Sign in

Simon Lock

@simonlock.bsky.social
1.2K followers 534 following 138 posts

Reporter at The Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ) focusing on transnational corruption. Also very partial to some local/family history.

PostsRepliesMedia
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
This is some of the "self-reporting" that Chelsea did - taking a request for comment from The Guardian and TBIJ and forwarding it on to the FA....
042
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
"A plague o' both your fucking houses"
130
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Also define self-reported. They "self-reported" a bunch of stuff we (Guardian, TBIJ & others) put to them prior to publication after months of investigation... How convenient.
121
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
This is going to be like the "World Series" of baseball isn't it.
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
So in other words, law firms are essentially now in charge of marking their own homework - and no one else can check it. Forget toothless, the SRA has essentially had its entire lower jaw removed. www.law360.com/articles/252...
law360.com
BREAKING: Carter-Ruck Wins Battle To Shield Privileged Docs From SRA Probes - Law360 UK
The Solicitors Regulation Authority cannot compel law firms to disclose documents protected by clients' legal professional privilege during misconduct investigations, a London judge ruled Monday, pote...
000
Reposted by Simon Lock
Jim Pickard @pickardje.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
my brilliant colleague @robertshrimsley.bsky.social on the threat from Elon Musk’s X platform www.ft.com/content/f270...
6428101169
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Will you be helpful in rounding up others to toil in their underground data caves?
110
Reposted by Simon Lock
Rob Davies @byrobdavies.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Chelsea in Honest deal shock.
2214
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Oh no wait I've got it back to front haven't I.
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Take the gun. Leave the cannoli.
111
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
They didn't get life sentences though.
030
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
"If @byrobdavies.bsky.social's journalism means anything at all, it means the right to tell readers things they cannot be arsed to hear" - Orwell, probably.
010
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
There's well over 100 football-related agreements in the Cyprus Confidential files - and that's just the stuff that a) used Abramovich-owned Cypriot/BVI companies and b) maintained some sort of record. There will no doubt be more that we can't see or that has been lost.
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
In the files are payments to football scouts via BVI (sometimes multiple overlapping contracts for the same services); fake consulting agreements to disguise player signings; £ms secretly siphoned to clubs like Vitesse through "loan agreements" + dozens of TPO deals with minors.
100
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
I worked on the original investigation with @byrobdavies.bsky.social and others. I think it's hard to understate just how far the rot spreads. Abramovich took over Chelsea in July 2003. The first football agreements routed offshore via BVI companies (for "scouting services") began within 4 months!
186
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
@garethtbij.bsky.social I reckon this idea has legs
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
Pitch: Instead of penalties (arbitrary, overly tense etc), if the scores are still level at 90 minutes, why not introduce... a second ball? #MultiBall
100
Reposted by Simon Lock
Alex Andreou @sturdyalex.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
“Scottish Water is absolutely something that UK gov't could learn from. It was established quite deliberately as a public corporation. There are upsides and downsides to that - it's not beyond criticism. But compared to privatised English companies, it has been a stable model that's performed well.”
721466
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Feels harsh to go from "man who scores the winning extra time goal" [then disallowed] to "man who skies the last penalty several miles over the goal" in the space of 20 mins....
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
020
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
Worst penalty I've ever seen. And I've seen at least 5.
120
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
#UniteTheKingdom(Brunel)
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 03/06/2026
Meanwhile, in the BBC comment section.
110
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betteri...
en.wikipedia.org
Betteridge's law of headlines - Wikipedia
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Wise accounts featured in hundreds of requests for cross-border help in criminal proceedings from more than 30 countries across Europe. For this piece we worked with partners across Europe including Le Soir, Mediapart, Der Spiegel, NRC, Der Standaard, Dagens N, InfoLibre and Expresso.
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Latest from myself at TBIJ, working alongside the European Investigative Collaborations (EIC): Digital payments giant Wise is under investigation by prosecutors in Belgium over concerns its accounts have been used by criminals to launder the proceeds of fraud, corruption and drug trafficking.
thebureauinvestigates.com
Money transfer giant Wise investigated for half a billion in…
Prosecutors looking into whether digital finance firm has been used to launder proceeds of fraud, corruption and drug trafficking
101
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Yup, sounds about right.
010
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
A security... reward?
020
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
X (then Twitter) had a big data leak in 2022 - so if your email hasn't changed since then it might be in there. Could be targeted but they could be using the data to do this systematically. haveibeenpwned.com/Breach/Twitter
haveibeenpwned.com
Have I Been Pwned: Twitter Data Breach
In January 2022, a vulnerability in Twitter's platform allowed an attacker to build a database of the email addresses and phone numbers of millions of users of the social platform. In a disclosure not...
010
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
After he wins, you just put your hand on his shoulder and say: "Good win.... son" Then disappear
110
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
So Amy Winehouse's father's lawyers, (Russells): - Made false claims that her friends stole Amy's possessions to sell at auction - "Bombarded" (judges words) the same friends with multiple highly aggressive legal letters in quick succession. Any consequences? www.lawgazette.co.uk/news/most-ag...
lawgazette.co.uk
'Most aggressive lawyers in London' in Winehouse auction litigation
Singer's father instructed his solicitors to 'bombard the defendants with aggressive letters and the threat of litigation'.
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 12/03/2026
Alan Partridge...
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
I'm here for this.
010
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 16/02/2026
Lightweight. Personally I yearn for the pre-money age. What was wrong with bartering with cows. Those were the days (I presume).
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
Ooh WeRateDogs is on BlueSky??
weratedogs.is
210
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
Did not realise this was now the standard measurement for ancient cities.
131
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
Which of his ten thousand on-the-side jobs will he work in the particular office for though.
032
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 08/02/2026
Really need a 90s/00s obscure-sports-underdog movie but for curling.
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 07/02/2026
BBC article with @harrietagerholm.bsky.social here! BBC News - Mandelson suggested holiday home for 'privacy' of Epstein 'guests' www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Mandelson suggested holiday home for 'privacy' of Epstein 'guests'
Former Labour Party peer tells sex offender he found
132
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 07/02/2026
NEW from TBIJ w/ BBC - Mandelson recommended private villa to Epstein, less than a month after the latter's house arrest finished. He said the house offered "beautiful suites" and “privacy with accompanying rooms for your ‘guests’”: www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2026...
thebureauinvestigates.com
Mandelson emailed Epstein suggesting private villa ‘for your “guests”’
Redacted email deciphered by TBIJ shows former politician suggesting holiday home for convicted sex offender
142
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
Can't believe Paul Tweed's not a Private Eye fan.
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
Starts off "When you visit the US - just say yes" which I can only assume is advice for dealing with Border Control and/or ICE agents.
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
Impeccable timing that YouTube has now started pitching "Visit the USA" adverts at me. I'm good thanks.
100
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 19/01/2026
Not the quickest system ever invented....
100
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 06/01/2026
I mean the test system is so broken that it effectively is over 6 months before you can get a test anyway.... BBC News - Learner drivers may have to wait six months before taking test www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Learner drivers may have to wait six months before taking test
A minimum learning period of up to six months could be introduced for learner drivers
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 03/01/2026
"It's hard to put a leash on a dog once you've put a crown on its head"
011
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
Lo and behold the company in question is based in Belize. I feel like even by the incredibly low standard of offshore secrecy jurisdictions, Belize is just a complete and utter blackhole of transparency.
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
It was literally designed to appear non-automated - that's the sort of thing that DVSA will be up against.
000
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
By the time I took my final test (because by this point c. 2023 it was impossible to book anything within 6 months) there were actually web plug-ins that acted as users on the DVSA website, clicking/reloading specific driving centres (at randomised human-like intervals) until it found a test.
100
Simon Lock @simonlock.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
They essentially pretended to be you, spotted cancelled slots, reserved it, cancelled your test and then rebooked the new one for you. Which was all well and good until everyone starts using them at which point it just became a case of bot-on-bot fastest finger.
100