Kenneth James Noye (born 24 May 1947) is an English criminal and convicted murderer. He was acquitted in 1985 of the murder of a police officer in the grounds of his home, but was convicted in 1986 of

conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, ploy, or scheme, is a secret plan or agreement between people (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder, treason, or corruption, especially with a political motivat ...

to handle stolen goods from the Brink's-Mat robbery and sentenced to fourteen years' imprisonment, of which he served eight years in custody. While on licence, Noye murdered Stephen Cameron during a

road rage Road rage is aggressive or angry behavior exhibited by people driving a vehicle. These behaviors include rude and verbal insults, yelling, physical threats or dangerous driving methods targeted at other drivers, pedestrians, or cyclists in an ...

incident. He was arrested for the murder in Spain after a two-year manhunt and sentenced to

life imprisonment Life imprisonment is any sentence (law), sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life impr ...

. Noye was later released on licence from the murder sentence in 2019.

Early life

Kenneth Noye was born in Bexleyheath,

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

(now in

Greater London Greater London is an administrative area in England, coterminous with the London region, containing most of the continuous urban area of London. It contains 33 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs, which form a Ceremonial count ...

), where his father ran a post office and his mother a dog racing track."Noye: From street vendor to Mr Big"
BBC News, 14 April 2000 A bully while a pupil at Bexleyheath Boys' Secondary Modern School, Noye ran a

protection racket A protection racket is a type of racket and a scheme of organized crime perpetrated by a potentially hazardous organized crime group that generally guarantees protection outside the sanction of the law to another entity or individual from vio ...

with his fellow pupils. He left school at age 15."Profile: Kenneth Noye"
BBC News, 22 March 2011 For selling stolen bicycles after having altered their appearance, among other crimes, he spent a year in a

borstal A borstal is a type of youth detention centre. Such a detention centre is more commonly known as a borstal school in India, where they remain in use today. Until the late 20th century, borstals were present in the United Kingdom, several mem ...

. Noye met a barrister's legal secretary, Brenda Tremain, who later became his wife.

Criminal activities

A police informant for many years, Noye had established a relationship with corrupt officers by the time he was arrested for receiving stolen goods in 1977.Kim Sengupta and Paul Lashma
Noye's tangled web of corruption
''Independent on Sunday'', 14 April 2000 He became a

Freemason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

in January 1980 after being proposed for admission by two police officers, giving his occupation as "builder." The membership of Noye's Lodge, located in

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. It ...

, contained a sizeable proportion of officers. Noye's membership ceased in 1987 after he failed to pay his subscriptions for two years in succession. He was subsequently expelled from the Freemasons when it was discovered that he had a criminal record, according to the Grand Secretary of the

United Grand Lodge of England The United Grand Lodge of England (UGLE) is the governing Masonic lodge for the majority of freemasons in England, Wales, and the Commonwealth of Nations. Claiming descent from the Masonic Grand Lodge formed 24 June 1717 at the Goose & Gridiron ...

. One of Noye's police contacts persuaded a

customs Customs is an authority or Government agency, agency in a country responsible for collecting tariffs and for controlling International trade, the flow of goods, including animals, transports, personal effects, and hazardous items, into and out ...

official not to target him, while his tipoffs to the Metropolitan Police's

Flying Squad The Flying Squad is a branch of the Serious and Organised Crime Command within London's Metropolitan Police Service. It is also known as the Robbery Squad, Specialist Crime Directorate 7, SC&O7 and SO7. It is nicknamed The Sweeney, an abbrevia ...

were reportedly a means to prevent competition from rival criminals. Meanwhile, Noye built up a legitimate

haulage Haulage is the business of transporting goods by road or rail between suppliers and large consumer outlets, factories, warehouses, or depots. This includes everything humans might wish to move in bulk – from vegetables and other foodstuffs, to c ...

business to use as cover. Having initially been refused planning permission for a mansion on a plot of land he owned, he was able to gain consent in a subsequent application shortly after his bungalow on the site was destroyed in a fire caused by an electrical fault.

Brink's-Mat robbery

Active as a

fence A fence is a structure that encloses an area, typically outdoors, and is usually constructed from posts that are connected by boards, wire, rails or net (textile), netting. A fence differs from a wall in not having a solid foundation along its ...

, Noye was among those involved in laundering a huge quantity of stolen

gold bullion A gold bar, also known as gold bullion or a gold ingot, is a quantity of refining, refined metallic gold that can be shaped in various forms, produced under standardized conditions of manufacture, labeling, and record-keeping. Larger varietie ...

taken during the Brink's-Mat robbery on 26 November 1983. While he was being investigated for his involvement in the crime, Noye fatally stabbed

Detective Constable A detective is an investigator, usually a member of a law enforcement agency. They often collect information to solve crimes by talking to witnesses and informants, collecting physical evidence, or searching records in databases. This leads the ...

John Fordham, who was involved in the police surveillance of Noye, in the grounds of his home on 26 January 1985.

Acquitted In common law jurisdictions, an acquittal means that the criminal prosecution has failed to prove that the accused is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the charge presented. It certifies that the accused is free from the charge of an o ...

of murder on the grounds of

self-defence Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of force in tim ...

in December of that year,Nick Hopkin
"Kenneth Noye: the day I killed"
''The Guardian'', 8 April 2000 he was found guilty in July 1986 of

to handle some of the gold,"Brinks Mat gold: The unsolved mystery"
BBC News, 15, April 2000 and of a conspiracy to evade VAT. After his conviction in court, Noye shouted to the jury "I hope you all die of cancer!" The discovery of the gold had surprised the six-man robbery crew, as they expected to find £3 million in cash;Tony Thompso
"Curse of the Brinks-Mat heist claims its latest victim"
''The Observer'', 25 November 2001 their contacts had no experience of dealing with gold, let alone 6,800 bars worth £26 million in 1983. Mick McAvoy, one of the thieves, had asked Brian Perry to conceal the gold he had received, and it was Perry who brought in Noye and John Palmer, subsequently nicknamed "Goldfinger"; Palmer was acquitted in 1987 of knowingly handling gold from the robbery. Noye had melted down much of the gold he had received and mixed it with

copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

coins in an attempt to disguise its origins, although eleven gold bars from the robbery were found hidden at his home. Sentenced to fourteen years, and fined £500,000 with £200,000 costs, Noye was released from prison in 1994, having served eight years. In a

civil action A lawsuit is a proceeding by one or more parties (the plaintiff or claimant) against one or more parties (the defendant) in a civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. T ...

brought by the loss adjusters of Brink's-Mat's insurers, £3 million was recovered from Noye while he was imprisoned.

Murder of Stephen Cameron

On 19 May 1996, while on release from prison on licence, Noye was involved in a

incident with 21-year-old motorist Stephen Cameron on a slip road of the

M25 motorway The M25 or London Orbital Motorway is a major ring road encircling most of Greater London. The motorway is one of the most important roads in the UK and one of the busiest. Margaret Thatcher opened the final section in 1986, making the M25 th ...

near

Swanley Swanley is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England, southeast of central London, adjacent to the Greater London boundary and within the M25 motorway periphery. The population at the 2021 ce ...

in Kent.""
BBC News, 7 April 2000"The search for Kenneth Noye"
BBC News, 14 April 2000 Noye stabbed Cameron to death with a nine-inch knife. He then fled the country with assistance from Palmer,John Steel

telegraph.co.uk, 2001 who later claimed to have barely known Noye. While Noye was on the run, Detective Constable John Donald was jailed for eleven years for passing confidential information to him. Police initially named Anthony Francis as the man they wanted to question in the Cameron murder. By December 1996, however, this name was found to be a false identity used by Noye after the Land Rover Discovery registered in his name and matching the vehicle driven by Cameron's killer was unloaded in Kyrenia,

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

, in July that year. Noye was not found in Cyprus. A police hunt assisted by

GCHQ Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) is an intelligence and security organisation responsible for providing signals intelligence (SIGINT) and information assurance (IA) to the government and armed forces of the United Kingdom. Primar ...

found Noye in Spain, where he was arrested in the resort of

Barbate Barbate is a municipalities of Spain, Spanish municipality in the Province of Cádiz, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is a coastal town located on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, close to the Strait of Gibraltar. Covering a total ar ...

near

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

on 28 August 1998. Cameron's girlfriend Danielle Cable, who witnessed the killing, was secretly flown out to positively identify him, which she did on 27 August."Noye 'carried knife in car'"
BBC News, 5 April 2000 Noye lost an appeal against his

extradition In an extradition, one Jurisdiction (area), jurisdiction delivers a person Suspect, accused or Conviction, convicted of committing a crime in another jurisdiction, into the custody of the other's law enforcement. It is a cooperative law enforc ...

from Spain seven months later. He was extradited to Britain in May 1999, nine months after his arrest, and went on trial 10 months later. At trial Noye claimed not to be a violent man and again pleaded self-defence, claiming to have fled because the police hated him and he feared not receiving a fair trial. Found guilty on 14 April 2000, after a trial held in conditions of high security, Noye was convicted of murder by the jury's majority verdict of 11–1 after their deliberations had lasted 8 hours and 21 minutes,Nick Hopkin
"The end of a life of crime"
''The Guardian'', 15 April 2000 and was given a

life sentence Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life imprisonment are c ...

by Lord Justice Latham. The judge did not recommend a tariff in open court on how long Noye should serve, but made the usual written report to the

Lord Chief Justice The Lord or Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales is the head of the judiciary of England and Wales and the president of the courts of England and Wales. Until 2005 the lord chief justice was the second-most senior judge of the English a ...

and the

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, more commonly known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom and the head of the Home Office. The position is a Great Office of State, maki ...

recommending a tariff of 16 years. In 2002 Home Secretary

David Blunkett David Blunkett, Baron Blunkett, (born 6 June 1947) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Education and Employment from 1997 to 2001, Home Secretary from 2001 to 2004 and Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in 2005. ...

set the tariff as recommended, which was subsequently upheld by Mr Justice Simon."Kenneth Noye fails to have murder term reduced"
telegraph.co.uk, 25 June 2010 Despite Noye's evident wealth, his defence costs of around £250,000 and some costs for his initial appeal were funded by

legal aid Legal aid is the provision of assistance to people who are unable to afford legal representation and access to the court system. Legal aid is regarded as central in providing access to justice by ensuring equality before the law, the right ...

. An inquiry by

audit An audit is an "independent examination of financial information of any entity, whether profit oriented or not, irrespective of its size or legal form when such an examination is conducted with a view to express an opinion thereon." Auditing al ...

ors from the Lord Chancellor's department found that the correct legal aid procedures were not followed, as a result of carelessness rather than corrupt practice. One official was reprimanded and another resigned.John Sweene
"Blood money"
''The Observer'' (Observer magazine), 25 February 2001 Cable was given a new identity under the

witness protection Witness protection is security provided to a threatened person providing testimonial evidence to the justice system, including defendants and other clients, before, during, and after trials, usually by police. While witnesses may only require p ...

programme, having been praised by police for her courage in giving evidence in the presence of Noye and his associates.

Alan Decabral case

Another eyewitness in the Cameron murder, Alan Decabral, declined protectionTony Thompso
"Was Noye case witness killed by Hell's Angels?"
''The Observer'', 15 October 2000 and was shot dead in his car in front of shoppers through his open window in Ashford, Kent, on 5 October 2000 (some 6 months after Noye's conviction). Police sources were in no doubt that Decabral was killed by a professional

hitman Contract killing (also known as murder-for-hire) is a form of murder or assassination in which one party hires another party to kill a targeted person or people. It involves an illegal agreement which includes some form of compensation, moneta ...

.David Sapste
"Witness at Noye trial shot dead in his car"
telegraph.co.uk, 6 October 2000 Police sources also stated that Decabral had been questioned about gun smuggling,David Sapste

telegraph.co.uk, 7 October 2000 had extensive criminal contacts, and his estranged wife later admitted that he had been a drug dealer who owed money to others. Although Noye was questioned by the police, they concluded that the unsolved murder had no proven connection with Noye and did not charge him. Decabral had testified at the trial of Noye at the

Old Bailey The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...

that he saw the fight between Noye and Cameron on the motorway slip road, and told the jury that he saw Noye "lunging forward" with a knife and stabbing Cameron, testimony that helped convict him. The defence had attempted to discredit Decabral, saying he was an unreliable witness who created an "edifice of lies" in agreement with police. After Decabral's murder Noye's defence team, led by Michael Mansfield QC, continued to attempt to discredit him as a witness in order to win Noye's release. Before he died, Decabral had received death threats in relation to his involvement in the case against Noye and said that he had been ordered by unknown gangsters to "shut up or we will shut you up." He also said that someone had pushed three bullets through his letterbox with a warning. After the trial he had said "I look over my shoulder every time I go into Sainsbury's" (the murder took place in the car park of Sainsbury's Bybrook Superstore). Police investigated whether Decabral was killed as part of a fight between rival biker gangs over drugs. Witnesses to the murder in the retail park said they heard Decabral beg for his life before a young man in a woolly hat shot him.

Prison sentence and later legal proceedings

On 10 October 2001 and again in 2004, Noye appealed unsuccessfully against his conviction. He was represented again by Michael Mansfield. In 2007 a legal challenge was made against the

Criminal Cases Review Commission The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) is the statutory body responsible for investigating alleged miscarriages of justice in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. It was established by Section 8 of the Criminal Appeal Act 1995 and be ...

's decision not to refer his case to the

Court of Appeal An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to Hearing (law), hear a Legal case, case upon appeal from a trial court or other ...

as "legally flawed". On 7 March 2008, on a new legal challenge, Lord Justice Richards and Mrs Justice Swift granted permission for a one-day

judicial review Judicial review is a process under which a government's executive, legislative, or administrative actions are subject to review by the judiciary. In a judicial review, a court may invalidate laws, acts, or governmental actions that are in ...

hearing, covering the CCRC's October 2006 decision not to send Noye's case back to the Court of Appeal. On 25 June 2010, Noye's bid to have the minimum term he must serve for murder reduced was rejected. Mr Justice Simon, a High Court judge sitting at

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...

, ordered that he must spend at least 16 years in jail before he could be considered for

parole Parole, also known as provisional release, supervised release, or being on paper, is a form of early release of a prisoner, prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated ...

. On 14 October of that year, Noye was granted a fresh appeal against his conviction for Cameron's murder, but it was rejected on 22 March 2011. Noye was reported to have been moved from the Category A prison, HM Prison Whitemoor, to a Category B prison, at Lowdham Grange, in September 2011. Noye was formerly at Category C HM Prison Wayland in

Griston Griston is a village and civil parish in the England, English county of Norfolk. Griston is located south-east of Watton, Norfolk, Watton and west of Norwich. History Griston's name is of Vikings, Viking origin and derives from the Old No ...

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

. Another appeal, this time against the tariff, was dismissed on 12 March 2013. On 13 February 2015,

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

reported that Noye had been granted a parole hearing. The Parole Board said the case had been referred by the secretary of state. Noye was refused permission to move to an open prison by Justice Secretary

Michael Gove Michael Andrew Gove, Baron Gove (; born Graeme Andrew Logan, 26 August 1967) is a British politician and journalist who served in various Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Cabinet positions under David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson and Rish ...

in October 2015 after such a move had been recommended by the parole board. However, in the High Court, Mr Justice Lavender accepted a legal challenge in February 2017 that Gove had "failed to give proper or adequate weight to the recommendation of the Parole Board". Edward Fitzgerald, QC, acting for Noye, said during the previous month's hearing that the board had "noted that he had made significant progress in changing his attitudes and tackling his behavioural problems". Counsel for the Justice Secretary, Tom Weisselberg, QC, said Gove had doubted Noye had reformed, and considered there was the risk he would escape because of his connections to Spain. It was announced in August 2017 that Gove's successor David Lidington had agreed Noye should be moved to open prison conditions. It was said by the parole board that this change was not in preparation for Noye's release. Around March 2018, Noye was moved to HM Prison Standford Hill on the

Isle of Sheppey The Isle of Sheppey is an island off the northern coast of Kent, England, neighbouring the Thames Estuary, centred from central London. It has an area of . The island forms part of the districts of England, local government district of Borough ...

, which is a low security prison with a day release provision for prisoners. In May 2019, the parole board announced that Noye was "suitable for return to the community" and would be released from prison within about three months. On 6 June 2019, then aged 72, Noye was released from prison after serving 20 years for the M25 attack. The parole board considered risks associated with his release due to "his readiness to carry and use weapons" and because Noye was "not being able to resolve arguments reasonably at key moments" as he "did not always control extreme emotions well”. The board concluded that any perceived risks could be managed in the community and thus he was suitable for release.

Personal life

Noye's wife, Brenda, lives in the east

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

town of Looe. They have two sons, one of whom, Brett, was banned in 2013 from being a company director for 12 years for his part in a £2.4 million investor deception scheme involving a rat poison company.

In media

Noye has been portrayed by Nigel Terry, in 2003 ITV drama Danielle Cable: Eyewitness about the murder of Stephen Cameron by Noye in 1996, and by Jack Lowden in '' The Gold'', a 2023-2025 BBC drama series about the Brink's-Mat robbery. '' The Gold: The Inside Story'', an accompanying documentary, aired on BBC One a day after the first series final episode in 2023.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Noye, Kenneth 1947 births Living people 20th-century English criminals 1996 murders in the United Kingdom Criminals from Kent Criminals from London English gangsters English male criminals English people convicted of murder English prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England British people acquitted of murder People convicted of murder by England and Wales People from Bexleyheath Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by England and Wales