Episode 5 Fugitives


Episode 5

Similar Content

Browse content similar to Episode 5. Check below for episodes and series from the same categories and more!

Transcript


LineFromTo

-Come on!

-On the run.

0:00:020:00:04

-Get back here!

-And over here.

0:00:040:00:06

Hands out now. Hands out!

0:00:060:00:08

When foreign criminals flee their home countries, many hide out in the UK.

0:00:080:00:14

-Give me your hands.

-But if they think they're safe, they're wrong.

0:00:140:00:17

They know they're wanted.

0:00:170:00:19

A lot of these people are waiting for that knock on the door.

0:00:190:00:22

But the traffic in fugitives isn't all one way.

0:00:220:00:26

Across Europe, there are hundreds of British criminals also trying to escape justice.

0:00:270:00:32

From the sun-drenched Costas, where the villains seek a life of luxury...

0:00:330:00:37

..to the busy streets of the Dutch capital,

0:00:380:00:40

where many continue their life of crime.

0:00:400:00:43

We join the crack teams hunting them down.

0:00:450:00:48

When you take the risk to come to Amsterdam as a criminal,

0:00:480:00:51

there's a high chance that we'll get you.

0:00:510:00:53

When it comes to justice, borders are no barrier.

0:00:530:00:57

You're under arrest under the Extradition Act 2003.

0:00:570:01:00

This is how the police take down the fugitives...

0:01:000:01:04

Police officer.

0:01:040:01:05

..both at home and abroad.

0:01:050:01:07

If you're thinking of running, don't.

0:01:080:01:11

We will find you.

0:01:110:01:13

We will bring you back.

0:01:130:01:15

Coming up on today's programme...

0:01:220:01:24

It's an early start for the Metropolitan Police's extradition team,

0:01:250:01:29

searching for a vicious man hiding from the law.

0:01:290:01:32

He is wanted for an assault back home in Lithuania.

0:01:330:01:36

There's a big knife there. You just never know what's going to happen,

0:01:370:01:41

so you've just got to be aware of what's around you.

0:01:410:01:43

In Leeds, the family man guilty of petty theft.

0:01:430:01:46

Three offences of shoplifting.

0:01:460:01:47

Having to face the fact that crime doesn't pay.

0:01:470:01:50

Quite a tragedy for that family, but he brought it upon himself.

0:01:500:01:55

And officers with superpowers

0:01:550:01:57

spotting wanted men and women on Dutch and British streets.

0:01:570:02:02

We are really, really good at actually finding these people

0:02:020:02:05

and bringing them to justice.

0:02:050:02:07

Over 12,000 fugitives from other European countries are thought to be hiding out in the UK.

0:02:120:02:19

Many choose to live amongst London's population of almost nine million.

0:02:190:02:23

Catching them is the work of the Metropolitan Police's extradition unit,

0:02:240:02:29

a dedicated team of almost 30 detectives.

0:02:290:02:32

We don't want criminals thinking

0:02:340:02:36

that the UK is a safe haven for them to come to.

0:02:360:02:39

And, of course, if you've got somebody who's committing burglary

0:02:390:02:42

or robbery or a serious sex offender, the likelihood is

0:02:420:02:45

they're going to be committing that crime here in the UK.

0:02:450:02:49

Today, like every day, detectives from the extradition unit

0:02:500:02:53

have a long list of European arrest warrants to serve.

0:02:530:02:57

On the early shift, DCs Jamie Darby and Dave Salmon

0:02:580:03:02

are on their way to Newham in East London.

0:03:020:03:06

The first fugitive they're after, Jose Trigo Raul,

0:03:060:03:10

has already been found guilty of a violent crime.

0:03:100:03:13

I think he's from Angola originally.

0:03:130:03:15

He's wanted by Portugal for a European arrest warrant.

0:03:160:03:19

Armed robbery and assault with a knife.

0:03:220:03:24

And he's got a six-year sentence to serve.

0:03:260:03:28

The wanted man has been found guilty of 11 offences,

0:03:320:03:35

many of them violent.

0:03:350:03:37

The officers need to be careful.

0:03:370:03:39

When they arrive, Jamie deploys his team to cover all the exits.

0:03:410:03:45

Tom, this is the address just here on the corner.

0:03:450:03:49

Number 2. If you don't mind, would you stand on the corner?

0:03:490:03:52

-Yeah.

-If you hear anyone come out the back,

0:03:520:03:55

Officer Willis is just going to be just here.

0:03:550:03:57

-Just give us a quick shout.

-Yeah, sure.

0:03:570:03:59

We're going to knock on the door, me, Dave and Ed,

0:03:590:04:02

and we'll see who comes to the door and take it from there, OK?

0:04:020:04:05

-Okey doke.

-OK.

0:04:050:04:06

A lot of foreign national offenders,

0:04:080:04:10

they are up and out very early in the morning.

0:04:100:04:14

So we have found that doing a very early morning call

0:04:140:04:18

enables us to often get people in.

0:04:180:04:21

Whereas if we go later during the day, they're not going to be there.

0:04:210:04:24

In this case, the early start pays off.

0:04:260:04:29

It is 5:50am in the morning and there's obviously someone at home.

0:04:290:04:32

Morning. Police officers.

0:04:400:04:41

-Oh, hi.

-Who lives here, my friend?

0:04:410:04:43

-Me and my son.

-The man who answers isn't their target.

0:04:430:04:47

He's only recently moved in...

0:04:470:04:48

..but Jamie spots some letters addressed to the fugitive.

0:04:490:04:52

Who are the letters for? Can I have a look? Do you mind?

0:04:520:04:55

-Yeah.

-Has anyone ever come round to pick any letters up or anything?

0:04:550:04:58

-No, no.

-The officers seize the letters,

0:04:580:05:00

hoping they'll provide vital information about Raul's location.

0:05:000:05:05

He obviously lived there at some time because he's got lots of post

0:05:050:05:08

in his name, so it's obviously an old address.

0:05:080:05:11

The officers that I have in the extradition unit

0:05:110:05:13

are very, very experienced and I think over the years

0:05:130:05:17

they have learnt that if you go in

0:05:170:05:20

and treat people with respect in the way that they should be,

0:05:200:05:25

you get a much better response from the occupants of the building.

0:05:250:05:30

And it means that they will cooperate with you as well,

0:05:300:05:33

more often than not.

0:05:330:05:34

Often you'll get some information that will give you new leads,

0:05:340:05:37

so that we're able to progress that investigation.

0:05:370:05:41

Although this fugitive remains on the run for now,

0:05:410:05:45

the team already have another criminal in their sights.

0:05:450:05:48

Next on the list is a wanted man who has fled from Lithuania.

0:05:490:05:53

It's a gentleman wanted for theft and actual bodily harm.

0:05:530:05:57

We have some intel from the Department for Work and Pensions that he's...

0:05:590:06:02

So we're going to give it a knock.

0:06:020:06:04

Lithuania have sent over an image.

0:06:040:06:06

The fugitive, Lithuanian Eligijus Petrikonis,

0:06:080:06:12

has been found guilty of fraud and assault back home.

0:06:120:06:15

So he's got a remaining sentence of two years and three months to serve...

0:06:160:06:22

..and it looks like he was sentenced in his absence.

0:06:230:06:26

So he's fled Lithuania...

0:06:280:06:29

..and he's popped up over here.

0:06:310:06:34

From the information on the warrant,

0:06:360:06:38

it looks like another potentially dangerous job.

0:06:380:06:41

You just think about who's going to be in the flat.

0:06:440:06:46

You can knock on a door and there can be one person in there,

0:06:460:06:50

or you can have about six or seven people come out of different rooms.

0:06:500:06:54

Especially when we knock on the doors,

0:06:550:06:56

there's normally only two or three of us,

0:06:560:06:58

so you've got to be aware of who is going to be at the address.

0:06:580:07:01

You go and knock on the door of someone who's wanted for GBH

0:07:010:07:04

or a robbery where a knife's been used,

0:07:040:07:07

you think a bit more about it.

0:07:070:07:08

Later, the team face a race across town during rush hour

0:07:110:07:14

to get to Petrikonis's last-known address before he leaves for the day.

0:07:140:07:19

He's got to know that he's got this prison sentence to serve back in Lithuania,

0:07:200:07:24

so he's going to be anxious to not be caught.

0:07:240:07:26

Amsterdam. The Dutch capital with its bars, cafes and canals

0:07:340:07:40

has long been popular with tourists.

0:07:400:07:43

It's also a magnet for criminals and fugitives from British justice.

0:07:430:07:48

But Dutch police are fighting back.

0:07:480:07:52

The serious and organised crime team in the capital is headed by this man - Jeroen Poelert.

0:07:520:07:59

Amsterdam is a very nice place to live and to visit,

0:07:590:08:04

and we are proud of that.

0:08:040:08:06

And Amsterdam for criminals,

0:08:060:08:09

it's also a capital for the organised crime.

0:08:090:08:12

Sometimes they have guns, sometimes they have problems between each other,

0:08:120:08:16

so our main thing is that we worry about kidnapping and murders.

0:08:160:08:22

That's why we have a strong focus to catch them.

0:08:220:08:25

Amsterdam is a favoured bolthole for criminals on the run from the Liverpool area.

0:08:300:08:35

One dangerous fugitive who took that route was notorious Merseyside gangster James Taylor.

0:08:370:08:43

Taylor was known to the police. He had some convictions.

0:08:440:08:48

He had minor convictions for theft.

0:08:480:08:51

He had convictions for possessing an imitation firearm,

0:08:510:08:55

public order, and threatening behaviour.

0:08:550:08:59

His nickname amongst Liverpool's criminal fraternity was Pancake,

0:08:590:09:03

due to his habit of flipping out.

0:09:030:09:06

He is known across Merseyside and because of the nickname,

0:09:060:09:12

there is this myth around him in terms of...

0:09:120:09:15

..who he was and what he was about.

0:09:160:09:18

In October 2010, Pancake Taylor lived up to his nickname.

0:09:210:09:27

With the help of two others,

0:09:270:09:29

he carried out a vicious revenge attack on a rival he'd fought

0:09:290:09:33

while in prison.

0:09:330:09:34

Taylor and his gang stormed a Liverpool kebab shop,

0:09:360:09:39

armed to the teeth and ready to cause carnage.

0:09:390:09:41

The victim tried to hold the gang off,

0:09:430:09:46

but they forced their way in and chased him upstairs.

0:09:460:09:49

James Taylor is the second male up the stairs.

0:09:500:09:52

And they are going after one individual.

0:09:540:09:57

It's a cowardly attack, three against one.

0:09:570:10:00

They clearly know who he is and what they want to do to him.

0:10:000:10:04

He received laceration wounds.

0:10:040:10:07

He was lucky that he didn't get more serious injuries.

0:10:070:10:10

During the frenzied attack, Taylor's hood fell down, revealing his face.

0:10:110:10:16

This myth around how good these people are as being organised criminals,

0:10:190:10:24

well, actually, it's that arrogance that ultimately led to us identifying him.

0:10:240:10:29

Merseyside Police launched a manhunt for the gang.

0:10:290:10:32

Although they captured one of his accomplices,

0:10:320:10:35

there was no sign of Pancake.

0:10:350:10:37

A number of search warrants were executed.

0:10:370:10:39

He wasn't at his home address.

0:10:390:10:41

He wasn't at his family addresses.

0:10:410:10:44

There was no information, no sightings of him,

0:10:440:10:47

nothing to suggest that he was still in the Merseyside area.

0:10:470:10:50

So all that points towards the fact that he'd gone, he'd left, he'd fled.

0:10:500:10:54

Pancake had seemingly disappeared.

0:10:550:10:58

Merseyside Police made a number of public appeals to try and locate him,

0:10:580:11:03

but it was a chance encounter 1,000 miles away,

0:11:030:11:06

which would provide a vital lead.

0:11:060:11:09

We had a number of Merseyside Police officers who were away on holiday in Spain

0:11:160:11:21

and they thought that they'd possibly sighted him.

0:11:210:11:25

That obviously then prompts me and the investigative team

0:11:250:11:29

to do a number of enquiries with that country.

0:11:290:11:31

Now the hunt for Taylor spanned borders,

0:11:320:11:35

his case became a priority for the National Crime Agency.

0:11:350:11:38

Rob Bennett is the operations manager at the agency's International Crime Bureau.

0:11:400:11:46

In the case of Taylor,

0:11:460:11:47

he was spotted by two Merseyside Police officers in Spain.

0:11:470:11:51

So for them and for law enforcement as a whole,

0:11:510:11:53

it was a valuable spot of Taylor because A, we knew he was abroad,

0:11:530:11:56

but B, we also knew that he was in Spain.

0:11:560:11:58

So it was useful for both Merseyside and obviously us,

0:11:580:12:01

because we then knew where we could target our searches in the first instance.

0:12:010:12:05

But Taylor wasn't hanging around to be found.

0:12:070:12:11

NCA officers began to suspect the fugitive had moved on

0:12:110:12:15

and was now hiding out in Amsterdam.

0:12:150:12:19

There was various pieces of intelligence that suggested that,

0:12:190:12:21

but real corroboration was given to that when we looked at the travel of his girlfriend, of his partner,

0:12:210:12:26

who was travelling over to Amsterdam quite regularly.

0:12:260:12:29

There was some indication he was in other countries,

0:12:290:12:32

so we did look into those links as well,

0:12:320:12:34

but it was the Netherlands that kept on coming through

0:12:340:12:36

as the likely contender as to where he was.

0:12:360:12:38

By now, Pancake Taylor had been at large for three years.

0:12:400:12:44

With all signs showing he was somewhere in Europe's fugitive capital, Amsterdam -

0:12:440:12:49

it was time for the Dutch police to join the hunt.

0:12:490:12:52

But would they be able to track him down after so long on the run?

0:12:530:12:57

In West Yorkshire, large towns and cities like Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield

0:13:030:13:08

attract their fair share of foreign offenders on the run.

0:13:080:13:12

Finding them is a priority for the police.

0:13:120:13:15

The people who try to evade justice in Europe

0:13:160:13:20

by hiding in the communities of West Yorkshire

0:13:200:13:23

are a risk to the people in West Yorkshire.

0:13:230:13:27

Those offenders do not come to West Yorkshire

0:13:270:13:30

to resettle and rehabilitate.

0:13:300:13:32

They come firstly to escape justice in the country where they are wanted

0:13:320:13:37

and then they come to West Yorkshire as an unknown commodity,

0:13:370:13:41

but proficient in committing crime.

0:13:410:13:43

Tonight, police officers Dave Lockwood and Tom Allen are looking for a man

0:13:460:13:50

wanted for relatively minor crimes.

0:13:500:13:53

His name is Tomas Dzurko.

0:13:540:13:57

He was caught stealing several packs of batteries and other goods

0:13:570:14:00

from shops in the Czech Republic on three separate occasions.

0:14:000:14:04

He was sentenced to 18 months in prison, but went on the run instead.

0:14:040:14:09

So this lad we're looking for, he's from the Czech Republic.

0:14:110:14:14

Wanted for three offences of shoplifting.

0:14:150:14:18

The intelligence that links him to this address was from...

0:14:180:14:22

..15th of January 2016.

0:14:230:14:25

They head off to Leeds to see if the man they are after is at home.

0:14:290:14:33

This one with the light, I think.

0:14:390:14:41

Lass looking at us out of the window.

0:14:460:14:48

When they arrive at the property,

0:14:480:14:50

they're met at the door by a woman who is clearly heavily pregnant

0:14:500:14:53

and a man who looks very much like their fugitive.

0:14:530:14:56

-Hello.

-Hello, are you OK?

0:14:560:14:59

-What's your name, pal?

-Tomas.

0:14:590:15:01

-What's your date of birth, please?

-14.03.

0:15:010:15:04

Yep. What year?

0:15:040:15:07

1980.

0:15:070:15:09

OK, Tomas. I can see you've got your missus and child here with you,

0:15:090:15:13

but I've got some bad news for you, I'm afraid.

0:15:130:15:15

There's a warrant been issued for your arrest from the Czech Republic.

0:15:150:15:18

OK? Do you know about this?

0:15:190:15:21

Do you understand what I'm saying to you?

0:15:210:15:24

-Why?

-Why?

0:15:240:15:26

The Czech Republic are saying you've committed three offences

0:15:260:15:30

in 2012, OK? And they'd like to see you extradited

0:15:300:15:32

back to the Czech Republic for them.

0:15:320:15:34

Chill out, all right?

0:15:350:15:37

We're not going to rush you straight out of here.

0:15:370:15:39

We'll let you take care of things that you need to take care of.

0:15:390:15:41

Talk to your missus, OK?

0:15:410:15:42

But you're now under arrest for a European arrest warrant for three offences of shoplifting.

0:15:420:15:47

So you do not have to say anything...

0:15:470:15:48

The arrest is clearly a shock for Tomas Dzurko.

0:15:480:15:52

He thought he'd made a new life for himself,

0:15:520:15:54

his pregnant wife and young son,

0:15:540:15:57

but now the crimes he committed back home in the Czech Republic

0:15:570:16:00

have caught up with him.

0:16:000:16:02

-I know it's...

-I go from prison here?

-I don't know yet.

0:16:030:16:08

You're going to be coming with me tonight to the police station, OK?

0:16:080:16:11

-You're going to be going to London tomorrow.

-London tomorrow?

0:16:110:16:14

To court. And I don't know what is going to happen after that.

0:16:140:16:16

-Hello.

-You, you, you...

0:16:160:16:18

Neither the wanted man, nor his pregnant wife, speak much English,

0:16:180:16:22

so a friend is called to translate.

0:16:220:16:25

-Have you got some ID, please?

-But Dave needs to check who he is, too.

0:16:250:16:28

-My

-ID? Yeah. If I'm going to start talking to you

0:16:280:16:30

and explaining what's happening, I want to know who I'm talking to.

0:16:300:16:32

-What happened?

-I'll tell you in a minute, once I've got your ID, OK?

0:16:320:16:36

With her second child due imminently,

0:16:370:16:39

the shoplifter's wife now faces an uncertain future.

0:16:390:16:43

The time you give me for my wife and my son?

0:16:440:16:47

Five, ten minutes is reasonable, yeah?

0:16:470:16:49

What's happened is Czech have issued a warrant for your arrest, OK?

0:16:490:16:53

-Explain this to him.

-Can I... Speak slowly, yeah?

0:16:530:16:56

The Czech Republic have issued a warrant for his arrest.

0:16:560:16:59

As his friend explains,

0:17:020:17:04

the wanted man starts to realise that he's in real trouble.

0:17:040:17:08

-PAT CASSERLY:

-People are responsible for their actions and there are consequences,

0:17:090:17:13

and the consequence of Tomas's criminality

0:17:130:17:16

and absconding and failing to present himself

0:17:160:17:20

answerable to justice means that at some stage, he gets caught.

0:17:200:17:26

There's never a good time, and on this occasion, yeah,

0:17:260:17:29

quite a tragedy for that family,

0:17:290:17:31

but he brought it upon himself and that's a consequence for Tomas.

0:17:310:17:35

Telephone number 101.

0:17:360:17:39

If tomorrow night you're worried he hasn't come home, OK,

0:17:390:17:42

we'll be able to tell you what's happened.

0:17:420:17:44

Right, we're going to go to the police station now.

0:17:440:17:46

-Are you happy we've got everything?

-Yeah.

-Right, come on then.

0:17:460:17:48

Say your goodbyes, OK?

0:17:480:17:50

Dzurko's taken to the police station in handcuffs,

0:18:020:18:05

leaving his wife at home.

0:18:050:18:06

Just take a seat here, Tomas.

0:18:070:18:09

What started as a petty crime has become a very big problem

0:18:120:18:16

as he faces being sent away from the UK and from his family.

0:18:160:18:21

6am in East London and detectives Dave Salmon and Jamie Derby

0:18:290:18:34

are on their way to arrest a Lithuanian man.

0:18:340:18:37

Eligijus Petrikonis was convicted in his home country

0:18:400:18:44

for a serious assault.

0:18:440:18:46

He's also used his mother's financial details to commit a fraud.

0:18:460:18:50

He's been sentenced to two years and three months back in Lithuania.

0:18:510:18:55

He's got to know he's got this prison sentence to serve back in Lithuania,

0:18:580:19:02

so he's going to be anxious to not be caught.

0:19:020:19:05

Although it's still early in the morning,

0:19:090:19:11

London's traffic is starting to build.

0:19:110:19:13

The detectives have a 30-minute drive across the capital

0:19:160:19:19

to get to the wanted man's last-known address

0:19:190:19:22

before he goes out for the day.

0:19:220:19:24

The clock is ticking.

0:19:240:19:26

Finally, they arrive at the property.

0:19:320:19:35

The house they are looking for is in darkness.

0:19:350:19:38

No-one seems to be home.

0:19:380:19:40

But when Jamie rings the doorbell, it's answered quickly.

0:19:430:19:47

-Oh, good morning. Sorry to bother you. Police officers.

-Good morning.

0:19:470:19:51

We've got to speak to the people in there.

0:19:510:19:53

Can I come in and knock on the door?

0:19:530:19:54

-Just going to have to speak to the people who live here.

-All right.

0:19:540:19:57

Where do we start - upstairs? Is there anyone in here?

0:20:000:20:03

He's at work, I think, now.

0:20:030:20:05

What's his name?

0:20:050:20:06

The house is shared by several people,

0:20:070:20:09

and whoever lives downstairs has already left for work.

0:20:090:20:13

Time to search upstairs.

0:20:140:20:16

Hello?

0:20:160:20:17

-Hello, sir.

-Good morning.

0:20:190:20:21

Good morning. What's your name?

0:20:210:20:23

Have you any ID? Passport, anything like that?

0:20:240:20:27

Your date of birth?

0:20:290:20:30

They've found the man they're looking for.

0:20:320:20:35

We've got a warrant here from Lithuania.

0:20:350:20:36

It's to do with theft and an assault.

0:20:360:20:39

I'm arresting you in relation to this European arrest warrant.

0:20:400:20:42

But Jamie spots potential danger.

0:20:420:20:45

Anything you do say may be given in evidence...

0:20:450:20:47

..cos there's a big knife there.

0:20:470:20:50

I'm not going in there. Yeah, go on.

0:20:500:20:52

All right.

0:20:520:20:53

Petrikonis, with his history of violence,

0:20:530:20:55

is kept well away from the serrated blade and other knives and tools spotted in the wardrobe.

0:20:550:21:02

He's handcuffed, just to make sure.

0:21:020:21:04

You go first.

0:21:090:21:11

'When you go into like a small bedsit like that,

0:21:110:21:14

'you've got to be aware of what's around you.'

0:21:140:21:16

Because obviously you don't know who they are,

0:21:170:21:19

they've never come to notice before.

0:21:190:21:21

Obviously, he's wanted for an assault back home in Lithuania,

0:21:210:21:24

so you just never know what's going to happen to you,

0:21:240:21:26

so you've just got to be aware of what's around you.

0:21:260:21:28

It's been a good morning's work.

0:21:280:21:30

A fugitive with a violent past has been safely arrested.

0:21:300:21:35

Petrikonis is now on his way to custody,

0:21:350:21:38

facing an appearance in court and a journey back to prison in Lithuania.

0:21:380:21:42

Another dangerous criminal with a history of violence,

0:21:480:21:51

Pancake Taylor, topped the list of Merseyside Police's most wanted

0:21:510:21:56

after a vicious attack in a Liverpool kebab shop,

0:21:560:21:59

which left his victim severely injured.

0:21:590:22:01

But after more than three years on the run,

0:22:040:22:07

police tracked him via Spain to the Netherlands.

0:22:070:22:10

We don't like people who are here with bad intentions.

0:22:110:22:15

And...

0:22:150:22:17

that's why we are very focused on especially the British criminals,

0:22:170:22:21

who like Amsterdam for a safe haven.

0:22:210:22:24

And we catch a lot of people.

0:22:240:22:27

British intelligence sources sent their colleagues in Amsterdam

0:22:290:22:32

an image of Taylor.

0:22:320:22:35

In response, Dutch police deployed officers around the city

0:22:350:22:39

who specialise in facial recognition.

0:22:390:22:41

One of those officers spoke to us.

0:22:430:22:46

We can't reveal his identity because he is still undercover

0:22:460:22:49

and active in the city.

0:22:490:22:51

Once he'd seen a picture of Taylor, the hunt was on.

0:23:080:23:12

This officer spent the next two years scanning every face he came across

0:23:280:23:33

before he finally spotted the British criminal

0:23:330:23:36

he'd committed to memory.

0:23:360:23:37

After more than three years on the run,

0:23:550:23:57

they finally had a confirmed sighting of Pancake Taylor.

0:23:570:24:01

The next problem for the Dutch police was how to safely arrest

0:24:020:24:05

this dangerous and vicious gangster.

0:24:050:24:08

Police in the Netherlands have long known that a natural ability to

0:24:130:24:17

recognise faces is critical in the fight against crime.

0:24:170:24:21

Officers with this ability are deployed

0:24:220:24:25

on covert patrols of Dutch cities.

0:24:250:24:27

They often work undercover.

0:24:270:24:29

We have police officers who are very good in recognising faces,

0:24:290:24:33

with a beard or no beard.

0:24:330:24:34

When we see you, we catch you.

0:24:340:24:37

Most people can remember thousands of faces at any given moment.

0:24:390:24:43

However, over time, details and features start to blur together.

0:24:440:24:48

But there are a select few who never forget.

0:24:490:24:53

They can remember faces perfectly, even years after seeing them.

0:24:530:24:58

These people are known as super-recognisers.

0:24:580:25:02

And they've been the secret weapon in the hunt for British fugitives

0:25:030:25:07

hiding in the Netherlands.

0:25:070:25:09

Professional fighter Adam Hart, seen here in the blue and white shorts,

0:25:100:25:14

is one of those brought to justice by a keen-eyed super-recogniser.

0:25:140:25:18

He was a cocaine smuggler who fled from the UK to hide out in Amsterdam.

0:25:210:25:26

But all the ducking and diving stopped

0:25:280:25:31

after a photo of Hart was given to an undercover officer.

0:25:310:25:34

Two weeks later,

0:25:480:25:49

the officer spotted Hart as he walked into an underground car park.

0:25:490:25:54

The fugitive was arrested as he tried to leave the car park.

0:26:020:26:06

In custody, he tried to eat the SIM card from his phone

0:26:070:26:10

and officers found 5,000 euros hidden in his underwear.

0:26:100:26:15

The drug smuggler was returned to the UK

0:26:170:26:19

and sentenced to six years in prison.

0:26:190:26:22

The success of super-recognisers means police forces in both the

0:26:230:26:27

Netherlands and the UK are keen to recruit more officers to do the job.

0:26:270:26:31

Dr Josh Davis is a forensic facial identification specialist.

0:26:330:26:39

He's working with British forces to identify which officers have

0:26:390:26:43

exceptional recognition abilities.

0:26:430:26:45

To be a good super-recogniser in the police,

0:26:470:26:49

they must be highly meticulous.

0:26:490:26:51

They must inspect the images that are released daily by police forces.

0:26:510:26:57

They must sometimes have to view hours and hours of footage of CCTV.

0:26:570:27:04

Most of it's of no interest whatsoever

0:27:040:27:06

but they're just trying to get that one person in that small clip from the images.

0:27:060:27:12

Andy Pope from West Midlands Police reckons he has an excellent memory.

0:27:140:27:19

He's come to meet Josh today to find out whether he is, in fact,

0:27:190:27:22

a super-recogniser.

0:27:220:27:24

In his day-to-day duties with West Midlands Police,

0:27:260:27:29

Andrew is well-known for his ability to spot faces.

0:27:290:27:33

I do have people from the force that know of me that will send me stills

0:27:330:27:36

specifically just to see if I can help them out.

0:27:360:27:38

It may be a case of I've already met that person

0:27:380:27:41

or encountered that person,

0:27:410:27:42

in which case I can positively identify them from that still,

0:27:420:27:46

or if I don't know who they are, I just try and commit it to memory

0:27:460:27:48

and then go outside on patrol and try and find them.

0:27:480:27:51

To measure what's happening in his brain when he recognises faces,

0:27:520:27:56

Andy is being prepared for an EEG scan.

0:27:560:28:00

Sensors are attached to his head,

0:28:000:28:02

which will read the electrical activity in his brain.

0:28:020:28:05

This information is then sent to a computer,

0:28:060:28:08

which analyses the data to reveal just how good his memory is.

0:28:080:28:14

If I was a super-recogniser I'd be absolutely over the moon,

0:28:140:28:17

yeah, yeah, so really excited.

0:28:170:28:19

Find out later if Andy has got what it takes to become

0:28:200:28:24

an official super-recogniser.

0:28:240:28:26

-Hello.

-In West Yorkshire, a minor crime

0:28:330:28:36

has caught up with a man at the worst possible time.

0:28:360:28:40

It's bad news for you, I'm afraid.

0:28:400:28:42

There's a warrant been issued for your arrest from the Czech Republic.

0:28:420:28:45

Tomas Dzurko has been convicted of shoplifting

0:28:470:28:50

after stealing batteries and cosmetics

0:28:500:28:52

in three separate incidents back home in the Czech Republic.

0:28:520:28:56

His wife is heavily pregnant with their second child

0:28:560:28:59

and due any day now.

0:28:590:29:01

Although it may seem a minor crime,

0:29:050:29:08

there's a European arrest warrant with his name on it.

0:29:080:29:12

And he's taken into custody.

0:29:120:29:13

If you commit an offence, you are in jeopardy,

0:29:160:29:19

you've put yourself in jeopardy, of being punished

0:29:190:29:21

and if that means the punishment is within the UK

0:29:210:29:24

or in another country in Europe, that is the choice of the criminal,

0:29:240:29:29

not the choice of the police officer.

0:29:290:29:31

We're going to be sat here a while because it's really busy in custody.

0:29:340:29:36

Once he's been processed here...

0:29:360:29:38

..Dzurko faces being extradited back to the Czech Republic

0:29:390:29:43

to serve an 18-month sentence for the crimes he committed in 2012.

0:29:430:29:48

Do you read English at all?

0:29:480:29:49

No. It's in Czech as well, so if you read all that,

0:29:490:29:52

it tells you exactly what's happening

0:29:520:29:53

and why the Czech want you.

0:29:530:29:55

OK?

0:29:550:29:57

A bit chaotic at times, bit intense, but that's obviously because

0:30:030:30:07

they were worried and the language barrier,

0:30:070:30:09

we just had to keep repeating the information.

0:30:090:30:12

It's quite busy in here. There's a bit of a queue,

0:30:120:30:14

so we're just currently waiting to book Tomas in to custody.

0:30:140:30:17

Dzurko fled from the Czech Republic to dodge the law

0:30:180:30:21

but it's finally caught up with him.

0:30:210:30:24

Would you like us to contact your partner and tell her that you're here?

0:30:250:30:28

TRANSLATOR SPEAKS CZECH

0:30:280:30:31

HE SPEAKS CZECH

0:30:330:30:36

Now he's facing a 1,000-mile trip

0:30:380:30:41

back to prison for a handful of stolen batteries.

0:30:410:30:45

A bit further apart. That's it.

0:30:450:30:48

I'm going to be leaving you there

0:30:480:30:49

and I'm going to be going to do the paperwork, so it's...

0:30:490:30:52

You're probably not going to see me again tonight,

0:30:520:30:54

so if you've got any questions, you need to ask me now.

0:30:540:30:56

He'll spend the rest of the night in the cells

0:30:580:31:00

before being taken to London in the morning,

0:31:000:31:02

where a judge will decide his fate and whether to deport him.

0:31:020:31:06

In Newham, East London,

0:31:160:31:18

officers Jamie Darby and Dave Salmon

0:31:180:31:21

have just arrested a Lithuanian fugitive.

0:31:210:31:24

Two hours ago, Eligijus Petrikonis was fast asleep in his bedsit.

0:31:250:31:31

Now he's waiting to be checked into custody at Charing Cross police station.

0:31:310:31:35

He was in bed, so it was easy. He'd just woken up so...

0:31:350:31:38

..he wasn't too aware of what was going on at first,

0:31:390:31:42

so by the time he realised he was under arrest...

0:31:420:31:44

..you know, we'd put him in handcuffs. Straightforward, really.

0:31:450:31:48

This is the European Arrest Warrant. You need to keep that with you

0:31:500:31:53

for court and then give it to your solicitor there.

0:31:530:31:56

The Lithuanian part is inside, OK.

0:31:580:32:00

Petrikonis is given time to study the warrant issued for his arrest in Lithuania.

0:32:030:32:08

As he examines the details, reality kicks in.

0:32:090:32:13

We're just going to finish booking him in,

0:32:150:32:17

take all his property and search him

0:32:170:32:19

and then we're going to take his fingerprints, photograph and DNA

0:32:190:32:22

just to make sure he hasn't committed any further offences

0:32:220:32:25

here in the UK, while he's been here.

0:32:250:32:27

When you take the fingerprints, they come back quite quickly,

0:32:270:32:29

so if he has done anything else, it should come back quite quickly.

0:32:290:32:32

He's going to ask you some questions now.

0:32:320:32:35

He was arrested this morning at 6:25am.

0:32:350:32:37

Dave knows he can't afford any hold-ups.

0:32:380:32:41

Criminals who are subject to a European Arrest Warrant

0:32:410:32:45

must be fast-tracked through custody.

0:32:450:32:47

It does put my officers under a considerable amount of pressure

0:32:470:32:50

but they're really experienced in what they do and

0:32:500:32:54

they know how to express to the custody sergeants

0:32:540:32:57

the importance of getting someone through the custody process quickly,

0:32:570:33:01

so that they can actually get them to court on time.

0:33:010:33:04

To avoid seeing the case thrown out of court,

0:33:060:33:09

Dave and Jamie work as fast as they can

0:33:090:33:12

to get the fugitive in front of a judge as soon as possible.

0:33:120:33:15

We're just finished in custody,

0:33:190:33:20

so we're just on our way to Westminster Magistrates' Court now,

0:33:200:33:23

where we're going to drop him off into the custody area...

0:33:230:33:28

..where he'll see the duty solicitor for extradition matters

0:33:290:33:34

and there will also be a Lithuanian interpreter for him.

0:33:340:33:37

So once he's seen his solicitor,

0:33:380:33:40

he will then go up in front of the judge.

0:33:400:33:43

The rules are strict. Cases can be thrown out if the judge

0:33:450:33:49

doesn't believe police have acted with all speed.

0:33:490:33:51

They have to be taken to court within the 24 hours,

0:33:520:33:56

but if we arrest someone in the early hours of, say, a Wednesday morning,

0:33:560:34:01

then we need to have them in court by the Wednesday afternoon.

0:34:010:34:05

Otherwise we risk the courts actually saying

0:34:050:34:08

that we've abused the process

0:34:080:34:10

and they could be dismissed.

0:34:100:34:12

Just three and a quarter hours ago,

0:34:140:34:16

Jamie and Dave knocked on this fugitive's bedroom door.

0:34:160:34:19

If the judge agrees,

0:34:200:34:22

he could be on a plane back to Lithuania in a matter of days.

0:34:220:34:26

When Adam Hart, kick boxer and cocaine dealer,

0:34:320:34:36

was spotted on the run in Amsterdam and arrested,

0:34:360:34:39

it was all because of one undercover policeman's ability

0:34:390:34:43

to remember a face.

0:34:430:34:45

I recognised his face. I had his face still in my memory.

0:34:450:34:49

And I was sure it was Adam Hart. And he was wanted.

0:34:490:34:52

There are a small number of people who have this special power -

0:34:530:34:56

the ability to remember and recognise faces,

0:34:560:35:00

sometimes years after seeing them.

0:35:000:35:02

Now the race is on to find more super-recognisers in the UK.

0:35:030:35:08

Andy Pope from West Midlands Police has been singled out by his bosses

0:35:110:35:15

as someone who remembers faces better than most.

0:35:150:35:19

I wouldn't say I remember every single face that I see...

0:35:190:35:21

..but specifically ones job-related,

0:35:220:35:25

I try and remember them as best I can,

0:35:250:35:27

and some I'll remember two years later, some I won't,

0:35:270:35:29

so I don't really know how it happens.

0:35:290:35:33

He's here at the research centre in Greenwich

0:35:330:35:36

to find whether he has what it takes

0:35:360:35:38

to be a fully-fledged super-recogniser.

0:35:380:35:40

But how much is known about this phenomenon?

0:35:430:35:46

Doctor Ashok Jansari has been studying the brain

0:35:460:35:49

and how memory works for over 30 years.

0:35:490:35:52

Super-recognition in scientific terms is incredibly new.

0:35:530:35:58

Our understanding of the brain is literally in the infancy

0:35:580:36:01

and we're crawling around in the dark.

0:36:010:36:04

And so the first paper in super-recognition

0:36:040:36:07

was only published in 2009,

0:36:070:36:09

which is literally a droplet in the ocean of science.

0:36:090:36:12

So, yes, we're completely at the beginning of our understanding.

0:36:120:36:17

So far, scientists have established that there's a difference

0:36:170:36:20

in the way we see everyday things compared to how we see faces.

0:36:200:36:25

The way we see other objects is by a kind of visual jigsaw.

0:36:250:36:30

We put together the bits of information that we're seeing.

0:36:300:36:33

So, for example, this chair has got a flat part, a back part,

0:36:330:36:39

some things sticking down - and those together we work out is a chair,

0:36:390:36:46

but we don't believe that that's how human faces are processed.

0:36:460:36:50

What we think is that we actually see the face as a whole,

0:36:500:36:53

so rather than seeing a left eye, right eye, nose, mouth

0:36:530:36:57

and working out who someone is, we actually see the whole.

0:36:570:37:01

Back at the lab, and Andy is halfway through the tests

0:37:020:37:06

set by Josh and his team.

0:37:060:37:08

He's shown a face, which he must memorise.

0:37:080:37:11

Five.

0:37:110:37:12

Then another screen pops up with seven more faces,

0:37:120:37:16

and it's up to Andy to identify the correct one in the line-up.

0:37:160:37:20

The test gets harder as it goes on, and lasts for about an hour.

0:37:210:37:25

We're hoping to see that Andy scores

0:37:250:37:28

exceptionally highly on some of our tests -

0:37:280:37:31

that he recognises some of the faces,

0:37:310:37:34

and they are really hard to recognise.

0:37:340:37:36

It's not an easy test.

0:37:360:37:38

And if so, then we can classify Andy as a super-recogniser,

0:37:380:37:43

which matches his ability to recognise criminals from CCTV.

0:37:430:37:47

Andy completes the test and the results are in.

0:37:480:37:51

You DEFINITELY achieved super-recogniser classification

0:37:520:37:56

for this experiment on our test that we decide this, so well done.

0:37:560:38:01

-And how do you feel about that?

-Absolutely over the moon.

0:38:010:38:05

Andy scored exceptionally highly today on one of the tests,

0:38:060:38:09

and that puts him into the top 1% to 2% of the population.

0:38:090:38:13

Back in the Netherlands,

0:38:240:38:25

officers from Amsterdam's serious crime unit

0:38:250:38:28

launched a major surveillance operation

0:38:280:38:31

after a dangerous British criminal was spotted by one of their super-recognisers.

0:38:310:38:36

This undercover officer, who we've agreed to film anonymously,

0:38:400:38:44

identified notorious Liverpool gangster Pancake Taylor

0:38:440:38:48

coming out of a local gym.

0:38:480:38:50

Known as Pancake for his history of flipping,

0:39:010:39:04

this thug was wanted for a long list of violent crimes,

0:39:040:39:08

including this frenzied attack,

0:39:080:39:11

which left his victim with nasty injuries.

0:39:110:39:14

As Taylor was known to be dangerous and possibly armed,

0:39:160:39:20

Dutch police had to patiently plan how they'd carry out the arrest.

0:39:200:39:24

First, they secretly followed him and the people he associated with.

0:39:250:39:30

You want to do other things than just arresting people

0:39:300:39:34

because we know that those people are not only hiding here,

0:39:340:39:37

they're also in business,

0:39:370:39:39

and that's the main problem of those people -

0:39:390:39:42

they're still dealing in drugs, for example.

0:39:420:39:45

Detectives tracked Taylor to an expensive apartment

0:39:470:39:50

in an upmarket area of Amsterdam.

0:39:500:39:53

They also discovered where his closest associates lived

0:39:540:39:58

and planned coordinated strikes with the elite Dutch SWAT team.

0:39:580:40:02

Police patiently watched the house for three days

0:40:110:40:15

until the SWAT team observed Taylor cycling home from the gym

0:40:150:40:19

and decided it was the perfect strike opportunity.

0:40:190:40:23

A dramatic moment the police managed to catch on camera.

0:40:240:40:27

The most sensible place to arrest him was on his bike,

0:40:430:40:45

in broad daylight, where he would have no access to firearms,

0:40:450:40:49

no access to other individuals who could assist him,

0:40:490:40:52

so for them it made perfect sense, really,

0:40:520:40:54

to take him out in such a public way.

0:40:540:40:56

With Taylor under arrest,

0:40:580:41:00

the Amsterdam police called their colleagues in Merseyside

0:41:000:41:03

to let them know the operation had been a success.

0:41:030:41:06

To get that call to say, "Yes, we've identified him, we've got him,

0:41:070:41:11

"he's in custody in Holland", was fantastic, fantastic news.

0:41:110:41:15

As a cop, as a policeman, that's the type of news that you want to hear.

0:41:150:41:19

A search of Taylor's apartment

0:41:220:41:24

and of the homes of three of his associates

0:41:240:41:27

revealed more evidence of their criminal lifestyle.

0:41:270:41:30

We did a house search and we found weapons, two weapons,

0:41:330:41:36

and also drugs - cocaine -

0:41:360:41:40

and a lot of money, and that is typical for those people.

0:41:400:41:45

And when you look to the whole picture, those friends,

0:41:450:41:48

they all had apartments and in total the four of them paid

0:41:480:41:52

about 10,000 euros a month to rent a house,

0:41:520:41:58

and in total we seized about nine firearms.

0:41:580:42:03

With the mountain of evidence against him,

0:42:040:42:06

Taylor was extradited back to the UK to finally face justice.

0:42:060:42:11

Do you know what? Law enforcement across the world,

0:42:130:42:16

we are really, really good at actually finding these people

0:42:160:42:19

and bringing them to justice.

0:42:190:42:21

So there was that real sense of pride of a job well done

0:42:210:42:25

and doing something that the community in Merseyside

0:42:250:42:28

expect us to do.

0:42:280:42:29

And for most of us, that's why we come to work.

0:42:310:42:34

It might take a few months, it might take a few years,

0:42:340:42:36

but eventually we will catch up with you

0:42:360:42:39

and we will bring you back to justice.

0:42:390:42:41

In court, the judge took a dim view of James "Pancake" Taylor's attempts

0:42:460:42:50

to evade justice.

0:42:500:42:52

He was finally sent to prison for nine and a half years.

0:42:520:42:56

At his hearing, shoplifter Tomas Dzurko

0:42:580:43:00

was granted bail by the extradition court.

0:43:000:43:04

He absconded but was then arrested for assaulting a child on a train.

0:43:040:43:09

After pleading guilty, he fled home to the Czech Republic

0:43:090:43:13

before he could be sentenced in the UK.

0:43:130:43:15

He was arrested by Czech police in February 2017.

0:43:150:43:19

And just three weeks after his arrest in East London,

0:43:210:43:24

violent fraudster Eligijus Petrikonis

0:43:240:43:27

was sent back to Lithuania,

0:43:270:43:29

where he'll serve the rest of his jail sentence.

0:43:290:43:32

Download Subtitles

SRT

ASS