MY 10 YEARS WITH ADAMS FAMILY; EXCLUSIVE An 'associate' lifts the lid on Britain's most feared crime syndicate We were in a club. One of the brothers nodded in a geezer's direction. 'That one. He's got to go.' Later that night the bloke was taken on a detour on his way home.. & stabbed to death.
Byline: By TONY THOMPSONA FORMER henchman of Britain's most feared criminal clan The Adams Family today breaks gangland's code of silence to reveal the full chilling details of their reign of terror.
The horrifying revelations come after Terry Adams, "Godfather" of the North London-based crime empire, was finally put behind bars after three decades when he, his brothers and their gang made a mockery of the law.
The Adams gang, described as much worse than the Krays, are believed to be linked to at least 23 murders. Now a key member has told how they:
Tortured and maimed their victims.
Made millions from drug-running.
Kept their position as No 1 crime family by running a Mafia-style operation in which disloyalty was punished by instant death.
The former henchman, one of the gang's inner circle for 10 years, tells how Terry Adams chaired family conferences at his pounds 2million mansion in Mill Hill, North London, as though they were board meetings of a multi-national PLC.
Billy (not his real name) witnessed protection rackets and gold smuggling, contract killings and drug running while working alongside Terry, 52, and his brothers Pat, 49 and Tommy, 47.
He says: "If they liked you, life was good. If you fell out with them, your life was over pretty quick.
And when it came down to the violent side of the business, they were always very strict about it.
"One time I was with Terry and his brothers in Ra Ras, a North London club they owned, and a villain came in.
"One of them nodded in the man's direction and said, 'That one, he's got to go'. Nothing more than that ever needed to be said. They would point a person out and you just knew that in a few days they wouldn't be around any more.
Later that night the bloke was grabbed on his way home and stabbed to death."
Adams, the eldest of 11 children, started as a street thug in Islington, North London, extorting money from market stall holders, but quickly moved into armed robbery - and then drugs.
Billy says: "Every few weeks I'd get a call from Terry or Tommy to tell me a load of puff (cannabis) had come in or that someone had hijacked a lorryload of snout or booze.
"When that happened the firms responsible would come to the Adams because they knew they had the contacts to help shift the stuff.
"It meant the Adams were making a ton of money without having to lift a finger. Other firms would bring the stuff in and us lot would sell it. They'd just get a big cut of the products. That's how they got so big, so fast.
"Terry was the most level-headed one. His brother Tommy was a bit wild and Patsy could be very crazy at times.
"A lot of the people involved in this kind of business don't have a lot going on up top. But Terry and his brothers were a real class act. You could take them anywhere and they'd know when to behave. Terry in particular was always well dressed and in charge of whatever was going on. When he walked into a room, everyone stood up. He was like royalty."
The family stayed at the top of London's criminal tree for so long thanks to a string of extraordinary acquittals by juries. The first came in 1985 when Tommy Adams was cleared of handing some of the proceeds of the infamous Brinks-Mat robbery. The brothers had been accused on strong evidence of using their contacts to help the robbers dispose of the stolen gold bars in return for a hefty cut of the plunder.
Billy was present at the one of the most savage episodes of violence - even by the Adams' standards. Mayfair financier David McKenzie, who laundered money for the Adams Family, lost pounds 1.5million in bad investments. So on April 8, 1997, he was summoned to the home of Terry Adams' brother-in-law John Potter.
For 20 minutes he was tortured by an Adams enforcer. He was kicked, slashed, beaten and left with his left ear and nose flapping off.
Billy says: "McKenzie didn't stand a chance. There was blood everywhere. I thought the guy who was attacking him was going to kill him there and then."
Two years later the man accused of the attack, Christopher McCormack, walked free from court. The jury found him not guilty by unanimous verdict even though McKenzie's blood was spattered on his jacket. They accepted the defence claim that a complete stranger had been responsible.
"Funny thing about the Adamses," says Billy. "Witnesses tended to forget a lot of stuff like names and faces where they were concerned."
Billy, who has now given up his life of crime, admits working alongside the gang earned him a fat cut of the profits. And he says: "Being part of their team was the best thing that ever happened to me. We were feared - but we were also respected by other villains.
"The Adams had a reputation for being some of the best money-earners in the business and they always made sure everyone got their fair share.
"The thing that made them so strong is that they were brothers who stuck together. While other gangs might have fallings out or disagreements, the Adams's were always bonded. It was like if you cut one of them, all the rest would start bleeding too. That made them formidable to go up against."
Terry Adams is now behind bars, not for the bloody mayhem he oversaw, but because he didn't realise MI5 had bugged every room in his antique-filled mansion in Mill Hill, North London. The evidence was enough to nail him for laundering pounds 1million of his ill-gotten gains, a tiny fraction of his estimated pounds 100 million fortune.
He pleaded guilty in return for charges against his wife Ruth being dropped. He will be sentenced on March 9 - and has been told he faces a "considerable time" in prison.
"Terry's facing 14 years and to a lot of people that might sound like a long time," Billy says. "But Terry always knew the risks he was taking. By the time he gets out, he'll still be young enough to enjoy himself.
"As for me, I'm glad I walked away from it. It was fun for a while - but I prefer to live my life without having to look over my shoulder the whole time."
'There was blood all over. The guy didn't stand a chance'
news@sundaymirror.co.uk
CAPTION(S):
Thug... 'Billy'; Gun law... a sawn-off shotgun; TERRY & HIS MOLL With wife Ruth during his trial... he pleaded guilty to save her from charges; TOMMY Terry's wild brother; PATSY The 'crazy' brother; Ill-gotten gain... Terry Adams' Mill Hill mansion
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| Publication: | Sunday Mirror (London, England) |
|---|---|
| Geographic Code: | 4EUUK |
| Date: | Feb 11, 2007 |
| Words: | 1131 |
| Previous Article: | COP RADIOS TERROR FEAR; EXCLUSIVE. |
| Next Article: | LINKED TO 23 GANGLAND MURDERS. |
| If I tell you everything when can I go free?; KILLER'S OFFER TO POLICE. |
| REVEALED: THE MI5 TAPES. |