‘In some ways that’s the most interesting part of the whole case. We uncovered plenty of evidence that someone senior at Aqua Holdings was aware of significant accounting irregularities at several subsidiaries as long as nine months ago. Thanks to Thames Valley Police, we found on Arrowsmith’s laptop communications between him and the group financial controller. It was clear that when Arrowsmith was challenged he peddled the idea to senior management that he had been working for years to try to pin down Ozzy Blanchard’s fraudulent activity. In fact it’s now clear to me that he and Blanchard, and several other employees, must have been in cahoots. Blanchard was simply one of the minor players who Arrowsmith needed on the ground. However, Arrowsmith and his boss weren’t as much intent on uncovering the fraud as on covering it up. Arrowsmith was asked to untangle the source of the embezzlement, but to keep secret the fact he was doing so. The company authorised the use of a private detective, but again this was known only to a few senior executives.’

‘Why on earth would they do that?’ Gillard asked.

‘Because the water regulator Ofwat was just finalising a two-year-long investigation of the company, and whether it breached its statutory duties. It’s a bit like an Ofsted inspection of a school, with the final report having huge implications for investors, and how cheaply the parent company can continue to borrow money in the financial markets. The company couldn’t afford to have any bad news emerge before the report was published.’

‘And when was that?’

‘The end of June. Just a few weeks ago. Pity me, Craig, because I’ve ploughed through the entire thing, all 216 pages. There is plenty of mention of the poor operational performance in terms of sewage spills and so forth, for which it will continue to be fined, and some recognition of the investment made to prevent future occurrences. But ironically it is for financial management of all things that the company gets its best marks.’

‘So to boil it all down,’ Gillard said. ‘The water company was taking at face value what the regional financial controller Kelvin Arrowsmith told it about the source of the fraud?’

‘Yes.’

‘And then conspiring with him to prevent the regulator and the financial markets discovering what has been going on.’

‘It’s not unusual, Craig. I’ve dealt with fraud and embezzlement for decades, and every time the reaction of companies is the same. Batten down the hatches, pay off the miscreants in exchange for a gagging clause, and pray that no one ever knows. It’s true of hacking, of cyber-attacks, basically anything that affects the reputation of a company.’

‘So they would have hated the fact you were investigating them?’

She laughed. ‘In the early days I was told in no uncertain terms that it would be investigated internally, but they didn’t think any crimes had been committed.’