Police under fire as conman's 'natural causes' death turns out to be murder

The body of John "Goldfinger" Palmer, 64, was discovered by his family at an address in Brentwood, on June 24 and Essex Police initially recorded his death as not suspicious, believing it was the result of complications following a recent heart operation.

But a post-mortem examination carried out on Tuesday determined the cause of death was gunshot wounds to the chest.

Essex Police said yesterday it had asked the IPCC to investigate possible failings.

A spokesman said: "Police and paramedics who attended the scene initially assessed the death as non-suspicious due to pre-existing injuries due to recent surgery. Closer inspection raised doubt and a post-mortem examination was conducted to establish the cause of death."

Palmer was cleared of handling proceeds from the £26 million Brink's-Mat bullion raid at Heathrow in 1983, but his alleged involvement earned him the nickname "Goldfinger".

His home is in a secluded spot down a country track about half a mile from the nearest main road.

Former Metropolitan Police chief John O'Connor accused Essex Police being "utterly incompetent".

He said: "When someone as notorious as John Palmer is discovered dead on your patch then surely it's common sense to be absolutely sure of the facts about how he died.

"But one minute these bunglers were saying it was natural causes then almost a week later it's suddenly murder. What a joke.

"It's one of the most terrible mistakes in policing I've ever heard of."

Mr Palmer was jailed in 2001 for timeshare fraud, after building a multimillion-pound business that cheated thousands of Britons – including a dozen from Shropshire – who wanted a holiday home in the sun.

He had spent the last eight years on bail following his arrest in Tenerife in 2007, where he was charged with fraud, firearm possession and money laundering.