Thirty years ago, an incident worthy of John le Carré’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy played out close to our three parishes in Snitterfield. 56-year-old David Brough (pictured) was mysteriously killed when his silver Volvo burst into flames after crashing into a tree on Bearley Road.
Brough, formerly known as David Bingham, had relocated with a new identity to the area following a conviction for passing secrets to the Soviet authorities when he was a young Royal Navy sub-lieutenant. David was a specialist in submarines and frigates and was sentenced at Winchester Crown Court in 1972 for giving documents to Moscow relating to naval tactics and nuclear armaments described by the prosecution as ‘almost beyond price’. David said he spied to get money to pay his (first) wife Maureen’s shopping and gambling debts. He was never caught but confessed to his commanding officer that he had been spying for the Russians for 18 months, but his superior didn’t believe him. David later confessed to the police, who promptly arrested him.
After serving 8 years of a 21-year sentence, he started a new life in Bournemouth with his second wife, Mary, now using the name Brough, but fled to Stratford after being recognised by a former colleague. There are two differing accounts of what David did in Stratford: one says he and his wife Mary ran a small florist’s shop, living a modest life, while another says he managed the Lifeways counselling therapy centre and worked as a probation officer.
There are many unusual aspects to this story, not least why he crashed into a tree on a dead-straight road near where he lived? The story came to my attention when I was reading how, as head of a local metal detector club, David claimed to have found a number of tunnel entrances, the nearest to us being in proximity of the C15th castle of John the Duke of Bedford at Lower Fulbrook (pictured). David believed the tunnel connected back to Warwick, where it could have been used to bring in supplies of food or provide a safe escape if the castle came under siege. However, what he may have found was the cellarage beneath the castle, as it is reported in 1790 stone steps leading down to a vault, or cellar, arched over with bricks, possibly once under a tower, were uncovered on the site. An attempt was made to dig it out, but there’s no report of this being achieved. This photo (pictured) taken by W.A. Baker, shows a complex rectangular courtyard building can still be seen as a crop mark on the site.
David also claimed to have found a tunnel in the garden of the lodge at Gallows Hill, Warwick, and had been exploring another interesting location on the Fosse Way. A member of the group who worked with Brough says he was a secretive character; no one knew much about him, but he always managed to find the right contacts and get access to interesting sites where others failed.
On the day of the crash, David was heading home towards Snitterfield when his Volvo didn’t make the right-hand bend by Snitterfield Bushes, hitting a tree and bursting into flames.
The man called out on that frightful day to recover the vehicle still lives locally and told me, in his opinion, the Volvo had been forced off the road by another vehicle, and the following day the wreckage of David’s Volvo vanished from their yard and was never seen again. There was meant to be a follow-up investigation, but nothing ever came of it. Brough died in the car along with his dog; he was so badly burned they had to identify him through dental records. An inquest was opened and adjourned on 27th February 1997, but no later report or follow-up exists. Was it hushed up? Was he killed by Russian agents? His wife and daughter vowed to finish the biography he was writing, but nothing has been heard since.
