‘Mr Starr, have you and the defendant ever met?’ Cork asked.
‘Yes, we have.’
‘And what was the occasion?’
‘The first time was about eighteen years ago; I had been arrested on a charge of possession and dealing in cannabis. My then brief introduced me over the phone and Terry — Terence — said he could get me acquitted.’
‘Really? And what happened?’
‘He succeeded.’
‘So he acted for you then?’
‘No, not in any official capacity.’
Cork looked, theatrically, at the jury. ‘Not in any official capacity? Can you explain what you mean by that?’
‘Not really, no — he wasn’t my solicitor. But suddenly my appeal was successful, and it was Mr Gready, I was told, who was responsible for securing it.’
Cork continued looking at the jury, making eye contact with some of them pointedly. Meg felt the glimmer of humour in his expression as her eyes met his.
‘Were you grateful to Mr Gready at the time?’
‘I was, yes. Very.’
Cork nodded. ‘And did you repay this gratitude?’
‘I did, yes.’
Meg glanced at Gready. He was staring rigidly ahead, his face betraying no emotion.
‘Can you tell us how, exactly?’ The prosecutor’s eyes danced over each juror, as if to say, Watch and listen, you are in for a treat!
‘I’ve worked for him ever since.’
Cork paused for a long time to let this sink in for everyone in the court. Sounding quite astonished, he said, with considerable emphasis, ‘You have worked for him ever since? For how many years, exactly?’
‘For fifteen or sixteen years now.’
‘And in what capacity have you been working for him?’
‘He owns a classic car dealership, which he uses as a front for importing drugs into England in high-value classic sports cars.’
Cork counted to five to let this bombshell sink in too. ‘Such as the dubious Ferrari you were bringing into Newhaven Port in November last year?’
Primrose Brown sprang to her feet. ‘Your Honour, this is not admissible evidence.’
Richard Jupp spoke up. ‘I don’t agree.’ He turned back to Cork. ‘Continue with your witness.’
‘Thank you, Your Honour.’ Cork addressed Starr once again. ‘Between the time when you believe the defendant was instrumental in winning your appeal and the present time, can you tell us the nature of your involvement with this business?’
‘I have been its General Manager since 2004.’
‘And what has that involved?’
Cork’s expression, thought Meg, was almost unbearably smug.
‘Well, basically, running it.’
‘You and how many other employees?’
‘Just me, mostly. We do have a couple of part-time workers and a full-time mechanic. Most mechanical work and cleaning I farmed out to independent contractors, as well as bookkeeping and secretarial services.’
‘So what have been your duties in this role of General Manager?’
‘I’ve been responsible for the regular purchase and resale of various classic sports cars, often selling them at a loss, to provide turnover and to give the impression of this being a legitimate business. I have also from time to time taken in high-value cars for clients, putting them on display to try to sell them on their behalf.’
‘So, during your time as General Manager of LH Classics, would you consider yourself to have become something of an expert in classic sports cars, Mr Starr?’
He smiled. ‘You could say that.’
Cork paused, nodding with a profound air. ‘With all of these years of trading in what you describe as classic sports cars, have you learned to identify those that are real and those that are fakes?’
‘I hope so.’
Playing to the jury again, Cork said, ‘And I would imagine your customers would hope so, too?’
Again, Starr smiled. ‘Trust is very important.’
‘Indeed, so I can imagine. Tell me, what is the most expensive car that LH Classics has sold in your time there?’
‘Last year we sold a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT, Short Wheelbase for eight point five million pounds.’
‘And you made a nice profit on that?’
‘We take a ten per cent premium on any car we sell for a client.’
‘I’m not a brilliant mathematician,’ Cork said. ‘Eight hundred and fifty thousand pounds profit?’
‘Yes.’
‘And is that less profitable than the importation of drugs?’
‘Of course it is,’ Starr replied.
‘Mr Starr,’ the prosecutor continued, ‘this 1961 Ferrari — were you certain it was genuine?’
‘I was, yes. We had its full history and were satisfied with its provenance. I have to say that the sale of that car was an exception, we didn’t make anywhere near that sort of money on the majority of the cars that went through the business.’
‘So, with your expertise, you would have been able to distinguish this venerable Ferrari from the fake that you transported into Newhaven on November 26th last year?’
‘Yes, without doubt.’
‘How are you able to be so certain?’
‘Because I was charged with overseeing the construction of the fake Ferrari I brought into Newhaven,’ he replied.
‘On whose instructions were you doing this?’
Starr pointed at the dock. ‘On his, my boss’s.’
Cork paused again to let this sink in. ‘So, just to be clear, the defendant instructed you to oversee the construction, in Düsseldorf, Germany, of a fake Ferrari?’
‘Yes.’
‘For what purpose? Was it to dupe a potential buyer?’
‘No, it was to bring in drugs to England concealed in the vehicle. In the belief that it wouldn’t be questioned by Customs.’
‘What led to such a belief?’
‘We’d got away with it before.’
‘Can you explain what you mean by that?’
Starr nodded. ‘To begin with we restored genuine cars and constructed replicas which we sold on. It was a good way of money laundering. Five years ago we moved into drug importation ourselves, and since that time we have packed those replica imports with drugs from our workshop in Germany.’
‘Always on the instruction of the defendant?’
‘Correct.’
‘And what did you do with these cars once they arrived at your premises?’
‘I removed the drugs, then arranged the sales of the vehicles.’
‘You had accomplices?’
‘I worked alone. None of the mechanics were aware of what I was actually doing.’
‘We won’t delve into the other employees of LH Classics for now. What do you estimate was the street value of the average shipment of Class-A drugs that came into this country concealed in these fake cars?’
Starr shook his head. ‘Hard to say. I would estimate around three million pounds for the first one and then between five and six million for all the others, including the Ferrari.’
‘Can you confirm how many times a year you would have brought these shipments in?’
Starr shrugged. ‘As I said, we started five years ago. The one I got caught with was the fifth time we’d done it.’
Cork feigned astonishment. ‘Five times — and four with approximately five million pounds of drugs each time? Over twenty million pounds’ worth of Class-A drugs in five years? Quite a sum, isn’t it?’
‘Yes, if you put it like that.’
‘Is there some other way I should put it?’
Starr blushed, and said nothing.
‘Mr Starr, what I would like to establish is the true nature of your work for the defendant. Was it to sell cars or was there some other — perhaps nefarious — work that you carried out?’