Mountford Chambers delivers a nationwide and international service to clients, who are assured quality advice, advocacy and representation at all levels.
William acts for the defence in high profile and serious organised crime and is well known for his attention to detail, and his ability to assimilate complicated case material rapidly. He defends in complex fraud, terrorist related cases and matters prosecuted by the NCA, UKBA, SFO and the SPA. He has considerable experience in pursuing disclosure disputes on behalf of his clients and in presenting any abuse of process arguments that may follow. He is adept at cross-examining experts in DNA analysis and telephone cell site analysis, both critical areas which often lead to the fundamental undermining of a prosecution case.
William also has extensive experiences in matters relating to alleged sexual misconduct, including historic rape, alleged grooming and serious sexual offending.
William also has notable experience in Military law and courts martials, he is the only counsel to have been instructed in all four of the major “Iraqi abuse trials” that emanated from Operation Telic and the British military occupation of Iraq. He went on to represent a core participant in the Baha Mousa Public Inquiry.
Sexual Offences
William has been instructed in a wide range of sexual offences both in the civilian courts and the military courts. He has represented clients allegedly involved in both single incident and multi incident allegations of rape, sexual assault, and historical sexual abuse. He has frequently cross-examined vulnerable and young complainants. He regularly represents clients charged with possession and distribution of indecent images.
Private Prosecution
William has advised on the bringing of private prosecutions and he is an active member of the PPA. (Private prosecutors association). Private prosecutions allow individuals, businesses or organisations who have been the victims of crime to pursue justice in the criminal courts by bringing a criminal case themselves, without the involvement of law enforcement agencies. They offer an alternative remedy in cases where an investigation or prosecution has not been pursued by the state. William is able to advise on the limitations that are relevant to the existing legal framework and to provide support for those wishing to pursue such action.
The trial at Liverpool Crown Court is listed to start on the 14th of June of 2023, and it is due to last three to four weeks.
The 26-year-old beautician died after being shot while out with friends at the Lighthouse public house in Wallasey Village at about 23:50 GMT on the 24th of December 2022.
Five other persons were also injured during the shooting.
Will and Dan represent Thomas Waring, who is alleged to have possessed the skorpion machine gun used in shooting, and to have assisted an offender by disposing of the car allegedly used during the shooting.
Coverage
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Operation Sacae. R V Mark Barrett. Birmingham Crown Court
The case involved the first serving British soldier ever to be prosecuted for being a member of National Action (a far right terrorist organization). The crown’s case was predicated on the basis that the defendant was voluntarily and knowingly a member of a proscribed organisation with a view to furthering the aims of that organization. He was found not guilty.
Operation Harpike. R V M.Trubini. Central Criminal Court.
After a murder plot to kill sitting North West MP Rosie Cooper was foiled by anti-terror police, a number of alleged members of right-wing extremist group National Action were arrested for a variety of Terrorism Act offences. 2019. The crown’s case was that Michael Trubini was an active and actual member of National Action and that he had voluntarily and knowingly furthered the aims of the organisation. He denied such an association, he was cleared of any such wrongdoing.
Operation Italici. R v Gurjaipal Dhillon. Central Criminal Court.
An international investigation into the illegal importation and manufacture of anabolic steroids into the UK involving some £80 million of drugs, described as the “worlds most prolific anabolic steroid smuggling gang”. Border Force intercepted a shipment of 632kg of Class C anabolic steroids at Heathrow that were destined for Belfast. The NCA in Belfast uncovered further contraband and more than two tonnes of steroids were seized overall. The investigation identified an overseas criminal group with a global supply network that had been operating for ten years and had trafficked at least 100 tonnes of the product. 2019. The case was described as one of the largest hauls of anabolic steroids in history.
Operation Tabernackler. R v Gjergji Diko. Central Criminal Court.
The case involves the importation of £233 million of cocaine, discovered inside a consignment of bananas. Described as one of the largest ever seizures of cocaine in the UK by the NCA. The importation direct from Colombia involved 41 pallets of bananas, hiding some 2,330 blocks of cocaine. The matter is due for its next hearing in late 2021.
Operation Dogwood. R V Azis Ghanchi. Reading Crown Court.
A £17 million trading standards prosecution, the carrying on of a business for a fraudulent purpose, namely the dishonest sale of solar panel maintenance contracts and green energy equipment using unfair commercial practices. The case due for trial in late 2022.
Operation Rokeby. R V Francis Appiagyei, Central Criminal Court.
Murder and aggravated burglary of a drugs premises. The case involved the attack of a premises to recover drugs and the resultant death of one of the occupants.
Operation Rutland. R V Scott Heaney [2021] Basildon Crown Court.
Murder and attempted murder, the case centered on the robbery of a number of individuals who were targeted whilst they were said to be guarding a large amount of drugs, and the subsequent violent murder that ensued.
Operation Operation Wildwood. R V Lea Smith. Hove Crown Court.
The case involved a £12 million supply of class A drugs throughout the south of England. An organised crime group (OCG) that was based in Liverpool supplied the drugs that were then distributed from Brighton to the rest of the south coast.
Operation Waterfront. R V Ashley Bramante. Derby Crown Court.
A multi million pound class A drugs conspiracy involving the wholesale supply of cocaine. NCA. 2017.
Operation Bistro. R V Jason Fitzgibbon
The case involved the importation of £7 million of heroin, money laundering and organised crime involving the notorious Fitzgibbon family from Liverpool. The case attracted significant press attention. The crown’s case involved the importation of 57 kilos of cocaine from Turkey. The family home was bugged and the recordings were used to implicate them. The SOCA said that the family “revelled in their notoriety”. Graham Johnson, who studied the family, told Channel 4 News: “The Fitzgibbon crime family have been major players in organised crime for 30 or 40 years, and one of the reasons they’ve stayed at the top of their game is because they use extreme violence when necessary to protect their interests”.
Operation Elunjai. R v David Sterling. Central Criminal Court.
An attempted Murder involving the robbery of rolex watches, one of the victims was shot on his own doorstep at point blank range. The defendant was recorded on the families home CCTV shouting at his co-defendant to “shoot him in his head” immediately before he was shot at point blank range. The defendant was found not guilty of attempted murder after the jury accepted his version of events, namely that he said it to intimidate them, and that he did not know his co-defendant’s firearm was loaded with live ammunition.
R Darren Larkin. Operation Breadbasket
The first Iraqi abuse case to arise out of Operation Telic, often referred to as Britain’s’ Abu Gharib. The first British soldiers to be prosecuted for alleged prisoner abuse during Operation Telic.
The case involved the death in custody of a hotel receptionist (Baha Mousa) whilst being held by the Queens Lancashire Regiment in Basra. Lance Corporal Crowcroft together with Colonel Jorge Mendonca and others were acquitted on the direction of the Judge Advocate General following half time submissions. The Baha Mousa public inquiry followed this case.
R V Roberto Di Gregrio. “The roadside killing in Al-Ferkah
The case involved the death of an 18-year-old who was allegedly beaten to death by soldiers from the parachute regiment, in an alleged revenge attack following the death of an officer in the regiment.
The case involved Three Gurkhas, and the death of a teenage boy in a club frequented by the military in Belize. The riflemen, who were cleared at the court martial that was held in Belmopan (Belize), were among 30 soldiers celebrating the end of a one-month jungle warfare training exercise when a fight broke out between the Gurkhas and a group of local teenagers at the club.
R v W Lewes Crown Court.
20 count multiple incident indictment, historical allegations of rape and sexual assault on vulnerable victims aged between 3 and 13 years old, with a significant breach of trust.
R v J Guildford Crown Court.
Alleged historical sexual assault of the defendant’s granddaughter’s when aged between 7 and 13 years old. Cross-examination of young complainants.
R v A Chichester Crown Court.
Multiple count/multiple victim allegations of rape and sexual assault. Three victims, one of whom had learning difficulties. Cross-examination of vulnerable victim.
R v E Lewes Crown Court.
24 count multiple incident/multiple victim allegations of indecent assault and buggery. Victims aged between 8 and 12 years old.
R v N Portsmouth Crown Court.
Multiple counts of buggery and gross indecency on a boy aged between 10 and 16 years old.
R v D Lewes Crown Court.
Multiple counts of Indecent assault of a child aged 13-15 years old.
R v R Lewes Crown Court.
Causing a child to engage in sexual activity. Causing a child to watch a sexual act. Victim aged 14 years old.
In matters of fraud, William provides pre-charge advice to private individuals, company directors, CEO’s and COO’s. He has an astute legal mind, and is renowned for his attention to detail, his sensible and detailed written and oral advice, and his ability to put the client at ease. He makes himself available at short notice for emergency conferences, and he is regularly instructed in cases involving complex transactions and financial irregularity. The FCA often instructs him in matters of disclosure relating to fraud/insider trading and general market abuse. (Operation Tabernula).
Operation Maplewood - R V Daria Janciewicz. Southwark Crown Court
An £80 million postal redistribution fraud, the case involves a long-running conspiracy to commit fraud on the Royal Mail and other postal operators, and an associated conspiracy to produce false invoices. The evidence served runs to some 5 million pages and it involves the alleged doctoring of dockets to avoid paying the proper post due to the Royal Mail. The main alleged fraud consists of manipulating the figures declared so that the price that is paid is less than it should be, the trial is due to start in the spring of 2022.
Operation Cornflour. R V Lee Hales. Southwark Crown Court
A multi handed boiler room/pay day loan fraud. 2020. This case concerned two similar, related frauds. Both were operated in part from the same rented office accommodation in Birmingham and Croydon. The first [“Capitol Finance Group fraud”] concerns investments in a non-existent scheme to lend money to payday loan companies. The other [the “Diamond fraud”] concerns the selling of diamonds as investments that were worth a fraction of what they were sold for.
Operation Druid. R H Ehsan Patel. Leicester Crown Court
An alleged multi-million pound VAT fraud and producing false documents case involving the manufacturing of ladies and children’s garments. The alleged fraud was uncovered by the HMRC Rag Trade team and involved the supply of garments to some of the country’s leading retailers including Missguided. The allegations are part of a series of high profile VAT frauds involving companies that have allegedly supplied to the likes of Boohoo.com and Misguided. For trial in 2022.
Operation Bamburgh. R V Lindsey Leonard
The case involved an alleged £300 million mortgage fraud in the North of England. The crowns case was presented on the basis that the defendant, a company director was actively participating in more than 2300 mortgage applications that were “bogus”. Following detailed submissions on the quality and lack of evidence against her, the defendant was found not guilty on the direction of the Judge.
R v Tunney
The case involved an alleged fraud on the European contingency fund, All four defendant’s were accused of being part of fraud involving two County Durham companies, which were paid to provide training courses to help disadvantaged people in the North-East find work. Tunney was one of the directors of Development and Research Initiatives Limited and Meteor Enterprises Limited at the time of the offences.
In a case brought by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Martyn Dodgson, a senior investment banker, and Andrew Hind, a Chartered Accountant, were sentenced at Southwark Crown Court to 4.5 years and 3.5 years imprisonment, respectively, having been convicted of conspiring to insider deal between November 2006 and March 2010. Dodgson’s sentence is the longest ever handed down for insider dealing in a case brought by the FCA.
Operation Electron - R V Christopher Reardon. Wood Green Crown Court.
A multi million pound Vat and Excise duty fraud. (Top 10 Leading NCA VAT fraud of 2019.) The case focused on the adulteration of road fuels with kerosene and later bio-diesel. The fraud involved the adulteration of some 4.8 million litres of fuel. The trial lasted 7 months. The case was of such complexity and volume that it featured as a top 10 leading case for the NCA that year.
William’s developing specialism in the regulatory field is also recognized outside of chambers. He is a consultant in regulatory law at Prospect Law where he advises corporate and individual clients on investigations into market abuse, serious fraud, money laundering, bribery and corruption. “Prospect Law has an extensive team of experts who are able to focus on our key needs with their keys strengths. They offer great sounding board advice to our ideas, strategy and objectives. Their advice is impartial, measured and non-judgemental. This allows us to freely express our intent and to support the ever changing moods of investors, shareholders, politics, policies and projects.’ Legal 500 2022.
Operation Dogwood - R V Azis Ghanchi. Reading Crown Court.
A £17 million trading standards case involving the misspelling of solar panelling and green energy equipment. Due for trial in 2022.
R V Carl Smith trading as Smart Save Solutions
An alleged fraud and regulatory offences involving £30 million turnover business of green energy supply and photovoltaic panels. Prosecuted by ECC. The case involved the installation of solar panels and the subsequent feed in tariffs (FIT) that followed. The crown’s case was that the company provided misleading information/action and omissions that caused the average consumer to make a transactional decision they would not otherwise have taken.
R V Sarah Beadle and Summit Roof guard limited
A multi million pound fraudulent trading and misleading consumer’s case. The case involved the alleged miss selling of roof products. The allegations related to Fraudulent trading and engaging in a commercial practice, which was a misleading action. Dudley Metropolitan Burough Council prosecuted the case.
Operation Warwick. R V Adrian Ashley. Stafford Crown Court
Infamous negligent act manslaughter case involving four fire fighters that lost their lives at a warehouse fire in Atherton on Stour. The defendant and four other fire officers were found not guilty of manslaughter by gross negligence.
In the areas of compliance and general regulatory practice, he has represented individuals in the medical and healthcare sector accused by their regulatory bodies of misconduct and fitness to practice impairment by virtue of lack of competence, health and misconduct.
William has also dealt with a wide range of cases in terms of professional discipline, including allegations of dishonesty, professional or clinical error, health issues, inadequate service provision and serious compliance failings.
He is experienced in handling cases that are both factually complex and voluminous, and also those that allege multiple complaints. His criminal defence experience means that he has particular expertise in defending cases concerning allegations of dishonesty and sexual misconduct both in and outside of the workplace.
Lead Counsel representing a core participant in the Baha Mousa Public Inquiry, chaired by Sir William Gage – an inquiry of national importance into the death of an Iraqi whilst in custody during Operation Telic, and the only counsel to have appeared in all of the Iraqi abuse cases arises from Operation Telic 2003-2011.
William has recently represented clients in the USA, Ukraine, Nigeria, the Middle East and the Caribbean.
In the USA, he represented the interests of a number of high-net worth individuals who invested in a company listed on the alternative investment market (AIM) in the UK.
The fraud involved alleged misrepresentations relating to a number of products and their design, which subsequently induced the losers to invest. The matter involved a prima facie case of fraudulent misrepresentation and a prima facie case for a civil interim freezing order.
The mater involved cross -jurisdictional issues and pre IPO representations as well as civil injunctions. Instructed by Prospect Law.
In the Ukraine, he represented a number of high-net worth family members who alleged that companies that were run by their late father, involving oil/gas and steel production had been stolen for them.
The matter involved the alleged unlawful take over of those companies. The case was both complex and intricate due to the shear volume of paperwork generated, the jurisdictional issues that arose and the fact that the alleged fraudulent takeover involved forgery/ misrepresentation and deception. Instructed by Prospect Law.
In Nigeria, he was instructed to advise the Federal Government of Nigeria in respect of asset recovery services and the recovery of illicitly acquired wealth.
2025
Chambers & Partners
“William gives the clients confidence and reassurance, and is a good advocate.” “He is energetic, well-prepared and has excellent judgement. He is very impressive and respectful to the bench but at the same time fearless and persistent for his clients.” “William is one of the best orators in court and his advocacy is a delight to watch. Every time he speaks he is very tactical, genuine and an absolute delight to work with.”
Crime: Band 3
“William England is one of the best orators in court and his advocacy is a delight to watch every time he speaks.” “William is energetic and well prepared, with excellent judgement. He is fearlessly persistent for his clients.”
Financial Crime: Band 4
Legal 500
Crime: “If clients are after a big performance in conference and an even bigger performance in court, William is the barrister to go to. He is supremely confident and has the intelligence levels and tremendous work ethic to back it up. William is a top-level barrister in every sense of the word and judges respect him immensely.”
Ranked: Tier 3
Fraud: Crime
Ranked: Tier 3
2024
Chambers & Partners
“William is a good tactician, who is always thorough and totally involved in his cases.”
“You cannot fault him for his skill and enthusiasm.”
Crime: Band 3
“He has an assured and confident manner with judges.”
“William provides a great level of service to the client and is able to think strategically and tactically about how best to approach the matter.”
“William is smooth, suave and a very good advocate.”
“He has a flamboyant style in court and great experience.”
Financial Crime: Band 4
Legal 500
Crime: ‘William is a tactical genius and a cogent advocate.’
Ranked: Tier 4
Fraud:Crime: ‘William is a tactical genius and a cogent advocate. He is simply brilliant.’
Ranked: Tier 3
2023
Chambers & Partners
Crime: “A barrister with an assured style who is a good judge of a case.”
Ranked: Band 4
Legal 500
Crime: He is an incredible tactician and problem solver.’
Ranked: Tier 4
Fraud:Crime: ‘Will is a very experienced leading junior, he puts together well-drafted and well-crafted legal arguments. Very versatile.’
Ranked: Tier 3
2022
Chambers & Partners
Crime: “An able practitioner who reads the case well and is good with clients.”
Ranked: Band 4
Legal 500
Fraud:Crime: “William provides a commanding performance every time. The court listens when he speaks, such is his delivery.”
Ranked: Tier 3
2021
Chambers & Partners
Crime: “A force of nature.” “He’s very shrewd, good with clients and a fine cross-examiner.” “An exceptionally bright and extremely hard-working barrister.”
Legal 500: “A fighter who oozes confidence.”
2020
Chambers & Partners
Crime: “Unmissable in the courtroom and held in high esteem amongst other counsel. William never ceases to amaze the jury or his clients with his quick wit and charismatic approach.”
Legal 500: “Expertise in gang-related offences and large-scale importation”.