1 00:00:18,419 --> 00:00:22,200 I never considered the fact that I would be classed as a bootlegger. 2 00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:30,660 That it was an Islamic country. 3 00:00:35,040 --> 00:00:36,120 Keep smiling. 4 00:00:36,360 --> 00:00:37,920 Keep selling the product. 5 00:00:38,240 --> 00:00:39,660 Nothing can go wrong. 6 00:00:44,300 --> 00:00:46,630 What? The hell is happening here? 7 00:00:51,370 --> 00:00:53,230 There's no one really can do much for me. 8 00:00:56,090 --> 00:00:57,090 I'm on my own. 9 00:01:17,870 --> 00:01:19,890 I was working as a chef in a hotel. 10 00:01:22,250 --> 00:01:23,870 I was 27 years old. 11 00:01:25,510 --> 00:01:26,630 I had been married. 12 00:01:28,790 --> 00:01:32,450 I hadn't quite got a divorce at that time, but it was on the cards. 13 00:01:35,070 --> 00:01:36,470 I wanted something different. 14 00:01:38,830 --> 00:01:45,010 I saw an advert in the catering magazine requiring chefs in Saudi Arabia. 15 00:01:47,020 --> 00:01:49,500 I wanted a complete change in my life. 16 00:01:51,000 --> 00:01:53,700 Within ten days, I was on a plane to Saudi Arabia. 17 00:02:00,040 --> 00:02:01,680 It was an Islamic country. 18 00:02:03,380 --> 00:02:06,480 I remember the major culture shock from the moment you landed. 19 00:02:10,199 --> 00:02:15,780 Every case was open just to make sure that there was nothing that was illegal. 20 00:02:19,220 --> 00:02:22,200 We'd have been warned, do not take any alcohol with you. 21 00:02:23,360 --> 00:02:25,380 None of that is allowed in Saudi Arabia. 22 00:02:28,400 --> 00:02:32,040 The length of term there was 12 weeks on and three weeks off. 23 00:02:33,660 --> 00:02:37,080 So I thought, well, 12 weeks without a drink won't do me any harm at all. 24 00:02:42,580 --> 00:02:44,100 Everything was totally different. 25 00:02:47,820 --> 00:02:51,260 Oil was funding massive growth in the country. 26 00:02:55,900 --> 00:03:00,460 I was catering manager for the company building the Saudi Arabian National 27 00:03:00,460 --> 00:03:03,240 headquarters 50 kilometres out in the desert. 28 00:03:08,500 --> 00:03:11,080 I had to look after 200 American staff. 29 00:03:21,000 --> 00:03:25,080 The wages were three times what I was making in Aviemore in Scotland. 30 00:03:27,260 --> 00:03:31,320 I would be up early, usually by about 5 .30, making sure that everything was 31 00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:33,580 ship -shaped and in order for their breakfasts. 32 00:03:34,680 --> 00:03:36,080 I don't like anything sloppy. 33 00:03:37,620 --> 00:03:42,060 You would check the supplies for the day, head into Riyadh. 34 00:03:43,840 --> 00:03:47,780 In between, I'd go and visit friends who were also working for the company in 35 00:03:47,780 --> 00:03:48,780 other compounds. 36 00:03:51,440 --> 00:03:54,480 You were told quite categorically that it was a dry country. 37 00:03:56,700 --> 00:04:00,040 I found that it wasn't really that difficult to get hold of alcohol. 38 00:04:04,440 --> 00:04:07,680 One of the very first parties I went to was at a nurse's compound. 39 00:04:09,540 --> 00:04:13,440 Like most of the large villas, it was surrounded by its own walls with a very 40 00:04:13,440 --> 00:04:15,160 large steel double gate. 41 00:04:15,360 --> 00:04:17,920 So you were completely self -contained in there. 42 00:04:19,339 --> 00:04:20,480 People in bikinis. 43 00:04:20,930 --> 00:04:22,350 Stunning themselves by the pool. 44 00:04:24,690 --> 00:04:27,470 You would just forget that you were in Saudi Arabia. 45 00:04:29,170 --> 00:04:36,070 I thought, wow, where's this 46 00:04:36,070 --> 00:04:36,969 come from? 47 00:04:36,970 --> 00:04:38,010 I'd love a drink, thank you. 48 00:04:38,330 --> 00:04:39,330 Enjoy it. 49 00:04:43,750 --> 00:04:48,790 Apart from being there for the exceptionally good wages, I regarded 50 00:04:48,790 --> 00:04:49,790 sudden bonus. 51 00:04:51,580 --> 00:04:55,020 People were brewing their own homemade wine and making their own beer. 52 00:04:57,240 --> 00:05:00,440 So I had a glass of wine in my hand, followed by another one. 53 00:05:03,120 --> 00:05:08,120 It wasn't particularly nice wine, but it was drinkable. 54 00:05:14,000 --> 00:05:16,260 I thought, I can make it better than that. 55 00:05:18,440 --> 00:05:20,240 I looked at it as a business proposition. 56 00:05:21,200 --> 00:05:22,320 People wanted it. 57 00:05:22,940 --> 00:05:25,320 I was going to be the one who was going to supply it. 58 00:05:26,640 --> 00:05:29,040 So I decided to start making it myself. 59 00:05:37,500 --> 00:05:44,120 I never considered what would happen if I was ever caught. 60 00:05:48,400 --> 00:05:50,360 It didn't come into the equation at all. 61 00:05:55,720 --> 00:06:00,140 In my position as a catering manager, the ingredients that were required were 62 00:06:00,140 --> 00:06:01,300 readily available for me. 63 00:06:05,220 --> 00:06:10,720 If somebody bought a large amount of sugar, somebody would get suspicious why 64 00:06:10,720 --> 00:06:11,720 they would want all that. 65 00:06:12,740 --> 00:06:14,380 It's a very repressive state. 66 00:06:14,680 --> 00:06:18,980 You would be undercover, people worked in supermarkets, and somebody would then 67 00:06:18,980 --> 00:06:19,980 get caught. 68 00:06:21,500 --> 00:06:24,400 So I was able to purchase it on a larger scale. 69 00:06:24,860 --> 00:06:27,240 than any normal person who was working there. 70 00:06:29,360 --> 00:06:34,100 I didn't really have to hide anything because I had the premises, the 71 00:06:34,140 --> 00:06:39,060 to do it on a commercial scale, well away from everyone. 72 00:06:42,260 --> 00:06:48,800 I would start by putting the grape juice into the bottom of each jerry can and 73 00:06:48,800 --> 00:06:53,140 about two and a half kilo of sugar and the dried yeast. 74 00:06:58,670 --> 00:07:01,670 This would ferment and be ready within 10 to 14 days. 75 00:07:10,950 --> 00:07:13,830 I remember tasting my first homemade red wine. 76 00:07:16,350 --> 00:07:18,810 It was clear, a lovely dark colour. 77 00:07:20,650 --> 00:07:23,190 I wasn't sure of how strong it would be. 78 00:07:25,470 --> 00:07:28,030 The only way to test that was by drinking it. 79 00:07:32,430 --> 00:07:39,130 It was good enough for a party and good enough to drink. 80 00:07:43,850 --> 00:07:47,250 My very first delivery, it was about 50 litres, two cans. 81 00:07:48,070 --> 00:07:52,850 One of the best times to deliver anything illegal would be in the middle 82 00:07:52,850 --> 00:07:53,850 afternoon. 83 00:07:56,090 --> 00:07:59,410 Shops would usually be closed as most people would be sleeping. 84 00:08:01,680 --> 00:08:04,660 I had considered the risks, and I thought they were quite small. 85 00:08:05,900 --> 00:08:09,200 I never considered the fact that I would be classed as a bootlegger. 86 00:08:11,000 --> 00:08:15,960 I felt more like I was doing a public duty to supply alcohol to Westerners who 87 00:08:15,960 --> 00:08:18,160 were in a dry country. 88 00:08:21,900 --> 00:08:26,020 Within a period of about four weeks, I was up and running in production. 89 00:08:30,030 --> 00:08:34,770 I had about 40 containers, making the equivalent of 250 to 300 litres. 90 00:08:37,610 --> 00:08:39,929 I have to say I was quite proud of my product. 91 00:08:41,010 --> 00:08:44,470 My red wine was of quite exceptional quality. 92 00:08:48,690 --> 00:08:52,190 And my white wine was classed as a local Chardonnay. 93 00:09:01,550 --> 00:09:04,170 I had a secure place where I was brewing it. 94 00:09:04,630 --> 00:09:07,430 The most dangerous part was the transportation. 95 00:09:13,090 --> 00:09:17,710 I was due to deliver 50 litres of wine to a party in Riyadh. 96 00:09:19,590 --> 00:09:23,170 There was a major crackdown by the military and the police. 97 00:09:24,550 --> 00:09:28,490 The Grand Mosque at Mecca had been stormed by terrorists. 98 00:09:31,240 --> 00:09:33,680 There were roadblocks, police cars everywhere. 99 00:09:38,720 --> 00:09:40,540 I was slightly apprehensive. 100 00:09:49,540 --> 00:09:52,900 I decided to be more cautious in the method of transportation. 101 00:10:00,650 --> 00:10:04,890 I thought they would look in the back, behind the seat, but they wouldn't look 102 00:10:04,890 --> 00:10:05,890 under the engine cover. 103 00:10:10,830 --> 00:10:15,750 Although I wasn't delivering a massive amount, whatever I was delivering, it 104 00:10:15,750 --> 00:10:16,750 illegal. 105 00:10:21,810 --> 00:10:26,050 I had to deliver an early evening to one of the compounds in Riyadh. 106 00:10:28,680 --> 00:10:31,100 It was actually on a long straight heading into the town. 107 00:10:34,140 --> 00:10:40,160 There was a massive roadblock of military police and I just had a feeling 108 00:10:40,160 --> 00:10:41,160 they were going to pull me. 109 00:10:44,560 --> 00:10:46,380 There was no sense in trying to turn around. 110 00:10:47,740 --> 00:10:48,900 I can't go anywhere. 111 00:10:49,440 --> 00:10:50,440 I'm already committed. 112 00:10:50,840 --> 00:10:52,160 There's no way to back out. 113 00:10:56,170 --> 00:10:58,190 I was flagged into the side of the road. 114 00:11:00,450 --> 00:11:07,130 If one of the officers asked me to open the engine cover, instant 115 00:11:07,130 --> 00:11:08,130 downfall. 116 00:11:19,210 --> 00:11:22,190 You try to remain totally and utterly calm. 117 00:11:24,490 --> 00:11:26,230 I've got nothing. I've done nothing. 118 00:11:33,610 --> 00:11:40,610 He didn't speak English. My Arabic was minimal. 119 00:11:44,370 --> 00:11:48,990 I remember thinking there was no way you could explain 50 litres of wine hanging 120 00:11:48,990 --> 00:11:50,310 down the sides of your engine. 121 00:11:50,810 --> 00:11:52,770 It wasn't exactly coolant fluid. 122 00:12:03,120 --> 00:12:04,120 I don't know what you mean. 123 00:12:04,420 --> 00:12:05,420 Okay. 124 00:12:08,300 --> 00:12:12,960 Although I carried a Saudi Arabian driving licence, I showed him my 125 00:12:12,960 --> 00:12:13,960 pass. 126 00:12:20,240 --> 00:12:21,240 Okay. 127 00:12:22,320 --> 00:12:23,780 That was a bit of a godsend. 128 00:12:24,040 --> 00:12:28,540 Go. Thank you. I gave him a smile and he waved me on my way. 129 00:12:32,170 --> 00:12:36,030 They didn't think that you would be involved in anything when you were 130 00:12:36,030 --> 00:12:37,030 for their military. 131 00:12:39,250 --> 00:12:43,490 As I drove away from it, I felt quite elated. 132 00:12:45,490 --> 00:12:49,070 It didn't make me wonder if I should stop doing it. 133 00:12:49,610 --> 00:12:54,990 I had another 300 litres sitting there ready, so there was no sense in trying 134 00:12:54,990 --> 00:12:55,990 drink it all myself. 135 00:13:00,300 --> 00:13:05,400 I just always felt that I was doing a nice little service, making some good 136 00:13:05,400 --> 00:13:09,180 money on the side and having a good time. 137 00:13:10,900 --> 00:13:17,120 The average price of the wine was around 75 138 00:13:17,120 --> 00:13:20,440 US dollars, paid in Saudi Arabian rials. 139 00:13:24,840 --> 00:13:28,000 And I was making, shall we say, excessive amounts of money. 140 00:13:33,420 --> 00:13:38,020 At no time did I ever consider what the penalties might be because no one ever 141 00:13:38,020 --> 00:13:39,020 discussed it. 142 00:13:45,720 --> 00:13:47,660 I was quite a popular individual. 143 00:13:51,420 --> 00:13:56,780 Of course, I would have to be carrying 25 litres in each hand to be invited to 144 00:13:56,780 --> 00:13:57,780 party. 145 00:14:04,520 --> 00:14:07,180 There was a large, shall we say, female contingent. 146 00:14:12,360 --> 00:14:15,080 And I was rather taken with one of the nurses. 147 00:14:19,680 --> 00:14:21,440 And we became quite close. 148 00:14:23,460 --> 00:14:27,080 Which was very enjoyable, shall we say. 149 00:14:42,090 --> 00:14:43,750 There was virtually nothing I couldn't do. 150 00:14:44,650 --> 00:14:47,430 I could spend five, ten grand on a holiday. 151 00:14:48,790 --> 00:14:52,150 Go to the finest hotels, the best places to eat. 152 00:14:54,330 --> 00:14:56,030 And generally have a good time. 153 00:15:10,570 --> 00:15:15,510 One weekend, myself, some friends and all our girlfriends flew over to Bahrain 154 00:15:15,510 --> 00:15:18,190 for a very, very long and hectic weekend. 155 00:15:19,910 --> 00:15:25,270 I ended up meeting two people in the bar, a tall German gentleman and a 156 00:15:25,270 --> 00:15:26,970 returned Dutch person. 157 00:15:27,830 --> 00:15:30,690 During a conversation, they asked where I'd come from. 158 00:15:31,950 --> 00:15:34,150 And the subject of alcohol, of course, came up. 159 00:15:41,040 --> 00:15:42,880 There was a bit of a silence for a minute. 160 00:15:43,860 --> 00:15:49,300 They kind of looked at each other, and they said, Oh, Gordon, would you be 161 00:15:49,300 --> 00:15:51,680 interested in distributing whiskey? 162 00:15:53,600 --> 00:15:54,900 And, of course, I asked them. 163 00:15:55,140 --> 00:15:56,380 I said, How much? 164 00:15:57,660 --> 00:16:01,220 They said, About 400 or 500 cases a time. 165 00:16:03,240 --> 00:16:07,660 A bottle of whiskey would be in the region of about 200 US dollars. 166 00:16:09,550 --> 00:16:12,550 I would make around 20 ,000 US dollars per load. 167 00:16:14,510 --> 00:16:18,310 It was made clear to me, don't forget, this is our money. 168 00:16:19,590 --> 00:16:21,570 How would I get your money back to you, gentlemen? 169 00:16:23,310 --> 00:16:24,430 That's not a problem. 170 00:16:25,830 --> 00:16:28,330 I've made a success of selling wine in Saudi Arabia. 171 00:16:29,390 --> 00:16:31,030 Why not sell the real McCoy? 172 00:16:33,110 --> 00:16:34,990 Then, gentlemen, I have a talk. 173 00:16:35,610 --> 00:16:36,610 To weekly. 174 00:16:39,210 --> 00:16:40,210 It's a webcam. 175 00:16:46,290 --> 00:16:49,570 I realised that this was into a much bigger league. 176 00:16:54,470 --> 00:16:57,210 After about four weeks, I got a phone call. 177 00:16:57,510 --> 00:16:59,710 Hello? And it's from the Dutch gentleman. 178 00:16:59,990 --> 00:17:00,990 Oh, hi. 179 00:17:01,130 --> 00:17:03,550 Stating that some generators were being delivered. 180 00:17:04,210 --> 00:17:05,210 OK. 181 00:17:15,760 --> 00:17:18,420 I'm standing there looking at two generators. 182 00:17:22,619 --> 00:17:25,140 The generators of course were totally fake. 183 00:17:30,780 --> 00:17:32,780 I felt quite excited. 184 00:17:47,020 --> 00:17:50,420 I have over 200 boxes of whiskey in my warehouse. 185 00:17:56,680 --> 00:18:01,900 It was explained over the meeting in Bahrain that it was very important to 186 00:18:01,900 --> 00:18:02,900 off the barcodes. 187 00:18:03,620 --> 00:18:05,320 Every single one of them was burned. 188 00:18:05,640 --> 00:18:09,300 There was no trace of where it had come from, how it had got into the country. 189 00:18:09,920 --> 00:18:11,500 It was just whiskey. 190 00:18:36,040 --> 00:18:38,520 There was a very big party going on. 191 00:18:41,760 --> 00:18:46,660 One of the people who normally would take between 10 to 20 cases asked me if 192 00:18:46,660 --> 00:18:47,660 could get them to him. 193 00:18:48,340 --> 00:18:52,940 So I loaded up the 10 cases of whisky in the back of the truck and 194 00:18:52,940 --> 00:18:56,120 drove into Riyadh. 195 00:19:04,200 --> 00:19:07,420 I'm driving along on a very dark and lonely road in the middle of nowhere. 196 00:19:09,420 --> 00:19:12,540 I knew there was some roadworks there because I travelled on the road quite a 197 00:19:12,540 --> 00:19:13,540 lot. 198 00:19:16,840 --> 00:19:20,840 And then suddenly, a car hits me head on. 199 00:19:27,960 --> 00:19:31,340 I'm not injured, but definitely dazed. 200 00:19:45,350 --> 00:19:47,170 I can see the man is trapped in there. 201 00:19:49,630 --> 00:19:52,450 I didn't know how badly injured. 202 00:19:54,450 --> 00:19:56,010 I couldn't do anything for him. 203 00:19:59,350 --> 00:20:00,350 But he was alive. 204 00:20:02,490 --> 00:20:08,170 I'm in the middle of a major accident with 10 cases of whiskey in the back. 205 00:20:16,680 --> 00:20:17,680 You all right, mate? 206 00:20:24,800 --> 00:20:30,460 I'm sitting there with ten cases of whiskey in the middle of the desert with 207 00:20:30,460 --> 00:20:31,460 place to go. 208 00:20:40,980 --> 00:20:42,480 My choices were very limited. 209 00:20:46,860 --> 00:20:48,040 I can't drive away. 210 00:20:50,600 --> 00:20:52,480 My priorities were simple. 211 00:20:55,340 --> 00:20:56,440 Hide the whiskey. 212 00:20:59,180 --> 00:21:01,560 It's on a very, very remote road. 213 00:21:02,360 --> 00:21:05,100 Just total blackness out in the desert. 214 00:21:13,620 --> 00:21:16,160 I decided to bury the ten cases. 215 00:21:16,750 --> 00:21:23,670 at the side of the road all the time and 216 00:21:23,670 --> 00:21:25,630 worrying that a car might come too soon. 217 00:21:50,380 --> 00:21:51,880 A police car arrived. 218 00:21:54,960 --> 00:22:00,160 If you were involved in a car crash, no matter what the circumstances, you were 219 00:22:00,160 --> 00:22:01,160 going to be the guilty party. 220 00:22:03,240 --> 00:22:07,580 No one would ever take the word of a Westerner against a Saudi national. 221 00:22:08,360 --> 00:22:13,260 I didn't want them throwing me in jail for a road accident. 222 00:22:14,020 --> 00:22:18,520 Although I had no physical injuries and nothing to show, no blood, nothing, I 223 00:22:18,520 --> 00:22:19,720 wanted them to think that I might. 224 00:22:19,980 --> 00:22:20,980 not be too well. 225 00:22:21,740 --> 00:22:22,840 You've got to help this guy. 226 00:22:24,300 --> 00:22:28,120 I pretended to be a little bit shaken. I don't know what happened. He had 227 00:22:28,120 --> 00:22:30,040 something and he just came right at me. 228 00:22:32,000 --> 00:22:33,000 You've got to help him out. 229 00:22:35,140 --> 00:22:39,660 So I pointed to my pass, which in Arabic also said military hospital. 230 00:22:44,040 --> 00:22:46,780 They took me to the military hospital. 231 00:22:48,780 --> 00:22:50,560 Where I had a miraculous recovery. 232 00:23:03,800 --> 00:23:09,420 I'm pondering how quick I can go back, retrieve the ten cases of whisky, before 233 00:23:09,420 --> 00:23:11,220 they're found at the scene of that accident. 234 00:23:13,860 --> 00:23:17,900 I had to retrieve the whisky, or it's going to be traced back to me. 235 00:23:21,290 --> 00:23:23,550 So I decided I would get back there. 236 00:23:24,270 --> 00:23:26,610 I had to do that as quick as possible. 237 00:23:39,690 --> 00:23:41,310 I'm starting to get a little bit anxious. 238 00:23:43,010 --> 00:23:45,850 I'm thinking, is the whisky still going to be there? 239 00:23:47,630 --> 00:23:48,790 The whisky isn't there. 240 00:23:49,030 --> 00:23:50,030 Where is it? 241 00:23:50,510 --> 00:23:51,510 Who found it? 242 00:23:51,790 --> 00:23:53,450 And it's going to be traced back to me. 243 00:23:57,250 --> 00:23:58,850 I'd buried it in the dark. 244 00:24:00,310 --> 00:24:01,310 I looked across. 245 00:24:01,630 --> 00:24:04,250 I couldn't even see where my footprints were. 246 00:24:08,610 --> 00:24:11,930 I went across the 20 paces. 247 00:24:23,630 --> 00:24:25,250 So I started digging up the whiskey. 248 00:24:36,690 --> 00:24:41,610 I managed to do it all at once before another vehicle appeared. 249 00:24:45,050 --> 00:24:47,210 My luck at this point was still holding. 250 00:24:49,610 --> 00:24:56,600 I think a wise person at that time who was involved like I was in importation 251 00:24:56,600 --> 00:25:02,100 and selling illicit alcohol, should have realised it was time to give up, go 252 00:25:02,100 --> 00:25:03,440 home and leave. 253 00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:06,020 But I didn't. 254 00:25:10,140 --> 00:25:13,220 I was sitting with over half a million in US dollars. 255 00:25:15,480 --> 00:25:18,040 This, of course, had to be moved out of the country. 256 00:25:18,760 --> 00:25:22,000 I had to get back to my erstwhile partners in Europe. 257 00:25:24,360 --> 00:25:29,520 I would take the cash to a very friendly bank manager in the capital Riyadh. 258 00:25:32,300 --> 00:25:32,900 Where 259 00:25:32,900 --> 00:25:40,620 the 260 00:25:40,620 --> 00:25:45,720 individual would take 5 % for arranging the transshipment of cash out of the 261 00:25:45,720 --> 00:25:46,720 country. 262 00:25:51,150 --> 00:25:54,930 One would get to the stage where you felt that you weren't, in a sense, 263 00:25:55,010 --> 00:25:56,550 reasonably invincible. 264 00:26:03,230 --> 00:26:08,110 Keep smiling, keep selling the product, nothing can go wrong. 265 00:26:12,570 --> 00:26:15,670 I went to this very large, substantial villa. 266 00:26:19,400 --> 00:26:21,380 I knew it wasn't going to be a dry party. 267 00:26:22,280 --> 00:26:29,260 As I'd previously supplied the whisky, I met a very, very 268 00:26:29,260 --> 00:26:31,700 well -spoken young Saudi Arabian prince. 269 00:26:34,800 --> 00:26:38,760 He was standing there in his national dress, drinking my whisky. 270 00:26:39,720 --> 00:26:42,640 He said, oh, yes. 271 00:26:42,960 --> 00:26:48,560 He said, I'm very westernised. He said, I'm very liberal. 272 00:26:48,990 --> 00:26:49,990 In that manner. 273 00:26:51,210 --> 00:26:54,890 Tell me, you wouldn't happen to know where I could get some? 274 00:26:57,330 --> 00:27:00,730 I decided to be slightly reticent on that occasion. 275 00:27:04,830 --> 00:27:06,410 I might have someone who could help you out. 276 00:27:07,110 --> 00:27:12,170 I said that I would be in a position, if he wished, to supply him five cases of 277 00:27:12,170 --> 00:27:13,170 whisky. 278 00:27:13,490 --> 00:27:14,810 He said that would be fine. 279 00:27:15,250 --> 00:27:16,250 Call me on this number. 280 00:27:19,899 --> 00:27:25,360 This was the first time that I'd ever sold whiskey to a Saudi Arabian 281 00:27:25,360 --> 00:27:26,360 individual. 282 00:27:27,080 --> 00:27:30,040 I have to say, I wasn't particularly comfy. 283 00:27:34,280 --> 00:27:35,900 I'd been at it for a while. 284 00:27:36,460 --> 00:27:38,600 I'd led a rather charmed existence. 285 00:27:40,160 --> 00:27:43,240 And maybe I was going a step too far. 286 00:27:47,980 --> 00:27:50,300 I arranged to meet him in a very quiet place. 287 00:27:53,960 --> 00:27:59,780 I did say to him that if he turned up with any friend or associate, I wouldn't 288 00:27:59,780 --> 00:28:00,780 turn up. 289 00:28:13,360 --> 00:28:14,360 Mr. Gordon? 290 00:28:14,720 --> 00:28:16,360 Aye. Thank you for meeting me here. 291 00:28:16,680 --> 00:28:19,640 He handed me an envelope with all the cash in it. 292 00:28:23,440 --> 00:28:27,240 And I put the five cases in the back of his boot of his Rolls Royce. 293 00:28:33,000 --> 00:28:36,200 He thanked me most profusely and drove off. 294 00:28:44,000 --> 00:28:45,040 After the first... 295 00:28:45,690 --> 00:28:46,950 of the five cases. 296 00:28:47,250 --> 00:28:51,030 He asked me if I could supply ten cases at one time. Hello? 297 00:28:53,230 --> 00:28:59,590 I didn't want to get too involved in supplying too much, 298 00:28:59,690 --> 00:29:02,830 but I'm afraid I didn't listen to my own voice. 299 00:29:07,550 --> 00:29:11,550 I told him I'd deliver it around 3 .30, which was just at the start of prayers. 300 00:29:11,630 --> 00:29:12,910 The roads would be quiet, etc. 301 00:29:16,360 --> 00:29:17,440 I arrived at the villa. 302 00:29:24,200 --> 00:29:26,800 My composure dropped instantly. 303 00:29:28,260 --> 00:29:32,280 There's about six Saudis, all dressed in their uniforms. 304 00:29:33,340 --> 00:29:38,320 I've got ten cases of whiskey on the back, and I'm looking at a police 305 00:29:44,000 --> 00:29:46,370 What? The hell is happening here? 306 00:29:49,310 --> 00:29:51,290 There's about six Saudis in uniform. 307 00:29:52,970 --> 00:29:54,090 They're all smiling. 308 00:29:55,870 --> 00:29:58,470 There's no time to consider any options. 309 00:30:00,950 --> 00:30:02,650 Nothing I could do about it. 310 00:30:02,870 --> 00:30:04,110 I'm in too deep. 311 00:30:05,670 --> 00:30:09,390 I'd have thought, I'm finished. 312 00:30:10,930 --> 00:30:14,290 The prince is there. 313 00:30:18,220 --> 00:30:19,280 Thank you for coming so soon. 314 00:30:21,300 --> 00:30:22,340 Gives me the cash. 315 00:30:22,780 --> 00:30:25,160 Thank you very much for your punctuality. 316 00:30:26,420 --> 00:30:28,460 Let me introduce you to the rest of the family. 317 00:30:29,180 --> 00:30:31,120 The prince introduced me to the captain. 318 00:30:32,320 --> 00:30:34,220 These were his friends and relatives. 319 00:30:35,000 --> 00:30:36,540 This is Faisal, my cousin. 320 00:30:37,160 --> 00:30:38,920 This is Fahad, my other cousin. 321 00:30:39,500 --> 00:30:43,340 Hello. He wanted to give them whiskey. 322 00:30:46,160 --> 00:30:50,570 I didn't like the fact that I had been seen by officials. 323 00:30:52,250 --> 00:30:56,790 Our agreement had always been, I didn't want to be seen by anyone else. 324 00:30:57,050 --> 00:30:58,650 So all the rules had gone. 325 00:30:59,250 --> 00:31:02,430 Thank you. Thank you, sir. Have a very pleasant drive back. 326 00:31:02,690 --> 00:31:05,390 I obviously was annoyed, but I could not show it. 327 00:31:06,130 --> 00:31:06,610 As 328 00:31:06,610 --> 00:31:14,090 I 329 00:31:14,090 --> 00:31:16,370 drove off, I had a horrible feeling. 330 00:31:18,120 --> 00:31:20,140 that something wasn't going to go right. 331 00:31:24,020 --> 00:31:26,580 I had a feeling of some doom. 332 00:31:30,340 --> 00:31:32,180 I was getting a little bit paranoid. 333 00:31:39,720 --> 00:31:43,300 I started thinking, am I being watched? Am I being followed? 334 00:31:45,230 --> 00:31:47,590 I'd started in a sense to lose my cool. 335 00:31:50,590 --> 00:31:55,110 I was flagged to the side of the road by two Saudi Arabians in traditional 336 00:31:55,110 --> 00:31:56,110 dress. 337 00:31:59,830 --> 00:32:06,570 They pretended they were asking for directions 338 00:32:06,570 --> 00:32:09,270 but casually looked at the vehicle. 339 00:32:12,150 --> 00:32:13,850 They sort of looked at the vehicle. 340 00:32:15,230 --> 00:32:17,530 Mark, I love you. And went, go, go, go. 341 00:32:18,170 --> 00:32:19,170 Go. 342 00:32:23,950 --> 00:32:25,770 And I didn't think too much of it. 343 00:32:28,150 --> 00:32:29,810 I noticed one had a walkie -talkie. 344 00:32:33,790 --> 00:32:37,470 If I'd thought about it, my paranoia would have been correct. 345 00:32:37,930 --> 00:32:41,510 I was under surveillance. 346 00:32:46,570 --> 00:32:51,350 I felt that things might be starting to lose control and I would do one more 347 00:32:51,350 --> 00:32:53,910 load and then it would be time to leave the country. 348 00:32:56,710 --> 00:32:58,410 I discussed it with my girlfriend. 349 00:32:59,790 --> 00:33:04,230 I was, shall we say, very keen to start life again in the UK. 350 00:33:05,950 --> 00:33:11,510 How would you feel about... How would you feel about coming back to England 351 00:33:11,510 --> 00:33:12,510 me? 352 00:33:12,710 --> 00:33:13,710 Really? 353 00:33:17,550 --> 00:33:18,550 Sounds good. 354 00:33:18,630 --> 00:33:23,230 I didn't tell her, of course, that I'd arranged another load of whisky into the 355 00:33:23,230 --> 00:33:25,090 country. Will you come with me? 356 00:33:26,130 --> 00:33:27,130 Oh, my God. 357 00:33:27,990 --> 00:33:28,990 Here. 358 00:33:29,910 --> 00:33:30,910 Cheers. 359 00:33:33,310 --> 00:33:38,230 Stupid as it may seem, I just decided, no, I'll do one more load into the 360 00:33:38,230 --> 00:33:39,230 country. 361 00:33:48,300 --> 00:33:49,300 The bell rings. 362 00:33:51,120 --> 00:33:55,040 I actually thought it was a friend of mine who was due to come and visit me. 363 00:33:58,100 --> 00:34:00,680 I went straight out, opened the gate. 364 00:34:04,340 --> 00:34:10,679 I had a gun put to my head. 365 00:34:12,639 --> 00:34:15,199 Very large, .45 calibre revolver. 366 00:34:18,510 --> 00:34:20,409 There's no time to be scared at that point. 367 00:34:24,770 --> 00:34:26,770 I was roughly pushed into the villa. 368 00:34:31,989 --> 00:34:34,230 And one man stands with his foot on my neck. 369 00:34:39,530 --> 00:34:43,270 I realized right away that everything had changed. 370 00:34:44,310 --> 00:34:46,010 There was nothing I could do about it. 371 00:34:47,500 --> 00:34:48,500 I had been caught. 372 00:34:52,600 --> 00:34:55,980 They'd gone out to the warehouse and sitting there was ten cases of whiskey. 373 00:35:04,700 --> 00:35:05,700 I'm pulled up. 374 00:35:09,100 --> 00:35:14,540 I recognised one of the individuals as the prince's right -hand man. 375 00:35:16,170 --> 00:35:19,870 He must have sold me out to the police. 376 00:35:24,350 --> 00:35:26,890 I'm sitting in the back of this police car. 377 00:35:28,930 --> 00:35:32,170 By this time I'm realising I'm in some serious trouble. 378 00:35:34,510 --> 00:35:37,890 I'm being driven through a part of Riyadh that I didn't recognise. 379 00:35:46,250 --> 00:35:48,710 There's nothing there that says this is a police station. 380 00:35:54,450 --> 00:35:55,750 I know I'm in deep trouble. 381 00:35:57,910 --> 00:35:59,230 Can't do anything about it. 382 00:36:01,970 --> 00:36:06,270 We found the whiskey, Mr... Gordon. 383 00:36:08,930 --> 00:36:14,250 I hoped that they would just believe that I had ten cases of whiskey and that 384 00:36:14,250 --> 00:36:15,290 would be the end of the matter. 385 00:36:16,560 --> 00:36:19,420 I'd get fined and thrown out of the country. 386 00:36:30,560 --> 00:36:32,040 I'm getting really scared now. 387 00:36:46,560 --> 00:36:47,920 Everything is out of my control. 388 00:36:49,940 --> 00:36:50,940 Totally. 389 00:36:53,460 --> 00:36:57,580 They took me outside. 390 00:37:01,180 --> 00:37:04,760 And handcuffed me to a tree. 391 00:37:07,580 --> 00:37:08,580 You know you're in trouble. 392 00:37:10,500 --> 00:37:11,580 You know you've got grief. 393 00:37:15,790 --> 00:37:16,790 anything about any guns. 394 00:37:19,030 --> 00:37:21,290 And they'd ask me the questions again. 395 00:37:24,070 --> 00:37:29,450 How did you get the guns? I didn't bring any guns into Saudi. 396 00:37:33,090 --> 00:37:39,990 I was hung in the tree 397 00:37:39,990 --> 00:37:40,990 for some time. 398 00:37:43,570 --> 00:37:44,850 The pain was... 399 00:37:50,910 --> 00:37:55,270 Indescribable. This person comes in and he introduced himself as working for the 400 00:37:55,270 --> 00:37:56,270 British Consulate. 401 00:37:58,370 --> 00:38:00,230 Is there anything I can do to help? 402 00:38:01,490 --> 00:38:06,050 I'm hanging in a tree and his words to me, is there anything I can do to help 403 00:38:06,050 --> 00:38:07,050 you? 404 00:38:08,170 --> 00:38:09,790 Get me down from this tree, mate. 405 00:38:12,170 --> 00:38:15,190 Gordon, there's nothing that either I... 406 00:38:15,530 --> 00:38:20,110 All the British government can do to interfering in foreign legal affairs. 407 00:38:21,630 --> 00:38:25,130 If you can't give me definition, why don't you just sod off? 408 00:38:28,670 --> 00:38:32,290 And he went. 409 00:38:35,710 --> 00:38:37,870 The next minute I'm hit with vaults. 410 00:38:44,610 --> 00:38:46,430 They're using a cattle prod on me. 411 00:38:47,870 --> 00:38:51,410 The pain is utterly intense. 412 00:38:54,010 --> 00:38:56,230 Your eyeballs want to pop out your head. 413 00:38:58,030 --> 00:39:00,050 I don't know anything about any guns. 414 00:39:00,330 --> 00:39:03,490 They're saying, now do you want to tell us if you brought any guns in? 415 00:39:03,870 --> 00:39:07,610 Please stop asking about the guns. I never brought any guns. I never smuggled 416 00:39:07,610 --> 00:39:08,610 any guns. 417 00:39:11,010 --> 00:39:12,250 And then it happens again. 418 00:39:14,730 --> 00:39:16,130 I lost track of days. 419 00:39:23,730 --> 00:39:25,990 I overshackled hand and foot. 420 00:39:26,690 --> 00:39:28,690 Put in a police van. 421 00:39:35,110 --> 00:39:36,350 Will I get out of the country? 422 00:39:36,830 --> 00:39:38,090 Will I be sent home? 423 00:39:38,570 --> 00:39:39,690 Will I go to jail? 424 00:39:53,870 --> 00:39:57,790 You would expect to be taken to a court, be asked what happened. 425 00:39:58,970 --> 00:40:00,250 Do you plead guilty? 426 00:40:00,990 --> 00:40:02,050 There's your lawyer. 427 00:40:03,070 --> 00:40:04,390 None of that exists. 428 00:40:04,850 --> 00:40:06,270 It doesn't happen there. 429 00:40:14,070 --> 00:40:15,470 We're then pushed into a room. 430 00:40:19,350 --> 00:40:22,750 And in front of us were three Saudi men. 431 00:40:25,290 --> 00:40:29,870 They were the Mutawa, the religious police, who everyone feared. 432 00:40:40,930 --> 00:40:44,210 The next minute, I'm handed a scrap of paper, all in Arabic. 433 00:40:49,250 --> 00:40:50,990 I'm thinking, what's this? 434 00:40:52,650 --> 00:40:54,390 There was an Egyptian in there. 435 00:40:55,180 --> 00:40:56,280 And he spoke English. 436 00:41:01,080 --> 00:41:06,560 I started to feel a bit numb. 437 00:41:13,560 --> 00:41:15,280 It felt like a lifetime. 438 00:41:18,920 --> 00:41:20,780 Nobody was going to appeal for me. 439 00:41:21,580 --> 00:41:22,900 There was no appeals. 440 00:41:30,350 --> 00:41:32,710 And I was taken away from there with my scrap of paper. 441 00:41:36,130 --> 00:41:39,130 I was taken to what I discovered was the equivalent of hell. 442 00:41:45,950 --> 00:41:48,450 You don't know what's going to happen. 443 00:41:49,290 --> 00:41:50,410 You just have to survive. 444 00:42:00,040 --> 00:42:01,920 The noise is incredible. 445 00:42:06,240 --> 00:42:08,900 The smell, indescribable. 446 00:42:13,340 --> 00:42:16,140 The smell of sweat, heat. 447 00:42:18,520 --> 00:42:20,020 No place to move. 448 00:42:20,240 --> 00:42:21,480 No place to sleep. 449 00:42:28,140 --> 00:42:30,020 And you start to think, I wonder how long they've been there. 450 00:42:44,840 --> 00:42:50,220 Even with all of the noise, I'd been on and off awake for so long, I just 451 00:42:50,220 --> 00:42:51,220 instantly slept. 452 00:42:59,400 --> 00:43:05,240 Early in the morning, there'd be this great big vat of something would appear. 453 00:43:11,660 --> 00:43:12,660 There's no such thing as a queue. 454 00:43:28,660 --> 00:43:30,240 Everyone wanted to get there. 455 00:43:34,540 --> 00:43:40,940 When it came to getting fed, I had gone from being at the top end of the market 456 00:43:40,940 --> 00:43:44,600 to the lowest of low. 457 00:43:51,900 --> 00:43:53,400 Everything of course had changed. 458 00:43:56,300 --> 00:43:58,280 I was in Saudi Arabia for a long time now. 459 00:44:11,500 --> 00:44:14,840 I had three and a half years where I survived it. 460 00:44:20,300 --> 00:44:24,080 You could never... 461 00:44:24,600 --> 00:44:26,540 Think of escape. There was no place to go. 462 00:44:28,340 --> 00:44:33,400 Even if you'd managed to climb over a wall 60 feet high, where could you go? 463 00:44:35,120 --> 00:44:36,400 You're in a foreign country. 464 00:44:42,320 --> 00:44:43,840 You are in the middle of nowhere. 465 00:44:46,420 --> 00:44:52,280 So time passed without any outside sounds. 466 00:44:53,120 --> 00:44:54,600 That were familiar to you. 467 00:44:55,080 --> 00:44:56,260 The sound of say. 468 00:44:56,640 --> 00:44:57,960 A bird making a noise. 469 00:44:58,280 --> 00:44:59,280 Anything like that. 470 00:44:59,880 --> 00:45:00,880 Just didn't happen. 471 00:45:01,480 --> 00:45:03,180 You had to have a complete change. 472 00:45:04,040 --> 00:45:05,460 In the way that you thought. 473 00:45:06,880 --> 00:45:10,360 They prayed five times a day. 474 00:45:13,800 --> 00:45:16,120 I made sure that I didn't get in their way. 475 00:45:19,380 --> 00:45:22,000 I hadn't respected their religion outside. 476 00:45:26,060 --> 00:45:28,140 But I learned to respect it inside. 477 00:45:34,960 --> 00:45:39,300 The first time I saw my girlfriend at Balazs, I was terribly pleased to see 478 00:45:46,360 --> 00:45:49,260 It was like a breath of fresh air. 479 00:45:50,600 --> 00:45:52,160 There was somebody come to see me. 480 00:45:55,920 --> 00:45:58,300 She's made the effort to come to a Saudi jail. 481 00:46:00,640 --> 00:46:02,380 You're very grateful for the visit. 482 00:46:06,980 --> 00:46:08,880 My life was on a total hold. 483 00:46:11,300 --> 00:46:12,680 All plans were gone. 484 00:46:14,640 --> 00:46:17,980 The thoughts of being together were no longer there. 485 00:46:24,160 --> 00:46:26,490 As I... Sort of watch my girlfriend go away. 486 00:46:26,770 --> 00:46:28,750 The great loneliness comes across you. 487 00:46:41,170 --> 00:46:42,170 And it's back inside. 488 00:46:43,750 --> 00:46:44,750 Back to hell. 489 00:46:47,730 --> 00:46:49,650 Before you know it, a year's gone by. 490 00:46:50,910 --> 00:46:53,530 And then you could start to think, I've done half. 491 00:46:54,860 --> 00:46:58,460 Then, of course, you probably start to think, well, how soon before I get the 492 00:46:58,460 --> 00:46:59,460 lashes? 493 00:47:14,100 --> 00:47:18,540 People were usually flogged on a Friday after the main prayers at noon. 494 00:47:20,840 --> 00:47:22,560 They'd be made to lie out on the floor. 495 00:47:23,210 --> 00:47:25,790 And a long cane would be used. 496 00:47:27,270 --> 00:47:29,290 Usually 40, 50 at a time. 497 00:47:34,470 --> 00:47:36,670 Occasionally you'd hear somebody cry out. 498 00:47:39,210 --> 00:47:40,950 Depends how the individual took pain. 499 00:47:44,630 --> 00:47:50,330 I was determined that when it happened to me, I wasn't going to scream, no 500 00:47:50,330 --> 00:47:51,330 matter what. 501 00:47:57,320 --> 00:48:00,660 I wasn't particularly looking forward to the prospect of being lashed. 502 00:48:03,260 --> 00:48:09,700 But in some ways, one thought, well, at least when it happens, I'm getting near 503 00:48:09,700 --> 00:48:10,700 to getting out. 504 00:48:14,200 --> 00:48:15,680 One day I'm sitting in the cell. 505 00:48:15,980 --> 00:48:17,080 A guard appears. 506 00:48:20,780 --> 00:48:21,840 You're going home. 507 00:48:24,880 --> 00:48:26,380 It was an instant shock. 508 00:48:32,010 --> 00:48:33,670 I didn't know what was going to happen. 509 00:48:34,510 --> 00:48:36,230 Would I suddenly get flogged? 510 00:48:43,230 --> 00:48:45,950 He said, you've had an amnesty. 511 00:48:48,270 --> 00:48:52,290 It was only then that I started to think in that I was going home. 512 00:49:01,840 --> 00:49:06,920 The feeling of release you couldn't really put into words. 513 00:49:11,280 --> 00:49:14,000 It brings a tear to one's eye to remember what happened. 514 00:49:15,920 --> 00:49:18,720 But it was over. 515 00:49:21,000 --> 00:49:22,760 It would always be there with you. 516 00:49:24,920 --> 00:49:25,920 But you were free. 517 00:49:28,860 --> 00:49:31,240 Thinking about it. 518 00:49:35,310 --> 00:49:36,310 What's right? 519 00:49:37,030 --> 00:49:38,030 What's right?