Today, the story comes from the small town of Bacup, which has a population of just over 13,000 and is about 23 miles north-east of Manchester and 40 miles or so south-west of the capital of world football, Leeds.
Like all of us, 44 year old Paul Brady had been through some challenging times but when we pick up the story in July 2009, life was good for Paul. Nick-named Joe 90, he was a father-of-four who lived with his partner Emma Dobson, a dance teacher, in Rochdale – a place as you know, very close to my heart.
Family and close friends were always very important to Paul, and he was especially close to his family and looked out for them. And it is easy to see why they enjoyed spending time with him as he was a friendly guy with a positive outlook who could always see the bright side in any situation. You know the sort. Paul was a joker, always messing around with his many friends and his family and although he enjoyed a good movie on the couch, he was normally active, always up and doing something. There was one particular film that he loved, and old blockbusters DVD, ‘Rise of the foot soldiers 3’ – he loved that film.
Paul also loved to eat: I mean, really loved to eat – everything and anything – and was always stopping by his mum and sisters house for food. And at family BBQ’s nobody else got a shot at being chef, this was his role and he loved it, always ensuring that nobody left hungry! And Paul loved his music, especially RnB, and you could usually hear the music blasting from his car before Paul pulled up.
No wonder Paul was in a good place in that summer of 2009 as he had just got engaged to Emma earlier in the summer and the wedding was due to take place in April 2010. Both Paul and Emma were so excited about their big day which they were looking forward to sharing with friends and family.
Disappearance
For work, Paul was a site manager, with responsibility for the security at a number of sites around the Lancashire area owned by property developer Stephen Balint. One of these was Lynns Court in Weir, Bacup and this was the focus of Pau’s attention on the evening of 31 July 2009. There had been a report of an act of vandalism at an empty property at the site and Paul was phoned to find out exactly what had happened. Emma drove him there and he discovered that someone had let off a large firework of all things in one of the rooms which had caused some damage. He did the basic repairs needed to manage the evening and planned to come back the following day with a joiner who could make a proper repair. Paul and Emma headed home.
The next day, Saturday 1 August, was a beautiful summers morning as Paul and the joiner, David Collier headed to the site to make repairs. They arrived just before 10am and worked away completing the job by the early afternoon. They then boarded up the empty property at 2.10pm and Paul left the small complex in his white van, followed by joiner David in his mums Mercedes. But suddenly, the peace of the day was shattered, and their path was blocked when a people carrier blocked their way along the road and another vehicle, a Citroen Berlingo, came up behind their cars – a classic pincer movement. Both men knew straight away it was an ambush and they were in trouble. Paul got out of his van running past David and shouting at him to run too, but Paul was hopelessly outnumbered and didn’t get far, being knocked to the ground by an armed gang of up to 15 men. These assailants weren’t amateurs – they were armed with metal bars and baseball bats and one had a shotgun. All were wearing black, tight-fitting ski masks and identical black hooded tops and black trousers. They weren’t messing about.
Despite being struck a number of times, David somehow managed to escape by jumping into a river and running through the woodland on the other side to safety. He later explained what happened saying “A goldy, sandy coloured car moved from the right side of the road onto the wrong side and pulled in front of Paul. He slammed on his brakes and started reversing. I was stationary, he hit me causing damage to the bumper and bonnet and the engine cut out. He exited his car and started running past me screaming. He ran into the group of people, and they started hitting him with all kinds of weapons – bats and metal bars. As I got pulled out of my car I saw someone with a gun. I didn’t see it being used, he was just standing there with it, it seemed to be a shotgun. Paul was on the floor. He was screaming. He was being hit with the weapons very hard.”
David told how after climbing out of the river he made his way to a nearby farm where he knew the farmer and when there he sent a text to his uncle who picked him up. A very fortunate escape. But Paul wasn’t so lucky.
Paul was taken away by the group and his limp body was seen being loaded into the people carrier by witnesses, who could see his legs sticking out as he was driven off. In moments, the terrifying attack was over and the peace and quiet of the summer’s afternoon returned. All that remained of the horror that had taken place were a pair of Paul’s Prada glasses, a timberland shoe and a large pool of blood. These were later identified by his finance Emma as belonging to Paul.
Police Investigation
The police were called that afternoon but as time went on there was still no sign of Paul. Detectives took his disappearance very seriously as they knew there had been threats against his life – serious threats which had to be taken seriously. Paul was not just working as a site manager; he was also involved in the drugs trade. In fact, just weeks before he had been attacked, he had taken delivery of £350,000 worth of cocaine which had been hidden under his setee at home. But he had struggled to get rid of the stash, probably due to its poor quality.
And just the night before the attack, detectives tried to meet Paul to give him a warning advising him he was in danger, but he delayed this meeting – I guess because he knew he was sitting on a large quantity of cocaine – until the afternoon of his disappearance when he had agreed to meet officers along with his solicitor.
Det Supt Neil Hunter, of Lancashire Police, who took charge of the case, said: “Beyond a veil of respectability, Paul Brady had another business. That was the supply of controlled drugs. He wasn’t the financier; he was what we call a mule. He was tasked with ensuring the drugs were passed on and sold after they are brought into the country. But when he had poor quality drugs to sell this caused a real problem and he had to go beyond his usual trusted sources to flog the gear. The danger in this was away from this loyal bunch, he was mixing with some very dangerous characters.”
And local intelligence was key as is so often the case with the police hearing that another local drugs dealer, 35 year old Paul Devalda, and his gang had heard of the predicament that Paul was in and wanted a part of it. Devalda was seen on CCTV in Bacup close to where the attack had taken place and he later checked into a hotel in Rochdale with his hairdresser partner, Stacey, where police quickly managed to tap his room and what they heard left them in no doubt that he was heavily involved in what was effectively Paul’s kidnap. In one conversation Devalda said: “We’re just gonna have to tell. They’re a different one. I’ll just go and bury it somewhere up the moors or something.” He later said: “Guy that got kidnapped is called Joe 90 I think, from Rochdale. The guy who has got kidnapped, his mate set him up yeah.”
They continued to track Devalda over the coming days hoping he would lead him to Paul. DS Hunter said: “Sometimes we knew where Devalda was but not all the time. Sometimes he was one step ahead of us. We had enormous resources working on where Devalda was so it could lead to where Brady was. At that stage it was a kidnap enquiry, not murder.”
But detectives were in a very tricky situation. They had to be very careful to ensure that the kidnappers released Paul – potentially after a ransom payment – and after the high levels of violence the gang had already shown in broad daylight, there was a strong danger that any hint they were being tracked could put Paul in further danger. “Had we gone in too early, and they had thought we were on to them they could have killed him,” said Detective Hunter confirmed.
Detectives managed to piece together more about what the gang had been planning when they took Paul. The day before the kidnapping Devalda had bought a balaclava and gloves from a local shop – again, he was captured on CCTV. The incident with the firework the night before Paul was attacked was actually the work of the gang, DS Hunter explained: “The plan was to lure Paul Brady to the complex. So, his kidnappers broke into and set off large industrial fireworks in two of the properties and waited for Brady to arrive to fix the problem so they could attack him. This plan failed after Brady showed up as a passenger in his girlfriend’s car which prevented the kidnappers from pouncing as they were unsure of Brady’s identity – due to him not turning up in the white Ford Connect van they expected.”
So rather than attack when all was quiet and witnesses were few, the gang changed plans and decided to carry out their plan the next day. I think we increasingly see this where criminals seem less concerned about being seen.
And detectives certainly saw Devalda as ‘the architect’ of the crime. His success in the drugs trade – if that is what you call it – had brought him two homes, one in Prestwich and another in Burnley, and as DS Hunter said, “He had access to a number of vehicles and he was leading a lucrative lifestyle from ill-gotten gains.”
Detectives took the view they couldn’t afford to wait any longer, and a few days later the gang were slowly rounded up. Devalda was arrested while on a trip to London and charged with conspiracy to kidnap. Another associate, 37 year old Heath Bowling who had supplied one of the kidnappers’ cars, was arrested soon afterwards. Devalda’s partner Stacey was also arrested for assisting a criminal as were other members of the gang. But there was still no sign of Paul and nobody was talking. Whilst the drugs were still at his home there was potentially some leverage, but detectives weren’t able to secure the remaining cocaine as Paul’s girlfriend Emma was told very clearly by the financier in the cocaine deal to hand it over to another man soon after the kidnap. She naturally did so in the hope her fiancé would be returned safe and well as I imagine most of us would have done.
A balaclava was ripped from one of the gang members by David Collier as they had scuffled and DNA linked this to 39 year old Jason Martin, of Oldham. It transpired that he fled the country to Dublin soon after the attack, but only came to the attention of detectives on the enquiry when word came through he had been murdered. This incident wasn’t connected to the investigation – he was killed when in Ireland during, it seems, a pre-arranged England Versus Ireland brawl. Irish police believed that Martin had been hiding from Lancashire Police with criminals in Ballyfermot who, were known to him as he had previously dealt drugs to them.
The fight was arranged after a boxing bout when Bernard Dunne defended his world title. It took place in Hannigen’s Bar in Park West Road in the early hours of a Sunday morning. But assuming rules were arranged for the ruck, these soon went out of the window as around 20 men fought seemingly for the honour of their country. It went seriously wrong when one man pulled out a knife leading to others reaching for weapons with hockey sticks, a hatchet, broken pint glasses and even crutches were all used as the violence ratcheted a few notches. Martin was stabbed in the chest and was found slumped on a nearby stairway when the police arrived, but his injuries were severe and he died eight hours later. A second man was seriously injured too after being hacked at with a hatchet although after emergency surgery he did survive and recover. Two men and two women were arrested for attacking police officers at the scene of the fight and it is unclear whether anyone was ever convicted of the murder of Jason Martin.
But despite all this activity there was still no sign of Paul and his family were of course beside themselves with worry. Detectives feared that he was dead as there had been no ransom demand and none of their sources could provide any information about his location. DS Neil Hunter said: “I think the death probably occurred soon after the kidnap. As soon as Brady is dead they have no bargaining power for the drugs. So, they had to then cover their tracks.” He added: “The fact remains that Brady was viciously assaulted by a large number of men at the scene who were armed with weapons, no ransom demand was made to his fiancée or to anyone else with whom he was associated and since just after 2pm that afternoon, he has never been seen or heard of again.”
And although there was no body, after checking every hospital, port and airport and with no sign at all of Paul, detectives and the CPS felt they had enough to charge Devalda with murder.
Trial
In 2011 at Liverpool Crown Court, 35 year old Paul Devalda, of Manchester, denied murder, an alternative charge of manslaughter and conspiring to kidnap. Alongside him his girlfriend Stacia Crossley, 28, denied assisting an offender. Devalda was interesting to observe during the trial, he was quiet and considered, speaking often with his solicitor. It was noted that he never once looked at Paul’s family and friends in the public gallery.
Paul’s partner Emma gave evidence telling the jury how she had chosen her wedding dress just the day before he vanished. She said that he had gone out to work as normal on that Saturday morning August 1st, 2009, and the last time she heard from him was at 1.25 pm on that day.
Emma, who gave evidence from behind a screen, told the court how Paul worked as a foreman for Stephen Balint, whose property developments included Lynns Court in Weir, Bacup. At the time of Paul’s kidnapping, she told how Balint was living in Majorca and the prosecution claimed in court that he was a drugs financier who used Paul to collect and sell cocaine. Please note, these allegations about Balint are all in the public domain from newspaper accounts of the trial which, like all of my sources, can be found in the show notes.
Facing further questions, Emma said that she knew her fiancé had been involved in drug dealing with Balint and in the days before the incident he had been trying to sell 7kg of cocaine worth £350,000. He had managed to sell 2kg but told how he was struggling to get rid of the rest because of its poor quality. She explained that she had been with Paul when he collected the drugs on July 29th when they had been given to him in a holdall at a nearby animal sanctuary nearby.
The jury heard how after Paul had disappeared, his boss Balint got back in touch with Emma and arranged for the remainder of the drugs, and what she believed to be a gun, to be collected from her.
Cross-examined by Devalda’s QC she told how Paul had also been kidnapped years ago before she was with him – I have read this could have been in Spain where he was also shot. And during their time together he had been threatened because of his drug dealing activities and a man called Paul from Manchester had threatened to “sort him out and get rid of him” and he had also had problems with a man called Reno.
But Emma said she thought this was all in the past and by the end of July 2009 she did not think that anyone had a grudge against him.
Paul Collier, the joiner who was with Paul on the day he was attacked also gave evidence from behind a screen. He told the jury what had happened that day and when cross-examined he denied knowing that Paul and his boss, Stephen Balint, were involved with in the drugs business. The prosecutor put it to him that he had known full well and this is why he had not phoned the police to report what had happened when they were attacked. He denied this saying: “I was in a panic; I was shocked and scared.”
After over 14 hours of jury deliberations, Paul Devalda was found guilty of conspiracy to kidnap and murder. There were cheers in the public gallery at Liverpool Crown Court as the unanimous decision was read out by the foreman.
In contrast, Devalda showed little emotion despite his girlfriend and co-defendant Stacey Crossley, crying hysterically next to him in the dock. The jury was unable to reach a unanimous or majority verdict on Crossley, who was free to go for now.
Devalda was ordered to serve at least 21 years in prison before being considered for parole. The judge said that the probable reason for the kidnap was to steal the cocaine worth about £350,000 from Paul, but he said he could not be sure.
Sentencing Devalda, the judge said: “I am satisfied piecing together various strands of evidence that you played a leading role, if not the leading role. It was in broad daylight, it was brazen, ruthless and savage. Ten to fifteen men clad in black, armed with metal poles, one with a shotgun set upon Mr Brady and hit him so hard that he was screaming, no doubt for his life, on the ground. It culminated with him being bundled unceremoniously into one of the vehicles and driven away. It was a military style operation.”
He said that joiner David Collier, who fled along a river, had also been seriously attacked and has been left so scared that he now only works for people he knows.
“It is clear the kidnap group was intent on causing Mr Brady really serious bodily harm ,” he said. “Whether he died from his injuries inflicted at that time or somewhat later is unknown to those in this court apart from you. “
The judge said of Paul’s family: “They have had to live with the pain and torment of not knowing where he is now or precise circumstances in which he died. It continues to haunt them, and they have no closure.”
He told Devalda: “You could, if you had an ounce of decency give the answers but you will not. You are scheming, self-centred, ruthless and dangerous. You have shown and I anticipate will continue to show not a jot of remorse.”
As Devalda , who still showed no emotion, was led to the cells, the victim’s distraught mum, shouted out, “Filthy scum. You are evil,”
At the conclusion of the two month trial, Emma Dobson said, “I am ecstatic that this verdict has been reached. This will hopefully bring some closure to the worst 19 months of our lives. Sadly, I will never have Paul back but I am relieved that some justice has been done.”
Post Trial
Det Sup Neil Hunter spoke after the case concluded to say: In view of today’s conviction, every decent law-abiding person would expect Devalda to tell us where he is, if he knows, so that we can recover his remains for the sake of Paul’s family, but I remain to be convinced he will do so. Paul’s family have come to terms with the fact that he is dead, but without a body they have been unable to hold a proper funeral for him. Devalda is an extremely dangerous individual who was motivated by greed and financial reward. He is a coward, as there were in excess of ten offenders who were in possession of a multitude of weapons including firearms, knives and metal bars, who were responsible for this offence.”
Michael Dunphy and Daniel Jones
We have heard about Devalda and one other gang member, Jason Martin, who was killed in Dublin. Two others faced trial soon after Devalda was sent down. Two local men, 39 year old Michael Dunphy and 28 year old Daniel Jones, pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to kidnap and the manslaughter of Paul Brady on the fourth day of their murder trial at Preston Crown Court. A charge of murder was dropped after the judge accepted guilty pleas from both men to manslaughter and kidnap.
They were sent to prison for 10 and 11 years respectively for manslaughter.
Earlier in the trial the jury heard how Dunphy had fled to Spain following Devalda’s arrest, returning to the UK in December 2010. The prosecutor told the court there was a large amount of phone contact on the key days of 31 July 31 and 1 August 2009 between Devalda, Jason Martin, Michael Dunphy and Daniel Jones.
Speaking after the hearing Det Superintendent Hunter said that Dunphy and Jones deserved no credit for their plea of guilty saying: “If people want to commit an offence such as kidnap involving weapons, they have to face the consequences of what might happen. We always pitched this as a kidnap gone wrong. They realise they were staring down the barrel of being convicted after trial or to pleading guilty.
They are two unpleasant cowardly individuals who are part of an organised crime group. You only have to look at the number of people they took on that offence. Ten to 15 men with baseball bats and weapons to kidnap one man. They had safety in numbers.” He added: “We would urge anyone who knows where Mr Brady’s remains are to get in contact with us.”
Heath Bowling & Stacey Crossley
Another trusted accomplice of Devalda, 38 year old Heath Bowling of Stockport, was found guilty of attempting to pervert the course of justice. He provided the car used in the kidnap and then unsuccessfully attempted to cover his tracks by lying to the police saying he had sold it to a legitimate mystery buyer. He was found guilty of perverting the course of justice and given a 12-month sentence suspended for two years. He was ordered to pay £25,000 costs and carry out 250 hours community service.
Devalda’s girlfriend, 28 year old Stacey Crossley, originally faced trial for assisting an offender but the jury failed to reach a verdict. She faced a new charge of assisting kidnap and pleaded guilty to this offence. The jury was told after the ambush Crossley obtained a passport application for Devalda as he sought to flee the country. But in the oldest police trick in the book, she and Devalda were caught out when they were recorded talking about the offence in a Rochdale hotel room. For such an organised criminal, it is surprising that Devalda didn’t see this one coming. For this she was handed a 12-month sentence suspended for two years and must comply with a probation order.
Appeal
Unsurprisingly Devalda appealed his conviction.
His defence at trial was that he had an alibi – but the jury did not believe him. His appeal QC argued that his convictions were ‘unsafe’ and should be overturned. There was material that had not been disclosed to his defence team at his trial which supported his account of events, the barrister said.
Ruling on the case, Lady Justice Rafferty who sat with two other judges said the court was ‘reluctant to give permission to appeal so long after trial unless there are compelling reasons to do so.’ The judging panel concluded they were not persuaded by any of the grounds of appeal.
The Crown Prosecution Service was distinctly unimpressed by the appeal and argued that Devalda should be ordered to serve extra time behind bars for mounting a hopeless appeal. They pointed out what we all know so well which is that anxiety and distress is caused to the families of victims by convicted murderers seeking to overturn their convictions years later with such flimsy evidence. But the judging panel rejected this request too.
So, what do you make of what we have read today?
Now there will be some listening who think that as Paul was involved in the drugs business it was a case of if you live by the sword then you die by the sword. Maybe. But I think you have to consider others affected by his murder.
Fifteen years on from his murder, Paul Brady’s devastated family are no closer to finding his body. His killer may have faced justice, but his family are still seeking some kind of closure. And the rumour I heard is that the people responsible for killing Paul are so dangerous that his partner Emma was placed into the witness protection programme after giving evidence in court. This meant that she gave evidence to secure a conviction for Paul’s killer knowing full well that by doing so she had to leave her whole life behind. Incredibly brave, I wonder how many of us would do that?
And there are terrible rumours of how the gang deposited his body. Nothing confirmed of course, but what I think we can conclude for sure is that his last minutes and hours alive must have been filled with absolute terror.
We have to ask why Paul was killed? Was it a simple ‘tax’ on drugs profits by a rival gang. Or did someone set him up as they wanted him out of the way. I have read that Paul had made clear that he wanted to totally break away from the drugs business and with his forthcoming marriage to Emma, this was his plan. But of course, when you are involved with violent and dangerous people in this business, it isn’t quite as easy as leaving your job driving a lorry or working in a supermarket. Is this why he was killed, as it was feared that he potentially knew too much? I guess we will never know for certain. And one person who will unfortunately never know what happen to her beloved son was his mum Mavis who died of cancer on the 17th of October 2017. She was never even able to arrange a funeral for her son but was able to have a plaque for him at the cemetery which simply read: ‘Dearly missed, never forgotten.’ Mavis never recovered from losing Paul and died broken-hearted.
Surely someone out there knows what happened Paul and is willing to speak up so that the rest of his family and friends can gain some closure. With Devalda in prison for murder anyway, and fifteen long years now having passed, we must hope that someone will come forward and do the right thing as it wasn’t his family and friends, they had an issue with and they are who are suffering. As time moves on and old loyalties and priorities change, surely someone will come forward and do the right thing – it has been long enough. Anyone with any information at all should contact the police on 101. Alternatively, if you wish to remain completely anonymous you can contact independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
UK True Crime Podcast
This case appeared as episode 413 ‘The Ambush’ on the UK True Crime Podcast. The sources used are below:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-12771884
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-12270963
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-12497218
https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-30446936.html
https://www.rossendalefreepress.co.uk/news/local-news/tracking-paul-bradys-killers-1705064
https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/news/8913511.burnley-gangster-jailed-21-years-brutal-murder/
Murder trial hears of victim’s £350,000 cocaine deal: Burnley couple in dock (burnleyexpress.net)
Witness relives kidnap attack on East Lancashire man | Lancashire Telegraph
Pair admit involvement in kidnap and killing of Paul Brady – Rossendale Free Press
Girlfriend of man who masterminded East Lancs murder is spared prison | Lancashire Telegraph
Girlfriend of killer Paul Devalda admits kidnap of murdered Paul Brady – Manchester Evening News