![[David Robert Appleyard, 1998]](appleyard1.jpg)
The Bradford nazis | Appleyard's background
In the late summer of 1996, following a series of night-time attacks against the 1 in 12 Club building in Bradford, members discovered a piece of graffiti left on the Clubs door:
"Combat 18. If you want the set of keys you lost returned let us know. 'Cos we have now finished with them. You thick red twats. Thanks for the info, C-18." Daubed below was a swastika.
This was puzzling. Combat 18 are a small but dangerous neo-nazi terrorist group, responsible for a catalogue of violent attacks, murder and bombings. The local fascists, such as they were, were well known and largely ineffective in Bradford. Their main figure, Kevin Watmough, was a particularly sad character who had recently been released from jail for an attack on an SWP paper seller in Leeds. In fact he had been spending much of his time in Leeds with fascists there, who were active at that time. Amongst his Leeds friends was a notoriously violent fascist, David Appleyard.
As the months passed it became increasingly clear that someone was systematically targeting individuals and organisations in Bradford, stalking people and gathering information.
Amongst the targets was Bradford Resource Centre, which had some of its affiliation lists stolen. Another was the local Law Centre.
In October a member in the 1 in 12 Club recognised a couple in the bar - David Appleyard and his girlfriend Angie Berwick. The duo made a hasty exit. Their cover was blown.
Photographs were subsequently obtained and passed round. Appleyard began to be spotted everywhere - following people as they left the Club at night; monitoring demonstrations; in the library trawling through the electoral rolls, outside people's houses rummaging through their dustbins, and at the Resource Centre where he was finally confronted and asked to leave.
It was by now becoming clear that Appleyard had moved to Bradford and had been working for some time to build up local fascist organisations. In particular he had linked up with the "Heaton Defence Group", led by Jimmy Panter, which concentrated on racist activity in the Heaton area of Bradford. In January 1997 Panter was one of three men arrested for distributing "race hate" leaflets.
Leeds band "Dog on a Rope" had been targeted by Combat-18 two years previously, following an anti-fascist benefit they played at the 1 in 12 Club. In December 1996 the band were attacked at a gig in Leeds and sprayed with CS gas. Amongst the attackers was Kevin Watmough.
3 months later they were due to play again at the 1 in 12 Club. Anonymous telephone threats were made, suggesting that if the gig was not cancelled, then people would suffer. The gig, of course, went ahead.
During the gig, the band's van, parked outside the Club, was attacked and its windows smashed. The assailants ran off, but Appleyard and Watmough were later spotted close by.
Appleyard continued to stalk Club members, particularly young women. And although people were by now beginning to recognise and challenge him, they were still at this time unaware of his long record of violence against men and women alike. Appleyard responded to the challenges with increasingly violent threats. Some were reported to the police, but the police appeared uninterested.
Appleyard at the Bradford West count, 1997 |
The first indication that all was not well in fascist circles came in early April 1997, when a prominent local fascist and supposed associate of Appleyards - Arthur Bentley - arranged a secret meeting with Bradford Resource Centre workers, for reasons known only to himself. He tried to disassociate himself and other local BNP members from Appleyard, claiming that Appleyard was, in fact, a police informer and agent-provocateur determined to create trouble.
Meanwhile Appleyard produced the first copy of his single-sheet bulletin "The Northern Front" which served to confirm people's fears of his targeting activities. Details obtained from thefts at the Resource Centre and the 1 in 12 Club padded out the names and addresses of individuals he had stalked. Shortly afterwards Appleyard attempted once again to steal mail from the 1 in 12 Club, but was this time spotted and chased away. He ran straight to the steps of the central police station, from where he invited his pursuers to fight. Appleyard clearly believed that he had little to fear from the police.
At the same time the local BNP were showing increased confidence by standing a candidate in the general election in the Bradford West ward. Appleyard persuaded Jimmy Panter of the "Heaton Defence Group" to drum up the signatories for the candidate. At the subsequent election count Appleyard finally appeared in public as one of the BNP's election officials.
Appleyard now increased his stalking activities and later that month produced a further bulletin which was little more than a hit list, with names and addresses of over 50 "reds".
Things finally came to a head at on July 9th at the Bradford Festival in Centenary Square. Appleyard, clearly agitated, turned up armed with a hammer. Alarmed Festival stewards called the police, but with no response, and it was left to Festival punters to keep Appleyard at bay.
Unfortunately, at 9 p.m. that night, Appleyard came across Matthew Gain alone near the bus Interchange. Appleyard attacked him with the hammer, striking 3 blows to Matthew's head before being chased off.
4 days later Appleyard was finally arrested and charged with ABH. He was immediately freed on bail on condition he stay clear of Matthew and the witnesses to the attack. Yet within a fortnight he had distributed a further copy of his Northern Front bulletin which contained clear threats against one of the witnesses:
"Makentosh knows he's lined up and the more people he hides behind including the police the worst its going to be for him we hear."
A few days later Appleyard and another fascist threatened Matthew with a knife in the City centre. Clearly he was totally unconcerned about any bail conditions.
On August 18 1997 David Appleyard appeared at Bradford Magistrates court on the ABH charge. Bail was opposed because of the clear threats against witnesses and Appleyard found himself remanded to Armley jail.
Suddenly things in Bradford seemed to quieten down. At subsequent court appearances Appleyard confounded any chance of an early release by repeatedly sacking his lawyers (he got through at least 5).
But behind the scenes police "errors" were to ensure that Appleyard would never stand trial.
Police had obtained video recordings from one of the councils CCTV cameras and another from Bradford bus Interchange, covering the time of the attack. But when they finally checked the council's video they discovered they'd got the wrong tape. The original had, by now, been reused.
The other CCTV footage from Bradford Interchange apparently showed nothing. However, Detective Constable Anne Pitts, then in charge of the case, managed to "lose" the video, thus opening the way for Appleyard's latest solicitor to argue, at a private hearing in judges chambers, that potential defence evidence had been lost. The ABH charges were dropped and Appleyard was quietly released.
It was only when Appleyard resumed his stalking activities that anyone knew he was out.
In July 1998 the CPS announced that the outstanding charges of threatening witnesses would also be dropped, on the grounds that the police could not locate key witnesses. This news was angrily challenged by the witnesses themselves, and the CPS quickly reinstated the charges and fixed the trial date for October 5th.
![[Appleyard, October 1998 ]](appleyard2.jpg)
David Appleyard, Oct 1998 |
![[Appleyard, October 1998 ]](appleyard3.jpg) |
The day of the trial came and for the various witnesses it brought a long, if good-natured, wait. Finally, late in the afternoon, the CPS barrister appeared to announce that a deal had been struck - the charges against Appleyard would be dropped in return for a "bind-over". But the victims of Appleyard's threats refused to co-operate with this decision. The barrister was furious. DC Pitts was furious. David Appleyard was furious. The case had to be further adjourned.
Appleyard left the court to meet up with two of his associates who were waiting, close by, in a car. The various witnesses and their friends headed for a nearby pub.
The first small group to leave the pub were almost run over by the car carrying Appleyard and his associates as they tried to follow. Shortly afterwards another man was chased on foot by the fascists as he left the pub, but was saved by the actions of an alert bus driver.
Later still Mathew Gain and a friend were attacked by Appleyard's associates, who were waiting for them as they returned to their home at Soho Mills. One of the assailants drew a machete as the two men ran for their lives.
Incredibly, Appleyard was observed later that evening strolling into the Central police station for a friendly chat with the desk sergeant.
Gerry Sutcliffe MP leads a delegation to Bradford Central Police HQ. |
By now concerns about Appleyard, and the polices apparently complicit relationship with him were widespread.
Bradford South MP Gerry Sutcliffe raised these concerns with the police, and the following month led a delegation to the Central Police Station to express those concerns. Initially the police refused to meet them, but eventually they were met by Inspector Martin Baines, head of the areas Community Liaison department.
Baines said he knew nothing at all of Appleyard, or his activities, but he promised to reply to a number of written questions. He never did.
Appleyard was due to face trial for threatening witnesses in April 1999. The wave of nazi bombings in London created a brief press interest, and a number of journalists turned up at court. But a missing police witness meant the hearing was adjourned once again.
Appleyard meanwhile, having beaten up his girlfriend Angie one time too many, was forced to move out of Bradford. He spent some time in Keighley, linking up with local fascist associates of long standing. These included Christopher Parker, another violent nazi who had last been seen in Leeds in 1994, stalking an Anti-Nazi demo, armed with a machete.
This group adopted the name "18 Commando" and published stickers in support of London bomb suspect David Copeland.
Appleyard also helped produce and distribute a "Combat 18 Yorkshire Bulletin" which carried a photo of one witness marked "informer". It also carried an account of a recent Yorkshire C18 trip to Portadown, Northern Ireland, to celebrate with the LVF Loyalist paramilitaries.
July 1999 Yorkshire Combat 18 Bulletin which Appleyard helped produce and distribute. It includes an account of the Ulster "Blood and Honour" gig which was a benefit for LVF prisoners. |
Stickers in support of David Copeland - charged with the London bombings of April 1999, which left 2 dead. The stickers were produced and distributed by Appleyard. |
At the same time, July 1999, Inspector Martin Baines finally acknowledged the delegation he'd seen 8 months previously with a short letter. It read in part:
"As you know DC Paul Fleming forwarded a report on the investigation to the Crown Prosecution Service in March this year. They are completely independent of the Police and their decision was that no further action should be taken against David Appleyard."
This only served to confuse matters, as witnesses were still being told that a hearing had been fixed for November 3rd.
A week prior to the scheduled hearing, witnesses were called by the police and told they were no longer required. The hearing had been brought forward a week, unknown to the witnesses, and the same deal that they had rejected over a year earlier was agreed between Appleyard and the CPS. Appleyard accepted a "bind over" and the charges were dropped.
Not surprisingly the witnesses were disgusted, if not surprised. One woman who has been threatened by Appleyard said:
"It's been disgraceful. The police have trivialised it from start to finish. There's been at least 2 occasions when people's lives have been in danger and it's shocking how little concern they've shown. I cannot understand how the case could be dropped against the wishes of those who were threatened."
"Personally I've always leaned to the view that it's down to the police being lazy and incompetent. But if you did have any faith in the police, then you are forced to the conclusion that Appleyard is being protected in some way, possibly because he is the informer as suggested by his own associates."
Another member of the 1 in 12 Club who was also threatened said:
"Appleyard may not be any kind of political threat, but he's a dangerous man. He's a psycho. As to him being an informer - who knows, but the way it stacks up it's certainly a possibility. Either way it seems you can get away with hammer attacks, threatening people with knives, intimidation and stalking if you're a coppers son."
Afterwards a spokesperson for the 1 in 12 Club said:
"I'd like to say I'm surprised, but after the run around we've been given by Appleyard and the police, I have to say I'm not. From the very start the police have been reluctant to take him seriously. Evidence has been mysteriously lost, witnesses untraced, statements not taken - the catalogue of incompetence has been staggering.
"For 3 years Appleyard has terrorised and attacked members of our club. Yet for 3 years we have maintained complete discipline and attempted to deal with the problem through the "proper" channels, but to what effect? I feel completely disillusioned.
"Some say we should have taken matters into our own hands right at the start. Perhaps they were right.
"What frightens me most is that Appleyard is genuinely capable of killing someone. The court case was never going to put a stop to him, but it gave people a break from his obsessional behaviour. Now it's as if they've given him the green light to carry on."
The Bradford nazis - The main fascist players in Bradford