Gangster shot six times may have been ‘killed over his role in a timeshare fraud’

A notorious mobster who was gunned down by a professional hitman may have been killed over his role in a Tenerife timeshare scam, police have said.

John ‘Goldfinger’ Palmer, 65, was shot six times at close range in the garden of his remote mansion in South Weald, Essex, in June 2015.

Detectives trying to crack the murder case have now launched fresh inquiries after linking Palmer’s conviction for fraud to his untimely death just days later.

CCTV captured Palmer in the garden of his remote mansion in South Weald, Essex, in June 2015, shortly before being gunned down 

The police believe that criminals put a price on the Essex gangster’s head because they believed he had struck a deal with Spanish police to have his charges dropped. 

Speaking this morning Det Supt Jennings said: ‘Speculation was rife in the underworld and media both in the UK and abroad, that Mr Palmer may have been seeking a deal. There is nothing to suggest this was true.

‘The timing of the criminal charges in relation to the Spanish trial and the subsequent speculation has always been a key consideration as a possible motive for detectives investigating his murder.

‘Why was he killed in 2015? Of all the hypothesises I have had during this investigation, I believe the recent fraud trial in Madrid is the strongest – because of the timing, because of the fact that John was notified on the week of his death that he was to stand trial and he was on his way over to Spain to deal with some of those matters. 

‘When you look at the people who were involved in that trial, with John, so to speak, out of the way because he is deceased – they had the opportunity to blame him for the fraudulent activity in Tenerife.’

Palmer was taken out by a contract killer who had drilled a tiny hole into the fence to spy on his target before jumping over and shooting him.

Palmer was taken out by a contract killer who had drilled a tiny hole into the fence to spy on his target before jumping over and shooting him in his garden (pictured)

The gangster, who earned the nickname ‘Goldfinger’ for his part in melting down gold from the infamous Brink’s-Mat robbery at Heathrow in 1983, was worth £300million. 

Palmer’s family have put up a £100,000 reward for information leading to a conviction but so far Essex Police, who have taken hundreds of statements, have drawn a blank.

Their renewed appeal for information will also rely on witnesses from the criminal underworld to break their silence, which is unlikely to happen.

Det Supt Jennings said: ‘It’s been one of the most difficult cases I’ve investigated because of the circles that John used to move in and also because of his criminal lifestyle in years gone past.

‘I have no doubts it was a professional kill – that someone was hired to shoot John which in itself adds additional challenges.

The gangster, who earned the nickname ‘Goldfinger’ for his part in melting down gold from the infamous Brink’s-Mat robbery at Heathrow in 1983, was worth £300million

‘John’s lifestyle meant he was involved with, arguably, the higher end level of the criminal underworld in the UK and in Europe, particularly in Spain, so people are reluctant to come forward to provide information about individuals who move in those circles.

‘But, now that trial is out of the way they have a really good opportunity to come forward with the Crimestoppers appeal, via the family, for £100,000.

‘I am hoping someone will come forward and provide that vital clue.

‘We know that the key to solving Mr Palmer’s murder lies within the underworld. Loyalties do change and people may now feel able to come forward.’

So far police have made one arrest for conspiracy to murder in October 2015 and then a suspect was formally interviewed, on a voluntary basis, in 2017 – but neither arrest led to charges.