HERO COP WHO RISKED LIFE TO SAVE SPY
Let’s give officer bravery honour
THE hero police officer left seriously ill after racing to help a poisoned Russian spy was named last night.
There were calls for a bravery award for Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey, 38, who was struck down
by a nerve agent as he fought to save Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia, 33, after they were targeted in an assassination attempt.
Last night Tory MP Sir Mike Penning, a former policing minister, said: “The bravery of officers like this needs to be recognised when this is all over.
“I am sure DS Bailey and other officers involved in the response will get the recognition they deserve and which the public would expect.
“While it is not my decision I would think the Queen’s Award for Gallantry would fit the bill.”
It is believed DS Bailey tried to resuscitate Mr Skripal, 66, after he was found in a catatonic state on a bench near a shopping centre in Salisbury, Wiltshire.
He was among the first on the scene on Sunday afternoon.
It is thought DS Bailey – who was commended in 2016 for singlehandedly bringing a serial rapist to justice – had gone to accident and emergency to report his symptoms. He was discharged before his condition deteriorated.
Tribute
He was rushed back to Salisbury District Hospital’s intensive care unit where Mr Skripal and his daughter remain in a critical condition. DS Bailey’s wife Sarah, 37, was at his side last night.
He is described as being in a “serious but stable” condition.
It comes as counter terror police are battling to track down the would-be assassins.
Prime Minister Theresa May said: “I would like to pay tribute to all of the emergency services in Salisbury – those who reacted to the initial call on Sunday and those who continue to respond to this appalling and reckless attack.
“In particular, my thoughts are with Detective Sergeant Nick Bailey, one of the first responders, who remains in a serious condition in hospital. We are all thinking of him, his family, friends and colleagues – and the two other victims – at what is an incredibly difficult time.
“The events of Sunday are a stark reminder, if ever one was needed, of the dangerous situations our emergency services face and the dedication and courage they display every day in order to keep us safe.”
Last night Wiltshire Chief Constable Kier Pritchard praised DS Bailey as “an amazingly courageous officer”. He said: “I met Nick with his wife at the hospital in the intensive care unit.
“I’ve known Nick for many years. He’s a great character. He’s a huge presence in Wiltshire Police, well liked, well loved – a massively dedicated officer.
“He’s clearly receiving high specialist treatment. He’s well. He’s sat up. He’s not the Nick that I know but he’s in the safe hands of medical professionals.
“Of course he’s very anxious, he’s very concerned.
“All of our staff that attended the incident performed the role that police officers and police staff do every day up and down the counter.
“They had limited information and they responded to try to protect people and safeguard people they knew were ill. I’m massively proud of what Nick did and all of our staff on that night.
“We are going to have to see about the long-term prognosis. It was great to see that he was sitting up. I very much hope that Nick will be on his feet back at work very soon.
“I was able to convey all the messages that we have received. Everybody’s behind him. I was able to talk to him, reassure him. He and his wife and the family have got all the support that we can provide.
“We are all rooting for Nick. I hope he will be back with us soon. We desperately miss him.”
It is not the first time DS Bailey has been recognised for his outstanding police work.
In December 2016 he received an award from his chief constable for putting a serial rapist behind bars.
The officer trawled through and reopened a number of old cases, as well as investigating a series of fresh allegations against rapist Arthur Bonner in what was described as a “complex and serious case” involving allegations of sexual assault committed over four decades, starting in the early 1970s.
Draining
The probe that DS Bailey conducted alone took two years, and Bonner was jailed for more than 14 years. Receiving the award DS Bailey said: “It was a very long, emotionally draining investigation, for the families as well. It was very difficult not to get their hopes up but we got justice in the end.”
DS Bailey was one of 21 people who received hospital treatment after the nerve agent attack.
Mr Skripal and his daughter, who lives in Moscow, had enjoyed lunch in an Italian restaurant and visited a pub before they were struck down shortly after 4pm on Sunday.
There are fears Mr Skripal, a former colonel in military intelligence who shared Russian secrets with MI6, had been targeted in a state-sponsored assassination.
Yulia’s visit coincided with the birthday of her brother Alexander who died in suspicious circumstances last year. He would have been 44 on March 1.
He died from liver failure while visiting Russia. His body was returned to Britain and is buried in the same cemetery as his mother Lyudmila. She died in the UK from cancer aged 59 in 2012.
Police are thought to be re-examining their deaths.
Mr Skripal and Yulia are believed to have visited the London Road
Cemetery on Alexander’s birthday. Fresh flowers and tributes have been laid there and yesterday police cordoned off their gravestones. Officers stood guard nearby. There was also a flurry of activity outside his house. A large blue forensics tent was erected on the street as extra officers and incident support vehicles arrived from South Western Ambulance Service. Officers extended the cordon to seal off the whole street.
Mr Skripal bought the property – which has a huge Union Flag covering one window – in 2011 after paying £260,000 in cash.
He was jailed in Moscow in 2006 for selling secrets to MI6 but set up home in the cathedral city after being released as part of a spy swap.
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After the final stand-down of IHAT (Iraq Historic Allegations Team) and the exposure of Phil Shiner and his soldier-persecutors, some of us thought it was over. Not a bit. Up springs IFI (Iraqi Fatalities Investigations). Where do they come from? Who funds them? Well, the Ministry of Defence is the answer. And who is in charge of that nowadays? Why the sprauncy (and very ambitious) young sprog Gavin Williamson. If he really wants to make his mark as a political hero rather than yet another forelock-tugger to the bureaucracy he could just shut off the funding. After all, our ability to defend our country is constantly being starved of funds but not our capacity to hound our veterans to early graves. If he cut off the money the slimeballs behind the persecutions would soon be back under their flagstones.