One Woman’s Search for Answers Became a Much Bigger Question.  

Part One  

By Adrienne Nairn

Thirty-seven years ago, I lost my father.

Like most families, I believed that, with time, we would grieve, heal and move forward together.  For the first ten years after his death, my stepmother and I enjoyed a wonderful relationship.  Then everything changed.  An unexpected eruption tore our family apart and I found myself witnessing something I never imagined possible.

My efforts to support my stepmother with love and compassion gradually slipped away.  Wills were changed. Property was gifted. Long standing family relationships broke down.  The  legacy my father had spent a lifetime building gradually disappeared.

Like many people, I believed there was only one course of action.

Go to the police.

If there are concerns about vulnerability, undue influence, fraud or dishonesty,  surely that is precisely what investigators are there to examine.

But the years passed.

Five different UK police forces became involved, together with Interpol and New Zealand Police.   Reviews followed.  Professional reports were commissioned. Countless questions were raised.  Yet some of the most important questions were never answered.

Was my stepmother’s property transfer lawful?

Were all relevant legal and financial implications properly considered?

Why were nine beneficiaries  removed from her Will leaving everything to my brother, her stepson?

Most importantly… why was there never a formal criminal investigation when sustantial evidence had been presented?

For the past twenty-seven years, I have devoted much of my life  trying to answer those questions. I have sought help from the police, regulators, lawyers, independent professionals and charities.  I commissioned an independent criminologist’s report and later a forensic investigation to examine the evidence from a fresh perspective.

My determination has never really been about recovering an inheritance.  It has always been about something much bigger. Protecting a family’s legacy.    Generational wealth is not simply money. It represents decades of hard work, sacrifice, treasured memories, family heirlooms and the relationships built over a lifetime.    These are the gifts parents and grandparents hope to leave  future generations, providing security, opportunity and a sense of belonging..  It was the legacy my father wanted for his only grandchild.

Hourglass is the UK’s only charity dedicated to ending the abuse, harm and neglect of older people.   I approached the charity for help but progress has been slow.   I now believe the only meaningful way forward is for the charity to pursue a super complaint concerning the handling of my case by the police forces involved.  They are working through the process and  I can only hope for a positive outcome.

I was encouraged  by His Majesty The King’s Speech to  Parliament earlier this year when he confirmed  Ministers would press ahead with significant reforms to policing and the criminal justice system to deliver the standard of service the British people rightly expect.

For years, I have consistently been told my experiences amount to a civil matter.    Fraud and theft are criminal offences.  Where the evidence justifies it, those matters deserve proper criminal investigation.  Ordinary families should not be expected to shoulder the enormous financial burden of pursuing concerns through the civil courts whilst  facing the risk of crippling legal costs.

If sharing my story encourages just one family to ask the right questions before it is too late, then my twenty-seven year search for answers will have been worthwhile.

Part Two

The Questions Every Investigator Should Ask

By Bridge Carter, Forensic Investigator and Director, Bridge to Justice Ltd

Working alongside Adrienne’s case made me realise something important.

Her story is not unique.

Across many unrelated investigations involving coercive control, financial exploitation, safeguarding concerns and vulnerable adults, I kept seeing exactly the same pattern.

Professionals investigated individual events.

Organisations reviewed individual complaints.

Regulators examined individual decisions.

Very few people appeared to step back and ask whether those separate events formed part of a much bigger picture.

When significant assets change hands involving a vulnerable person, shouldn’t every investigator routinely ask some simple questions?

  • Who ultimately benefited?
  • What assets changed hands?
  • When did they change hands?
  • Why did they change?
  • Who prepared the legal documents?
  • Were concerns about vulnerability properly explored?
  • Was coercive control considered?
  • Were financial transactions examined alongside safeguarding concerns?
  • Most importantly…

Who followed the money?

These are not accusations.

They are simply the questions that help distinguish legitimate decision-making from the possible exploitation of vulnerability.

Coercive control is recognised in law.

Fraud is recognised in law.

Theft is recognised in law.

Support organisations provide an invaluable service and help countless victims rebuild their lives. They should never, however, be expected to replace proper investigation where evidence suggests one may be required.

Perhaps the greatest challenge facing us is not that we lack legislation.

Perhaps it is that we continue to investigate individual events rather than recognising patterns.

One changed will may prove very little.

One property transfer may appear entirely legitimate.

One bank transaction may seem insignificant.

Viewed together, however, those same events may tell a very different story.

Patterns matter.

That is one of the central themes of my forthcoming book, The Disconnected Helm. Across countless unrelated cases, I have found that harm is rarely hidden in a single event. More often, it is hidden in the connections between them.

Perhaps the question every family should ask is not simply:

“What happened?”

Perhaps it is:

“Who followed the money?”

Because if nobody did…

…why not?

About Adrienne Nairn

Adrienne is  the author of My Brother My Enemy, The Final Chapter which is available through amazon.  Her autobiography tells the deeply personal story behind her family’s experiences and her determination to raise awareness of coercive control, financial exploitation and the protection of vulnerable adults.   The paperback, My Brother My Enemy is available from www.ablelimitededitions.co.uk

About Bridge Carter

Bridge Carter is a forensic investigator and Director of Bridge to Justice Ltd. Her work focuses on coercive control, financial exploitation, safeguarding, professional enabling and systemic failure. Her forthcoming book, The Disconnected Helm, explores why organisations often investigate events whilst missing the patterns that connect them.