The Crime Agents

Q&A: Farage vs Essex Police, the Mushroom Murderer's appeal & London Falling

Nigel Farage says Essex Police warned him to stay away from the Clacton by-election count. Essex Police say that never happened. So who's lying? And why are politicians increasingly dragging the police into their political battles? In this week's Q&A, Andy and Neil tackle Farage's claim head-on and ask what it means for public trust when policing becomes a prop in politicians' narratives.They also discuss the Mushroom Murderer's appeal. Erin Patterson was convicted of poisoning her former in-laws with a death cap mushroom lunch, and from the moment she appeared on camera claiming to be "devastated," most people felt she was guilty. But how often do detectives get an instinctive feeling that someone did it? And can that gut instinct help or hinder an investigation?Plus: has CCTV revolutionised crime-solving in the same way DNA once did? And do the benefits of Ring doorbells on every street outweigh 'Big Brother' concerns? Andy and Neil also dig into the unsolved death of Zac Brettler, the case at the heart of Patrick Radden Keefe's London Falling, and whether the Met's investigation was as flawed as the reporting suggests.Have a question for a future Q&A? Send it via email to thecrimeagents@global.com or follow us on social media: @thecrimeagentsThe Crime Agents is a Global production, available every Monday and Thursday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your shows. Make sure you subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Murders, stabbings, terror plots: are Britain's MPs safe?

Three British politicians have been killed in the space of a decade. Jo Cox. David Amess. And now Ann Widdecombe. How has political violence in Britain reached this point? And why are most of our MPs still unprotected?In this episode, Andy and Neil trace the escalating pattern of attacks on politicians in the UK, explain how police and the Home Office decide who gets protection, and reveal why the number receiving it remains surprisingly low. They explore the growing reliance on private security firms to fill the gaps, and the strain a record nine living former Prime Ministers is placing on already stretched resources.They're also joined by Philip Grindell, a former Met Detective turned private security expert who helped establish The Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team after Jo Cox's murder. Philip explains how the threat environment has changed, how he now protects high-profile individuals from targeted violence, and why he believes some MPs embellish the level of threats they receive when speaking publicly.Finally, Andy and Neil confront the difficult question: can we realistically protect more of our politicians, and what would it cost our democracy if we tried?Follow us on social media: @thecrimeagentsThe Crime Agents is a Global production, available every Monday and Thursday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your shows. Make sure you subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Q&A: Kinahan in court & how police let Simon Levy kill

Daniel Kinahan - allegedly one of the world's most powerful gangsters - arrived at a Dublin court this week under near-unprecedented security. Was that level of protection justified, or was it theatre from the Irish state? And how was he finally extradited from Dubai, where he spent a decade hiding in plain sight? Andy and Neil explain why the Kinahan story has moved so fast, and ask whether his upcoming trial could become the biggest Ireland has ever seen.They also dissect the police failings that allowed Simon Levy, a known sexual predator, to kill two women and attack several others. Does this prove, once and for all, that the police are institutionally misogynistic? Andy and Neil break down what went wrong, and how much damage this case does to the police's efforts to rebuild trust with women and girls.Plus, the latest on PC Andrew Harper's killers, how police operations are named, and, last but not least: who has dubbed Neil 'Manly' Tucci?!Have a question for a future Q&A? Send it via email to thecrimeagents@global.com or follow us on social media: @thecrimeagentsThe Crime Agents is a Global production, available every Monday and Thursday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your shows. Make sure you subscribe so you never miss an episode.

How police infiltrated Europe’s biggest drug cartels

Imagine a phone network built exclusively for criminals. Encrypted. Untraceable. Designed to destroy evidence at the touch of a button. For years, EncroChat gave drug cartels, hitmen and money launderers the confidence to plan serious crime openly, believing they were untouchable.They were wrong.Andy & Neil tell the full story: why EncroChat was created, how it became organised crime's communication platform of choice, and how police ultimately infiltrated it in one of the biggest cross-border operations in law enforcement history. With Tony Saggers - former Head of Drugs Threat & Intelligence at the NCA - they explain what happened when police gained access to the messages of tens of thousands of criminals, leading to lengthy sentences for crime bosses and hundreds of millions in illicit funds seized.Follow us on social media: @thecrimeagentsThe Crime Agents is a Global production, available every Monday and Thursday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your shows. Make sure you subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Q&A: PC Andrew Harper's killers, funeral director horror & why cops don't report their own

Two of PC Andrew Harper's killers will soon be eligible for early release. They were convicted of manslaughter after dragging a police officer to his death - and under the government's early release scheme, they could soon walk free at the halfway point of their sentences. Andy and Neil ask what this means for justice, for public trust, and for every officer putting themselves in danger on duty.Plus: after funeral director Robert Bush was sentenced to 20 years in prison for his crimes, they discuss how he got away with it, and whether this is the tip of the iceberg in an industry built on trust.And why does it so often take undercover journalists to expose police misconduct, rather than the officers working alongside it? After the Charing Cross scandal, Andy and Neil dig into why the culture of silence endures and what it would actually take to break it.Have a question for a future Q&A? Send it via email to thecrimeagents@global.com or follow us on social media: @thecrimeagentsThe Crime Agents is a Global production, available every Monday and Thursday on Global Player, YouTube or wherever you get your shows. Make sure you subscribe so you never miss an episode.