George Cornell (c. 1928-March 9, 1966) was a British criminal and member of the Richardson Gang, who were scrap metal dealers and criminals.[1] He was shot and killed by Ronnie Kray at The Blind Beggar public house in Whitechapel. Kray was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1969 and remained in prison until he died in 1995.[2]
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History
George Cornell was from East London and was originally known as George Myers but had changed his surname some years earlier. Cornell was a tough, loyal enforcer who worked for the Richardson Gang; he was known for being totally fearless and unafraid of anyone.
A childhood friend of the Kray twins, Cornell was a prominent criminal in East London during the 1960s and upon moving to South London joined up with the Kray Twins' rivals, the Richardson Gang, who were brothers Charlie Richardson and Eddie Richardson. Cornell, along with Richardson gang colleague and friend "Mad" Frankie Fraser,[3], became an enforcer for the Richardsons and was primarily used by them in conversations with the Krays. Conversations were often held in pubs such as The Grave Maurice pub, which was also known as the 'Widows pub', the nickname given as the landlady's husband had died. Ronnie Kray in particular, had once been friends with Cornell but his later dislike of him probably stemmed from Cornell's decision to side with the The Richardson Gang after moving to south London.
Death
On March 9, 1966, Cornell and his friend Albie Woods entered the saloon bar of The Blind Beggar pub, ordered some light ales and then sat upon stools next to the bar. At around 8:30pm, both men were approached by Ronnie Kray; on seeing him, Cornell sneered with sarcasm "Look who's here". Ronnie Kray walked towards Cornell, took out a 9 mm Mauser, and calmly shot him once in the forehead, just above his right eye. Cornell slumped against a nearby pillar, the bullet, apparently, passing straight through him. Moments earlier the barmaid, who was later to become a key witness in the trial, had put a new record on the jukebox, "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore" by The Walker Brothers; after Cornell was shot, the record stuck on the words "anymore...anymore".
Cornell was taken to a nearby hospital, where he died at around 3:30am. It was only a matter of hours before the news spread. Everyone knew who had murdered George Cornell but no one was prepared to talk. Although Ronnie Kray was identified by several eyewitnesses as he calmly left the public house, no one would agree to testify against him and the police were forced to release him from custody.
Possible reasons for the killing
Cornell's death may have been connected to the shooting of Richard 'Dickie' Hart at a South London nightclub club called "Mr Smith's", the night before Cornell's murder. Hart, a member of the Kray gang and also a cousin of the Kray twins, was killed after a violent dispute ended in shots being fired. Members of both the Richardson gang and the Kray gang were present at "Mr Smith's" that night when the shooting happened. The only member of either gang that walked away that night was George Cornell, who was placed at the scene at the Mr. Smith and the Witchdoor bar. It has been suggested[by whom?] that some people, including Ronnie Kray, may have blamed Cornell for the death of Dickie Hart. Whether or not Cornell was involved, this might have been a good enough reason for Ronnie Kray to murder Cornell.
Another reason may have been a dispute between Ronnie and Cornell, originating from an alleged insult regarding Ron's rumoured sexuality [4], although this has been disputed by various people.
However, others claim that George Cornell was killed simply for being on the Krays' turf, something that Ronnie Kray probably took great offence to.
Old Bailey trial
On March 4, 1969 Ronnie Kray was unanimously found guilty by a jury at The Old Bailey of the murder of George Cornell. His brother Reggie was also found guilty of murdering Jack McVitie. They were both sentenced to life imprisonment. Ronnie died in jail in March 1995, while Reggie was imprisoned for a total of 32 years before he was released from custody on compassionate grounds in 2000 as a result of cancer, from which he died a few weeks after his release.
References
- ^ Richardsons' scrap metal dealers http://www.thekrays.co.uk/cornell.htm Retrieved 23/09/07
- ^ Cornell shot by Ronnie Kray http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/4/newsid_2515000/2515103.stm Retrieved 23/09/07
- ^ Cornell moved to South London, joined Richardsons http://www.thekrays.co.uk/cornell.htm Retrieved 23/09/07
- ^ Cornell shot for insulting Ronnie Kray http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/march/4/newsid_2515000/2515103.stm Retrieved 23/09/07
Footnotes
- Devito, Carlo. Encyclopedia of International Organized Crime. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2005. ISBN 0-8160-4848-7
External links
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