The British politician who was caught faking his own death
2024-11-26 20:56:20
TiranaPost
When John Stonehouse's clothes were found on Miami Beach on November 20, 1974, many assumed the UK MP had drowned while swimming - until he was found alive and well in Australia on Christmas Eve.
When Stonehouse hatched his plan to disappear completely, he was a troubled man. His political career had stalled, his dubious business dealings left him bankrupt, he was accused of being a communist spy while he also had an extramarital affair with his secretary. He stole the identities of two dead people. Went on a business trip to Miami, then disappeared. Finding him took a little over a month.
And how did Stonehouse explain his actions?
A month after the reappearance, in an interview with the BBC, he said "I was trying – by disappearing – to make their lives easier..."
For seven months, Stonehouse tried to stay in Australia, but he was eventually deported. In August 1976, after a marathon 68-day trial on charges related to his failed businesses, he was jailed for seven years for theft and fraud. He left prison three years later while recovering from heart surgery, having suffered three cardiac arrests while inside.
His wife divorced him in 1978, and three years later he married Buckley, his former secretary. He died in 1988 - and this time it was true.
