1 00:00:21,363 --> 00:00:27,003 [phone ringing] 2 00:00:28,963 --> 00:00:31,243 [suspenseful music] 3 00:00:31,323 --> 00:00:33,523 [Aylia Fox] Everybody has a secret. 4 00:00:36,803 --> 00:00:39,363 And it was our job to discover that secret 5 00:00:42,603 --> 00:00:44,443 whatever it took. 6 00:00:47,403 --> 00:00:50,803 As News of the World journalists, we could get to anyone. 7 00:00:50,923 --> 00:00:52,843 It didn't matter who you were. 8 00:00:54,723 --> 00:00:56,243 Actors, 9 00:00:57,083 --> 00:00:58,523 footballers, 10 00:00:59,523 --> 00:01:00,923 models, 11 00:01:02,603 --> 00:01:04,243 even royals. 12 00:01:04,603 --> 00:01:05,883 Didn't matter who. 13 00:01:06,443 --> 00:01:08,043 Anyone was fair game. 14 00:01:08,603 --> 00:01:10,963 [phone ringing] 15 00:01:13,683 --> 00:01:16,443 [suspenseful music intensifies] 16 00:01:17,483 --> 00:01:19,803 [Emma Morgan] Back in the 90s I was a model, 17 00:01:19,883 --> 00:01:22,123 living this jet-setting lifestyle. 18 00:01:24,803 --> 00:01:27,163 And one night, I flew home to London. 19 00:01:27,443 --> 00:01:31,803 It was late at night, I got off the plane, I got a taxi back home, 20 00:01:32,283 --> 00:01:36,123 and I felt refreshed, I'd just had a lovely break. 21 00:01:37,563 --> 00:01:38,843 I was on top of the world. 22 00:01:43,963 --> 00:01:47,043 Whoever you were, we'd sting you, we'd catch you in the act, 23 00:01:47,123 --> 00:01:49,163 all snapped, recorded and filmed. 24 00:01:53,643 --> 00:01:58,443 Just as the presses were about to roll, you had to make that one last phone call. 25 00:01:59,243 --> 00:02:02,203 [phone ringing] 26 00:02:03,203 --> 00:02:05,603 [Emma Morgan] When I arrived back at my flat, 27 00:02:06,163 --> 00:02:09,363 I saw that my answering machine had the blinking light on, 28 00:02:09,443 --> 00:02:11,203 which told me I had a message. 29 00:02:12,603 --> 00:02:16,763 And it was somebody from the News of the World. 30 00:02:19,643 --> 00:02:22,443 It wasn't an easy phone call for either party, 31 00:02:22,763 --> 00:02:26,923 and 99 percent of the time they either slam the phone down 32 00:02:27,003 --> 00:02:28,443 or decline to comment. 33 00:02:31,163 --> 00:02:36,483 It was a message informing me that I would be in the News of the World 34 00:02:36,603 --> 00:02:41,363 the following morning on a drug scandal, 35 00:02:41,923 --> 00:02:44,563 and would I like to make any comments? 36 00:02:46,003 --> 00:02:48,043 I just... 37 00:02:48,683 --> 00:02:52,763 I think I needed to sit down. In fact, I did. 38 00:02:54,803 --> 00:02:57,963 [Aylia Fox] You knew their life would change and they knew too. 39 00:02:58,043 --> 00:03:00,963 So, you almost felt sorry for them. Almost. 40 00:03:03,003 --> 00:03:07,083 I remember just sitting on the floor in complete shock. 41 00:03:07,163 --> 00:03:10,363 I didn't know... I didn't even piece the story together 42 00:03:10,443 --> 00:03:12,563 with what had just happened. 43 00:03:12,643 --> 00:03:15,923 I was thinking, what is this about? What are you talking about? 44 00:03:17,003 --> 00:03:20,443 [phone ringing] 45 00:03:23,963 --> 00:03:29,483 [Jodie Kidd] It's a moment where your blood just drains from your whole body. 46 00:03:29,563 --> 00:03:32,523 It's that complete panic, you know, that fight or flight 47 00:03:32,643 --> 00:03:35,883 and you just go, what has happened? 48 00:03:36,803 --> 00:03:39,883 [phone ringing] 49 00:03:44,963 --> 00:03:48,443 [Tulisa Contostavlos crying] My life is ruined, it's over. 50 00:03:49,043 --> 00:03:51,723 I just want my life back. 51 00:03:56,323 --> 00:03:59,323 If your phone just started ringing at home late at night, 52 00:03:59,523 --> 00:04:01,603 on a Friday, Saturday morning, 53 00:04:01,683 --> 00:04:05,323 the last person you wanted to hear from was Mazher Mahmood. 54 00:04:07,643 --> 00:04:09,963 [intense music] 55 00:04:10,443 --> 00:04:12,043 The Fake Sheikh. 56 00:04:15,443 --> 00:04:18,723 [suspenseful music] 57 00:04:21,043 --> 00:04:24,803 [newsreader] The trial of Mazher Mahmood, the journalist known as the Fake Sheikh 58 00:04:24,843 --> 00:04:26,763 has opened at the Old Bailey. 59 00:04:26,963 --> 00:04:29,043 [suspenseful music] 60 00:04:29,363 --> 00:04:32,123 [Jodie Kidd] It was so unbelievable it was believable. 61 00:04:32,202 --> 00:04:33,723 You know, this can't be fake. 62 00:04:34,163 --> 00:04:37,043 [suspenseful music] 63 00:04:38,283 --> 00:04:42,083 [newsreader] For 30 years, he has reveled in hiding his identity. 64 00:04:43,283 --> 00:04:49,043 [George Galloway] His anonymity, his secrecy, was the key to his entire act. 65 00:04:49,283 --> 00:04:50,843 [ominous music] 66 00:04:50,923 --> 00:04:53,643 [newsreader] The self-styled king of the sting, 67 00:04:53,723 --> 00:04:57,643 turning up to court every day beneath a balaclava. 68 00:04:57,723 --> 00:05:03,283 [Jeremy Dean] I think he was ruthless, dishonest, and a merciless individual. 69 00:05:04,483 --> 00:05:07,643 [newsreader] Mazher Mahmood has been behind huge tabloid scoops, 70 00:05:07,723 --> 00:05:11,043 things like uncovering match fixing in Pakistani cricket 71 00:05:11,123 --> 00:05:13,843 and a plan to kidnap Victoria Beckham. 72 00:05:15,843 --> 00:05:18,203 [Neil Wallis] Maz played on this caricature 73 00:05:18,603 --> 00:05:21,123 that money literally could be no objection. 74 00:05:21,203 --> 00:05:23,963 If you got close, you could grab your share of it. 75 00:05:24,403 --> 00:05:27,083 [suspenseful music] 76 00:05:32,443 --> 00:05:34,202 [Emma Morgan] I hate to say it. 77 00:05:34,283 --> 00:05:36,483 He's very, very, very good at what he does. 78 00:05:38,083 --> 00:05:40,403 [music intensifies] 79 00:05:52,483 --> 00:05:54,003 [indistinct chatter] 80 00:05:56,683 --> 00:06:01,283 [Paul Samrai] People are going to think that this never happened, but it did. 81 00:06:02,083 --> 00:06:04,523 Strange as it may sound, 82 00:06:04,963 --> 00:06:08,443 you may not believe it, but this actually did happen. 83 00:06:09,003 --> 00:06:11,523 [eerie music] 84 00:06:20,403 --> 00:06:22,443 Let's go back to the 90s. 85 00:06:24,643 --> 00:06:26,803 I'd done time in prison for fraud, 86 00:06:27,163 --> 00:06:31,723 and when I came out, I had no work, but I wanted to be a journalist. 87 00:06:32,923 --> 00:06:35,363 So I got in touch with Mazher Mahmood. 88 00:06:36,963 --> 00:06:39,963 He wasn't called the Fake Sheikh then, he was Mazher Mahmood, 89 00:06:40,043 --> 00:06:42,683 and he said to me, "Do you want to work with me? 90 00:06:42,763 --> 00:06:45,603 Come and see me, and you better bring some stories." 91 00:06:46,163 --> 00:06:48,323 [dramatic music] 92 00:07:00,123 --> 00:07:04,603 At that time I was known as the pizza man, the man who always delivers 93 00:07:04,683 --> 00:07:06,563 [phone ringing] 94 00:07:06,643 --> 00:07:10,803 So one night I get a call from a man calling himself Dr. Rangwani. 95 00:07:11,483 --> 00:07:14,923 He's a well-respected, 62-year-old GP, 96 00:07:15,003 --> 00:07:19,483 a married family man with two daughters, from Solihull in Birmingham. 97 00:07:19,723 --> 00:07:23,803 So he explained, he said, "I'm telling you in confidence, 98 00:07:23,883 --> 00:07:26,643 I'm having trouble with a girlfriend." 99 00:07:27,603 --> 00:07:31,003 He'd been having a 15-year affair, 100 00:07:31,323 --> 00:07:36,403 and she was claiming that he was the father of her three sons. 101 00:07:36,563 --> 00:07:41,163 This would leave his reputation, both professional and personal, 102 00:07:41,243 --> 00:07:42,483 in tatters. 103 00:07:43,043 --> 00:07:44,923 So Dr. Rangwani says, 104 00:07:45,003 --> 00:07:47,363 "I've been thinking. You've been to prison..." 105 00:07:47,443 --> 00:07:49,603 I said, "Yes, I have." 106 00:07:49,683 --> 00:07:52,363 He said, "You must know killers, murderers." 107 00:07:52,443 --> 00:07:54,123 "I've come across them, yes." 108 00:07:55,043 --> 00:07:57,083 He said, "I want her dead." 109 00:07:57,163 --> 00:07:58,963 [ominous tone] 110 00:07:59,123 --> 00:08:01,843 I said, "Okay, I'll see what I can do." 111 00:08:03,523 --> 00:08:06,043 [ominous tones] 112 00:08:06,763 --> 00:08:10,163 I had to make a decision. One was either... 113 00:08:11,923 --> 00:08:13,483 ...go to the police, 114 00:08:14,043 --> 00:08:18,243 which is what a normal person would do, 115 00:08:19,243 --> 00:08:21,043 or go to Maz. 116 00:08:21,963 --> 00:08:25,683 [suspenseful music] 117 00:08:29,723 --> 00:08:31,603 So I called Maz. 118 00:08:33,842 --> 00:08:36,082 He said, "Look, this is what we're gonna do. 119 00:08:36,163 --> 00:08:38,003 I'm gonna come to Birmingham." 120 00:08:38,163 --> 00:08:40,803 [intense music] 121 00:08:44,082 --> 00:08:47,043 "So we're going to book a room in the Hyatt in Birmingham. 122 00:08:49,323 --> 00:08:51,683 I am going to be the hitman." 123 00:08:52,203 --> 00:08:55,163 Rangwani for a minute would never imagine 124 00:08:55,243 --> 00:08:58,243 that he was a reporter for the News of the World. 125 00:09:00,523 --> 00:09:05,883 The first thing Maz would do on any sting was bug the room from floor to ceiling. 126 00:09:07,483 --> 00:09:11,683 And then it was my job to bring Rangwani into the meeting. 127 00:09:14,683 --> 00:09:19,683 So, knock knock and we walk in, and I glance around the room, 128 00:09:19,803 --> 00:09:23,163 and the most telling thing I see is there is a wash bag 129 00:09:24,003 --> 00:09:25,803 placed on the table. 130 00:09:30,283 --> 00:09:32,643 We had to catch Rangwani bang to rights. 131 00:09:32,923 --> 00:09:34,803 We had to get it on camera. 132 00:09:36,403 --> 00:09:38,643 And you could clearly see in the footage 133 00:09:38,683 --> 00:09:43,003 Rangwani admitting to wanting his mistress killed. 134 00:09:43,083 --> 00:09:44,923 Frankly, it was shocking. 135 00:09:45,043 --> 00:09:47,563 [Mazher] You want it to look like an accident, or what? 136 00:09:47,683 --> 00:09:50,683 [Rangwani] That is, you know what to do, I leave that entirely up to you. 137 00:09:50,803 --> 00:09:52,563 [Mazher] But you want her killed? 138 00:09:52,643 --> 00:09:54,643 [Rangwani] Off my life and scene... 139 00:09:55,323 --> 00:09:57,923 [dark music] 140 00:09:58,483 --> 00:10:01,403 [Paul Samrai] Maz says, "Great, 5,000 pounds, cash. 141 00:10:01,643 --> 00:10:05,803 You have to pay half upfront and half when the job is done. 142 00:10:06,323 --> 00:10:08,803 [ominous music] 143 00:10:14,803 --> 00:10:16,683 [Paul Samrai] So a few days later, 144 00:10:16,763 --> 00:10:19,643 we arranged to get the money from the doctor. 145 00:10:21,203 --> 00:10:24,363 We had a van near the meeting point 146 00:10:24,443 --> 00:10:27,923 where our tech guy was hiding with a video camera. 147 00:10:32,163 --> 00:10:36,283 We had to get Dr. Rangwani on camera handing over the money. 148 00:10:36,483 --> 00:10:39,683 That would be crucial evidence of intent. 149 00:10:40,563 --> 00:10:42,683 So, Rangwani comes out, 150 00:10:42,803 --> 00:10:47,043 Maz said to Dr. Rangwani, "Okay, where's the deposit?" 151 00:10:47,123 --> 00:10:50,203 He gets out an envelope. Unbelievable footage. 152 00:10:50,763 --> 00:10:52,803 [Mazher] That's the money, yeah? 153 00:10:53,163 --> 00:10:56,043 [Paul Samrai] That was crucial evidence of intent. 154 00:10:56,643 --> 00:11:00,443 So, Maz then said, "Right you will hear from us when it's done." 155 00:11:01,163 --> 00:11:03,403 The footage is quite shaky, 156 00:11:03,523 --> 00:11:06,643 but we needed to catch the doctor's reaction. 157 00:11:08,483 --> 00:11:13,323 On his way back, Rangwani does a triumphant fist pump into the air. 158 00:11:15,683 --> 00:11:18,563 [suspenseful music] 159 00:11:19,163 --> 00:11:21,283 Maz says, "I've got him." 160 00:11:26,083 --> 00:11:28,883 So Friday goes by, Saturday morning, 161 00:11:28,963 --> 00:11:31,163 Maz rings me, "Right, everything is set. 162 00:11:31,243 --> 00:11:34,123 When he rings you, and he's going to, 163 00:11:34,483 --> 00:11:38,403 you tell him that it's going to happen today." 164 00:11:39,123 --> 00:11:41,523 He said, "You've got to be realistic, 165 00:11:42,563 --> 00:11:45,723 when he rings, run up and down the stairs, get out of breath. 166 00:11:45,963 --> 00:11:48,123 Yeah, make your voice sound stressed. 167 00:11:48,203 --> 00:11:50,963 Record that phone call and make it realistic." 168 00:11:55,723 --> 00:11:58,803 He calls in the afternoon, and I'll never forget the words. 169 00:11:58,883 --> 00:12:01,803 He rings, I answer, press the record. 170 00:12:02,203 --> 00:12:05,123 [breathing heavily] "Yes? Yes, Doc?" 171 00:12:05,443 --> 00:12:07,803 And he says, "Is it done?" 172 00:12:09,203 --> 00:12:11,163 I said, "What?" 173 00:12:11,443 --> 00:12:13,923 "Is she done? Is it done?" 174 00:12:14,043 --> 00:12:15,803 I said, "Yes, it is done." 175 00:12:15,883 --> 00:12:17,683 [ominous music] 176 00:12:17,763 --> 00:12:20,243 He was arrested on the Saturday afternoon, 177 00:12:20,323 --> 00:12:23,843 the story went in on the Sunday, and there it was. 178 00:12:23,923 --> 00:12:25,403 Big spread. 179 00:12:27,603 --> 00:12:30,043 [tense music] 180 00:12:31,243 --> 00:12:33,763 [newsreader] Dr. Rangwani was a respected man. 181 00:12:33,843 --> 00:12:35,723 The judge, Mr. Justice Alliot, 182 00:12:35,803 --> 00:12:40,603 said he invented a mass of elaborate lies to try to get away with his crime, 183 00:12:40,683 --> 00:12:42,843 but had shown not a flicker of remorse. 184 00:12:45,563 --> 00:12:51,363 Dr. Rangwani, after being found guilty, he was sentenced to seven years in prison. 185 00:12:53,683 --> 00:12:57,603 I was really grateful to Maz, because I was an ex-convict, 186 00:12:57,683 --> 00:13:01,563 and that association with Maz, the prestige that came with it, 187 00:13:01,923 --> 00:13:03,803 gave me my self-confidence back. 188 00:13:03,963 --> 00:13:07,003 That now, I was doing something purposeful. 189 00:13:09,483 --> 00:13:11,443 I've been a policeman a long time, 190 00:13:11,603 --> 00:13:14,123 and I don't think this would've ever come to court. 191 00:13:14,203 --> 00:13:18,403 had it not been for the way it'd been investigated by the newspapers. 192 00:13:19,723 --> 00:13:23,763 [♪Happy Mondays: "God's Cop"] 193 00:13:31,403 --> 00:13:35,963 [Paul McMullan] The 90s was the golden age of tabloid journalism. 194 00:13:37,123 --> 00:13:40,203 Imagine a world without the internet, without a mobile phone. 195 00:13:40,723 --> 00:13:44,443 That newspaper is literally where you got your news from. 196 00:13:45,323 --> 00:13:49,523 And so, we had the power to mould the way people thought. 197 00:13:51,003 --> 00:13:55,843 ♪ I can virtually do anything I read ♪ 198 00:13:55,923 --> 00:13:59,203 ♪ Someone somewhere swam between your knees... ♪ ♪ 199 00:13:59,283 --> 00:14:03,763 Nobody today should underestimate just how big the News of the World was in the 90s. 200 00:14:03,883 --> 00:14:06,763 It was massive, it was the paper everybody talked about. 201 00:14:06,843 --> 00:14:09,563 It was the biggest selling Sunday newspaper in the world. 202 00:14:09,963 --> 00:14:13,003 It was always some scandal or some celebrity or politician 203 00:14:13,083 --> 00:14:14,323 who'd been up to no good 204 00:14:14,443 --> 00:14:16,963 and you'd learn about it from the News of the World. 205 00:14:17,043 --> 00:14:19,163 ♪ God made it easy ♪ 206 00:14:19,243 --> 00:14:21,723 ♪ God made it easy on me ♪ 207 00:14:21,803 --> 00:14:24,843 ♪ God made it easy on me ♪ 208 00:14:25,523 --> 00:14:27,763 ♪ God made it easy ♪ 209 00:14:28,003 --> 00:14:32,323 ♪ God made it easy on me God made it easy on me... ♪♪ 210 00:14:33,283 --> 00:14:36,683 [Paul McMullan] Mazher and myself were both undercover investigators 211 00:14:36,763 --> 00:14:39,803 for the News of the World, but we were completely different, 212 00:14:40,243 --> 00:14:43,523 because I was there to sell newspapers and entertain and titillate, 213 00:14:43,603 --> 00:14:47,763 he was there as an avenging angel to send people to jail. 214 00:14:48,643 --> 00:14:51,723 But he didn't socialise with us, he didn't drink with us, 215 00:14:52,323 --> 00:14:55,403 he stuck with his own little team. 216 00:14:55,523 --> 00:14:59,323 I was desperate to be his friend and nick his contacts. 217 00:14:59,403 --> 00:15:03,203 I do remember going up to him and saying, "I'd really like to work with you." 218 00:15:03,403 --> 00:15:08,683 And his reply was, "Yeah, that's not happening." 219 00:15:08,763 --> 00:15:10,803 [suspenseful music] 220 00:15:16,883 --> 00:15:19,363 I was in the Maz gang. 221 00:15:19,723 --> 00:15:21,963 Now, that is something to be proud of. 222 00:15:24,083 --> 00:15:28,443 It was almost as if he was an undercover secret agent. 223 00:15:29,163 --> 00:15:30,403 A man of mystery. 224 00:15:34,563 --> 00:15:38,323 It was known, you didn't leave photographs of Maz lying around. 225 00:15:38,403 --> 00:15:40,843 You'd obviously have him in lots of the photos, 226 00:15:40,923 --> 00:15:42,803 but you'd hand it to the picture desk 227 00:15:43,043 --> 00:15:46,363 and they would draw with a black marker pen through the eyes. 228 00:15:47,963 --> 00:15:50,723 [intense music] 229 00:15:51,323 --> 00:15:55,883 Mazher really enjoyed playing a role, he really enjoyed acting. 230 00:16:00,003 --> 00:16:05,723 He had kind of an aura of a child kind of thing, like a boy prince. 231 00:16:10,123 --> 00:16:13,923 And then he used that boy to be a better undercover person, 232 00:16:14,003 --> 00:16:16,083 like children are good at dressing up. 233 00:16:19,763 --> 00:16:22,923 Me and Maz were very, very close. We were thick as thieves. 234 00:16:27,163 --> 00:16:29,003 I did lots of things for Maz. 235 00:16:29,243 --> 00:16:31,243 I dressed as an Arab, 236 00:16:31,643 --> 00:16:33,203 I dressed as a woman, 237 00:16:33,323 --> 00:16:35,363 I bugged houses for Maz. 238 00:16:36,003 --> 00:16:37,883 In fact, I done everything for Maz. 239 00:16:44,243 --> 00:16:47,003 [Christine Hart] The team Mazher surrounded himself with 240 00:16:47,083 --> 00:16:49,403 were all misfits to some degree or other. 241 00:16:49,563 --> 00:16:52,883 They didn't really fit into society and were somehow outsiders 242 00:16:52,963 --> 00:16:55,003 because he was an outsider. 243 00:16:57,123 --> 00:17:00,683 At the time, Maz was the only Asian journalist on News of the World. 244 00:17:02,883 --> 00:17:05,563 And in those days, there were limitations 245 00:17:05,603 --> 00:17:08,323 on what Asian journalists could do. 246 00:17:08,683 --> 00:17:11,122 [ominous music] 247 00:17:11,362 --> 00:17:17,122 Maz was limited to stories about Asians, or stories about racism. 248 00:17:19,362 --> 00:17:22,803 If Maz wanted to do celebrities 249 00:17:22,843 --> 00:17:25,923 or corruption in British institutions, 250 00:17:26,763 --> 00:17:29,843 the editors had a sort of a mind block. 251 00:17:31,363 --> 00:17:34,843 They could not see how an Asian or Black journalist 252 00:17:35,443 --> 00:17:39,123 could do the same bonding with a white target. 253 00:17:41,323 --> 00:17:45,243 So, he decided to turn that on its head 254 00:17:45,963 --> 00:17:52,043 and he learned how to play it to the absolute max to get what he wanted. 255 00:17:52,483 --> 00:17:55,363 [intense percussive music] 256 00:17:59,683 --> 00:18:03,123 [Neil Wallis] Maz had this idea, the Fake Sheikh. 257 00:18:09,203 --> 00:18:12,243 [suspenseful Middle Eastern-style music] 258 00:18:17,923 --> 00:18:20,763 It was actually a piece of genius. 259 00:18:23,843 --> 00:18:28,963 There was an image then of these incredibly wealthy Arabs 260 00:18:29,083 --> 00:18:30,723 arriving in London. 261 00:18:33,763 --> 00:18:38,203 Sort of transplanting their obscene wealth here 262 00:18:38,723 --> 00:18:41,283 to the point where they could do what they want. 263 00:18:41,963 --> 00:18:45,603 They had no sense of their own money and there incredible wealth, 264 00:18:45,923 --> 00:18:49,803 and simply to be anywhere near it was to be dazzled by it. 265 00:18:54,723 --> 00:19:00,203 [Aylia Fox] Because your average person had no familiarity with Arab culture, 266 00:19:00,363 --> 00:19:04,523 or Sheikhs, or what Sheikhs did, what Sheikhs said, 267 00:19:04,843 --> 00:19:06,283 how Sheikhs acted, 268 00:19:06,603 --> 00:19:10,603 I think Mazher presumed people would act on their prejudices. 269 00:19:10,923 --> 00:19:14,083 [intense music] 270 00:19:15,363 --> 00:19:19,803 [Paul Samrai] So Maz very cleverly tapped into the zeitgeist of the era. 271 00:19:21,323 --> 00:19:26,203 He realised he could play the race card as his ace card. 272 00:19:30,483 --> 00:19:34,363 One of the common ways that he got his stories was through the hotline, 273 00:19:34,683 --> 00:19:39,203 which was always advertised week in week out in the News of the World. 274 00:19:39,963 --> 00:19:43,563 Do you know a scandal Mazher Mahmood can investigate? 275 00:19:44,243 --> 00:19:47,043 Call us! We pay the best! 276 00:19:48,843 --> 00:19:50,603 [phone ringing] 277 00:19:50,723 --> 00:19:54,563 This motivated a lot of people, a lot of people, to ring in. 278 00:20:01,243 --> 00:20:04,723 [Aylia Fox] The process for Mazher Mahmood of becoming the Fake Sheikh 279 00:20:04,803 --> 00:20:06,003 was a process. 280 00:20:06,323 --> 00:20:07,963 And he had to start small. 281 00:20:08,043 --> 00:20:10,963 He couldn't expect to go straight into massive celebrity stories 282 00:20:11,043 --> 00:20:12,763 when he'd not practised his art. 283 00:20:13,723 --> 00:20:18,803 I think one of the ways he did this was by going for lesser-known people, 284 00:20:18,923 --> 00:20:23,683 perhaps people that were more easily manipulated 285 00:20:23,763 --> 00:20:26,523 into the situation that he was creating. 286 00:20:29,363 --> 00:20:34,483 One day I got a call and it was a tip on Emma Morgan, 287 00:20:34,843 --> 00:20:36,123 a very good tip. 288 00:20:37,003 --> 00:20:41,083 Emma Morgan was one of the biggest Page 3 girls at that time, 289 00:20:41,443 --> 00:20:44,363 and we heard she takes drugs. 290 00:20:45,283 --> 00:20:49,043 It was the perfect job for Maz to try the Fake Sheikh out on. 291 00:20:51,203 --> 00:20:56,083 So I was 24 and I was a glamour model in the 90s, 292 00:20:56,123 --> 00:20:59,483 modelling for all the tabloids, The Sun and the News of the World. 293 00:21:00,043 --> 00:21:03,083 Page 3 was basically a topless girl, 294 00:21:03,123 --> 00:21:05,843 on page three of The Sun newspaper. 295 00:21:06,003 --> 00:21:08,763 I know many would be like, "Why would you want to do that?" 296 00:21:08,843 --> 00:21:10,723 But it was a thing. 297 00:21:10,803 --> 00:21:13,483 I would say Page 3 girls back in the day 298 00:21:13,563 --> 00:21:15,763 would be likened to Love Island, 299 00:21:15,843 --> 00:21:17,923 and I know they don't walk around with their boobs out, 300 00:21:18,003 --> 00:21:19,963 but we see plenty of bum cheeks, don't we? 301 00:21:20,043 --> 00:21:22,843 So it was that kind of a thing, it was glamour. 302 00:21:24,683 --> 00:21:27,003 [suspenseful music] 303 00:21:30,363 --> 00:21:35,123 [Steve Grayson] I spoke to Mazher and he said we'll have to work a plan out, 304 00:21:35,203 --> 00:21:36,683 how we can get her. 305 00:21:37,803 --> 00:21:40,123 He said, "What about a calendar? That'd be good. 306 00:21:40,283 --> 00:21:42,603 Offer her thousands of pounds." 307 00:21:44,843 --> 00:21:49,123 I rang Emma, and I said "You know, I've got a fantastic opportunity for you 308 00:21:49,363 --> 00:21:51,923 I told her an Arab Sheikh was involved. 309 00:21:53,963 --> 00:21:58,163 I just couldn't believe how lucky I was, I felt so blessed and so excited 310 00:21:58,243 --> 00:22:00,843 it was just the job of my dreams. 311 00:22:00,963 --> 00:22:03,443 It felt like I'd hit the jackpot with it, you know? 312 00:22:03,803 --> 00:22:05,523 I was so, so excited. 313 00:22:08,843 --> 00:22:12,483 And I asked Maz, "How are we gonna get her on coke?" 314 00:22:13,803 --> 00:22:16,723 [suspenseful music] 315 00:22:17,123 --> 00:22:19,443 [Emma Morgan] We flew to Lanzarote. 316 00:22:20,883 --> 00:22:24,723 We landed and we were going through the arrivals hall. 317 00:22:25,603 --> 00:22:28,203 And then I saw somebody that I knew. 318 00:22:28,523 --> 00:22:30,243 His name was Billy. 319 00:22:31,723 --> 00:22:36,163 Maz said to me, "The person" who rang up the tip line was a guy called Billy." 320 00:22:36,243 --> 00:22:40,083 This Billy was supposedly Emma's friend. 321 00:22:43,083 --> 00:22:47,563 [Emma Morgan] How I knew Billy was I'd done previous shoots in Lanzarote. 322 00:22:47,643 --> 00:22:50,843 I said, "What are you doing here?" He said, "I'm your bodyguard." 323 00:22:50,923 --> 00:22:54,243 I thought, oh my God, this Sheikh has got me a bodyguard. 324 00:22:54,323 --> 00:22:56,683 It was just making me feel super, super special. 325 00:22:59,723 --> 00:23:03,443 [Steve Grayson] Then Maz said Emma's friend Billy would supply the drugs. 326 00:23:04,003 --> 00:23:07,283 [ominous music] 327 00:23:13,003 --> 00:23:16,363 [Emma Morgan] I got to the hotel. Steve's like waved me off. 328 00:23:16,483 --> 00:23:21,203 He said, "Order whatever you like, the Sheikh will pay for everything. 329 00:23:21,363 --> 00:23:23,043 No request is too big." 330 00:23:24,963 --> 00:23:29,003 [Steve Grayson] I got to the hotel and I rang Maz and said, 331 00:23:29,083 --> 00:23:32,243 "She's here. It's time for the sting." 332 00:23:32,323 --> 00:23:33,643 [dramatic tones] 333 00:23:37,363 --> 00:23:41,203 We needed sound and we needed shot. We needed the film. 334 00:23:41,283 --> 00:23:43,883 If we didn't have that, we didn't have the story. 335 00:23:43,963 --> 00:23:46,443 Then Mazher came in to the hotel room 336 00:23:46,923 --> 00:23:49,603 where I was working out where to put the cameras. 337 00:23:51,003 --> 00:23:56,443 There was a radiator with a criss-cross wood lattice. 338 00:23:56,523 --> 00:23:58,763 So I put the camera in that. 339 00:24:00,203 --> 00:24:04,563 Maz pretended to put the cocaine down and he did that. Perfect. 340 00:24:04,643 --> 00:24:06,243 Absolutely perfect. 341 00:24:06,323 --> 00:24:07,963 So the room was set. 342 00:24:08,523 --> 00:24:12,203 The camera was ready, the sound was ready, everything was ready. 343 00:24:12,523 --> 00:24:16,003 All we needed is for Emma to come in. 344 00:24:16,923 --> 00:24:19,523 [emotional music] 345 00:24:22,923 --> 00:24:26,163 I remember walking out the corridor and I sort of going to knock, 346 00:24:26,243 --> 00:24:28,963 and I was all nervous, I knocked on the door. 347 00:24:32,763 --> 00:24:35,683 [Steve Grayson] When Emma walked in, Maz greets her. 348 00:24:35,763 --> 00:24:38,603 He wasn't in his robes, he was just in a suit. 349 00:24:38,723 --> 00:24:43,403 He greets her with two hands, like he's an Arab prince. 350 00:24:44,443 --> 00:24:47,403 He's always over the top, "I think you're beautiful. 351 00:24:47,483 --> 00:24:50,963 I think you'll be wonderful, absolutely wonderful in a calendar. 352 00:24:53,123 --> 00:24:55,683 [Emma Morgan] He was dressed very, very smart. 353 00:24:55,763 --> 00:25:00,323 I noticed his skin was lovely, his nails were perfectly manicured, 354 00:25:00,403 --> 00:25:04,163 he had big gold watch on his wrist. 355 00:25:06,843 --> 00:25:10,723 I just remember thinking he exuded class and charisma. 356 00:25:13,003 --> 00:25:15,243 And there was champagne there. 357 00:25:16,043 --> 00:25:18,043 And Billy was also in the room. 358 00:25:20,683 --> 00:25:24,163 [Steve Grayson] The atmosphere in the hotel room was wonderful, 359 00:25:24,723 --> 00:25:31,443 but I was nervous because it was always worrying putting these cameras in. 360 00:25:32,683 --> 00:25:34,883 Because they could bloody drop on the floor. 361 00:25:35,123 --> 00:25:39,483 The battery could go down just when she's about to snort the cocaine. 362 00:25:40,083 --> 00:25:43,963 I was worried all the time because it had to work. 363 00:25:46,003 --> 00:25:48,523 [soft dramatic music] 364 00:25:50,603 --> 00:25:54,563 Billy said, all of a sudden he said, "Do you want some coke?" 365 00:25:58,963 --> 00:26:04,283 She was quite, not shocked, but she looked enough to say, 366 00:26:04,363 --> 00:26:07,283 "Bloody hell," you know, I think she was a bit flustered. 367 00:26:07,843 --> 00:26:12,163 Maz said, "Oh, go on, we don't care, it will be no problem." 368 00:26:12,243 --> 00:26:14,963 And he was giving it all the Arab act. 369 00:26:18,003 --> 00:26:21,323 [Emma Morgan] He saw me refuse and he said, "No, no, no, come on." 370 00:26:21,403 --> 00:26:23,123 I can't remember the exact words, 371 00:26:23,203 --> 00:26:26,763 but I was encouraged so much to do some cocaine. 372 00:26:26,843 --> 00:26:31,483 I'd probably tried cocaine less than a handful of times before this, 373 00:26:31,563 --> 00:26:33,283 and never particularly enjoyed it, 374 00:26:33,363 --> 00:26:36,843 but I honestly thought if I'd said no, 375 00:26:36,923 --> 00:26:38,803 it could have cost me the job. 376 00:26:39,243 --> 00:26:41,763 I then went on to have some cocaine, 377 00:26:42,843 --> 00:26:45,163 thinking I'm going to be in his good books now. 378 00:26:48,643 --> 00:26:52,243 Maz was over the moon, he said, "We've got her." 379 00:26:56,163 --> 00:26:58,523 The Fake Sheikh was working. 380 00:27:00,363 --> 00:27:02,083 But Maz wanted more. 381 00:27:02,803 --> 00:27:06,963 [sombre music] 382 00:27:12,243 --> 00:27:14,643 [Emma Morgan] The next thing the Sheikh stood up 383 00:27:14,723 --> 00:27:17,723 and he went on to a little balcony and he beckoned me, 384 00:27:17,803 --> 00:27:20,723 he asked me if I could get him some cocaine. 385 00:27:22,083 --> 00:27:28,723 I was a bit surprised and I said to him, "Well, Billy, you've employed him, 386 00:27:28,803 --> 00:27:30,283 he sells cocaine. 387 00:27:30,963 --> 00:27:33,363 Get it off Billy, I don't have cocaine." 388 00:27:33,923 --> 00:27:38,243 He looked me in the eyes and said, "I don't trust him, I trust you." 389 00:27:39,523 --> 00:27:42,683 He said, "I'd really rather if you could get it from Billy, 390 00:27:42,763 --> 00:27:46,803 and then maybe if you could drop it to my suite after dinner." 391 00:27:47,283 --> 00:27:51,243 I was at that point, worried that if I went to his suite 392 00:27:51,603 --> 00:27:54,403 he was going to proposition me, I was going to refuse, 393 00:27:54,483 --> 00:27:56,123 and it would be the end of the job. 394 00:27:56,203 --> 00:27:59,403 Billy came up with a plan to safeguard me. 395 00:27:59,923 --> 00:28:04,603 And that plan was to put the cocaine 396 00:28:04,683 --> 00:28:07,883 under a small gap in his hotel room door, 397 00:28:08,683 --> 00:28:10,883 push it through quietly, 398 00:28:11,803 --> 00:28:16,563 tip toe away, and then send him a message to say, "I put it under your door." 399 00:28:16,963 --> 00:28:18,723 So that's what I did. 400 00:28:20,563 --> 00:28:23,523 [suspenseful music] 401 00:28:39,923 --> 00:28:44,003 He tried the Fake Sheikh, and he discovered it worked a treat. 402 00:28:44,803 --> 00:28:47,723 He was able to get away with all kinds of things. 403 00:28:48,723 --> 00:28:49,963 So he ran with it. 404 00:28:56,643 --> 00:28:59,723 [Aylia Fox] I think Mazher absolutely loved playing a sheikh. 405 00:28:59,803 --> 00:29:01,883 It was theatrical journalism. 406 00:29:03,683 --> 00:29:05,723 The Arab robes of the Fake Sheikh 407 00:29:05,803 --> 00:29:11,163 were Mazher Mahmood's way into the world of the rich, powerful and influential. 408 00:29:14,963 --> 00:29:17,963 [Emma Morgan] I read the whole story crying my eyes out. 409 00:29:18,403 --> 00:29:22,203 There was me depicted in the paper as some drug dealer. 410 00:29:22,923 --> 00:29:25,603 I just couldn't believe it, I couldn't believe it. 411 00:29:25,683 --> 00:29:29,443 It was then I realised that the Sheikh wasn't a sheikh. 412 00:29:29,523 --> 00:29:33,683 He was an undercover investigative reporter from the News of the World 413 00:29:33,763 --> 00:29:35,643 by the name of Mazher Mahmood. 414 00:29:38,083 --> 00:29:40,123 There was shock, there was horror, 415 00:29:40,203 --> 00:29:43,403 there was shame of what people are going to think. 416 00:29:44,283 --> 00:29:48,283 I just cried and cried and cried. 417 00:29:49,083 --> 00:29:51,563 Within a week of that story breaking, 418 00:29:51,643 --> 00:29:55,043 I'd been evicted from my flat by my landlady. 419 00:29:55,123 --> 00:29:57,163 I'd been dropped by The Sun. 420 00:29:57,923 --> 00:30:00,043 My agency, I was ringing up, 421 00:30:00,123 --> 00:30:02,883 we used to have to ring every day at like 5:00 PM 422 00:30:02,963 --> 00:30:05,923 to see what jobs we had for the following day or whatever. 423 00:30:06,003 --> 00:30:07,003 Nothing. 424 00:30:14,083 --> 00:30:16,483 [interviewer] People criticise the way you work 425 00:30:16,563 --> 00:30:18,923 and that essentially you encourage people 426 00:30:19,003 --> 00:30:21,243 to commit crimes they wouldn't do otherwise 427 00:30:21,323 --> 00:30:24,403 if you hadn't been there offering them temptation. 428 00:30:24,483 --> 00:30:27,243 [Mazher Mahmood] It's an argument that's churned out again and again. 429 00:30:27,323 --> 00:30:30,323 Simon, you're a celebrity, you're a well-known name, 430 00:30:30,403 --> 00:30:33,883 is there any way on this planet I could persuade you to sell me cocaine? 431 00:30:33,963 --> 00:30:35,323 I guarantee I couldn't, 432 00:30:35,403 --> 00:30:37,963 whether I'm dressed as a sheikh or a Sikh or whatever, 433 00:30:38,043 --> 00:30:41,883 you would not sell me cocaine, the people we expose are the people that are at it. 434 00:30:43,483 --> 00:30:49,403 If you want to understand Maz and what makes him tick, 435 00:30:50,043 --> 00:30:52,243 you've gotta go right back to his background. 436 00:30:52,843 --> 00:30:55,803 [♪Eddie & The Hot Rods: Do Anything You Wanna Do] 437 00:30:56,123 --> 00:30:59,683 Maz and I grew up in Birmingham. 438 00:31:04,963 --> 00:31:07,523 ♪ Gonna break out of the city ♪ 439 00:31:07,723 --> 00:31:10,603 ♪ Leave the people here behind ♪ 440 00:31:11,443 --> 00:31:14,123 ♪ Searching for adventure ♪ 441 00:31:14,243 --> 00:31:16,523 ♪ It's the type of life to find ♪ 442 00:31:17,643 --> 00:31:20,363 ♪ Tired of doing day jobs ♪ 443 00:31:20,443 --> 00:31:22,963 ♪ With no thanks for what I do ♪ 444 00:31:23,963 --> 00:31:26,443 ♪ I'm sure I must be someone ♪ 445 00:31:26,723 --> 00:31:29,083 ♪ Now I'm gonna find out who ♪ 446 00:31:30,723 --> 00:31:33,083 ♪ Do anything you wanna do... ♪♪ 447 00:31:33,643 --> 00:31:36,763 [Paul Samrai] Here's a guy from an Asian Pakistani background. 448 00:31:37,123 --> 00:31:39,603 Maz's dad was a Pakistani journalist 449 00:31:39,683 --> 00:31:44,203 working for an Urdu language magazine, 450 00:31:44,283 --> 00:31:49,003 and was limited to doing stories about his own community. 451 00:31:51,123 --> 00:31:57,283 Maz hated the prospect of being limited to local Asian newspapers like his father, 452 00:31:57,843 --> 00:32:00,963 but when he tried to break into mainstream journalism, 453 00:32:01,083 --> 00:32:02,643 he hit a brick wall. 454 00:32:03,483 --> 00:32:08,123 In the 80's England was a deeply, deeply divided country 455 00:32:08,203 --> 00:32:10,243 where racism was rampant. 456 00:32:10,643 --> 00:32:14,923 It was very difficult for Asian ethnic minorities 457 00:32:15,003 --> 00:32:17,803 to get work in the mainstream media. 458 00:32:18,723 --> 00:32:20,843 [suspenseful music] 459 00:32:21,123 --> 00:32:24,283 [Mazher Mahmood] I found it very difficult to get into journalism. 460 00:32:24,363 --> 00:32:26,643 I wanted to work for my local paper, 461 00:32:26,763 --> 00:32:29,763 and I got turned down two years in a row for work experience. 462 00:32:29,843 --> 00:32:34,883 It was tough for Asians in those days, I did feel I was discriminated against. 463 00:32:34,963 --> 00:32:38,043 But then in those days, there were no Asians in the media. 464 00:32:39,923 --> 00:32:42,203 [Aylia Fox] The way he broke into journalism 465 00:32:42,283 --> 00:32:46,923 tells you everything about Mahmood then and throughout his journalism career. 466 00:32:47,203 --> 00:32:51,283 It was clear right from the start that he was prepared to do what it took, 467 00:32:51,603 --> 00:32:54,003 even turn over family friends 468 00:32:54,083 --> 00:32:55,963 that he met at a family dinner 469 00:32:56,043 --> 00:32:59,443 who talked about conducting themselves in video piracy. 470 00:33:02,963 --> 00:33:07,403 He took that information to a news desk and they turned it into a story, 471 00:33:07,483 --> 00:33:10,843 and suddenly he had an in-road into the world of journalism. 472 00:33:13,043 --> 00:33:15,163 [Mazher Mahmood] I rang up the New of the World, 473 00:33:15,243 --> 00:33:18,163 I said, "I know a gang making pirate copies of tapes, 474 00:33:18,243 --> 00:33:19,483 are you interested?" 475 00:33:19,563 --> 00:33:22,963 And of course they were and said, "Come down to talk to us." 476 00:33:23,563 --> 00:33:26,083 [interviewer] Didn't you hear about that story 477 00:33:26,163 --> 00:33:29,323 sat around your own family's dining table? How did that go down? 478 00:33:29,403 --> 00:33:33,003 [Mazher Mahmood] Not very well, my folks felt it was wrong, 479 00:33:33,083 --> 00:33:36,163 you're kind of seen as a bit of a grass in the community. 480 00:33:37,483 --> 00:33:42,483 [Aylia Fox] He was very single-minded, determined, ambitious, 481 00:33:42,563 --> 00:33:46,003 and willing to do more or less what it took. 482 00:33:47,203 --> 00:33:50,843 And after that initial video piracy story, 483 00:33:50,923 --> 00:33:54,963 Maz told me his dad was absolutely incandescent with anger. 484 00:33:55,043 --> 00:33:58,803 Threatened to throw him out of the house, said he blackened the family name. 485 00:33:58,883 --> 00:34:02,043 But Maz didn't care, it was all about the story, he got it, 486 00:34:02,283 --> 00:34:05,883 he was ruthless, and that's how he continued for the rest of his career. 487 00:34:07,083 --> 00:34:10,123 [ominous music] 488 00:34:14,523 --> 00:34:18,803 A lot of pressure was put on us, first-generation kids, 489 00:34:18,883 --> 00:34:21,682 to succeed. 490 00:34:21,722 --> 00:34:23,963 The key wasn't the prestige of the position, 491 00:34:24,043 --> 00:34:25,523 the key was the earning power. 492 00:34:25,603 --> 00:34:28,083 That's what they were looking for, our parents. 493 00:34:29,563 --> 00:34:34,803 He saw journalism as an opportunity to make money. 494 00:34:34,883 --> 00:34:40,083 No doubt about it, money drove him because money equates to success. 495 00:34:42,443 --> 00:34:45,403 Maz was a high-octane story junkie. 496 00:34:45,883 --> 00:34:50,043 Just like a junkie always needs his next bigger, better hit, 497 00:34:50,123 --> 00:34:53,323 Maz always needed a bigger, better story. 498 00:34:55,923 --> 00:35:00,083 The News of the World was all about sport, sex, scandal, 499 00:35:00,203 --> 00:35:02,683 and if you could get a story combining all three, 500 00:35:02,723 --> 00:35:05,323 you'd absolutely hit the jackpot. 501 00:35:05,403 --> 00:35:07,923 [intense music] 502 00:35:09,403 --> 00:35:11,523 [newsreader] As if you didn't know already, 503 00:35:11,603 --> 00:35:13,723 England's Premier League kicks off tomorrow. 504 00:35:16,163 --> 00:35:20,243 [Steve Burton] Football was absolutely massive for the News of the World. 505 00:35:20,883 --> 00:35:25,403 We were permanently out looking for stories involving football players, 506 00:35:26,683 --> 00:35:28,203 usually for the wrong reasons. 507 00:35:30,523 --> 00:35:34,723 At the time, Newcastle United were one of the top teams in the Premier League. 508 00:35:37,363 --> 00:35:41,483 Maz got a tip-off that the chairman of the club, Freddy Shepherd 509 00:35:42,163 --> 00:35:44,443 and the vice chairman Doug Hall, 510 00:35:44,523 --> 00:35:47,803 presenting as respectable businessmen and family men, 511 00:35:47,923 --> 00:35:50,683 were flying out to Marbella after leaving the match, 512 00:35:50,723 --> 00:35:54,163 playing the rounds all over town in seedy nightclubs. 513 00:35:56,083 --> 00:35:58,803 You knew it would be a big, major story 514 00:35:58,883 --> 00:36:04,163 because football meant to people of Newcastle and Newcastle fans, 515 00:36:04,203 --> 00:36:07,083 it meant everything, it was religion to them. 516 00:36:08,803 --> 00:36:13,683 And the stadium, St. James' Park, was like the high cathedral, 517 00:36:14,163 --> 00:36:16,843 and the players, they were the gods, 518 00:36:20,723 --> 00:36:26,403 and the Newcastle football bosses, the high priests of the religion. 519 00:36:29,963 --> 00:36:32,603 [Aylia Fox] With that story, it's the kind of scandal 520 00:36:32,683 --> 00:36:35,523 that would go viral all over social media today. 521 00:36:36,683 --> 00:36:38,043 But back in the 90s, 522 00:36:38,123 --> 00:36:41,203 the only way to find out what went on behind closed doors 523 00:36:41,243 --> 00:36:43,203 was by reading the tabloids. 524 00:36:44,483 --> 00:36:48,683 Everybody knew the News of the World was the best at exposing scandal. 525 00:36:49,843 --> 00:36:51,563 It's what made them buy the paper, 526 00:36:51,643 --> 00:36:54,723 it's what made it the biggest selling newspaper in this country. 527 00:36:57,123 --> 00:37:00,163 [Steve Burton] Freddy and Doug were considered untouchable 528 00:37:00,203 --> 00:37:04,123 and whatever they got up to, it was virtually impossible to prove it. 529 00:37:05,923 --> 00:37:08,683 But the more Maz was told something was impossible, 530 00:37:09,003 --> 00:37:10,403 the more he'd go for it. 531 00:37:11,443 --> 00:37:14,043 We got in touch with Doug Hall and said, 532 00:37:14,123 --> 00:37:17,963 "I've got a client who's a wealthy sheikh in the middle east 533 00:37:18,043 --> 00:37:21,203 and would like to start a football league in Dubai, 534 00:37:21,483 --> 00:37:25,323 and has money to invest and would like to discuss it with you." 535 00:37:26,123 --> 00:37:30,683 Doug Hall took the bait and said, "We'll see you in Marbella." 536 00:37:32,563 --> 00:37:34,683 [intense music] 537 00:37:44,043 --> 00:37:47,443 Maz told me I'd be acting as his bodyguard, 538 00:37:47,843 --> 00:37:49,963 to make sure I was suited and booted. 539 00:37:50,483 --> 00:37:52,323 "You're part of a sheikh's entourage, 540 00:37:52,403 --> 00:37:54,683 make sure you don't look like a photographer." 541 00:37:59,003 --> 00:38:01,523 We all turned up at the Marbella club. 542 00:38:01,963 --> 00:38:05,203 Mazher booked a swanky villa, very expensive. 543 00:38:10,923 --> 00:38:14,043 Conrad was the technical expert, the surveillance guy. 544 00:38:15,083 --> 00:38:17,523 He would be monitoring the feed next door. 545 00:38:19,523 --> 00:38:24,523 We placed various accessories like a Dubai duty free bag 546 00:38:24,803 --> 00:38:27,643 and a shisha pipe around the villa. 547 00:38:28,323 --> 00:38:32,883 Maz did this to create the illusion that we'd just flown in from Dubai. 548 00:38:34,203 --> 00:38:36,723 [ominous music] 549 00:38:41,963 --> 00:38:44,043 My surname's Tough, T-O-U-G-H. 550 00:38:44,363 --> 00:38:45,843 I was in the Special Forces 551 00:38:45,923 --> 00:38:48,083 and I stayed with them for ten and a half year, 552 00:38:48,163 --> 00:38:50,803 I should've been dead at least ten times, but I ain't. 553 00:38:52,163 --> 00:38:55,483 So we got to Marbella about 9:30, 10:00pm. 554 00:38:55,683 --> 00:38:57,203 Douglas and Freddy had said to me, 555 00:38:57,323 --> 00:39:00,403 "Bri, we're going for a meeting at the Marbella beach club. 556 00:39:00,483 --> 00:39:03,723 We're meeting with a sheikh from Dubai, that's all we can tell you." 557 00:39:04,163 --> 00:39:06,523 [suspenseful music] 558 00:39:11,083 --> 00:39:14,363 I knew a lot about sheikhs, I knew how they operated. 559 00:39:14,483 --> 00:39:16,363 a lot of the time, I knew what their habits were 560 00:39:16,683 --> 00:39:19,523 because in my professional bodyguard career, 561 00:39:19,723 --> 00:39:23,723 I protected the Saudi Arabian oil minister Prince Ahmed Zaki Yamani, 562 00:39:23,843 --> 00:39:26,043 the most powerful man in the world at the time 563 00:39:26,123 --> 00:39:28,203 because he ran the world's oil prices. 564 00:39:28,803 --> 00:39:32,203 Before a meeting, I usually check out the person we're going to meet, 565 00:39:32,363 --> 00:39:35,603 find out their backgrounds, and just make sure they were genuine, 566 00:39:35,683 --> 00:39:38,563 but I didn't have time, so I told Douglas and Freddy, 567 00:39:38,643 --> 00:39:41,243 "Hold on a sec, I'll just quickly check this out." 568 00:39:44,323 --> 00:39:49,483 When they arrived, we realised these two brought their own minder, 569 00:39:49,643 --> 00:39:53,683 Brian Tough, who was an expert in surveillance. 570 00:39:54,083 --> 00:39:58,683 I thought, oh, gosh, shit, he'll suss us out in seconds. 571 00:40:01,123 --> 00:40:03,123 [Brian Tough] I walked up to the villa. 572 00:40:03,323 --> 00:40:06,523 "I just want a quick look inside, please." "Yeah, no problem." 573 00:40:07,003 --> 00:40:09,563 So I went inside, quick scan around. 574 00:40:09,963 --> 00:40:12,203 [suspenseful music] 575 00:40:12,923 --> 00:40:14,483 Looked like a very posh villa. 576 00:40:17,363 --> 00:40:19,123 I had a quick sweep of the room. 577 00:40:21,843 --> 00:40:26,083 We're thinking, "God what if he spots a bug? What do we do?" 578 00:40:32,363 --> 00:40:35,923 [Brian Tough] We're monitoring, constantly scanning, looking for threats. 579 00:40:36,003 --> 00:40:38,603 We're just constantly alert all the time. 580 00:40:42,163 --> 00:40:44,163 My heart was just going crazy. 581 00:40:47,723 --> 00:40:51,403 There was nothing obviously that was out of place in that room, 582 00:40:51,683 --> 00:40:53,683 so Douglas and Freddy came in. 583 00:40:57,403 --> 00:41:00,563 [Steve Burton] Freddy and Doug went through into the main lounge 584 00:41:00,643 --> 00:41:03,643 and Maz emerged from his suite 585 00:41:03,683 --> 00:41:05,483 and was in the robes. 586 00:41:06,723 --> 00:41:10,243 [rousing music] 587 00:41:17,683 --> 00:41:22,243 I looked at the sheikh, he looked, how do I put it... 588 00:41:22,363 --> 00:41:24,043 I was going to say sheikh-like. 589 00:41:28,243 --> 00:41:30,563 [Steve Burton] They didn't notice anything 590 00:41:30,803 --> 00:41:35,083 because the first thing they were drawn to was the Dubai carrier bag. 591 00:41:35,523 --> 00:41:38,403 Maz looked down and then looked at me and said, 592 00:41:38,483 --> 00:41:40,723 "Filthy animal," etc., "What have I told you?" 593 00:41:40,843 --> 00:41:44,083 And then looked at Hall and Shepherd and said, 594 00:41:44,163 --> 00:41:46,083 "Staff, staff, fuck." 595 00:41:46,203 --> 00:41:50,203 They're laughing and I'm looking chastised and picked up the bag. 596 00:41:56,483 --> 00:41:59,923 [suspenseful music] 597 00:42:04,803 --> 00:42:09,323 Freddy and Doug were sitting down and just starting the drinks. 598 00:42:12,723 --> 00:42:14,843 Maz was getting more and more into it, 599 00:42:14,923 --> 00:42:17,003 he was snapping his fingers, 600 00:42:17,203 --> 00:42:21,523 he ordered this very expensive bottle of cognac to be brought to the room. 601 00:42:24,603 --> 00:42:27,083 They were drinking champagne and brandy. 602 00:42:27,403 --> 00:42:29,363 They were just caning it. 603 00:42:30,203 --> 00:42:34,843 Freddy Shepherd and Doug Hall are believing everything they're seeing. 604 00:42:36,203 --> 00:42:38,643 They slagged off the players 605 00:42:39,803 --> 00:42:43,403 and started the talk about girls. 606 00:42:43,483 --> 00:42:45,323 We couldn't believe what they said. 607 00:42:45,403 --> 00:42:51,043 Freddy said all Newcastle girls are dogs and slagging their own fans off. 608 00:42:52,523 --> 00:42:57,043 At the same time, Conrad was in the room next door monitoring the feed. 609 00:42:59,563 --> 00:43:03,363 The footage is a bit blurry, cameras weren't great back then. 610 00:43:03,723 --> 00:43:06,403 They were talking about all sorts of sordid things. 611 00:43:06,483 --> 00:43:08,203 It was unbelievable to hear. 612 00:43:09,003 --> 00:43:11,563 [Doug Hall] You walk in and there's 50 girls there. 613 00:43:13,003 --> 00:43:15,883 [Freddy Shepherd] You go in, have a drink, the girls are there 614 00:43:15,963 --> 00:43:18,163 and you decide if you want a girl or not. 615 00:43:19,923 --> 00:43:23,003 [Steve Burton] Maz was just being his regal self 616 00:43:23,083 --> 00:43:25,963 and convinced Doug and Freddy. 617 00:43:26,203 --> 00:43:29,203 They just condemned themselves with every word uttered. 618 00:43:29,243 --> 00:43:31,243 We couldn't believe it. 619 00:43:32,483 --> 00:43:34,843 [suspenseful music] 620 00:43:36,323 --> 00:43:39,203 Freddy and Doug said, "Let's go out and have a good time." 621 00:43:40,563 --> 00:43:43,403 [intense music] 622 00:43:43,643 --> 00:43:46,363 We set off for somewhere called Milady Palace, 623 00:43:46,483 --> 00:43:48,203 lap dancing night club. 624 00:43:49,843 --> 00:43:53,843 It was just full of girls and they were just lapping it up. 625 00:43:56,563 --> 00:43:59,363 Freddy Shepherd even said to Maz, the Fake Sheikh, 626 00:43:59,763 --> 00:44:03,203 that they had to be careful about what they did in the UK 627 00:44:03,283 --> 00:44:05,323 because of the British tabloids. 628 00:44:05,403 --> 00:44:06,763 [laughs] 629 00:44:11,563 --> 00:44:14,043 [suspenseful music] 630 00:44:16,523 --> 00:44:19,363 [newsreader] There's turmoil at Newcastle United tonight 631 00:44:19,443 --> 00:44:22,163 after its bosses were caught in a tabloid sting, 632 00:44:22,243 --> 00:44:24,523 set up by News of the World's Mazher Mahmood, 633 00:44:25,043 --> 00:44:27,403 otherwise known as the Fake Sheikh. 634 00:44:30,683 --> 00:44:33,163 [newsreader] The allegations against the two men 635 00:44:33,243 --> 00:44:35,083 were splashed across News of the World 636 00:44:35,163 --> 00:44:38,683 after an undercover reporter caught them in a Spanish brothel. 637 00:44:38,763 --> 00:44:42,443 [newsreader] It reported they regularly went womanising on business trips. 638 00:44:42,523 --> 00:44:45,763 It claimed they mocked fans, describing Tyneside women as dogs... 639 00:44:45,843 --> 00:44:48,443 [newsreader] Revelations have appalled supporters. 640 00:44:48,523 --> 00:44:50,123 I think they should resign. 641 00:44:51,163 --> 00:44:54,523 After what they said about northeastern women, they've got a cheek. 642 00:44:54,603 --> 00:44:56,923 What they've done is unforgivable. 643 00:44:57,923 --> 00:45:01,763 It's the fans that make this club, not the directors. 644 00:45:06,443 --> 00:45:11,083 [Paul McMullan] Just phenomenal the way he got directors from Newcastle 645 00:45:11,163 --> 00:45:14,843 slagging off, all Newcastle girls are dogs. 646 00:45:14,923 --> 00:45:19,683 The world's press would follow what Mazher did on the Sunday. 647 00:45:23,683 --> 00:45:25,683 [newsreader] And fans at last night's home game 648 00:45:25,763 --> 00:45:27,923 made it clear they felt betrayed by the two men, 649 00:45:28,003 --> 00:45:29,483 shouting, "Judas." 650 00:45:29,763 --> 00:45:31,483 Judas! Judas! 651 00:45:31,563 --> 00:45:34,203 [newsreader] They repeated calls for them to resign, 652 00:45:34,283 --> 00:45:35,723 shouting, "Sack the board." 653 00:45:36,563 --> 00:45:38,563 [crowd jeering] 654 00:45:40,523 --> 00:45:43,003 [sombre music] 655 00:45:44,043 --> 00:45:46,043 [crowd cheering] 656 00:45:48,363 --> 00:45:52,923 [Paul McMullan] After the story came out, Mazher won reporter of the year at 1999, 657 00:45:53,003 --> 00:45:59,083 which is amazing, it was just top notch undercover investigative journalism 658 00:45:59,163 --> 00:46:00,443 that I couldn't match, 659 00:46:00,523 --> 00:46:02,923 I mean, I could never have done something as good as that. 660 00:46:05,403 --> 00:46:09,843 I was absolutely proud, it's a huge deal, it's the Oscars. 661 00:46:10,483 --> 00:46:12,523 It's the Oscars for our profession. 662 00:46:12,603 --> 00:46:15,163 [epic music] 663 00:46:15,923 --> 00:46:20,603 [Neil Wallis] There is no greater buzz than seeing a great story you discovered 664 00:46:20,683 --> 00:46:22,603 all over over your front page, 665 00:46:22,683 --> 00:46:26,923 and you know the rest of Fleet Street is looking and going, "Wow." 666 00:46:31,043 --> 00:46:34,123 By then, Mazher was the best paid reporter at the paper, 667 00:46:34,443 --> 00:46:35,803 and quite right too. 668 00:46:38,243 --> 00:46:42,403 [Aylia Fox] I most definitely admired Maz, he had what other people wanted, 669 00:46:42,923 --> 00:46:46,483 the adulation of people who read the newspaper, 670 00:46:46,563 --> 00:46:48,883 the adulation of the powers that be. 671 00:46:48,963 --> 00:46:52,003 If he clicked his fingers, he basically got money for a story, 672 00:46:52,083 --> 00:46:54,323 whereas the rest of us had to beg for it. 673 00:46:55,043 --> 00:46:58,643 It was a game to him, and he won the game every time. 674 00:47:01,443 --> 00:47:04,283 [Steve Grayson] I remember seeing him in a beautiful car, 675 00:47:04,363 --> 00:47:08,283 going to lovely restaurants, the jewellery, 676 00:47:08,363 --> 00:47:10,283 his watch, he had a Rolex, 677 00:47:10,643 --> 00:47:14,363 the four-bedroom, massive great flat in Kensington. 678 00:47:18,563 --> 00:47:21,203 He was an excellent journalist, he was. 679 00:47:25,963 --> 00:47:29,203 But I'll tell you, he was ruthless. 680 00:47:30,043 --> 00:47:31,963 Just totally ruthless. 681 00:47:34,083 --> 00:47:36,363 And nothing would stop him. 682 00:47:36,843 --> 00:47:38,843 Absolutely nothing would stop him. 683 00:47:41,603 --> 00:47:44,323 [intense music]