A multimillionaire discovers his wife’s affair with his deputy chairman and ultimately receives a life sentence!
This is the story of Richard Cooper, Rosemary Cooper, and Jeremy Alexander.
Richard first met Jeremy at a training seminar for entrepreneurs looking at global expansion. He had just taken over his father’s company, Cooper & Sons, while Jeremy was a partner in a large commercial law firm. Jeremy had a powerful combination of ambition and intellectual snobbery and had a habit of drumming his fingers on the table when his patience was tested.
Jeremy was tall, charming, and knew how to make an impression. Not long after they met, Richard hired him to manage the company’s business.
One day, after working late, Richard invited Jeremy to his house in Leeds for dinner with his wife, Rosemary. They had been married for four years and had drifted apart as some married couples do. The night they met, Rosemary was completely infatuated with Jeremy; anyone who was there at dinner would’ve noticed.
Over the next few months, Richard traveled around Europe to grow his business, while Jeremy kept finding excuses to stay in Leeds. Later that year, Cooper & Sons went public, and Richard promoted Jeremy to Deputy Chairman.
Richard and Rosemary owned 51% of the shares, with the rest available on the market. Cooper & Sons was now worth 60 million pounds.
One day, Richard returned home early and didn’t inform Rosemary of his arrival. He found Jeremy’s BMW parked in his driveway, and only the bedroom lights were on. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what was happening.
Richard didn’t want to confront Jeremy right away, so he went to the Queen’s Hotel and asked for Jeremy’s room key, knowing Jeremy wouldn’t need it that night.
At the board meeting the next day, Jeremy quietly tried to pass a motion that could have led to Richard and Rosemary losing control of the company. Richard asked for time to think it over.
That evening, Richard invited Jeremy to dinner at his house. During the meal, Jeremy tried to convince Richard to give up control of the company, and to Richard’s shock, Rosemary supported Jeremy. Richard couldn’t take it anymore. He lost it.
Richard asked them about their affair. Both of them denied it vehemently. Richard then told them about coming home early last night and seeing Jeremy’s car in the driveway. Then, he punched Jeremy, who fell and cracked his right temple on the corner of the glass table.
Richard then left his house and booked a hotel room. A few hours later, he was arrested for the murder of Jeremy Alexander.
Police had found a trail of blood leading from the sitting room to where Richard’s car had been parked. There was no body.
Richard spent nine months in jail before his trial started. It was Rosemary’s testimony that ultimately sealed his fate. She described in vivid detail how Richard had killed Jeremy, put his body in the boot of his car, and then driven away.
The jury found Richard guilty. He was given a life sentence for murdering and disposing of the body of Jeremy Alexander.
In his will, Jeremy had left everything to Rosemary, including three million pounds’ worth of Cooper & Sons shares. But, as per the English law, Rosemary wouldn’t be able to dispose of his shares for seven years. Jeremy’s assets would not be handed to her unless a body was found or seven years had elapsed.
When in jail, Richard hired Donald Hackett, an independent investigator, to locate Jeremy Alexander, wherever he might be hiding before the seven years were up. Rosemary had fallen off the face of the earth, too, having sold off her shares and gotten a quick divorce.
After months of searching, Hackett eventually located Rosemary, who had settled in France. A member of Hackett’s team joined Rosemary’s household as a butler.
The butler informed Hackett that every Friday, Rosemary would go to the Majestic Hotel to make a phone call. The staff said she always made a long-distance call that lasted about forty minutes.
After three years behind bars, Richard appealed his conviction, arguing through his lawyers that no body had ever been found. The judge accepted the argument, and Richard was released.
Richard joined Hackett’s team in France. Just once, Rosemary made a long-distance call from her home. The butler managed to get most of the number: 0223 6406 something 7.
The team then tried a few numbers and settled on two possible candidates: a retired Wing Commander, Danvers-Smith, and Professor Balcescu.
They first investigated Danvers-Smith. One of the team members even posed as a former recruit to test his authenticity. Turns out, Danvers-Smith was the real deal.
Professor Balcescu was up next. Richard read through the file the team had compiled on Professor Balcescu. He was a political refugee who had escaped from Romania, where he had called for the overthrow of the elected government. After arriving in Britain, he began teaching in Cambridge and assumed the Chair of Eastern European Studies.
The team decided to attend one of his lectures, hoping to find a lead on Jeremy Alexander. Professor Balcescu was giving a lecture on different income groups across Eastern Europe. His assistant was having trouble synchronizing his slides with the lecture.
Richard was just about to walk away when he saw Professor Balcescu get annoyed with his assistant and impatiently drum his fingers on the table. It was Jeremy!
After the lecture, they rushed into Jeremy’s office. Richard pulled out a gun, ready to shoot, but Hackett quickly stopped him.
Richard was arrested again, this time for attempted murder. His lawyers argued he couldn’t be tried twice for the same crime. He received a three-year prison sentence but was released after nine months for good behavior.
Jeremy was arrested and charged with conspiracy to pervert the course of public justice. Rosemary was also arrested and charged with perjury.
Cooper & Sons went bankrupt because the new managers were unable to handle the recession. Jeremy ended up with almost nothing for his shares.
But Richard bought the company back and started over.
This story is by Jeffrey Archer and is called ‘Trial and Error.’ It’s from his book ‘Twelve Red Herrings’, which is a collection of short stories, each one better than the next.
Thank you for reading.
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