Carl Beech: key points from report into Met's handling of claims

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/oct/04/carl-beech-key-points-from-report-into-met-police-handling-of-claims

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Warrants obtained ‘unlawfully’

Warrants to search the homes of wrongly accused suspects were obtained “unlawfully” after police misled a magistrate, the report finds.

Police searched the properties of the D-day veteran Lord Bramall, the ex-Tory MP Harvey Proctor and the former home secretary Leon Brittan in 2015 as part of their investigation into Carl Beech’s claims of a Westminster abuse ring.

But the former high court judge Sir Richard Henriques’ report says police “misled” the magistrate who authorised the searches by describing allegations from “Nick” – later revealed as Beech, who has been jailed for 18 years – as “consistent” and “credible”.

The report states: “The written applications stated that ‘Nick’s’ account had remained consistent and he is felt to be a credible witness who is telling the truth. ‘Nick’s’ account had not been consistent throughout. Further, there were, in my judgment, no reasonable grounds to believe ‘Nick’... ”

He said the claim that Beech been telling the truth “was not consistent with information then available”, adding that the magistrate was “misled”.

Police wrong to say witness was ‘credible and true’

Scotland Yard officers agreed to publicly say they believed Beech when publicising their ill-fated inquiry, Operation Midland, the report reveals.

It led to Det Supt Kenny McDonald informing the media at the outset of the investigation in December 2014 that officers believed the claims made by Beech were “credible and true”.

Prior to the infamous statement being made, the deputy assistant commissioner Steve Rodhouse, now director of general operations at the National Crime Agency, wrote: “I anticipate that Kenny [McDonald] or I will be asked if we ‘believe’ ‘Nick’. This is a significant issue and one with the potential to provide either reassurance or concern to other witnesses.

“Any indication that we will doubt the word of victims will undermine our efforts for them to come forward and will damage our relationship with ‘Nick’ ... Decision: If asked we will confirm that we do believe ‘Nick’ but that, as in any case, his evidence will need to be tested before it can be read out in a court.”

But the move was a “serious mistake”, Henriques says in the report, adding: “I cannot conceive that any fully informed officer could reasonably have believed ‘Nick’.”

Tom Watson ‘pressured’ detectives

The deputy Labour leader, Tom Watson, pressured detectives investigating Beech’s claims, according to the report.

Henriques concluded that the politician’s interest in Operation Midland “created further pressure upon officers”. Reviewing how to engage with the politician was listed among “investigative priorities” by a senior officer.

Watson, who “passed hundreds of pieces of information” to Scotland Yard in November 2014, had met with Beech and encouraged him to go to the police. Henriques also said Watson, who wrote an article after Brittan’s death describing him as “evil”, “grossly insulted” the former home secretary.

Officers investigating a separate rape claim made against Brittan may have been “in a state of panic” over a letter sent by Watson about the investigation, the report adds. Watson points out that his letter was actually sent to police after they had interviewed Brittan.

Investigation should have been ended earlier as Beech was ‘inconsistent’

Beech’s “incredible” claims were littered with inconsistencies that should have led to Scotland Yard closing the 16-month investigation sooner, the report finds.

The damning report exhaustively lists inconsistencies in the account Beech gave detectives. “The decision to terminate the investigation was correct. It should have been taken much earlier. ‘Nick’s’ several statements are inconsistent and could not be relied upon in a court. Numerous errors were made in this operation,” the report says.

Henriques said Beech’s claim that he identified Jimmy Savile, who he listed among his abusers, by his voice and necklace was “incredible”. Beech claimed Savile was at abuse sessions and held his head underwater and “penetrated” him. “Had that version been true ‘Nick’ would have had every opportunity to identify Savile facially,” the report says.

Henriques also said it was “incredible” that Beech could have suffered injuries including bruising, fractures and cuts without his mother noticing.

Beech received information from Exaro and journalists that ‘misled’ detectives

Beech received information from Exaro, the discredited investigative news agency that publicised his claims, and other journalists that “misled” detectives and led to them concluding he was credible, according to the report.

Exaro played a key role in amplifying Beech’s allegations, which were splashed across national newspaper front pages.

The report states: “There can be no doubt that ‘Nick’ received information and assistance from Exaro and other journalists that misled Midland officers and contributed to their concluding at an early stage that ‘Nick’ was credible.

“For some time, parallel investigations were taking place. Exaro journalists first, and subsequently Midland officers, took ‘Nick’ on a tour of London with a view to identifying premises where ‘Nick’s’ alleged abuse had occurred. Photographs were shown to ‘Nick’ by investigative journalists and names were supplied to ‘Nick’. This intrusive conduct caused difficulties for the Midland officers.”

The report notes that the BBC journalist Tom Bateman and the corporation’s home affairs correspondent, Tom Symonds, met Beech. Symonds showed Beech pictures of two boys who were either murdered or went missing in the late 1970s and early 80s. Henriques says that the BBC journalists, as well as the Exaro reporter Mark Conrad and the former child protection officer Peter McKelvie, “needed to be told of the potential damage they were causing to this investigation”.