Essex Boy by Steve 'Nipper' Ellis; Bernard O'Mahoney Read Free Book Online

am no psychiatrist, so I thought the best plan of action would be for me to be myself and not dwell on his sad loss. I have always been a bit of a bookworm and so I decided that I would read to Malcolm in the hope of getting his mind of things. I chose Killing for Company, the ghost-written autobiography of serial killer Dennis Nielsen. Upon reflection, it probably wasn’t a wise choice and my late night recitals, detailing death and human suffering, did little to mend my friend’s broken heart.
    When I was released from Chelmsford prison, Tate wrote to me asking if I would bring Malcolm to visit him at HMP Swaleside. I have no idea why Tate wanted to meet Malcolm; I think it was just curiosity because I had often talked about him. Kenneth Noye, the infamous Brinks Mat gold thief, was at Swaleside and Tate was telling Malcolm and me how well they had been getting on. Noye, according to Tate, was a reserved, polite, no-nonsense man, the type of guy who he would love to do business with. Malcolm and I just thought that Tate was talking the talk and trying to impress us but, upon reflection, whatever Tate thought or said, regardless of how improbable or bizarre it may have sounded, Patrick Tate firmly believed it and would make it happen.
    As well as trying to forge friendships in the underworld, Tate was busying himself trying to settle old scores with people that he claimed had upset him. A man I shall call Peter Mills had been sentenced to ten years’ imprisonment for robbing a jeweller’s shop in Essex. He too was in HMP Swaleside and happened to be in the visiting room on the same day as me, Malcolm and Tate. Mills’s visitor was a man I shall call Simon Gold, who had allegedly been riding the motorbike that Tate had leapt on the back of to escape from Billericay Magistrates Court. Both Mills and Gold have since claimed that Tate informed the police that they were involved in various offences in exchange for immunity from prosecution. Mills is adamant that Tate was his accomplice when he robbed the jeweller’s. They had initially got away with the crime but, when Tate had been arrested in relation to an unconnected matter, Mills had immediately been taken into custody and the jewellery recovered. Tate kept glaring over at Mills and Gold, saying that he was going to do them, but he didn’t approach the men while Malcolm and I were there. At the time, I did not believe that Tate would even dream of informing on other criminals but so many stories and allegations have arisen since then, from credible people, that they are very hard to dismiss.
    When Tate was released from prison in 1994, he did his personal best to keep himself out of trouble. He appeared totally devoted to Sarah and I suppose, in his own troubled mind, he really did believe that he was going to manage to go straight. Sadly, Tate’s life was one never-ending contradiction; his brain knew what was right and what was best for him, but his heart loved the excitement of being a criminal and craved all that was bad for him. Three days after being released, Tate arrived at my home and insisted that we go out for the evening. There were absolutely no drugs involved, nor were drugs mentioned; it was simply two friends meeting up for a quiet night out. Sarah, the best thing to ever happen to Tate in my opinion, would not tolerate him taking that shit and so Tate was refusing to touch it. As we sat in a bar sipping lemonade, Tate told me that Sarah was pregnant and there was not enough room for all three of them in her home. Tate knew that I had a large three-bedroom flat in Grand Parade, Leigh-on-Sea, and so he asked if he could stay with me until he could secure a larger property for himself, Sarah and their child. ‘Sarah will remain where she is for now. It’s only me that needs a room,’ Tate said.
    ‘No problem,’ I replied without hesitation. ‘I am happy for you and it’s a pleasure to be able to help you both.’
    As soon as Tate moved into my