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5
10 - PEOPLE/(T-Z)/Bill Turner.md
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@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ tags:
- Person
- Journalist
summary: "Turner later admitted to police that he met with Casolaro but initially refused to specify the time or describe the contents of the papers."
updated: 2026-10-15
---
[[Bill Turner]] was a friend and confidante of investigative journalist [[Danny Casolaro]]. He met with Casolaro in the parking lot of the Sheraton Hotel in Martinsburg, Virginia, on August 9, 1991, the day before Casolaro's death, to deliver some papers. These papers allegedly included two sealed packages that Turner had been keeping in his safe for Casolaro, and a packet of Hughes Aircraft papers belonging to Turner, who had been let go from Hughes for whistleblowing.[^1]
@ -14,6 +15,10 @@ Turner stated he was "scared shitless" about information he had seen connecting
[[Bill Hamilton]], president of [[INSLAW]], later stated that he had received an affidavit from Bill Turner on "highly classified computer printouts on off-shore accounts that he claimed Casolaro intended to use the night he died in a planned meeting with [[Peter Videnieks]] and [[Joseph Cuellar]] and others."[^1]
A Justice Department copy of the Casolaro review records that Turner told the Hamiltons, who relayed the account to the reviewers, that Casolaro planned to meet in Martinsburg with Peter Videnieks, Joseph Cuellar, an unidentified person from Senator [[Robert Byrd]]'s office, an unidentified IRS employee and the attorney [[Robert Altman]]. The review states of this claim and of a report by a caller to the [[Unsolved Mysteries]] hotline that [[Clark Clifford]] and Altman were seen driving in Martinsburg on the day of the death in a late-model Chevrolet Caprice: "We have no reason to believe either of these claims."[^2] INSLAW's February 14, 1994 addendum to its rebuttal of the Bua report states that Casolaro told Turner that the Friday evening meeting in Martinsburg had been arranged by Cuellar, whom it described, according to Turner, as a U.S. Army Special Forces covert intelligence officer.[^3]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro’s Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal*. First Edition. TrineDay, 2010.
[^2]: U.S. Department of Justice, Casolaro review passage on William Turner's account and the hotline report, DOCID 70098622, release p. 108. https://archive.org/details/DOJReportOnDanielJCasolaro
[^3]: Richardson, Elliot L., et al. *Addendum to INSLAW's Analysis and Rebuttal of the Bua Report*, February 14, 1994, p. 24. https://archive.org/details/AddendumToInslawsAnalysisAndRebuttalOfTheBuaReport

76
10 - PEOPLE/(T-Z)/Margaret Thatcher.md
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@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ aliases:
- Mrs. Thatcher
summary: "Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990; the vault records her governments' Cold War, Al-Yamamah and Iraq arms-export, intelligence, Falklands and Libya decisions."
created: 2026-05-14
updated: 2026-10-12
updated: 2026-10-15
born: 1925-10-13
died: 2013-04-08
location: "Grantham, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom"
@ -42,7 +42,7 @@ relations:
- type: relative_of
with: "[[Mark Thatcher]]"
role: "son"
fn: 39
fn: 41
- type: participant_in
with: "[[Falklands War]]"
role: "Prime Minister"
@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ relations:
role: "Prime Minister during the 1985 negotiation of the first agreement"
start: 1985-04
end: 1985-09
fn: 33
fn: 35
- type: member_of
with: "[[House of Lords]]"
role: "Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven"
@ -120,45 +120,47 @@ Asked on November 7, 1986, whether she had had discussions with [[Shimon Peres]]
On October 24, 1986, the Foreign Secretary, [[Geoffrey Howe]], told the Commons that the trial of [[Nezar Hindawi]] had ended that day. Hindawi "was found guilty of attempting to place a bomb on an El Al aircraft at Heathrow on 17 April and was sentenced to 45 years' imprisonment." Howe said that "There is conclusive evidence of Syrian official involvement with Hindawi," and that "We have therefore decided to break diplomatic relations with Syria." The Syrian ambassador was told to close his [[Syrian Embassy in London|embassy]] and leave the country within 14 days.[^30]
[[Ari Ben-Menashe]] wrote in 1992 that the closure of the embassy followed from a plan conceived by [[Rafael Eitan|Rafi Eitan]] to implicate the embassy in terrorism: "As a result, Margaret Thatcher closed down the Syrian Embassy in London."[^31] Diplomatic relations were restored on November 28, 1990, when [[Douglas Hurd]] told the Commons that Britain was resuming relations with Syria "with immediate effect."[^32]
### Al-Yamamah
Al-Yamamah ("the Dove" in Arabic) was the series of government-to-government arms agreements between the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia, with [[British Aerospace]] (later [[BAE Systems]]) as prime contractor. The first agreement was a Memorandum of Understanding signed at Lancaster House in September 1985 by the Secretary of State for Defence, [[Michael Heseltine]], and the Saudi Defence Minister, Prince [[Sultan bin Abdulaziz]]; it is dated September 26, 1985, and covered 72 Tornado aircraft and 30 Hawk trainers, among other equipment.[^31][^32] Two further, more detailed agreements followed in 1986 and 1988, and the programme was extended in 1993 by an order for 48 more Tornados.[^31][^32]
Al-Yamamah ("the Dove" in Arabic) was the series of government-to-government arms agreements between the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia, with [[British Aerospace]] (later [[BAE Systems]]) as prime contractor. The first agreement was a Memorandum of Understanding signed at Lancaster House in September 1985 by the Secretary of State for Defence, [[Michael Heseltine]], and the Saudi Defence Minister, Prince [[Sultan bin Abdulaziz]]; it is dated September 26, 1985, and covered 72 Tornado aircraft and 30 Hawk trainers, among other equipment.[^33][^34] Two further, more detailed agreements followed in 1986 and 1988, and the programme was extended in 1993 by an order for 48 more Tornados.[^33][^34]
Foreign Office files released to the [[National Archives]] and reported in 2016 record that Thatcher stopped in [[Riyadh]] in April 1985 on her way back from South Asia and met King [[Fahd]]. Heseltine approved the stop-over on the basis that it would allow her to complete the sale, and Prince [[Bandar bin Sultan]], then Saudi ambassador to the United States, invited her. A briefing document stated that it "seems unlikely that Prince Bandar would seek to engineer such a meeting unless something positive was likely to come out of it." The official record of the meeting was billed as one about regional developments and does not mention the aircraft. After the visit Thatcher wrote to Fahd: "I was glad that we were able to discuss a further matter privately over lunch. I look forward to receiving your majesty's personal envoy soon, in order that we may conclude this matter successfully."[^33]
Foreign Office files released to the [[National Archives]] and reported in 2016 record that Thatcher stopped in [[Riyadh]] in April 1985 on her way back from South Asia and met King [[Fahd]]. Heseltine approved the stop-over on the basis that it would allow her to complete the sale, and Prince [[Bandar bin Sultan]], then Saudi ambassador to the United States, invited her. A briefing document stated that it "seems unlikely that Prince Bandar would seek to engineer such a meeting unless something positive was likely to come out of it." The official record of the meeting was billed as one about regional developments and does not mention the aircraft. After the visit Thatcher wrote to Fahd: "I was glad that we were able to discuss a further matter privately over lunch. I look forward to receiving your majesty's personal envoy soon, in order that we may conclude this matter successfully."[^35]
The Guardian published in October 2006 documents that had been released to the National Archives in May of that year and were withdrawn by the Ministry of Defence after the paper approached it. One was a January 1986 telegram from [[Colin Chandler]], head of the Ministry's arms sales unit, who was in Riyadh with BAE executives. The Guardian reported from it that the price of each Tornado had been raised by 32 percent, from £16.3 million to £21.5 million, and that the total was to reach £5 billion against the £3.5 billion to £4 billion stated in the Memorandum. The same release contained a Ministry of Defence briefing prepared for Thatcher that described Prince Sultan as "not highly intelligent," and Foreign Office correspondence of 1985 sending Thatcher's chief aide at Number 10, [[Charles Powell]], a copy of an Arab magazine that alleged £600 million in secret commissions, with advice that officials "should simply refuse all comment."[^31] Lord Gilmour, who had been a minister under Thatcher, told BBC2's Newsnight, as the Guardian quoted him: "You either got the business and bribed, or you didn't bribe and didn't get the business."[^31]
The Guardian published in October 2006 documents that had been released to the National Archives in May of that year and were withdrawn by the Ministry of Defence after the paper approached it. One was a January 1986 telegram from [[Colin Chandler]], head of the Ministry's arms sales unit, who was in Riyadh with BAE executives. The Guardian reported from it that the price of each Tornado had been raised by 32 percent, from £16.3 million to £21.5 million, and that the total was to reach £5 billion against the £3.5 billion to £4 billion stated in the Memorandum. The same release contained a Ministry of Defence briefing prepared for Thatcher that described Prince Sultan as "not highly intelligent," and Foreign Office correspondence of 1985 sending Thatcher's chief aide at Number 10, [[Charles Powell]], a copy of an Arab magazine that alleged £600 million in secret commissions, with advice that officials "should simply refuse all comment."[^33] Lord Gilmour, who had been a minister under Thatcher, told BBC2's Newsnight, as the Guardian quoted him: "You either got the business and bribed, or you didn't bribe and didn't get the business."[^33]
In 1992 the [[National Audit Office]] reported on the Saudi Arabian Airforce Project. Its examination of project receipts and payments passing through the Ministry of Defence "found no evidence of commission payments being made to third parties." On February 27, 1992, in a private session of the [[Public Accounts Committee]], whose chairman was [[Robert Sheldon]], the Ministry's permanent secretary, Sir [[Michael Quinlan]], said: "The whole project operates under a seal of confidentiality. There is a very great sensitivity about the project on the part of the Saudi Arabian Government. Open Government is alien to them." Asked for an assurance that no public funds had gone the wrong way, Quinlan answered: "Yes, I can give you the assurance that there is no basis to support any suggestion that commission payments have been made using public funds."[^34] The report was not published. The Guardian reported in March 2024, after finding the papers in Sheldon's archive at the [[London School of Economics]], that only ten copies were printed and that only Sheldon and his deputy read it. The Guardian also reported that a Ministry memorandum disclosed at a later criminal trial showed that in 1988 the Ministry's head of arms sales had helped set up regular quarterly payments to Prince Bandar from Al-Yamamah funds, which BAE made on the Ministry's instruction. BAE said all payments were made with the express approval of the United Kingdom government, and the Ministry said the funds remained the property of the Saudi government.[^35]
In 1992 the [[National Audit Office]] reported on the Saudi Arabian Airforce Project. Its examination of project receipts and payments passing through the Ministry of Defence "found no evidence of commission payments being made to third parties." On February 27, 1992, in a private session of the [[Public Accounts Committee]], whose chairman was [[Robert Sheldon]], the Ministry's permanent secretary, Sir [[Michael Quinlan]], said: "The whole project operates under a seal of confidentiality. There is a very great sensitivity about the project on the part of the Saudi Arabian Government. Open Government is alien to them." Asked for an assurance that no public funds had gone the wrong way, Quinlan answered: "Yes, I can give you the assurance that there is no basis to support any suggestion that commission payments have been made using public funds."[^36] The report was not published. The Guardian reported in March 2024, after finding the papers in Sheldon's archive at the [[London School of Economics]], that only ten copies were printed and that only Sheldon and his deputy read it. The Guardian also reported that a Ministry memorandum disclosed at a later criminal trial showed that in 1988 the Ministry's head of arms sales had helped set up regular quarterly payments to Prince Bandar from Al-Yamamah funds, which BAE made on the Ministry's instruction. BAE said all payments were made with the express approval of the United Kingdom government, and the Ministry said the funds remained the property of the Saudi government.[^37]
The [[Serious Fraud Office]] launched an investigation into allegations of corruption against BAE on July 29, 2004, one aspect of which concerned Al-Yamamah. By autumn 2006 it intended to examine Swiss bank accounts, and the judgment of the House of Lords records that the Saudi authorities responded with an explicit threat to withdraw from bilateral counter-terrorism cooperation, to withdraw cooperation on the United Kingdom's strategic objectives in the Middle East and to end negotiations then in progress for the purchase of Typhoon aircraft. The ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Sir [[Sherard Cowper-Coles]], told the Director that "British lives on British streets were at risk." The Prime Minister, [[Tony Blair]], sent the Attorney General a personal minute on December 8, 2006.[^36]
The [[Serious Fraud Office]] launched an investigation into allegations of corruption against BAE on July 29, 2004, one aspect of which concerned Al-Yamamah. By autumn 2006 it intended to examine Swiss bank accounts, and the judgment of the House of Lords records that the Saudi authorities responded with an explicit threat to withdraw from bilateral counter-terrorism cooperation, to withdraw cooperation on the United Kingdom's strategic objectives in the Middle East and to end negotiations then in progress for the purchase of Typhoon aircraft. The ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Sir [[Sherard Cowper-Coles]], told the Director that "British lives on British streets were at risk." The Prime Minister, [[Tony Blair]], sent the Attorney General a personal minute on December 8, 2006.[^38]
On December 14, 2006, the Attorney General, [[Lord Goldsmith]], told the Lords that the Director of the Serious Fraud Office had decided to discontinue the investigation "following representations that have been made both to the Attorney General and the Director concerning the need to safeguard national and international security." He said he had obtained "the views of the Prime Minister and the Foreign and Defence Secretaries," who had expressed "the clear view that continuation of the investigation would cause serious damage to UK/Saudi security, intelligence and diplomatic co-operation."[^37] [[The Corner House]] and Campaign Against Arms Trade challenged the decision. The Divisional Court quashed it on the ground that the Director had yielded to a threat. On July 30, 2008, the House of Lords allowed the Director's appeal in [[R (Corner House Research) v Director of the Serious Fraud Office]], holding the decision lawful. [[Lord Bingham]] wrote that what determined the decision was "the Director's judgment that the public interest in saving British lives outweighed the public interest in pursuing BAE to conviction."[^36]
On December 14, 2006, the Attorney General, [[Lord Goldsmith]], told the Lords that the Director of the Serious Fraud Office had decided to discontinue the investigation "following representations that have been made both to the Attorney General and the Director concerning the need to safeguard national and international security." He said he had obtained "the views of the Prime Minister and the Foreign and Defence Secretaries," who had expressed "the clear view that continuation of the investigation would cause serious damage to UK/Saudi security, intelligence and diplomatic co-operation."[^39] [[The Corner House]] and Campaign Against Arms Trade challenged the decision. The Divisional Court quashed it on the ground that the Director had yielded to a threat. On July 30, 2008, the House of Lords allowed the Director's appeal in [[R (Corner House Research) v Director of the Serious Fraud Office]], holding the decision lawful. [[Lord Bingham]] wrote that what determined the decision was "the Director's judgment that the public interest in saving British lives outweighed the public interest in pursuing BAE to conviction."[^38]
On March 1, 2010, BAE Systems pleaded guilty in the [[United States District Court for the District of Columbia]] to conspiring to defraud the United States by making false statements about its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act compliance program and to violating the Arms Export Control Act, and was fined $400 million by Judge John D. Bates. The Department of Justice stated that BAE took the role of prime contractor to the United Kingdom government in the mid-1980s after the formal understanding with Saudi Arabia, that its "support services" resulted in substantial benefits to a foreign public official of Saudi Arabia who was in a position of influence over sales of fighter jets, and that BAE undertook no adequate review or verification of more than $5 million in invoices submitted by one employee from May 2001 to early 2002.[^38]
On March 1, 2010, BAE Systems pleaded guilty in the [[United States District Court for the District of Columbia]] to conspiring to defraud the United States by making false statements about its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act compliance program and to violating the Arms Export Control Act, and was fined $400 million by Judge John D. Bates. The Department of Justice stated that BAE took the role of prime contractor to the United Kingdom government in the mid-1980s after the formal understanding with Saudi Arabia, that its "support services" resulted in substantial benefits to a foreign public official of Saudi Arabia who was in a position of influence over sales of fighter jets, and that BAE undertook no adequate review or verification of more than $5 million in invoices submitted by one employee from May 2001 to early 2002.[^40]
### Mark Thatcher
On January 24, 1996, [[George Galloway]] told the Commons that commissions on the Al-Yamamah arms sales had been paid through middlemen, and named [[Mark Thatcher]] and [[Wafic Said]] among them. He described Mark Thatcher as "the son of the then Prime Minister, who gave 10 Downing street as his address at the time," who "was later given his own house and other lavish benefits by Wafic Said." Galloway also named [[Douglas Leese]] among the intermediaries and described [[Jonathan Aitken]] as Said's business partner.[^39] The writer [[Paul Foot]] wrote in 1998 that it had become "common knowledge" that Mark Thatcher enriched himself by £12 million from the Al-Yamamah deals, that Thatcher himself never denied it or sued anyone for mentioning it, and that no one, including the authors of a book on the subject, could produce a single hard fact to prove it.[^40] The Guardian wrote in 2006 that all those involved had always denied the allegations.[^31]
On January 24, 1996, [[George Galloway]] told the Commons that commissions on the Al-Yamamah arms sales had been paid through middlemen, and named [[Mark Thatcher]] and [[Wafic Said]] among them. He described Mark Thatcher as "the son of the then Prime Minister, who gave 10 Downing street as his address at the time," who "was later given his own house and other lavish benefits by Wafic Said." Galloway also named [[Douglas Leese]] among the intermediaries and described [[Jonathan Aitken]] as Said's business partner.[^41] The writer [[Paul Foot]] wrote in 1998 that it had become "common knowledge" that Mark Thatcher enriched himself by £12 million from the Al-Yamamah deals, that Thatcher himself never denied it or sued anyone for mentioning it, and that no one, including the authors of a book on the subject, could produce a single hard fact to prove it.[^42] The Guardian wrote in 2006 that all those involved had always denied the allegations.[^33]
[[Ari Ben-Menashe]] wrote that Mark Thatcher introduced [[Gerald Bull]] to [[Pieter Van Der Westhuizen]] in 1983, and that Van Der Westhuizen connected Bull with [[ARMSCOR]] for the "supergun" project. Ben-Menashe wrote that Mark Thatcher was present at a late-1986 meeting in [[Santiago]], [[Chile]], with [[Carlos Cardoen]], [[Robert Gates]], Senator [[John Tower]] and Van Der Westhuizen. He also wrote that Mark Thatcher presented himself to Ben-Menashe in Santiago in 1988 as a private businessman with no connection to the British government, despite his mother's position, and that Mark Thatcher was involved in the sale of 48 [[Chieftain tanks]] to Chile after the [[Falklands War]].[^41]
Ari Ben-Menashe wrote that Mark Thatcher introduced [[Gerald Bull]] to [[Pieter Van Der Westhuizen]] in 1983, and that Van Der Westhuizen connected Bull with [[ARMSCOR]] for the "supergun" project. Ben-Menashe wrote that Mark Thatcher was present at a late-1986 meeting in [[Santiago]], [[Chile]], with [[Carlos Cardoen]], [[Robert Gates]], Senator [[John Tower]] and Van Der Westhuizen. He also wrote that Mark Thatcher presented himself to Ben-Menashe in Santiago in 1988 as a private businessman with no connection to the British government, despite his mother's position, and that Mark Thatcher was involved in the sale of 48 [[Chieftain tanks]] to Chile after the [[Falklands War]].[^43]
On January 13, 2005, in the Cape High Court in [[Cape Town]], Mark Thatcher pleaded guilty under a plea agreement to attempting to contravene section 2 of South Africa's Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act by agreeing to charter a helicopter, for which he paid $275,000. The text of the agreement stated: "The accused began to suspect that the helicopter might in fact be intended for use in ... mercenary activity [in the west African region]. Despite his misgivings the accused decided to invest money in the charter of the helicopter." His lawyers stated that he was not charged with any involvement in the attempted coup in [[Equatorial Guinea]]. Judge Abe Motala imposed a fine of three million rand, or five years in prison, and a further four-year sentence suspended for five years. Zimbabwe had jailed [[Simon Mann]], a friend of Mark Thatcher and a former British special services officer, with 65 other suspected mercenaries in September 2004.[^42][^43]
On January 13, 2005, in the Cape High Court in [[Cape Town]], Mark Thatcher pleaded guilty under a plea agreement to attempting to contravene section 2 of South Africa's Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act by agreeing to charter a helicopter, for which he paid $275,000. The text of the agreement stated: "The accused began to suspect that the helicopter might in fact be intended for use in ... mercenary activity [in the west African region]. Despite his misgivings the accused decided to invest money in the charter of the helicopter." His lawyers stated that he was not charged with any involvement in the attempted coup in [[Equatorial Guinea]]. Judge Abe Motala imposed a fine of three million rand, or five years in prison, and a further four-year sentence suspended for five years. Zimbabwe had jailed [[Simon Mann]], a friend of Mark Thatcher and a former British special services officer, with 65 other suspected mercenaries in September 2004.[^44][^45]
### Matrix Churchill and the Scott Inquiry
[[Matrix Churchill]], a machine-tool company based in Coventry, exported precision tooling to Iraq under export licenses approved by the [[Department of Trade and Industry]], despite MI6 awareness that the machinery would be used for weapons production. Three Matrix Churchill directors were prosecuted in 1992 for breaching export controls. The Arms-to-Iraq affair was the British corollary to the same illicit weapons procurement networks that characterized Western support for [[Saddam Hussein]] during the [[Iran-Iraq War]]. On November 18, 1992, the Prime Minister, [[John Major]], answered (holding answer of November 17) a Commons question on whether the papers supplied to defence counsel would be placed in the Library: "No. The papers were supplied to the defence for the purposes of the trial. Lord Justice Scott will have access to them."[^44]
[[Matrix Churchill]], a machine-tool company based in Coventry, exported precision tooling to Iraq under export licenses approved by the [[Department of Trade and Industry]], despite MI6 awareness that the machinery would be used for weapons production. Three Matrix Churchill directors were prosecuted in 1992 for breaching export controls. The Arms-to-Iraq affair was the British corollary to the same illicit weapons procurement networks that characterized Western support for [[Saddam Hussein]] during the [[Iran-Iraq War]]. On November 18, 1992, the Prime Minister, [[John Major]], answered (holding answer of November 17) a Commons question on whether the papers supplied to defence counsel would be placed in the Library: "No. The papers were supplied to the defence for the purposes of the trial. Lord Justice Scott will have access to them."[^46]
The trial collapsed after ministers' public interest immunity certificates kept intelligence documents from the defense. The allegation that ministers had signed the certificates to suppress intelligence documents that would have exonerated the defendants was made in the media. The government's account, given by [[Ian Lang]] to the Commons on February 15, 1996, recorded the charges "made and repeated in the media that the Ministers who signed the PII certificates were seeking to deprive defendants in a criminal trial of the means by which to clear themselves." Lang said that [[Richard Scott|Sir Richard Scott]] "concludes, after more than three years of painstaking investigation, that all Ministers who signed PII certificates did so without any impropriety."[^45]
The trial collapsed after ministers' public interest immunity certificates kept intelligence documents from the defense. The allegation that ministers had signed the certificates to suppress intelligence documents that would have exonerated the defendants was made in the media. The government's account, given by [[Ian Lang]] to the Commons on February 15, 1996, recorded the charges "made and repeated in the media that the Ministers who signed the PII certificates were seeking to deprive defendants in a criminal trial of the means by which to clear themselves." Lang said that [[Richard Scott|Sir Richard Scott]] "concludes, after more than three years of painstaking investigation, that all Ministers who signed PII certificates did so without any impropriety."[^47]
The [[Scott Inquiry]], commissioned by Major in November 1992 after the end of the Matrix Churchill trial, reported on February 15, 1996, after Thatcher had left office.[^45][^46] Lang quoted the report's finding that "following the ceasefire in 1988, but not before, Government policy towards the export of non-lethal military goods changed in a way that he believes should have been drawn to the attention of the House." He added that Scott "expressly accepts that they were sincere in doing so," while not agreeing "that they were correct in their belief."[^45]
The [[Scott Inquiry]], commissioned by Major in November 1992 after the end of the Matrix Churchill trial, reported on February 15, 1996, after Thatcher had left office.[^47][^48] Lang quoted the report's finding that "following the ceasefire in 1988, but not before, Government policy towards the export of non-lethal military goods changed in a way that he believes should have been drawn to the attention of the House." He added that Scott "expressly accepts that they were sincere in doing so," while not agreeing "that they were correct in their belief."[^47]
### Stoke Lodge and the Elm Guest House allegations
The writer S. Dovey wrote that civic functions at [[Stoke Lodge]], the residence of the Australian High Commissioner in Kensington, were attended by Thatcher, [[Peter Morrison]], [[Peter Hayman]] and Brittan. Dovey also wrote that the chauffeur firm used by the residence employed men later convicted of child abuse and murder, and that reporting on a June 1982 police raid of the [[Elm Guest House]] may have stopped after intervention by Attorney General [[Michael Havers]].[^47]
The writer S. Dovey wrote that civic functions at [[Stoke Lodge]], the residence of the Australian High Commissioner in Kensington, were attended by Thatcher, [[Peter Morrison]], [[Peter Hayman]] and Brittan. Dovey also wrote that the chauffeur firm used by the residence employed men later convicted of child abuse and murder, and that reporting on a June 1982 police raid of the [[Elm Guest House]] may have stopped after intervention by Attorney General [[Michael Havers]].[^49]
### Resignation and later life
On November 22, 1990, Thatcher addressed the Commons in the debate on the motion of confidence in her government.[^48] She faced a leadership challenge from Heseltine in which she could not win the second ballot. She resigned as Prime Minister on November 28, 1990, and was succeeded by Major. She was elevated to the House of Lords as Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven in 1992. She died on April 8, 2013, at The Ritz hotel in London, following a stroke, aged 87.[^1]
On November 22, 1990, Thatcher addressed the Commons in the debate on the motion of confidence in her government.[^50] She faced a leadership challenge from Heseltine in which she could not win the second ballot. She resigned as Prime Minister on November 28, 1990, and was succeeded by Major. She was elevated to the House of Lords as Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven in 1992. She died on April 8, 2013, at The Ritz hotel in London, following a stroke, aged 87.[^1]
### Footnotes
@ -192,21 +194,23 @@ On November 22, 1990, Thatcher addressed the Commons in the debate on the motion
[^28]: Thatcher, Margaret, written answer on Mr. M. Vanunu, House of Commons, November 7, 1986, HC Deb vol. 103, col. 632W. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/written_answers/1986/nov/07/mr-m-vanunu
[^29]: Thatcher, Margaret, written answer on Mr. Mordechai Vanunu, House of Commons, November 27, 1986, HC Deb vol. 106, col. 299W. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/written_answers/1986/nov/27/mr-mordechai-vanunu
[^30]: Howe, Sir Geoffrey, statement on Anglo-Syrian relations, House of Commons, October 24, 1986, HC Deb vol. 102, cols. 1504-14. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1986/oct/24/anglo-syrian-relations
[^31]: Leigh, David, and Rob Evans, "The secret Whitehall telegram that reveals truth behind controversial Saudi arms deal," *The Guardian,* October 27, 2006. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/oct/28/bae.whitehall
[^32]: Lewis, Mike, and Katherine Templar. *UK Personnel Supporting the Saudi Armed Forces: Risk, Knowledge and Accountability.* 2018, citing the Memorandum of Understanding for the Provision of Equipment and Services for the Royal Saudi Air Force, September 26, 1985, and UK National Archives file FCO 8/6055. https://www.mikelewisresearch.com/RSAFfinal.pdf
[^33]: "Thatcher held secret Saudi talks to win huge arms deal, archives show," *Middle East Eye,* August 25, 2016 (reporting on Foreign Office files released to the National Archives). https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/thatcher-held-secret-saudi-talks-win-huge-arms-deal-archives-show
[^34]: Ministry of Defence Appropriation Accounts 1990-91, Class I, Vote 2, Defence Procurement: The Saudi Arabian Airforce Project (National Audit Office report, 1992), and summary minutes of the private session of the Committee of Public Accounts, February 27, 1992 (Sir Michael Quinlan, Ministry of Defence), in the papers of Robert Sheldon, London School of Economics, as published by The Guardian. https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/24502904/collected-files-sheldon-papers-reduced.pdf
[^35]: "Suppressed report on UK-Saudi arms deal discovered in archive," *The Guardian,* March 24, 2024. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/24/al-yamamah-arms-deal-report-discovery-anti-corruption-mod-nao-britain-saudi-arabia
[^36]: *R (on the application of Corner House Research and others) v Director of the Serious Fraud Office* [2008] UKHL 60 (House of Lords, July 30, 2008), on appeal from [2008] EWHC 714 (Admin). https://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKHL/2008/60.html
[^37]: Goldsmith, Lord (Attorney General), statement "BAE Systems: Al Yamamah Contract," House of Lords, December 14, 2006, HL Deb cols. 1711-8. https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200607/ldhansrd/text/61214-0014.htm
[^38]: U.S. Department of Justice, "BAE Systems PLC Pleads Guilty and Ordered to Pay $400 Million Criminal Fine," press release, March 1, 2010 (*United States v. BAE Systems plc,* D.D.C., Crim. No. 10-035, Judge John D. Bates). https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/bae-systems-plc-pleads-guilty-and-ordered-pay-400-million-criminal-fine
[^39]: Galloway, George, speech on Saudi Arabia, House of Commons, January 24, 1996, HC Deb vol. 270, cols. 453-62. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1996/jan/24/saudi-arabia
[^40]: Foot, Paul, "Prince and Pimp," *London Review of Books,* vol. 20, no. 1, January 1, 1998. https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v20/n01/paul-foot/prince-and-pimp
[^41]: Ben-Menashe, Ari. *Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network.* Sheridan Square Press, 1992 (TrineDay reprint, 2015).
[^42]: "Thatcher admits role in coup plot," *Al Jazeera,* January 13, 2005. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2005/1/13/thatcher-admits-role-in-coup-plot
[^43]: "Thatcher's son pleads guilty in coup plot," Associated Press, January 13, 2005. https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna6818757
[^44]: Major, John, written answer on Matrix Churchill, House of Commons, November 18, 1992, HC Deb vol. 214, cols. 216-7W. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/written_answers/1992/nov/18/matrix-churchill
[^45]: Lang, Ian, statement on the Scott Report, House of Commons, February 15, 1996, HC Deb vol. 271, cols. 1139-64. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1996/feb/15/scott-report
[^46]: Scott, Sir Richard. *Report of the Inquiry into the Export of Defence Equipment and Dual-Use Goods to Iraq and Related Prosecutions.* HC 115, HMSO, February 15, 1996. Quoted in the Lang statement (Lang, February 15, 1996, above).
[^47]: Dovey, S. *Eye of the Chickenhawk.* 2023.
[^48]: Thatcher, Margaret, speech in the debate on "Confidence in Her Majesty's Government," House of Commons, November 22, 1990, HC Deb vol. 181, cols. 439-518. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1990/nov/22/confidence-in-her-majestys-government
[^31]: Ari Ben-Menashe, *Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network* (Sheridan Square Press, 1992; TrineDay, 2015), pp. 121 to 124 (Thatcher sentence at p. 124).
[^32]: HC Deb 28 November 1990, "Middle East," statement by Douglas Hurd. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1990/nov/28/middle-east-2
[^33]: Leigh, David, and Rob Evans, "The secret Whitehall telegram that reveals truth behind controversial Saudi arms deal," *The Guardian,* October 27, 2006. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/oct/28/bae.whitehall
[^34]: Lewis, Mike, and Katherine Templar. *UK Personnel Supporting the Saudi Armed Forces: Risk, Knowledge and Accountability.* 2018, citing the Memorandum of Understanding for the Provision of Equipment and Services for the Royal Saudi Air Force, September 26, 1985, and UK National Archives file FCO 8/6055. https://www.mikelewisresearch.com/RSAFfinal.pdf
[^35]: "Thatcher held secret Saudi talks to win huge arms deal, archives show," *Middle East Eye,* August 25, 2016 (reporting on Foreign Office files released to the National Archives). https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/thatcher-held-secret-saudi-talks-win-huge-arms-deal-archives-show
[^36]: Ministry of Defence Appropriation Accounts 1990-91, Class I, Vote 2, Defence Procurement: The Saudi Arabian Airforce Project (National Audit Office report, 1992), and summary minutes of the private session of the Committee of Public Accounts, February 27, 1992 (Sir Michael Quinlan, Ministry of Defence), in the papers of Robert Sheldon, London School of Economics, as published by The Guardian. https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/24502904/collected-files-sheldon-papers-reduced.pdf
[^37]: "Suppressed report on UK-Saudi arms deal discovered in archive," *The Guardian,* March 24, 2024. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/24/al-yamamah-arms-deal-report-discovery-anti-corruption-mod-nao-britain-saudi-arabia
[^38]: *R (on the application of Corner House Research and others) v Director of the Serious Fraud Office* [2008] UKHL 60 (House of Lords, July 30, 2008), on appeal from [2008] EWHC 714 (Admin). https://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKHL/2008/60.html
[^39]: Goldsmith, Lord (Attorney General), statement "BAE Systems: Al Yamamah Contract," House of Lords, December 14, 2006, HL Deb cols. 1711-8. https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200607/ldhansrd/text/61214-0014.htm
[^40]: U.S. Department of Justice, "BAE Systems PLC Pleads Guilty and Ordered to Pay $400 Million Criminal Fine," press release, March 1, 2010 (*United States v. BAE Systems plc,* D.D.C., Crim. No. 10-035, Judge John D. Bates). https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/bae-systems-plc-pleads-guilty-and-ordered-pay-400-million-criminal-fine
[^41]: Galloway, George, speech on Saudi Arabia, House of Commons, January 24, 1996, HC Deb vol. 270, cols. 453-62. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1996/jan/24/saudi-arabia
[^42]: Foot, Paul, "Prince and Pimp," *London Review of Books,* vol. 20, no. 1, January 1, 1998. https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v20/n01/paul-foot/prince-and-pimp
[^43]: Ben-Menashe, Ari. *Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network.* Sheridan Square Press, 1992 (TrineDay reprint, 2015).
[^44]: "Thatcher admits role in coup plot," *Al Jazeera,* January 13, 2005. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2005/1/13/thatcher-admits-role-in-coup-plot
[^45]: "Thatcher's son pleads guilty in coup plot," Associated Press, January 13, 2005. https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna6818757
[^46]: Major, John, written answer on Matrix Churchill, House of Commons, November 18, 1992, HC Deb vol. 214, cols. 216-7W. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/written_answers/1992/nov/18/matrix-churchill
[^47]: Lang, Ian, statement on the Scott Report, House of Commons, February 15, 1996, HC Deb vol. 271, cols. 1139-64. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1996/feb/15/scott-report
[^48]: Scott, Sir Richard. *Report of the Inquiry into the Export of Defence Equipment and Dual-Use Goods to Iraq and Related Prosecutions.* HC 115, HMSO, February 15, 1996. Quoted in the Lang statement (Lang, February 15, 1996, above).
[^49]: Dovey, S. *Eye of the Chickenhawk.* 2023.
[^50]: Thatcher, Margaret, speech in the debate on "Confidence in Her Majesty's Government," House of Commons, November 22, 1990, HC Deb vol. 181, cols. 439-518. https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1990/nov/22/confidence-in-her-majestys-government

12
10 - PEOPLE/(T-Z)/Peter Videnieks.md
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@ -112,6 +112,12 @@ Joseph Cuellar, an Army Reserve major, met Casolaro by chance at a bar in Arling
Casolaro's notes, a Justice Department memorandum records, reflect a telephone call he made to Videnieks on June 13, 1991. Videnieks refused to talk and referred him to his lawyer, Charles Ruff. Videnieks recalled a call from a reporter whose name sounded like "Kessler," which he said could have been "Casolaro," and said he could not remember whether he had ever spoken with Casolaro.[^38]
In a February 1994 FBI interview, Joseph Cuellar said that Casolaro pressed him repeatedly to introduce him to Videnieks, that the woman Cuellar was dating at the time also telephoned him to add pressure, and that he then telephoned Videnieks and passed on Casolaro's interest. According to Cuellar, Videnieks indicated that he might meet Casolaro but was "done with that and there was no need to go into it anymore."[^39]
A work list of further steps in the same Justice Department file, which described its items as overinclusive, names Cuellar as item 16, "Joe Cuellar (source)," and Videnieks as item 17, "Peter Videnieks (possible source)," and notes that Videnieks was represented by counsel, Charles Ruff.[^40]
In floor remarks on March 20, 1991 on the supplemental appropriations bills that included Desert Shield and Desert Storm funding, Senator Robert Byrd thanked "my chief of staff, Barbara Videnieks."[^41] INSLAW's February 14, 1994 addendum to its rebuttal of the Bua report stated that Cuellar described himself to Casolaro as one of Videnieks's closest friends and told Casolaro that Videnieks had agreed to meet, and that Casolaro had gone to Martinsburg for a meeting with sources whom he described to an associate as a relative of Barbara Videnieks plus one other person from Byrd's office.[^42]
The review recorded that Videnieks denied any involvement in Casolaro's death and said he had been at a summer cottage in New York state from August 5 to August 11, 1991. His personnel records showed leave in that period, a credit card receipt showed a purchase at a bookstore in Oneonta, New York, on August 9, and his telephone records showed a call from the cottage to his brother on August 9 at 8:35 p.m. The review found no reason to question his account that he was in New York on August 10, 1991, and was unaware of evidence linking him to the death.[^35] The review also recorded that a Kentucky salvage dealer told Martinsburg police that Videnieks and Brian had played a high-stakes poker game at a Sheraton in Martinsburg around the time of Casolaro's death. The police could not corroborate the account, and the review found the witness lacked credibility.[^35]
### Trial testimony and later accounts
@ -159,4 +165,8 @@ Seymour wrote that Videnieks offered rewards for non-cooperation with the House
[^35]: U.S. Department of Justice. Review of the *Report of Special Counsel Nicholas J. Bua*, September 27, 1994, pp. 159-160. https://archive.org/details/doj-oip-inslaw-1993
[^36]: U.S. Department of Justice. Review of the *Report of Special Counsel Nicholas J. Bua*, September 27, 1994, p. 161. https://archive.org/details/doj-oip-inslaw-1993
[^37]: U.S. Department of Justice. Review of the *Report of Special Counsel Nicholas J. Bua*, September 27, 1994, p. 162. https://archive.org/details/doj-oip-inslaw-1993
[^38]: U.S. Department of Justice, memorandum on the BCCI and INSLAW special prosecutor contacts, undated, [1994], release p. 42 (printed p. 26), DOCID 70002067. https://archive.org/details/INSLAW-Casolaro
[^38]: U.S. Department of Justice, memorandum on the BCCI and INSLAW special prosecutor contacts, undated, [1994], release p. 43 (printed p. 27), DOCID 70002067. https://archive.org/details/INSLAW-Casolaro
[^39]: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington Metropolitan Field Office, memorandum to Steven E. Zipperstein, February 2, 1994, DOCID 70098626, release p. 107. https://archive.org/details/JohnC.DwyerNotesOnInslaw
[^40]: Federal Bureau of Investigation, undated "Casolaro Review" work list, DOCID 70098626, release pp. 44-45. https://archive.org/details/JohnC.DwyerNotesOnInslaw
[^41]: *Congressional Record*, vol. 137, Senate, March 20, 1991, p. 6823, remarks of Senator Robert C. Byrd on the supplemental appropriations bills. https://archive.org/details/sim_congressional-record-proceedings-and-debates_march-13-1991-march-21-1991_137-redacted
[^42]: Richardson, Elliot L., et al. *Addendum to INSLAW's Analysis and Rebuttal of the Bua Report*, February 14, 1994, p. 24 and n.5. https://archive.org/details/AddendumToInslawsAnalysisAndRebuttalOfTheBuaReport

6
10 - PEOPLE/(T-Z)/Peter Zokosky.md
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@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ relations:
with: "[[Meridian International Logistics]]"
role: "board member; asked later to be taken off the board (Zokosky to Seymour, 2001)"
fn: 1
updated: 2026-10-08
updated: 2026-10-15
---
[[Peter Zokosky]] was an arms manufacturer and a key figure in various covert operations and business ventures, often associated with [[Robert Booth Nichols]] and [[Michael Riconosciuto]]. He was a former president of [[Armtec]], a company that produced combustible cartridge cases for the Army, and was under a non-compete agreement with them until August 1981. Zokosky also served as a consultant to the [[Great Britain|British Government]] on shell casings.[^1]
@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ Seymour wrote in her 1992 VORTEX account that Michael Riconosciuto had once been
### Role in "The Octopus" Investigation
Peter Zokosky was a key source for [[Cheri Seymour]]'s investigation into "[[The Octopus]]." He provided Seymour with a copy of the "Special Operations [Surveillance] Report" on the Lake Cahuilla meeting, which he had obtained from a friend in [[Washington, D.C.]], the document the special counsel had traced to Gilbert's 1991 interview with Riconosciuto. He also provided an audio-taped conversation with Michael Riconosciuto narrating the murders of [[Paul Morasca]] and [[Mary Quick]], and their connection to drug operations. Zokosky stated that Paul Morasca was killed due to a "narcotics deal" gone awry and his involvement in laundering drug profits.[^1]
Peter Zokosky was a key source for [[Cheri Seymour]]'s investigation into "[[The Octopus]]." He provided Seymour with a copy of the "Special Operations [Surveillance] Report" on the Lake Cahuilla meeting, which he had obtained from a friend in [[Washington, D.C.]], the document the special counsel had traced to Gilbert's 1991 interview with Riconosciuto. He also provided an audio-taped conversation with Michael Riconosciuto narrating the murders of [[Paul Morasca]] and [[Mary Quick]], and their connection to drug operations. The tape referred to the murder of Morasca in [[San Francisco]] and of Quick in [[Fresno]], and said that [[Ben Kalka]] handled an LSD operation in Fresno.[^4] Zokosky stated that Paul Morasca was killed due to a "narcotics deal" gone awry and his involvement in laundering drug profits.[^1] Seymour recorded Zokosky's assessment of Riconosciuto as unreliable, a pathological liar with grains of truth in the tales he spins.[^5]
Zokosky was initially defensive about [[Danny Casolaro]]'s death, stating he believed Casolaro committed suicide, though his wife, [[Regina Zokosky]], indicated he had previously said otherwise. He allowed Cheri Seymour and [[Kelly O'Meara]] to review a manuscript written by Robert Booth Nichols about Danny Casolaro's death, titled "Danny Casolaro's Octopus."[^1]
@ -54,3 +54,5 @@ He was an investor in the Cabazon Indian Reservation and a skeet range, though h
[^1]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro's Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal.* TrineDay, 2010. The special counsel's report records the Picatinny meeting date as disputed and found no support for the presence of Contra leaders or Earl Brian at Lake Cahuilla.
[^2]: U.S. Department of Justice. *Report of Special Counsel Nicholas J. Bua to the Attorney General of the United States Regarding the Allegations of INSLAW, Inc.,* March 1993, pp. 56-64.
[^3]: Seymour, Cheri. "VORTEX," diary dated February 24, 1992, p. 11. https://archive.org/details/VORTEXDocument
[^4]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro's Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal*. First Edition. TrineDay, 2010, p. 340.
[^5]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro's Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal*. First Edition. TrineDay, 2010, p. 344.

4
10 - PEOPLE/(T-Z)/Philip Arthur Thompson.md
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@ -76,7 +76,7 @@ relations:
role: "defense counsel, Cloer murder trial"
fn: 25
created: 2025-08-05
updated: 2026-10-07
updated: 2026-10-15
---
[[Philip Arthur Thompson]] (spelled Phillip Arthur Thompson in court records), also known as PAT, "Jason" and Jason Smith, was convicted of robbing and kidnapping two [[United Parcel Service]] drivers in [[Burlingame, California]] in December 1980,[^1] and, on April 8, 2008, of the first degree murder of [[Betty Cloer]] in [[El Dorado County]] in 1971.[^2] [[Michael Riconosciuto]] named him as the killer of [[Paul Morasca]], and [[Cheri Seymour]] wrote that he worked as an informant for [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] agent [[Robert Barnes]].[^3]
@ -174,7 +174,7 @@ The Third District affirmed the conviction in an unpublished opinion filed Decem
[^15]: Thomas and Keith, *The Octopus*, text near pp. 28-36, citing Jonathan Littman and Taylor, "Bizarre Murders Puzzle Cops," San Francisco Chronicle, December 30, 1991. https://archive.org/details/the-octopus
[^16]: Ted L. Gunderson to Hon. Victor Dahman, October 6, 1983, Danny Casolaro papers, Misc. Docs file. https://archive.org/details/casolaro-notebooks
[^17]: "Statement of Michael J. Riconosciuto," February 16, 1984, Danny Casolaro papers, Misc. Docs file. https://archive.org/details/casolaro-notebooks
[^18]: Seymour, *The Last Circle*, ch. 17, "The Inslaw Affair," p. 344. https://archive.org/details/TheInslawAffair
[^18]: Seymour, *The Last Circle*, ch. 17, "The Inslaw Affair," pp. 344-345. https://archive.org/details/TheInslawAffair
[^19]: John Hussar, "Crime probes tied to Nichols associates," Desert Sun (Palm Springs), March 21, 1985, p. 1 (reprint). https://www.maebrussell.com/Inslaw/Desert%20Sun%203-21-85.html
[^20]: "Transcript of Meeting," Alan D. Boyack, Ted Gunderson and Michael James Riconosciuto, May 5, 1991, Tacoma, Washington, pp. 19-21. https://archive.org/details/CasolaroTranscriptBoyackGundersonRiconsosciuto
[^21]: Cheri Seymour, "VORTEX" summary dated February 24, 1992, attached to her affidavit notarized in Mariposa County, October 1992. https://archive.org/details/VORTEXDocument