11/02/2013 Inside Out South

In Hello from Oxford and welcome to Inside Out. Why are we here? All

will be revealed. We were completely manipulated. Tonight: We

are telling the extraordinary story of a conman who brainwashed a

French aristocratic family and held them captive in Oxford. He told us

that we are to be killed. We go undercover in Dorset to find out

who has the right staff are mud. is over-exploitation. It is too

many people taking too many worms. Battle of Britain hero with his

family. This is inside, for the -- inside out, for the South of

First to Nidal we are hearing Oxford with a story which sounds

like it could be from an episode of Inspector Morse. An aristocratic

French family conned out of their fortune and brought to this city to

work virtually as slaves. But this extraordinary story is not a work

of fiction. Thierry Tilly was a man so

controlling he was dubbed the Leonardo da Vinci of mental

manipulation. Over 10 years, he brainwashed three generations of

our noble French family, conning them out of millions of pounds.

TRANSLATION: I compare it to a spider. He will sting you to

anaesthetise you and once he has done you, he will wrap you up. Then

he sucks the blood out of you. He took all the family's it's money

and have persuaded them to be moved to Oxford to work for him,

punishing them if they resisted. TRANSLATION: It was completely

unreal. We were hallucinating. We were locked in the house and only

the children had the right to go out to work. We were country be

manipulated to. Our mind was gone. He told us that we could be killed.

The story be gins in Monflanquin, a thirteenth-century billet in the

south-west of France. One of the most impressive properties around

his Chateau Martel. For hundreds of years, it was owned by the same

family, the De Vedrines. The De Vedrines enjoyed the aristocratic

lifestyle. They would all get together here at weekends for big

parties. But about 10 years ago, the family changed and became more

reclusive. They spent days, sometimes weeks, inside, too scared

to go up. That is because Thierry Tilly was calling the shots. He

infiltrated the family, convincing them he was a well-connected,

powerful man who wanted to help them. The lawyer who eventually

brought Tilly to court says he used complicated brainwashing techniques

to gain control of the family. TRANSLATION: And at the castle,

there were no timepieces. They were obliged to spend three days in the

dark to lose their sense of time. He would isolate members of the

family. They were not allowed to talk to each other. And with his

hypnotic powers, he managed to partition people off and set them

against each other. So, how did Tilly gain so much influence? I

have come to this apartment block in Bordeaux to meet the husband-

and-wife at the heart of this story. The flat belongs to a friend

because Christine and Charles-Henri De Vedrine say they are too

embarrassed to show us the social housing where they now live. They

told me at first, Tilly seem to have the family's interests at

heart. TRANSLATION: Tilly said he would look after our home,

investments and trusts. We just wanted to protect them. We used

professionals but he made us believe him better than them. He

knew a lot of things about us and my family was convinced by him.

People do have family members in one by one, including Christine and

Charles-Henri's son. -- he pulled the family members in. He was very

nice. I thought everything he was telling us had an importance. It

became everything, actually. At one time, I told him that I hope to he

could be in my mind to help me when I had to make decisions. He told me,

please do not say that out loud because people will not understand.

I understand what you are saying but you cannot say that about low.

He knew how to adapt himself to each individual. He spoke

differently to the 60-year-old girl and the 20-year-old boy band to the

grandmother. He spoke to people in their own language and used it to

trap them. His controlled was now so powerful he convinced the family

they were under threat. He said people wanted them dead and they

must escape and sell their chateaux. TRANSLATION: He said, you must

absolutely sell it. You cannot keep it because it is too dangerous for

the family. He sold everything, knowing it was our roots. He

succeeded. The family owned properties all around South West

France. Tilly got control of all of it. This is one of seven properties

that he sold. In total, he conned the family out of 5 million euros.

It is money they have not seen since. As the French authorities

grew suspicious of Tilly, he took radical action by moving to Oxford.

He persuaded the family to follow him. At the time, they lived in

rented houses, including this one, working as gardeners, cooks and

cleaners. Their wages were handed over. Thornton came up with a

bizarre arrangement where he controlled the family's money, who

they could see and even what food they could eat. If he was not with

them, he would be badgering them on the phone asking who they were with.

They were accountable 24 hours a day. All my money, I gave it to him.

I did not have any fantasies. I could not even by a chocolate bar

because the money would be pretty much a theft from the family and

the whole thing. So I did not go to the cinema. We could not have

friends. I did not have a girlfriend. So we were really into

our own world. Tilly's Hall was so strong the family, when not a work,

were virtually UN -- under house arrest. I stayed so the months in

my bedroom. -- seven months. I did not take my meals with the rest of

the family. I stayed there for several months. TRANSLATION: For a

fortnight, we did not sleep. We only had biscuits and bread to eat

and tea to drink. It was really hard. When we came out of there,

Christine was in an appalling state. Swelling on her lower legs. She had

to learn to walk again. She was so badly affected. In Oxford, I lost

my spirit. It was the first time I thought of suicide. I must admit, I

thought of that in Oxford. Christine struggled with her own

state of mind, she tried to stay strong for the rest of the family.

She was the rebellious one who crest and -- questioned Tilly and

his motives. She was working at this deli in Oxford. When her boss

met Tilly, he saw him for what he was. Immediately, I sensed this

chap was not right. Drip-dry shirt, cheap Thai, Noci, cheap shoes. I

thought he was not a big financier but this did that. Already

suspicious of Tilly, Christine would become the first family

member to break free. She asked what I thought of Mr Tilly and I

said, "I think he is either end not all a crook." she looked at me and

it was like there was a click in her brain. She started telling me

her story. I could not believe what I was listening to. I told her she

had to get out of here because the people were dangerous. I feared for

her life. Asked if there was anybody we could phone. She said

there was her cousin. They found that cozen and arranged for her to

come and take Christine back to France but all of this was kept

secret from her husband, who was still under up Tilly's spell.

asked if she had her passport. said yes. I said that when she went

home that night with her husband, she must make absolutely no

movements that would make them suspect that something had happened.

The next morning, my driver was waiting. I had primed him. She went

to work, her husband walked off. She ran into the car, went to

London and then the cousin and best friend were waiting for her and she

was smuggled back to Paris. She rang me in the afternoon and said

she was safe. Thought Thierry Tilly, it was the beginning of the end.

Christine went to the authorities and it in 2009, he was arrested and

went on trial in Bordeaux. Last year, France finally learned how,

for 10 years, Tilly had this noble family at his mercy. Thornton was

convicted of a number of offences, including abusing people weakened

by psychological subjection. In other words, brainwashing.

Prosecutors called him a liar and a fantasist. The judge spoke of

mental trickery before jailing him for eight years. With Tilly finally

shut away, the De Vedrines are now hoping to rebuild their lives.

TRANSLATION: I am angry with Tilly because of what he did to my wife

and children. He stole 10 years of our lives but he did more than that.

He destroyed everything on the way. Now, a actually, we are completely

ruined. We have no house, no money, no furniture, no nothing. I feel

very guilty for my children because I did not protect them. For 10

years, I lived in a perceived reality and actually, it was alive.

It took something from me that I can't have a grasp of. It is

difficult to live with that. TRANSLATION: And I am speaking out

now because the main thing to understand is that even if we had

not been very intelligent, it can happen to others.

Jeremy stern reporting. Do not forget, if you have a story for us,

drop me an e-mail. Next, from Oxford down to the coast and pool,

where digging for bait has opened a It may look like a nerd, but sites

like this are important feeding grounds for birds. Many sites are

protected like Holes Bay in Dorset. Conservationists say this world is

being trampled underfoot. This is what everyone is after. Big,

fat, juicy ones for fishing. The problem is, it is the scale of the

digging. Causing conflict not only with the local people, but also

with the wildlife. So concerned were natural England

about the effect on birdlife here that they took steps to ban

commercial diggers in order to protect the feeding sites of my

great tree and wading birds. They put up signs to make the ban clear

to anyone in the area. Poole Harbour commissioners say they have

never given anyone permission to dig commercially here. We

discovered that gangs were travelling from Portsmouth to dig

up rag worms that by weight are worth more than the finest rump

steak. It seems no one is doing anything about it.

This murder is an internationally valuable resource. Two birds, this

is gold and they come from all over the northern hemisphere to exploit

it. This is their patch, they know this place as much as we know our

local park or the neighbourhood where we grew up. The reason they

come back is because they know there is food. If they arrive and

there are blokes digging for food, they can't use the resource. The

argument might be, they just move down the shore and go elsewhere,

but it's not that simple. They need to come to patches they know where

3D is and if they can't, we are in trouble.

These guys aren't even following Poole Harbour's code of conduct

drawn up for people looking for a couple of worms for personal use.

The commercial diggers are leaving their trenches. Where they don't

fill them in, it means invertebrates will struggle to re-

establish themselves. Dorset Wildlife Trust told us it

can take two to 10 weeks to recover. That is an age to wait if you are a

hungry bird. Are these figures definitely part of a commercial

operation? Once they come off the mud, we filmed this group

Another day, another Dick. This time about a dozen men of spread

out. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. At least some of them have come

from Portsmouth as their van parked at the side shows. A long way to

come for bait for personal use. The next day, the diggers are back. I

take a closer look at the men sorting debate. I saw the men

working together and sorting a It wasn't hard to trace the bait

back to the shop in Portsmouth which doesn't have permission to

dig commercially at Holes Bay. Natural England has tried to

control the levels of bait digging by drawing up an agreement between

the shop and other commercial outfits, but they simply refuse to

sign it, saying it was too restrictive.

The owner of the shop told us that since the signs banning commercial

digging arrived, he stopped going to Holes Bay. Even when he did, he

claimed it was only him and one or two others. And he always followed

the code of conduct. All the time I have back filled my

holes and I take only what I need. One way started in Holes Bay, there

was not as much ragworm as there is now. There is more population than

before. If what about disturbing wildlife

and birds? The birds are still next to me when

I'm digging. I don't scare them away. The swans come and see me. We

are not actually disturbing them. We turn the ground over so it gives

them some food as well. Once we leave where we are, or birds of

their fees -- feeding. Some diggers say they are confused

about what they can and can't do. It is an activity that has gone on

for decades and many believe that any ban is illegal.

I sell baked to a shop. When he orders it I come down and get it.

There is a sign saying no commercial bait digging and yet you

are doing that. There were a few up here last year and we were told

that they were illegally put up. The signs are illegal? Yes. They

can't stop you bait digging here. I thought you were allowed to dig

anywhere. If natural England appear to be

equally confused about the issue having put up the signs, they are

doing nothing to enforce them. A what is the point in putting

signs appeared no one does anything. There is a warning and it is known

to people and make them aware. It is a first step before we have

started trying to get voluntary agreements.

If there are no problems, take the signs down, if there are problems,

surely and force them. It is complex and Dan-Air people

emotively look at it and think it is messy. When you actually look at

research, in terms of when it is done at a low level, the impact has

been found relatively minimum. Meanwhile, the southern inshore

fisheries conservation authority has taken responsibility for

finding a lasting solution. They are conducting a five-year study in

the hope of proving whether bait digging means but are losing out as

conservationists believe. It is over exploitation. Too many

people taking too many ones. There is nothing wrong with harvesting as

long as it is sustainable. Kenya here that? That poor bird has come

from other will wind up -- wind- blown environments and all it wants

is a were am. We just have to be a lot more consider it.

We don't had any birds down there. There are no dead birds, no birds

have moved out of the area, none at all. Swans nest in the middle and

we give them a wide berth. If you live with nature, they don't think

here is the bait digger and run. We live with them.

I would love to hear your thoughts on that story. You can tweet me.

Finally tonight, the Battle of Britain, Churchill's view, those

brave heroes who fought to defend our country. One former newsreader

Jan Leeming agreed to sponsor and name on the Battle of Britain

Memorial, she had no idea of the I wasn't even born when the Battle

of Britain raged over Kent. I can only imagine the sounds of battle

and the vapour trails of aircraft as criss-crossing the sky as an

ever-shrinking band of young pilots defended this country from invasion

against overwhelming odds. Never in the field of human

conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.

The closest I have ever come to committing an act of bravery was

backing 2006 in Australia with a bunch of celebrities. It was

terrifying, but I can't claim to know anything of the terror of

those pilot must have experienced. On my return from the jungle, I

sponsored her name on the Battle of Britain Memorial at Capel-Le-Ferne.

I was intrigued by the foreign names listed here, especially the

French pilots. There are 13 French names on this

wall of remembrance. Because of my French ancestry I asked to sponsor

a French pilot and the name I was given was that of Rene Mouchotte.

They soon as I started to research the name Rene Mouchotte, I

discovered he kept diaries which were published after the war and I

found him in an old newsreel from 1943.

This was Rene enjoying his own brief taste of celebrity as one of

two pilots who share the credit for shooting down Biggin Hill 1000

enemy plane. Well, boys, what about Per 1000 shot down plane was such a

big deal at Biggin Hill that many MN had refused to take leave so

they could be around to see it. As Andy Simpson told me, this bumped

up the sweepstakes prize money to a side -- tidy sum.

The winner of the sweepstake was going to get �150, which was

substantial at the time. And the pilot who got the thousandth was

going to get 300. What happened was the two pilots shared it.

Rene shed his prize money with his crew. They all got a chance to

celebrate attitude party at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

A rare opportunity to enjoy some rest and relaxation away from the

war. When the end of the evening came,

taxi drivers appeared to offer their services for those coming

home, any distance and for nothing. In his three years of action with

the RAF, Rene completed more than 188 flights. He flew from all over

the country, but is best remembered at Biggin Hill where he became the

first Frenchman to leave -- lead an RAF squadron. He even had a local

street named after him where servicemen from all the forces

still live today. Including Lieutenant Colonel Sebastian

Pollington. We all know of the significance of

Mouchotte and other famous m men who have roads here. Mouchotte, in

particular, because it is the biggest road. The significance of

him is not lost on residence. There is a book that goes around and

everybody reads it, signs it and passes it on.

The book is a collection of Rene's war diaries. Much more than just a

description of missions. These are personal notes about fear, fatigue,

blackouts in the air, anger at bureaucracy and what it feels like

to see your friends die in battle. We had been flying for over an hour

when I suddenly saw her fatal white cloud which indicates engine

failure. As remade for the coast, I advised him to bail out. My poor

Charles, he fell in head first. When they survived the Battle of

Britain and other adventures, but almost inevitably, his time came on

27th August, 1943. Paris was Rene's home town. I

wanted to know more about his life before the war and to see if any of

his relatives had survived. Renee came from a well-to-do family, he

was born here almost a century ago in the summer of 1914. The

Mouchotte's family ran a successful business and Rene grew up in a

grand villa. Today it is an apartment building with no trace of

his family any more. My only option was to leave and let at the Pere

Lachaise cemetery in the hope that someone with a connection to Renee

would find it. Incredibly, four months later, the

note was found by Rene's sister, Jacqueline who instructed her son-

in-law, Hubert De Lisle, to contact My mother in law found the letter

in late October when she naturally, every year, went to put flowers on

the tomb. She called me and she said, there is a letter in French

and English. Somebody wants to make a recording, photographs on the

life of Rene Mouchotte. She was reticent at first until I

discovered it was you, Jan Leeming. I'm your e-mail I managed to

contact you and that was it. Jacqueline agreed to see me and we

met on her hundred and first birthday. We looked at photos of

her with Rene when they were children and news footage from the

war, 40 she had never seen before. She had fond memories of him as a

boy he was always kind and smiling. With tears in her eyes, she said it

was wonderful to see her brother as she remembered him 72 years ago

when he set off for war. Although Rene is remembered and honoured in

France, I was astonished to discover that the Mouchotte family

had never received his medals. That was something I could put right.

I contacted the allied air forces Museum and with their help was able

to go back to Paris last summer and finally present Jacqueline and her

family with her brothers Battle of She was not in good health at the

time, but delighted to receive them. She died just three weeks later.

Jacqueline was buried here at Pere Lachaise in the family tomb where

Rene's body was laid to rest six years after his death. My search

for Renee and his family has taken up much of my life since 2007, but

with the help of a great many people, I have finally been able to

complete his story. So, my journey ended where it began

and after five years of searching, Rene Mouchotte is no longer just a

name engraved on a wall. What an incredible character. Jan

Leeming reporting. That is it for now, more next time. Until then,

goodbye. Next time on Inside Out, the Dorset

man banged up in Hungary but without being charged. Just how

justice the justice system abroad? I believed I was going to spend