BBC
In an abandoned luxury flat successful the Syrian superior Damascus, equipped men dressed successful subject fatigues sifted done designer apparel and documents.
Scattered crossed the surviving room floor, nether a sparkling crystal chandelier, were dozens of photos of the aforesaid slender man successful different settings - sitting astatine his desk, moreover playing successful the snow. And aggregate prints of the aforesaid image, showing him smiling warmly arsenic he shook the manus of ousted dictator Bashar al-Assad.
The man was not instantly recognisable, but golden medals and gilded certificates piled adjacent were inscribed pinch the sanction Hussam Luka.
Known arsenic "The Spider", Luka was 1 of Assad's apical henchmen, accused of orchestrating atrocities and systematic torture, and sanctioned by the UK, US and European Union.
Hussam Luka's flat was luxurious and afloat of various equipment
As caput of Syria's astir powerful civilian intelligence agency, Luka was among the astir feared men successful the country. But overmuch of his activity was conducted from the shadows.
Like others successful the regime, Luka seemingly vanished overnight successful December 2024 erstwhile Assad was toppled, leaving a way of unanswered questions and demands for justness that galore fearfulness will ne'er beryllium realised.
In his apartment, days aft Assad's fall, we watched the rebels looking for clues arsenic to wherever he mightiness person gone.
One of the photos we recovered had been copied aggregate times - showing Luka shaking hands pinch Assad
In the area of the surviving room, connected a console table, was an unremarkable-looking notebook.
Inside, successful scribbled bluish handwriting, we recovered dozens of names - from shopkeepers and doctors, to subject officials and group pinch the Luka family name.
Could these contacts thief america study much astir The Spider and his crimes, aliases moreover thief america to way him down?
At 1 time, Luka's ain telephone number was difficult to debar - successful the early days of the Syrian civilian war, it had been spray-painted connected walls astir the cardinal metropolis of Homs.
The conflict was sparked by Assad's sadistic crushing of a pro-democracy uprising successful 2011 - a warfare successful which hundreds of thousands of group would spell connected to beryllium killed.
Luka was a section caput of the Political Security Directorate, 1 of Assad's main intelligence agencies, and had been fixed the task of wresting the metropolis from the rebels.
At the time, rebel-held areas successful Homs were nether siege by the government, and residents were struggling to entree nutrient and medicine. Several people, including erstwhile rebel combatant Motaz al-Zaydi, told america they had resorted to eating rats.
Al-Zaydi remembers Luka's sanction and telephone number appearing connected a wall successful his neighbourhood, and said the connection began to dispersed that those wanting to fly the fighting could telephone the number for safe passage.
Some are believed to person been granted safe transit retired of the metropolis by Luka, but others who called the number were ne'er seen aliases heard from again, according to respective group we said to, including al-Zaydi.
Many told america they referred to Luka arsenic "The Spider" because of his immense web of friends and informants, including immoderate embedded successful rebel groups. "He was everywhere," Homs residents told us. Al-Zaydi described Luka arsenic an "evil genius" and "a fox of a man".
But his astir egregious action successful the city, galore argue, was his alleged engagement successful the alleged Eid Massacre, known by immoderate arsenic the Children's Massacre, which the US noted erstwhile sanctioning him.
It was the Muslim vacation of Eid al-Adha successful September 2015, and Mohammed Towakatli's seven-year-old, Wael, was farming successful the playground he had group up successful the al-Waer neighbourhood.
At 17:10, conscionable aft the powerfulness ration had kicked in, Mohammed remembers the onslaught hitting.
As Mohammed walked astir the parkland earlier this year, now planted pinch rows of saplings, he recalled the names of the children killed and the games they had been playing astatine the time, gesturing to the places wherever he had recovered their bodies, including that of Wael.
Mohammed astatine the sedate of his son, who was killed successful a bombing successful Homs
"They were mini children," he said pinch tears successful his eyes. "The crushed present was painted reddish pinch blood."
Twenty-eight group were killed, including 17 children and 4 women, according to the Syrian Network for Human Rights.
Luka, according to a Syrian activistic group, and a pro-opposition newspaper astatine the time, was responsible for the regime's action of targets successful the area that day.
His actions successful Homs earned him a promotion, and by the clip of the regime's illness he ran the General Security Directorate (GSD) intelligence agency, making him 1 of the astir powerful group successful the country.
The authorities information services could target anyone - from guidance fighters, journalists, doctors, aliases authorities activists, to group believed to beryllium opposed successful immoderate shape to the Assad government.
Those arrested were detained successful Syria's governmental prisons, including Sednaya successful Damascus - a installation truthful notorious it was dubbed the "human slaughterhouse". Many imprisoned location were ne'er seen again.
As caput of the GSD, Luka had strategical power complete Syria's detention policies, and his unit would show communications to and from Sednaya.
There are wide calls crossed Syrian nine connected societal media for erstwhile elder officials to beryllium held accountable. Some besides opportunity the caller Syrian authorities is not doing capable to bring these group to justice.
Syria's Attorney General, Hassan al-Turba, told the BBC the authorities had launched a suit against Luka, accusing him of "premeditated murder, torture, and decease resulting from torture".
"A warrant has been circulated domestically and we are moving connected circulating it internationally arsenic well," he said, adding the management was moving to way the location and activity the extradition of Luka and different missing elder authorities officials.
As he continues to grieve for his son, Mohammed told the BBC he wanted Luka, alongside different elder authorities officials, to beryllium returned to Syria and executed.
"They look for illustration humans but person nary humanity successful them astatine all," he said.
We had taken photos of each page of the book we discovered successful Luka's flat and, backmost successful London, began testing each 1 of its 155 numbers - alert that galore group adjacent to the authorities would person fled aliases gone to ground. Fifty-one numbers appeared to beryllium operational.
We past called these again successful bid of their evident value to Luka, starting pinch subject commanders and relatives.
Every telephone was unsuccessful. Anyone who answered simply hung up erstwhile we explained who we were and what we wanted - aliases denied knowing Luka aliases his family, aliases moreover being the group listed successful the book.
The telephone book we recovered successful the flat - the BBC has redacted the surnames and the first 3 digits of each telephone number
So a BBC reporter, whose ain sanction was erstwhile connected a GSD wanted database while Luka ran the agency, headed to Syria to effort successful person.
Many of those listed successful the telephone book were doctors, truthful our newsman began booking aesculapian appointments pinch immoderate of them arsenic a measurement to meet them.
A expert successful Aleppo reluctantly acknowledged he had treated Luka, but past ordered our journalist to time off and returned his consultation fee.
Our newsman past booked an assignment pinch different expert successful the telephone book, this clip based successful Damascus. This expert revealed he had erstwhile accompanied Luka's mother connected a aesculapian travel to Russia, but was reluctant to springiness america immoderate much information, different than to vaguely nonstop america to a drugstore belonging to 1 of Luka's daughters.
Locals said she, too, had not been seen since December 2024.
For months we drew a blank successful our hunt for Luka.
And past we had our first breakthrough.
One of those listed successful the book, who we tried calling again, yet answered the phone.
He had been the defender for Luka's flat block, he told us, and yet agreed to springiness america the number for personification he said had been Luka's individual bodyguard - a man we are calling Mahmoud.
It took weeks to unafraid an question and reply pinch Mahmoud. Meetings would beryllium scheduled but he would not show up, aliases he would petition a gathering successful a backstage abstraction specified arsenic a car aliases apartment, which our newsman judged excessively overmuch of a risk.
They yet met astatine a edifice 1 night, conscionable earlier midnight. Broad-shouldered and physically imposing, Mahmoud seemed to beryllium considering each reply cautiously earlier he spoke.
He told america he was angry pinch Luka for leaving him down erstwhile the authorities fell. As connection had dispersed successful December 2024 that Assad's norm was connected the brink of illness - pinch rebels advancing connected the superior - Luka had said he would enactment and take sides Damascus, Mahmoud told us. But by the early hours of the adjacent morning, Luka had disappeared, taking a ample sum of money pinch him from the agency safe, Mahmoud said.
Mahmoud refused to stock immoderate interaction specifications for Luka aliases his family, but did springiness america a number for Luka's driver, who he believed had driven the erstwhile spy main retired of the superior that night.
This man proved moreover harder to reach.
When he answered the phone, his sound was tense and unsteady. He many times insisted he was conscionable a driver, and knew thing of Luka's activities. Multiple meetings pinch america were ne'er kept, and yet he stopped replying.
We turned our attraction to Luka's imaginable flight routes, including neighbouring Lebanon - wherever the Iran-backed group Hezbollah had adjacent links pinch the Assad regime.
One elder root successful the Lebanese authorities told america he understood Luka had passed done Lebanon connected a "good Russian passport but pinch a different name", earlier flying retired to Russia.
We managed to find a man, now based successful Lebanon, whose sanction was listed successful Luka's contacts book, but nether a number that nary longer worked. He is 1 of galore wanted by the caller Syrian government, because of his adjacent relation pinch the Assad regime.
This man, who we cannot identify, said he had a number for Luka.
We saw it, and realised it had a Russian state code.
Russia was a cardinal backer of the Assad regime, and successful the days aft his fall, Assad released a connection confirming that he had fled there. Many of his soul circle were believed to person followed him.
Back successful Luka's flat successful Damascus, we had recovered clues that Luka besides had beardown links to Moscow - awards from Russia's overseas spy service, and moreover a New Year's paper addressed to him from a elder Russian official.
Now, the Russian telephone number for him suggested we yet had impervious that he was - arsenic we had predicted - successful Russia.
We wanted to verify that this number really was Luka's.
So a fewer days later, pinch america present, the man agreed to put the personification he said was Hussam Luka connected speakerphone, and inquire him questions which we believed only Luka would cognize the reply to, based connected accusation we had gathered during our investigation.
The sound connected the different extremity of the telephone sounded confused, but answered the questions instantly and correctly.
He refused, however, to speak to america directly.
But our interaction later agreed to telephone Luka again and let america to effort to question and reply him.
The aforesaid sound answered, and we introduced ourselves, explaining that we had questions astir superior allegations relating to massacres and torture committed by the erstwhile authorities official.
"I can't return immoderate consequence talking connected the telephone successful the position I'm in," Luka said, his reside anxious.
Asked if Russia was blocking him from talking, Luka said: "I cannot talk. I can't explain. You person to understand."
When asked if he would meet america extracurricular Russia, he said: "It's difficult."
He past hung up the phone.
We later obtained a 2nd number which we were told was besides for Luka - this clip registered successful Syria and linked to societal media and messaging apps which he appeared to beryllium still using.
Over a play of a day, the BBC was capable to find him successful 2 suburban areas connected the outskirts of the Russian capital, Moscow.
The locations seemed acold removed from the luxurious manner Assad is reported to beryllium starring successful exile successful Russia, and to the life Luka himself erstwhile led successful Syria.
We knew we could not attack him successful personification successful Russia, wherever Assad's henchmen are shielded from world journalists and police, truthful we decided to effort putting our allegations to him complete the telephone erstwhile again.
We rang the number and the aforesaid sound arsenic earlier answered, the statement crackly.
He asked who was calling, and erstwhile told it was the BBC, he instantly hung up.
We sent a connection complete WhatsApp, asking for his consequence to the galore allegations against him, but he did not reply.
Confirmation that Luka is successful Moscow is difficult news for those successful Syria seeking justice. Russia is highly improbable to extradite officials from the authorities that it agelong supported.
The Russian authorities did not respond to BBC requests for remark astir Luka's beingness there, aliases whether it would ever see an extradition request.
Back successful Homs, Mohammed says he will ne'er fto spell of the dream that Luka, and different elder members of the Assad regime, will 1 time look justice.
Mohammed still hopes for justness aft the decease of seven-year-old Wael, pictured present
"[I am] angry astatine each those who were pinch the authorities and its information apparatus… They were each against us," he says.
"Wael was conscionable a seven-year-old child… All he cared astir was playing and having fun."
Additional reporting by Riam Dalati, Ghaith Solh and Abigail Akerman
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