Best selling novelist Frederick Forsyth, 84, accuses ‘stasi like …
Best selling novelist Frederick Forsyth, 84, accuses ‘stasi like’ Metropolitan Police of ‘hounding an old codger’ in indignant letter to magistrate – after officers caught him speeding in 30mph zone
- Mr Forsyth was hit with a £60 fine, £24 victim surcharge and £16 in costs
- He says he paid it but a Met administrative error made the ‘settlement invalid’
Best selling novelist Frederick Forsyth[2] has accused the ‘Stasi-like’ Metropolitan Police[3] of ‘hounding an old codger’ in indignant letter to the court after he was caught speeding.
Mr Forsyth, 84, was caught going seven miles an hour over the 30mph limit on the A40 near Paddington Green in October last year. He says he pleaded guilty to the offence and paid the fine with the time limit.
However, in a letter to the court, the writer claimed the force has now accused him of forgetting to include his driving license number on the forms which he says is ‘not true’. The force allegedly claimed that due to this error his ‘settlement was invalid’ and his case has been referred to the magistrate.
Mr Forsyth, a former spy, slammed the force, arguing that the East German secret service would have ‘salivated with envy’ if it had the ‘surveillance powers of the Met’.
He also questioned why officers were so focused on his speeding ticket when they police a ‘capital with 500 unsolved burglaries’.
Frederick Forsyth (pictured in 2019) has accused the ‘Stasi-like’ Metropolitan Police of ‘hounding an old codger’ in indignant letter to the court after he was caught speeding
In a letter to the court, (pictured) he claimed the Met accused him of forgetting to include his driving license number on the forms which he says is ‘not true’
The letter, dated May 3 this year, was addressed to ‘Mr Stipendiary’ – a term referring to a paid magistrate.
The journalist turned spy said ‘regretted’ taking up the official’s ‘valuable time’ but was left with ‘no choice’ following the alleged actions of the Met, which he seemed to believe had too much surveillance power and misaligned priorities.
‘Fifty years ago, being bilingual in German, I used to slip through the Berlin Wall on errands for the Firm,’ Mr Forsyth penned in the letter which appeared to be written on a typewriter.
‘The East German Stasis would salivate with envy if they had the surveillance powers of the Met today. So in a capital with 500 unsolved burglaries there are ample time, wherewithal and staff to hound an old codger driving at 7 mph over the limit. As Huxley remarked; Ah brave new world!!’
The author said he ‘regretted’ taking up the official’s ‘valuable time’ but was left with ‘no choice’ following the actions of the Met.
He explained that he was ‘unaware’ that the speed rating had been dropped to 30mph when cameras caught him going 37mph on October 31 last year.
‘Overhead gantry cameras spotted my little runabout pootling along an urban motorway at 37mph unaware speed reduction cameras had changed the rating from 40mph to 30mph. I had simply missed the sign.’
He admitted the offence but is now upset by the Met’s allegations that he made a paperwork error.
Mr Forsyth was caught by a speed camera going seven miles an hour over the 30mph limit on the A40 near Paddington Green in October last year. He allegedly pleaded guilty to the offence and paid the fine with the time limit (stock photo)
‘The Met has discovered an error which they say was mine. Not true – it was theirs. They claim my driving licence number was not on the forms. Not true,’ he wrote.
The alleged ‘administrative error’ resulted in his settlement being cancelled and the case referred to the court.
Mr Forsyth, having allegedly included a photocopy of the form with his driving licence number present, requested the court to ‘reimpose the original fine’ – which he said he would pay immediately.
He added: ‘But please with no court costs, because I have not imposed any; the error was the Met’s, not mine.’
Mr Forsyth was prosecuted through a single justice procedure and sentenced last month without a court hearing, The Telegraph[4] reported.
He was hit with a £60 fine, £24 victim surcharge and £16 in costs. He also received three penalty points on his driving licence.
References
- ^ Natasha Anderson (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Frederick Forsyth (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ Metropolitan Police (www.dailymail.co.uk)
- ^ The Telegraph (www.telegraph.co.uk)