Briton Michael Garveigh accused in US of impersonating MI5 agent

Possibly not relevant but surely interesting.

John Garveigh (one of the owners of the Ocean Club in May 2007) has 3 children.

http://www.geneall.net/D/per_page.php?id=23920

One is Michael Garveigh. I have a lot more information regarding him but one piece is very interesting. From the Times article July 4, 2009)

"With his links to the Royal Family, his international lifestyle and his impressive physique, Michael Garveigh was the perfect British secret agent.

When the wealthy businessman was introduced to American police as an MI5 officer who required help in an antiterrorism operation, there was no reason to doubt him. But he has been accused of posing as an intelligence officer to trick the police into helping to carry out robberies by removing cash from houses supposedly used by terrorists.

Mr Garveigh, 45, a former classmate of the Earl of Wessex, has been arrested on a charge of impersonating a foreign official, but he insists he is the innocent victim of a sophisticated fraud.

The FBI says that the British businessman and an American friend pretended to be part of a special counter-terrorism task force during meetings with two city police forces on the outskirts of Atlanta, Georgia. Mr Garveigh, who has an American wife, has lived in Georgia for the past four years.

The two men are alleged to have requested help from senior officers to recover terrorists’ money during raids at several locations scheduled for the week starting today, Independence Day.

The friend, Louis Aprile, claimed to be a regional deputy director of the National Security Agency during at least five meetings with police officers in the cities of Alpharetta and Marietta. According to an affidavit by FBI Special Agent Matthew Carman, he was accompanied to at least three meetings by Mr Garveigh, who was portrayed as a British intelligence officer.

Mr Aprile, 49, told the police they were investigating a terrorist group with cells in Detroit, Michigan and Britain that planned to buy milk trucks in Florida and pack them with explosives, it is alleged. During one meeting Mr Garveigh left the room to receive phone calls. He returned from one saying that British officials, including himself, were being scrambled to deal with North Korea’s nuclear test.

Although the police officers were instructed not to contact anyone about the top-secret operation, someone consulted the FBI, which discovered that neither man was a secret agent. A final meeting between the pair and the police was recorded secretly by the FBI. During the meeting Mr Aprile revealed the locations of three addresses to be raided.

Katherine Hoffer, an assistant US attorney, said: “I’ve seen impersonating cases but this one is pretty elaborate. They’ve offered some explanations but nothing that really had any merit.”

An FBI agent involved in the investigation said: “I’ve never seen two such clever guys do something so stupid. It was a very bold attempt to scam a police department to help them carry out a crime.” He claimed that the men had told officers they wanted to recover large sums of money from the locations of the raids, while the police would have the glory of arresting dangerous terrorists.

The FBI has refused to reveal the intended locations of the alleged raids. However, Brian Will, who lives near the Garveigh family, believes he was one of the targets. He said that he had sued Mr Garveigh for $100,000 after he failed to complete a $150,000 project to install a security system at his home.

After their arrest Mr Aprile was described as a software contractor and Mr Garveigh as a self-employed commodities broker. Each has been released on bail of $20,000. They have said they intend to deny any wrongdoing.

Mr Garveigh is from a wealthy Anglo-Portuguese family that has made a fortune from development of the Algarve. He was educated in Britain and was in the same year as Prince Edward at Gordonstoun, the Scottish public school, which was also attended by the Prince of Wales and the Duke of York. After attending Loughborough University he returned to Portugal to set up a landscaping business.

Four years ago Mr Garveigh moved to Georgia with his American wife, Victoria, and their son and set up a business supplying internet wireless services. The family lives in a gated community in Roswell, a smart suburb of Atlanta.

Friends say they are amazed at the allegations surrounding Mr Garveigh. Anthony Carlyle, a former director of Mr Gaveigh’s British subsidiary, said: “He is a great guy and totally honest. He would never get involved in crime. It is totally laughable. I suppose he was a bit like James Bond but he is the most down-to-earth person.”

Mawuli Mel Davis, Mr Garveigh’s lawyer, said: “My client is as much a victim in this as anyone else. He has been misled by someone he trusted and he will be cleared of all criminal charges. The person he trusted told law enforcement officers that he was a British intelligence officer and Mr Garveigh did not correct that impression. But he thought he was legitimately helping an investigation.”

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article6632578.ece

There was an FBI press release regarding their arrest.

http://www.fbi.gov/atlanta/press-releases/2009/at060909.htm

Aprile pleased guilty (can find no record of his being jailed) and I can't find a record of Garveigh even going to court as FBI after connecting him with Aprile on arrest - then nothing!

http://www.fbi.gov/atlanta/press-releases/2009/at112309.htm

Also no note of who Michael is related to, that he lived in Portugal till 2004 etc.

Puzzling?

Are these two connected?
http://www.algarveresident.com/6169-29413/algarve/top-estate-agents-celebrate-merger

Yes they are. I am at work at the moment but will try and get info on here later tonight if I can.

I posted this on another thread not realising it was the same name as your thread.
Didn't someone say in the early days about MI5 being around from day one? I wonder if that is true, or was this our impersonator?

Just so I have this right. A conman who went to the same school as Prince Edward by the name of Garveigh, whose family owns quite a few properties in the OC, was wanted by the FBI for fraud and impersonating an MI5 agent !!!!
Good grief, what is it about Ocean Club and the sort of people it attracts ?
ETA correction. Garveigh is one of the owners of Ocean Club, not owns properties !!!

So the Michael Garveigh whose case was discussed in the Times in 2009 (well picked up by Gillyspot), was indeed the correct age for the son of John Garveigh. Sounds like you got your man, Gillyspot!
And John Garveigh is not his name by birth. He's the son of Goldmann and Zimmermann xxxxxx. But so tewwibly British sounding, nowadays!!
I shall have to dust off my xxxxxxx theory which I quickly put aside, feeling ashamed of it. But now we have Oppenheimer, Goldmann - any others, or shall I put it back in the box again?

Yes he is is SON.

"Christopher Garveigh is Michael's brother and their father John Garveigh (who's wife is closely connected to Portuguese nobiility) was part owner of the Ocean Club at the time of the "abduction" along with David Symington (Angus Symington's father). They were in the process of selling OC to Mark Warner as this all happened.

http://www.geneall.net/U/per_page.php?id=125439

The Symington are an old aristocratic family that have been in the Port shipping business (making 1/3 of the port produced) in Oporto for generations and produce some of the world's finest Port wines. David Symington was part owner of the Ocean Club and on their site in history it states "There are still strong connections between The Ocean Club and this famous family"

The site is www.luzoceanclub.com/palmbay/history.html

The fact that Angus Symington (son of David Symington joint owner of the Ocean Club - at the time) is Robert Murats 4th cousin and yet the press although noting the remarkable likeness didn't seem to see the connection between them. Robert Murat must have known and met Angus as they were both in the same business (property management/estate agency) and as said in the Daily Mail Angus's "office at Ocean Country Real Estate is a few hundred yards from Kate and Gerry McCann's holiday apartment"

Indeed the best that I can find in any press is that Angus is "A British businessman with access to the Ocean Club".

So they are trying to tell us that in a "sleepy" holiday resort these two had never met? Indeed as Robert Murat said.

"Mr Murat, 34, was shown a photograph of Mr Symington and said: "I'm shocked, I'm amazed by the likeness.
"The hairline and the nose, it could be me. Only the chin is different.
"I will show this photograph to my lawyer and I hope he will raise it with the Policia Judiciaria."

Christopher Garveigh runs a chain of estate agents and merged with the Winkworth agency in 2004 (possibly the Winkworth that rented the McCanns villa to them)

http://www.algarveresident.com/6169-29413/algarve/top-estate-agents-celebrate-merger

Just for you Kikoraton

How about Goldmann / Zimmermann from Germany.

John's parents were German

Father: Ladislav Goldmann
Mother: Hildegarde Zimmermann

Am assuming that he changed his name to anglicise it possibly

http://www.geneall.net/D/per_page.php?id=23920

kikoraton wrote:
I shall have to dust off my xxxxxx theory which I quickly put aside, feeling ashamed of it. But now we have Oppenheimer, Goldmann - any others, or shall I put it back in the box again?

I think it's best to put it back in the box.

I agree re the xxxxx connection. still all these folk have influence to spare. I am researching further re previous McCann connections with them & so far I believe I may be on to something. Will keep you all informed as and when I have more.

Well done Gillyspot, keep digging and look to see if there is any connection whatsoever also with Freeport.

Yes, I think you are correct, puzzled. Sorry. But what I am thinking of is not the ethnicity but the ties which might bind a group of people together in some grand enterprise - which I am more and more convinced is what the disappearance of Madeleine McCann is.
Such links could be ethnicity, but equally political affiliation, cult or religion, freemasonry and others.

kikoraton wrote:Yes, I think you are correct, puzzled. Sorry. But what I am thinking of is not the ethnicity but the ties which might bind a group of people together in some grand enterprise - which I am more and more convinced is what the disappearance of Madeleine McCann is.
Such links could be ethnicity, but equally political affiliation, cult or religion, freemasonry and others.

The issue is, though, I think people who are skeptical of the McCanns need to be taken seriously, and "conspiracy theories" won't really help in that regard. They'll just lead to people saying, "look, they're all a bunch of loonies". I think the focus needs to be on evidence that would be acceptable in court, if it ever came to that. If there are ties that bind, they're more likely to concern some criminal activity than anything else.

I'm grateful to Gillyspot for reminding us of Robert Murat's connection to the Symingtons. Many months ago, I worked out that Robert Murat was heavily implicated in this whole affair. My view is that Madeleine's death had occurred in the OC on 28/29 April, and that a group of influential persons set about covering up that fact and laying a trail which would place obstacles in the course of justice. I believe that group to have, of necessity, included the owners and management of the OC.
Murat is related to the Symingtons (according to evidence on the previous page), and has what in my more skittish moments I call a grace-and-favour residence within the boundaries of the OC. I visualize Murat and his mother as the poor relations of the family, owing to his father's unfortunate investments way back in the 80s (AFAIR). Robert himself is no businessman, except insofar as he has stumbled across 650000 pounds from the Daily Express. Murat was a convenient decoy and dogsbody for people placed much higher in the social stratum. My generous view is that he allowed his mobile to be used, in an apparently innocent fashion, to convey messages of importance to the cover-up (from the night of 1 May). And that he and his mother gave those with the brains behind the operation free run of their house and landline on the afternoon of 3 May.
All very passive. Worthy only of a slap on the wrist if ever uncovered. And now we learn that son-of-Garveigh has been apprehended impersonating an MI5 officer. Or perhaps, given that he seems to have faded into obscurity, he really has got connections with the Secret Service. Despite your modest disclaimer at the head of the item, gillyspot, I think this has possibly got real relevance to the Maddie case.

puzzled wrote:

kikoraton wrote:Yes, I think you are correct, puzzled. Sorry. But what I am thinking of is not the ethnicity but the ties which might bind a group of people together in some grand enterprise - which I am more and more convinced is what the disappearance of Madeleine McCann is.
Such links could be ethnicity, but equally political affiliation, cult or religion, freemasonry and others.

The issue is, though, I think people who are skeptical of the McCanns need to be taken seriously, and "conspiracy theories" won't really help in that regard. They'll just lead to people saying, "look, they're all a bunch of loonies". I think the focus needs to be on evidence that would be acceptable in court, if it ever came to that. If there are ties that bind, they're more likely to concern some criminal activity than anything else.

Although it's highly likely there is some kind of conspiracy, I think Puzzled is right to say that it's better not to go that way.
I'm sure that's exactly what SY is doing, looking for evidence that will stand up in court. Doing away with everything else. They haven't been that clever and isn't there a lot of evidence that the PJ hasn't published?
The photographs may be quite important. But I think the Fund is their most vulnerable spot. That and false advertising? (coloboma)
Remember they got Capone on non payment of taxes!

I'd love to unmask all the players in this drama, but it's going to be like getting rid of the Mafia. Not that I think the T9 are anything but small fry.
Stella favours some industrial/medical cabal, which met in PdL. You have resident owners and players. Yes, I was always sure Murat was a patsy.
But the Algarve must be a favourite destination for so many wealthy people in the off season. Plenty of golf courses, yachting, etc. Some could have been there by accident.

I think the McCanns are an embarrassment to pretty well all their 'friends' and acquaintances. It's a bit as if an exclusive club suddenly allowed Del Boy in and he's making use of all his new privileges in one go. Emptying the wine cellar and bragging to his mates, wearing the exclusive club badge to the pub....

But if we're in luck, and the Fund at least is rolled up and the McCanns are discredited, there may be some collateral damage to those conspirators.

It's funny, but I have often wondered if someone wanted to get their hands on OC 100% and at a knock down price. What better way to devalue a place with an incident like this, then when it's at an all time rock bottom price, it would be the bargain of the century...

Gillyspot wrote:"Christopher Garveigh is Michael's brother and their father John Garveigh (who's wife is closely connected to Portuguese nobiility) was part owner of the Ocean Club at the time of the "abduction" along with David Symington (Angus Symington's father). They were in the process of selling OC to Mark Warner as this all happened.

Do we know if the deal actually went through, if so when?

puzzled wrote:

kikoraton wrote:
I shall have to dust off my xxxxxxx theory which I quickly put aside, feeling ashamed of it. But now we have Oppenheimer, Goldmann - any others, or shall I put it back in the box again?

I think it's best to put it back in the box.

So do I.

Stella wrote:

Gillyspot wrote:"Christopher Garveigh is Michael's brother and their father John Garveigh (who's wife is closely connected to Portuguese nobiility) was part owner of the Ocean Club at the time of the "abduction" along with David Symington (Angus Symington's father). They were in the process of selling OC to Mark Warner as this all happened.

Do we know if the deal actually went through, if so when?

Yes it did later on in 2007. I am still researching all the connections and they are appearing to go a lot further than I initially thought. Once I know more and can confirm it then I will share with you.

Shibboleth wrote:

puzzled wrote:

kikoraton wrote:
I shall have to dust off my xxxxxx theory which I quickly put aside, feeling ashamed of it. But now we have Oppenheimer, Goldmann - any others, or shall I put it back in the box again?

I think it's best to put it back in the box.

So do I.

Shibboleth: What I have found (if correct) means there is no xxxxxx connection and I for one am glad as they & you (as a people) have had enough to deal with to be honest and need no more unconfirmed scare stories

Then can we please stop using obnoxious phrases xxxxxxx. It is extremely offensive. Thank you.

Shibboleth wrote:Then can we please stop using obnoxious phrases xxxxxx. It is extremely offensive. Thank you.

I absolutely agree with you Shibboleth.

I have already indicated that I used the phrase hastily:

Quote: "I shall have to dust off my xxxxxx theory which I quickly put aside, feeling ashamed of it."

I also explained what I had been getting at, and should have spent more time over it rather that using the word "conspiracy".

Quote: "Yes, I think you are correct, puzzled. Sorry. But what I am thinking of is not the ethnicity but the ties which might bind a group of people together in some grand enterprise - which I am more and more convinced is what the disappearance of Madeleine McCann is. Such links could be ethnicity, but equally political affiliation, cult or religion, freemasonry and others."

My view is that there is some group behind the McCanns, which organised, conducted and carried out the disappearance and the process of deception. There is something that links them together. We are all trying to find out what it is - unless we believe (which I don't) that it was something that just happened on holiday and nine people got away with it.
I apologise for causing offence.

Kiko, I feel like I have known you for a very long time and I know that your comment was made without any malice. You have apologised for this and I hope that everyone who has been offended will except your apology.
In the interest of progress with this lead and not wishing to dismiss the awful events of the past, can we now move on please?

All offending remarks have now been removed.

Thank you. It is important not only to me. But to the eyes of the world who view this forum.