella salesman who put that money in the account though?

[Natalie Severn]

Hi Norma,

£2,000 to kill someone. You've said before there's lots of small time crooks that'd do it for a tenth the amount. Even that much for a professional hit is ridiculous.

KR,
Vic.

No Vic,somebody else is talking about killing ---not me! I believe the gunman may have been "appointed" to "scare off " Valerie---thats all ! The affair[between VS and MG was hotting up since Mike Gregsten was in the process of moving out of the marital home and having a flat of his own which moves the affair between Valerie and Janet"s husband onto quite a different level.Janet is to be left quite literally "holding the baby" [her youngest child was two and was born in the middle of the four year affair between Valerie Storie and Mike Gregsten].So its possible the 5 hour mystery ride with the masked gunman was an attempt to scare the wits out of the copulating couple in the cornfield and possibly see off Valerie altogether in the process !
In fact Gregsten hit out with the duffle bag and the gunman fired in panic!

The shocking events that followed were a consequence of a plan that went badly wrong.

[Natalie Severn]

I'm afraid I can't Norma but I am not so sure if Julian Galves was leaned on by the police as Nudds appears to have been. i personally don't think eitehr of their testiomnies are particularly reliable

I do agree it odd that Alphon didn't have to comply with a request to see the contents of his suitcases though

atb

viv

Missed your bit about the ladies black nylon gloves Viv!
Well I think Juliana was probably the only reliable witness from the Vienna Hotel quite frankly!

[Victor]

No Vic,somebody else is talking about killing ---not me! I believe the gunman may have been "appointed" to "scare off " Valerie---thats all !

Hi Norma,

Still £2,000 to £5,000 in those days is a huge amount of money and it would have been significantly better to offer it to Mike on the condition he'd stop his various affairs and be a good husband.

So its possible the 5 hour mystery ride with the masked gunman was an attempt to scare the wits out of the copulating couple in the cornfield and possibly see off Valerie altogether in the process !

It'd be way better to bribe Mike with it. Or just give it to Janet to hand out if Mike behaved himself.

In fact Gregsten hit out with the duffle bag and the gunman fired in panic!

That's not a definitely ascertained fact, it's the excuse\explanation\reason\whatever the gunman told Valerie just after the shots were fired. It could even be the gunman thought MG was swinging the duffel bag at him, when actually he was passing it back as he was asked to.

The shocking events that followed were a consequence of a plan that went badly wrong.

The shocking events could easily be a consequence of the accidental shooting, whether it was a plan or not is pure speculation.

KR,
Vic.