Sacked driver tried blackmail
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• A London truck driver who tried to extort money from the haulage company which had sacked him has been found guilty of blackmail at Canterbury Crown Court.
Long-haired Kevin Harrison, who wore boots and army combat gear while defending himself, was even branded a "dickhead" by the judge. He was convicted on two of the four charges.
The court heard that Harrison. of New Cross Road, New Cross, waged a threatening campaign against Doverbased Brook way Transport after he was fired from his job in ii1 1996.
Ian Foinette, prosecuting, described how Harrison held a grudge against the company and began a campaign of threatening letters to Brookway director David Elvy, demanding, with menaces, amounts of money ranging from 1:2,000 to .£15,000.
"There were threats to sabotage fleets of lorries, to make a nuisance of himself to Mr Elvy's customers and to introduce dog faeces into foodstuffs being delivered by Brookway Transport or its sister company, Nagel Logistics, based in Germany," Foinette told the court.
Elvy told the court that Harrison had been employed by the company since 1992 but left in July 1995 at his own request after Harrison explained that he had "personal problems". Elvy added: "Harrison returned briefly for about two weeks in August 1995 but again left due to similar reasons. He was employed again in October 1995 up until his dismissal in 199(i.
"There were allegations of Harrison smoking drugs while driving the IIGV vehicles," he said. "The work forms he was obliged to fill in were all written out in Icelandic and the reverse of the tachograph charts had been written on with any offences on the tachograph charts are due to me being forced to work illegally'. I was most concerned about the letters, especially when at one point he chained himself to a tractive unit outside our premises and threatened to get a chain and wrap it around my head.
"After this I took matters very seriously," said Elvy, "and a letter then arrived demanding 115,000 or he would carry out one of his threats. Further letters arrived and I arranged to meet Harrison in Greenwich to sort the situation out. We dicussed matters and I agreed to pay him £2,000 and sent him a cheque. He told me quite clearly he would cease all of hi actions. Matters did not cease there were further letters demanding further amounts of money. It was most distressing and I went to the police regarding Harrison's behaviour."
After several attempts by Harrison to cross-examine Mr Elvy on what he thought was his unfair dismissal, Judge Hamilton told him that unless he had any relevant questions for Elvy regarding the blackmail offences she would release the witness.
"Mr Ilarrison," she said, "you are not on a soapbox, this is a speech and you are acting like a complete dickhead."
The jury was discharged from returning verdicts on the other two counts of blackmail; Harrison has been remanded in custody for sentence.