Millionaire Killer by
Walsh M & Jordan D
hbk out February 03
Published by Blake Pub
at £16.99
This is the incredible story of Nicholas Van Hoogstraten, also known as
the devil's landlord. By his twenties he'd made full use of his business
acumen to become Britain's youngest millionaire. Yet in the same
timeframe, 1968, he was sent to prison for orchestrating a grenade attack
on a former friend and for receiving stolen goods. He spent further time
in prison in the 1970's.
Since then, his life has continued to show this odd mix of intelligent deals
and underhand schemes. On the one hand, he invested heavily in
Zimbabwe and is virtually revered by the people who live on his estates
there. On the other, he has intimidated numerous British tenants in order
to gain control of their property. One elderly woman who was forced to
leave her home was found dying of pneumonia a few weeks later in a
nearby slum. Another evicted woman was blind. Tenants who refused to
leave found their houses flooded with sewage or had their furniture
removed.
The man himself has said 'I view people as trash' and has admitted that
he's 'probably violent.' One of his girlfriends went to the police as a
result of this alleged violence but she later withdrew her statement. This
change of heart on the part of potential witnesses would be a recurring
theme when Van Hoogstraten was charged with the murder of
Mohammed Sabir Raja, shot and stabbed on his south London doorstep
by two men.
Mr Van Hoogstraten and Mr Raja had fallen out over a business deal and
the prosecution alleged that as a result of this the millionaire had hired the
killers. But the evidence against him was almost totally circumstantial
and it's possible he would have walked free if he hadn't insisted on
taking the stand. This allowed the jury to hear about how he'd treated
some of his tenants and they began to see the suave businessman in a
different light. Despite his links to the murder remaining tenuous at best,
he was found guilty of manslaughter and sent to prison for ten years.
Millionaire Killer is a well-paced, detailed expose of the landlord from
hell. After reading this book, you'll never want to rent property again.
