Both Sides of the Fence: A Life Undercover

by David Corbett

As one of a handful of UK police officers trained in SAS deep-cover surveillance, David Corbett infiltrated the toughest communities, living among junkies, prostitutes, murderers, and firearm dealers, in order to gather evidence that would lead to dozens of convictions. He trained in urban and rural surveillance and invented a fictional past for himself. Like Donnie Brasco, the legendary US cop who won the trust of the Mafia, Corbett risked his life every day—one false move and his cover would have been blown. Corbett's work led to 31 convictions and commendations from the Chief Constable and a Crown Court judge but, without any form of counselling, the stress took its toll and he was forced into early retirement. Now, betrayed by the force that sent him out on these dangerous missions, Corbett reveals the gripping story of life in the perilous world of an undercover cop.

208 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2002

Reviews

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Scottish police officer goes undercover to infiltrate drug suppliers in a former pit town called Blythe. Undercover for more than 6 months, he identifies the dealers, gathers the evidence and eventually helps to successfully prosecute a large number of them in an Operation called Claymore.

The undercover work itself led to alcoholism, weight gain and an element of cognitive dissonance - working undercover, befriending and then gathering evidence on targets who thought he was their friend. He also suffered estrangement from his own wife and children, along with an inability to return to regular police work in their CID. Despite reaching out for help to his management, he was denied and disregarded, requiring him to make his own enquiries and obtain counselling and psychological help.

Eventually, unable to return to regular police work, the police force medically retired him. An eventual civil suit against the force resulted in an unspecified financial settlement, allowing him to pursue other work and eventually heal.

No surprises for me, results are all that matters and individual police are regularly thrown under the bus once their worth is depleted.

A good book, but depressing (of course).

[Rena Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Down to earth and easy to read. Just what happened.

[RJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very interesting read and insight into the police force in Scotland and England.

[Ellie Holmes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Given the plethora of stories of undercover police officers overstepping professional and sometimes moral boundaries, this book is a compelling account of what it is like to live with the stresses and strains of deep undercover work and the unique challenges a double life can throw up.

The tension of such an existence particularly as an operation reaches its climax must be mind-bending. I was left wondering whether those personalities best suited to coping with undercover work are perhaps not the most stable of individuals to begin with whilst steadier characters perceived as a safe pair or hands and thus a more likely choice for such work would be more likely to buckle over time in comparison to their less conventional colleagues.