Photo: Nick Cobbing

Exodus Collective Under Attack (Again!)

The escalation in the freedom battle of Bedfordshire has continued with yet more dramatic developments.

Squall 12, Spring 1996, p. 25.

Since the last issue of SQUALL, high profile members of the Exodus Collective have once again been targeted in further attempts to halt their activities.

The latest additions to the list includes four injunction court hearings, a constructed murder charge and a fire bomb attack on their community farm. Whilst the injunction cases will be dealt with in future articles, the charge of murder and the associated arson attack demand an immediate telling.

In October last year, James McNeilly walked into the Globe public house in Dunstable. Owned by the mother of Exodus spokesperson Glenn Jenkins, the pub is usually full to the brim of local people, the majority of which know every Bob Marley lyric on the juke box. McNeilly on the other hand was not a regular and, according to witnesses in the pub, was already drunk, having been on a drinking binge since the morning.

Once inside, he became involved in a fight with a 16 year old which was split up. A further argument then ensued outside the premises, at which point, Paul Taylor - known to all as Biggs - made an attempt to break up the argument. As a result, an incident took place between McNeilly and Biggs, before McNeilly ran off down the road. Closed Circuit Television shows McNeilly running into a nearby park and just catches Biggs, twenty seconds behind him, giving up the chase. CCTV then shows Biggs and some Exodus colleagues exchanging words with some of McNeilly’s associates, before they all turn round and head back towards the pub.

The following morning, after a particularly cold night, McNeilly was found dead inside a council yard situated in the park. It appears he had tried to climb the fence, injuring himself on fence spikes before crawling into the yard. His blood was found on the fence spikes. The following day, local radio reported that “Police have ruled out foul play”. The pathologist gave the cause of death as hypothermia accentuated by blood loss and alcohol.

Upon hearing of McNeilly’s death, Biggs voluntarily presented himself at Dunstable Police Station in order to relate the events of the night before. Subsequently he was charged with murder. As readers of SQUALL may remember, Biggs was the subject of an Ecstasy plant carried out by Bedfordshire Police at Exodus’s Community Farm in 1993. As a result, he was forced to wait for a year before the court case was heard, with the jury dismissing the prosecution’s case on the basis of inconsistent police evidence and the exposure of some major police blunders in their covert operation. As such it was a matter of some fearlessness that Biggs willingly presented himself in order to help police with their inquiries. Exodus also cancelled a rave planned for the following night, out of respect for McNeilly’s death, which, despite its associated trouble, is still described by them as a “community tragedy”.

Following the consequential murder charge, Biggs was placed on remand. At his first bail application, he was represented by Michael Mansfield QC who argued before the judge that, contrary to the prosecution’s assertions, the case against Biggs was thin. Unusually for a murder charge, Biggs was consequently bailed, moving to an address in Devon. These conditions were renegotiated, however, allowing him back to Bedfordshire on condition that he stayed outside the Luton Town border and did not go to his home on the community farm. At this bail hearing, Bedfordshire Police claimed to have received intelligence about an intention to fire bomb the farm. Thus he was not allowed to go there “for his own safety”.

However, Biggs drove down there one day in January in defiance of the bail conditions. Local police tailed him all the way, consequently taking him back into custody and placing him once again on remand in Bedford prison.

In early February, after explaining to the judge his reasons for returning to his home, he was granted bail once more. The conditions this time were stricter, requiring him to stay at one address in Bedfordshire and to sign in at Dunstable Police Station every day. The property given as his address was an empty house, and some of his Exodus colleagues worked to make it inhabitable. On Thursday 1st February, Bedfordshire police officers came round to inspect the house and okayed it. However, the following day they informed Biggs’ solicitor that the bail restriction preventing him from living at the farm was now lifted, and that the local crown prosecution service had written to the judge to inform him of this change. Given the vehemence with which Beds Police had fought Biggs’ right to bail and then insisted on specific conditions, this was a genuinely puzzling manoeuvre.

Nevertheless, happy to be able to live at home, Biggs moved back to the Community farm on Friday 2nd February.

At 1pm on Sunday 4th February, the farm house was firebombed. Most of the back windows were smashed and the doors left open to facilitate the blaze. One witness driving past saw four or five men leaving the farm house with smoke billowing from the roof. Meanwhile, the one detective constable assigned to conduct the investigation immediately went on holiday for Monday and Tuesday, vital early days in any investigation.

These are the basic factual bones of an uncompleted story. There are other events and evidence which certainly warrant the readers’ consideration but which are not possible to relate at this time for reasons of subjudicey and in order not to expose avenues of possible investigation. They will certainly be discussed in future issues of SQUALL.

Meanwhile, the farmhouse has a severely damaged roof, with several of its rooms burnt out.

One of the few heart warming elements to point out from this story is that after word of the attack got round, the Collective were inundated with phone calls from plumbers and carpenters, offering help to reconstruct the building. It certainly seems that the kind of people who want their activities stopped, are a diminishing minority in the area. Meanwhile the investigations continue.

We know that this firebomb is due to malicious police activity,” commented Exodus spokesperson, Glenn Jenkins. “Whether it was by their hand directly or as a result of a falsely constructed charge suggesting that Paul Taylor is a murderer. These things are yet to be found out, but find out we will.”

EXODUS.. MOVEMENT OF JAH PEOPLE

A powerful documentary made by independent production company Spectacle, and shown on Channel 4 last November. Now available on video. Twenty six minutes.

Price: £8 for individuals. £20 institutions/groups.

From: Spectacle Productions,
TV Centre,
Thackerey Rd,
London SW8 3TW.

Cheques payable to Spectacle Productions Ltd.

(As of 2024) This film is viewable online for a small fee on vimeo - click here