UK UK - Alistair Wilson, 30, murdered at home, Nairn, Scotland, 28 Nov 2004

[Konstantin]

None of this means the killing was job related (either directly or indirectly) but I would not rule it out either just as I would not rule out that something else in his private life triggered the killing.

I agree.
Something triggered the killing -- which might have been something the killer had imagined, and that made sense to him but not necessarily to anyone else including AW (if for example the killer was mentally unwell and reacting to a scenario that existed purely in his mind).
AW had just left his job so perhaps that was a trigger in some way.
The police suggested this might be a row over AW's objection to decking which some have dismissed as surely too trivial, but people have all sorts of triggers depending on their histories, state of mind, mental health. People do get very upset over matters that might seem trivial to others.
Basically we have no idea what happened. It's such a baffling case. Hopefully the case review will produce some real leads and get further with this. It must be agony for VW and her kids.

 

[ZeroAlpha]

The family of murdered banker Alistair Wilson have accused Police Scotland's chief constable of being "callous" for refusing to speak to them.

Murdered banker's family criticise 'callous and insulting' chief constable

Alistair Wilson's family say they have been "kept in the dark" after a new investigation was ordered into the doorstep murder.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[davidt]

The family of murdered banker Alistair Wilson have accused Police Scotland's chief constable of being "callous" for refusing to speak to them.

Murdered banker's family criticise 'callous and insulting' chief constable

Alistair Wilson's family say they have been "kept in the dark" after a new investigation was ordered into the doorstep murder.

www.bbc.co.uk

I do find it odd they won't hold a meeting out of courtesy if nothing else.

 

[Ruthbullock]

This case is most frustrating, I understand at the time not releasing details, as they would potentially evidence guilt upon interviewing. We are now many years on and it’s unsolved, the police may have clues that are currently withheld that may trigger a memory. They almost have to make a decision- perhaps release the information which may provide the families with a reason, but not be able to convict due to lack of evidence, or continue to do nothing and achieve nothing. Local knowledge and information is waning due to the passing of time- I know my parents lived there at the time and had very strong rational suspicions at the time, but when I talk to them now they have long left the area and can’t recollect much. This was a village where most people knew something that combined may have helped, it was remote, not an overly large place where people socialised together and went to the local pubs frequently and gossiped- but this moment and information has long gone sadly.

 

[crespo29]

Hello All. I am not saying that this was the reason for AW being killed. However the bank he was about to leave was a basket case, with so many snouts in the trough, it was about to lose £30 billion pounds due to reckless deals as bankers jostled to get their bonuses. Just thinking, could a multi-billion corporate crime be the reason for murder?

 

[ZeroAlpha]

Hello All. I am not saying that this was the reason for AW being killed. However the bank he was about to leave was a basket case, with so many snouts in the trough, it was about to lose £30 billion pounds due to reckless deals as bankers jostled to get their bonuses. Just thinking, could a multi-billion corporate crime be the reason for murder?

Anything is possible, and we know that Alistair was keen to leave his bank job and move on to something different. Almost as is he had had enough and was wanting out. Was he killed to stop him from uncovering something at his local branch or something more national?

 

[alb1on]

Hello All. I am not saying that this was the reason for AW being killed. However the bank he was about to leave was a basket case, with so many snouts in the trough, it was about to lose £30 billion pounds due to reckless deals as bankers jostled to get their bonuses. Just thinking, could a multi-billion corporate crime be the reason for murder?

I would not rule out that he was killed due to something related to his work but it seems very unlikely that it related to the wider mismanagement of HBOS. Others at a more senior level would have represented a far greater risk if anything beyond incompetence was involved and the opportunity for a manager at Wilson's level to even be aware of wider company exposures would be very limited. The principal cause of the HBOS collapse was incompetent mortgage lending with too much exposure to high % mortgages, too much exposure to high risk sectors of the mortgage market and too much reliance on bank to bank financing which is inherently short term and not matched to mortgage terms and, unlike retail funds, far more volatile. A major problem at HBOS was that it was run by Andy Hornby as CEO, a man who was appointed in 1999 at the age of 32 with no banking experience and turned out to be a salesman who chased market share. No sane bank would have made such an appointment and they reaped the consequences.

 

[davidt]

I just wanted to ask a few questions for clarification.

1) Am I correct in thinking that in respect of the envelope that "Paul" was written on the back and not the front.

2) Has it ever been confirmed for certain one way or another if anything else was written on the envelope? Seem to remember speculation about other writing.

3) Has it ever been clearly explained why Alastair left his banking job? Most of the stuff I've seen is very vague in this respect. Just seems to reference moving on etc. It's usually said he wanted a career in banking from an early age. I think I read, but may be mistaken, that his new job was at a lower pay scale. Is it known how long he'd been looking for a new job and if he'd applied for any others? Always wondered why he gave up on a career he had apparently always been determined to have a career in. How desperate was he to get out I wonder?

 

[Tortoise]

2022 -

Police combed through Alistair and Veronica's life, trying to find a motive. An obvious focus was that Alistair had handed in his notice at the Bank of Scotland.

He had become disillusioned with his career prospects and the direction the bank was taking. He was due to finish about two weeks after his murder.

Doorstep murder: Police have new man in sights over banker shooting

2019 -

The couple moved to Peebles when Alistair was transferred to Bank of Scotland’s PFI and specialist lending departments, based in Edinburgh.

But he was happy to move back north to Inverness in November as the new business banking manager, responsible for securing the business of small-to-medium firms across the north of Scotland. [...]

In his final year with what was now the Halifax Bank of Scotland, colleagues of Alistair’s recalled that he took it hard when a multi-million pound loan he believed he had secured for a business in Orkney was rejected by head office.

With no prospect of promotion in the near future, he applied and was offered the post of regional director for Building Research Establishment, a consultancy business that was just starting out in Inverness.

He was due to start his new post around a week after he was ultimately murdered.

15 years of twists and turns but no arrest, motive or suspect in the Alistair Wilson murder case

2019 -

Paul Moore was sacked in 2004 after raising the alarm over a loans strategy that would finally overwhelm bank giant HBoS, leading to a £20.5billion taxpayer bailout.

Mr Wilson, 30, a Bank of Scotland business banking manager, was shot dead at his home in Nairn in November 2004, weeks after Mr Moore lost his job as HBoS head of risk management.

Last night, Mr Moore, 53, said he believed there had been individuals who worked for the bank who would have 'gone to the ultimate degree' to cover up the scandal.

He said he had never been questioned by police about the case – and believes he should have been.

Mr Wilson was handed a blue envelope with the name 'Paul' on it shortly before he died.

Last night, police sources said it could not be 'ruled out' that Mr Moore was the Paul in question, but refused to discuss whether or not efforts had been made to interview him.

[...]

Was £20bn scandal behind assassination of banker on his doorstep?

 

[Tortoise]

"Undoubtedly, the publication of Peter Bleksley’s 2018 book To Catch A Killer, breathed a bit of new life into the case.

[...]

‘An inside job’​

Back in 2009, Peter was in Nairn trying to dig up whatever information he could about the case.

He found himself in a bar after several days of interviewing and when he went to the toilet a Scottish voice from behind him said:

“Don’t turn around, this is all I’m going to tell you.

“It was an in-house job, but we just couldn’t prove it.”

There were police in the bar that night and Peter’s assumption is that it was an officer that spoke to him.

But the tip itself is far from clear. Does in-house mean from within Alistair’s own workplace? His own family? Something else altogether?"

15 years of twists and turns but no arrest, motive or suspect in the Alistair Wilson murder case


What about someone inside the police force? MOO

 

[davidt]

2022 -

Police combed through Alistair and Veronica's life, trying to find a motive. An obvious focus was that Alistair had handed in his notice at the Bank of Scotland.

He had become disillusioned with his career prospects and the direction the bank was taking. He was due to finish about two weeks after his murder.

Doorstep murder: Police have new man in sights over banker shooting

2019 -

The couple moved to Peebles when Alistair was transferred to Bank of Scotland’s PFI and specialist lending departments, based in Edinburgh.

But he was happy to move back north to Inverness in November as the new business banking manager, responsible for securing the business of small-to-medium firms across the north of Scotland. [...]

In his final year with what was now the Halifax Bank of Scotland, colleagues of Alistair’s recalled that he took it hard when a multi-million pound loan he believed he had secured for a business in Orkney was rejected by head office.

With no prospect of promotion in the near future, he applied and was offered the post of regional director for Building Research Establishment, a consultancy business that was just starting out in Inverness.

He was due to start his new post around a week after he was ultimately murdered.

15 years of twists and turns but no arrest, motive or suspect in the Alistair Wilson murder case

2019 -

Paul Moore was sacked in 2004 after raising the alarm over a loans strategy that would finally overwhelm bank giant HBoS, leading to a £20.5billion taxpayer bailout.

Mr Wilson, 30, a Bank of Scotland business banking manager, was shot dead at his home in Nairn in November 2004, weeks after Mr Moore lost his job as HBoS head of risk management.

Last night, Mr Moore, 53, said he believed there had been individuals who worked for the bank who would have 'gone to the ultimate degree' to cover up the scandal.

He said he had never been questioned by police about the case – and believes he should have been.

Mr Wilson was handed a blue envelope with the name 'Paul' on it shortly before he died.

Last night, police sources said it could not be 'ruled out' that Mr Moore was the Paul in question, but refused to discuss whether or not efforts had been made to interview him.

[...]

Was £20bn scandal behind assassination of banker on his doorstep?

So it would appear at face value to be a gradual process and not a sudden decision to jump ship so to speak. I did wonder if there was any urgency on his part to get out but it doesn't appear to be the case.

 

[davidt]

"Undoubtedly, the publication of Peter Bleksley’s 2018 book To Catch A Killer, breathed a bit of new life into the case.

[...]

‘An inside job’​

Back in 2009, Peter was in Nairn trying to dig up whatever information he could about the case.

He found himself in a bar after several days of interviewing and when he went to the toilet a Scottish voice from behind him said:

“Don’t turn around, this is all I’m going to tell you.

“It was an in-house job, but we just couldn’t prove it.”

There were police in the bar that night and Peter’s assumption is that it was an officer that spoke to him.

But the tip itself is far from clear. Does in-house mean from within Alistair’s own workplace? His own family? Something else altogether?"

15 years of twists and turns but no arrest, motive or suspect in the Alistair Wilson murder case


What about someone inside the police force? MOO

I remember reading this in the book. Frustratingly ambiguous isn't it? "In house job" is quite an odd phrase as well, I would have expected perhaps "inside job". Does in house have a specific meaning to whoever spoke it.

 

[Tortoise]

I've seen a video clip of VW speaking about him leaving his job but I can't for the life of me find it now, I've been back through all my browsing history searching for it. I thought she said something along the lines of him not liking the way things were going there, the way his job was specifically changing, which would fit with the synopsis given in the first link I provided above.

 

[davidt]

I've seen a video clip of VW speaking about him leaving his job but I can't for the life of me find it now, I've been back through all my browsing history searching for it. I thought she said something along the lines of him not liking the way things were going there, the way his job was specifically changing, which would fit with the synopsis given in the first link I provided above.

Yes, it all fits. Gradual disillusionment and looking for a change. Nothing outwardly odd or suspicious about it and nothing to indicate there was any specific reason for wanting to get out or that he did so in a hurry.

 

[Tortoise]

Yes, it all fits. Gradual disillusionment and looking for a change. Nothing outwardly odd or suspicious about it and nothing to indicate there was any specific reason for wanting to get out or that he did so in a hurry.

The thing is though, it's what the killer thought, not what Alistair thought. They could have been mistaken about what he knew and his motives for leaving. I think it could have been an alarming development, especially if he was no longer going to be controllable, with job threats. I don't believe in coincidences, of this magnitude, in murder cases - a complete career change and being killed. IMO

 

[shadwell]

Evening all, I don’t usually dare post but I just had a thought - could it be his wife who knew something but he was not aware. So he was confused, but whatever he passed on (of what was said to him or in relation to the envelope) made sense to her. Part of me thinks but then why wouldn’t she stop him going back, but maybe she thought it was just a warning of some kind and didn’t think he was at risk.

It’s not that I think she’s done anything wrong, just that she might have become aware of something someone didn’t want anyone to know.

This case has always bothered and confused me!

Based on VW’s account I certainly considered the possibility that the killer believed the envelope would be of significance to her, rather than him and that the intention was that she should see it in AW’s hand - ie that the killer instructed AW to show her the envelope and was waiting for a response.

 

[crespo29]

Regarding AW leaving HBOS, I understand that his new job with an environmental quango would have been a step down in regards to his career. I think AW was an outstanding prospect but I understand that he was overturned on some large loans and it was looking like he was being edged out at HBOS. I am not sure what the reason for this would have been, maybe he was bent, and that was the reason for him being edged out; but maybe he was too straight and that was the reason he was being edged out.

 

[davidt]

Based on VW’s account I certainly considered the possibility that the killer believed the envelope would be of significance to her, rather than him and that the intention was that she should see it in AW’s hand - ie that the killer instructed AW to show her the envelope and was waiting for a response.

It's yet another problematic area. If we accept the recorded chain of events then it would seem the caller wasn't particularly bothered about the envelope. Once Alastair went back inside he can have had no expectation of seeing it again. After all AW had no original intention of going back outside. It was only after speaking to Veronica he decided on the off chance to see if the caller was still there. Even doing that there's no particular reason to take the envelope with him.

Just as the caller for some reason decided to wait around. Presumably this person retrieved the envelope prior to or after shooting Alastair. As he had no expectation of getting it back whatever was written on it he must have been happy to leave behind. Also not bothered about any forensics. Was he leaving a message for Veronica? Its never made much sense to me.

 

[davidt]

Regarding AW leaving HBOS, I understand that his new job with an environmental quango would have been a step down in regards to his career. I think AW was an outstanding prospect but I understand that he was overturned on some large loans and it was looking like he was being edged out at HBOS. I am not sure what the reason for this would have been, maybe he was bent, and that was the reason for him being edged out; but maybe he was too straight and that was the reason he was being edged out.

That was my understanding too. That it wasn't a step upwards but perhaps had good prospects? Given the hotel/B&B hadn't worked out I did wonder financially how they were at the time.

 

[ZeroAlpha]

I remember reading this in the book. Frustratingly ambiguous isn't it? "In house job" is quite an odd phrase as well, I would have expected perhaps "inside job". Does in house have a specific meaning to whoever spoke it.

"In house" would imply work colleagues and not an anonymous third party.