UK businessman cons Belgian police – and the UN

A businessman from Somerset is on trial in London for selling bogus drug, bomb and corpse detectors to law enforcement and defence forces all over the world, including three police forces in Belgium. Jim McCormick, 56, sold what he claimed to be high-tech devices to the police forces of Geel, Courcelles-Fontaine-l'Evêque and Flémalle for about €20,000 each, when in fact they were ordinary golf ball finders worth €15. McCormick marketed the devices as ideal for customs checkpoints, military bases and nuclear installations. He also produced brochures stating his machines could detect tiny quantities of explosives from a distance of up to three miles, it is claimed. Prosecutors claim there was no better than a random chance of their working, reports the Western Daily Press. McCormick confirmed that he had sold “hundreds” of his devices to Iraq and added that UN peacekeepers on duty in Lebanon had also been issued with them. The trial continues tomorrow.