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Cambridge Five Spy Ring — Part 29

69 pages · May 09, 2026 · Broad topic: Intelligence Operations · Topic: Cambridge Five Spy Ring · 69 pages OCR'd
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ms to ee ‘an-who really cares about ' : which shows clothes that not way out. For what to our age... for art, design, lavish production, superb a passport to a big, new,. 4 # vee mm ee er | 'dited by Ailsa Garland q mended, rather dimd on ee “a . Se eS eA -a et the proposal Another train of the: "ht secon Claimed my attention. "he cuse Was of such delicacy ‘hat the Chief had inslsted on tcy hand- ling it myself. But ‘nce the decisions had been taken in London all action would devolve on our people in Istanbul. It- would be impossible for me, with slow bag communications, to direct thelr day-to-day, hour-to- hour actions. The case would eeCape my control with unpre- dictable results. The more I thought, the more convinced I became that I should go to Istanbul myself to implement the course of action that I was to recommend to the Chief. The action itself required little thought. That eventng | worked late. The situation seemed to call for urgent attion of an ezxtra- curricular nature. Next morning, at my meetin with the Chief, I reported tha although we had several Volkovs on file, none of them matched our man in [stanbul. I repeated my view that the case was of great potential im- bortance. Dwelling on the delays involved in communi- tatlong bY bag. FE recom ently, that ly briefed should from London to take charr@fof the case on the spot. “Jus? what I was think. ing myself,” replied the Chief. But, having raised my hopes, he promptly dashed them. The Tevious evening, he said he ad met Brigadier Dougtas Roberts in clubland. Roberts was then head of Security Intelligence (Middle. East), M.I5's regional organisation based on Cairo. Be was enjoy- ing the fag-end of gs spel! of home leave. The Chief had been well impressed by him. and his intention. so he told Me. was to ask Sir David Petrie, the head of M15, to send Roberts straight out to Istanbul week? charge of the Volkov e. I could find nothing to say ‘He had all the paper qualifications for the task on hand He was a senior officer: his” brigadier's uniform would doubtless impress Volkov. Above all. he spoke fluent Russia n—an Unassatlably strong point in his favour : oo ‘ somebody be sent o talled against luck that Previous evening. There seemed During the lunch interval. 1’ * arrival. nothing that.J could do. Sus . Pénseful aa it would be. 1 just had to sit back and let events take their course: hoping that my work the nicht before would bear fruit before Roberts got his teeth into the case. But on return to my office | fo aot ham found a summons from the Chief awaiting me He looked thoroughly disconcerted and 1 found luck had veered in mv¥ favour again. Oberts, If appeared, though doubtless as Mon-hearted as the next man, had an unconquerable distaste for flying and was plan- ning to go by boat. Nothing that the Chief could Bay would induce him to change his plans I had originally hoped that 1 could sg manoeuvre the discus- sion with the Chief that he himself would suggest my fying to [stanbul But the Roberis interlude spurred me to direct action. , So [ sald that, in view of the brigadier’s defection, I could tA, ER We gy de ay bare A ge HiVNLIGllaig WY OLA, Telegraphic correspondence on every ~*r subject under the gun, ‘ng many that must have 2. Top Secret. went on gaily as before. _ If we believed Volkov’s warn- ing, we should have concluded that all telegraphy was. dangerous. If we disbelieved it, we should have instructed our station in Istanbul to take the Recessary action without delay. As it was, the only result of Volkov's tip was to delay by two of three weeks action on own behalf. The answer obviously lay deep tn the psychology of wishful thinking. Nor being an expert on codes and ciphers, I con- cluded that it was no business of mine to draw attention to the gross inconsistency of our conduct. Anyway. there were more immediate problems to be considered. Tt had been agreed at the bee tbah Mahe was safe on Brilish instructions were to all costs any deviat interview into such c I was in Istanbul = Volkov away to sat he could be inter: those gualified for t thou that I co along further that we were by satisfied that Volkov Drovocateur. It would be most u therefore, ff his infor given currency befor assess ite authentic: that I could do : expert, of cou t driven a coach-and-fi my fabrications Bu not an ex , and Drove piulable. Towards evening, Spirite were give: boost, The pilot an the intercom that, Abe - ‘THE AMOROU SPY OF Philbys book throws an tnteresting sidelight on how, during the war, the Aris powers sent ‘spies into Britain. He was ai that lime directing the work of counter-espionage agents in- Spain and Portugal. He writes : Precious few Spantards or Portuguese showed willingness to stick out their mecks for Fascism. Many of those who accepiec missions did so simply to get out of Europe or into Britain. or both. Besides. we held the master-key to German intentions in regular perusal of their signals. The case of, Ernesto Simoes - may be taken as a representa- tive example = the German signals that they” had recruited Simoes in Lisbon for service in England, Hila Instructions were given to him in the form of microdats scat- tered about bis clothing: his communications were to be by mail , After consultation with M.I5, it was decided to/ allow him to run loose in England for a bit. in the hope that he might lead us tO other German agents. He was therefore unmolested on his and was even given discreet assistance in finding emplovment in a Luton factory Making parts for aircraft. The fnformation he might have obtained there was just interesting enough to tempt a spy. “without entailing much danger if anything had slipped back to the Germans by mis- take. He was lodred with a married couple: the husband worked in the same factory. Arrangements were made for his movements to be watched and his mail checked * . Within = few days Simoes settled down to am pattern of. behaviour which he fever sub-- sequently varied. He would follow hig landlord out of the factory when the whistle blew, and see him safely into the nearest pub HeSrose He would then hurry home as fast ag his legs would carr him He never;emeérged until the following mofning. when h We learnt from—rreally — Pere LUTO there emerged a Ww ‘factory explanation. Every evening on: lodging he prompt. Jandiady under (sc destine watchers Maintained) the k:: e would then ea: Meal and go to bed After afew wer decided that the cor be stopped. Simoes in. So as to leave chance. he was ta “tough " interroga on Ham m Tommy Harris ‘of let loose on him. Tt was beyond B tough with + he did his best. He that he was in a Br Service prison; he the reach of the lav sulate knew noth Whereabouts and « find out: he might for Hfe. if he was live: he could 1 beaten, killed, and n: ever know. His only hope was Confession of his es the Germans. And: Same sort, with Hur imagination runnin: Ramut. Indeed, f. fessed to me later t Dainted such a bik Bicture that he ha. frighten himself, To all of this. Sim With, mounting merely saying test:iv that he was hungry . something to eat. Ai or sd. however, he decision. Calling for paper ; Scratched out a t account of his cont. Germans in Lisbur. his instructtons, m:. all. He explained 1 not the slightest i: doing anything ¢ endanger himseif: h had been to earn gu: wartime England could not have react Harris, saw tha account squared in . With our previous
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