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| Inconsistencies found in child abuse allegations against senior Tory | |
| (about 17 hours later) | |
| Discrepancies have been identified between the testimony given to the Waterhouse inquiry into an alleged paedophile ring in north Wales during the 1970s and 1980s, and last week's TV claims about a living Conservative politician that have led to a new inquiry being announced. | Discrepancies have been identified between the testimony given to the Waterhouse inquiry into an alleged paedophile ring in north Wales during the 1970s and 1980s, and last week's TV claims about a living Conservative politician that have led to a new inquiry being announced. |
| The Tory alleged to have sexually abused young men was originally said to have been dead by the time of the report. But the ex-politician at the centre of the current allegations is still alive. | |
| A second, supposedly corroborative, witness was considered by Waterhouse to be talking about a completely different individual. | A second, supposedly corroborative, witness was considered by Waterhouse to be talking about a completely different individual. |
| And the report raised the possibility that the Tory named by a former resident of Bryn Estyn children's home had been confused with a family member with the same surname. A relative of the Tory lives in the same north Wales area as the home. | And the report raised the possibility that the Tory named by a former resident of Bryn Estyn children's home had been confused with a family member with the same surname. A relative of the Tory lives in the same north Wales area as the home. |
| Steve Messham, who gave an on-camera interview to BBC Newsnight on Friday, was identified only as "Witness B" when he testified to Waterhouse in the retired judge's heavily sanitised report into an epidemic of sexual abuse in north Wales children's homes. Waterhouse called the alleged Tory abuser "X". | |
| Waterhouse accepted that Messham had been repeatedly abused and psychologically damaged but concluded that Messham's evidence on "Mr X" was inconclusive. He said: "He has been described also as manipulative and there are many matters on which he is particularly vulnerable in cross-examination. | Waterhouse accepted that Messham had been repeatedly abused and psychologically damaged but concluded that Messham's evidence on "Mr X" was inconclusive. He said: "He has been described also as manipulative and there are many matters on which he is particularly vulnerable in cross-examination. |
| "X has the surname of a well known and large non-Welsh family and he is said to be dead now." | "X has the surname of a well known and large non-Welsh family and he is said to be dead now." |
| Waterhouse recorded: "According to B's statement to the police, X had several different motor cars and would wait for him at the bottom of Bryn Estyn Lane when he had a late pass. X would be accompanied by another paedophile now deceased and they would take B to various places. | Waterhouse recorded: "According to B's statement to the police, X had several different motor cars and would wait for him at the bottom of Bryn Estyn Lane when he had a late pass. X would be accompanied by another paedophile now deceased and they would take B to various places. |
| "B alleged that he was buggered by X on four or five of these occasions, twice in the car in Moss Valley, once in the Crest Hotel at Wrexham and in the flat of Gary Cooke on the other occasions. | "B alleged that he was buggered by X on four or five of these occasions, twice in the car in Moss Valley, once in the Crest Hotel at Wrexham and in the flat of Gary Cooke on the other occasions. |
| "Witness B was, however, very reserved about these allegations when he gave oral evidence, saying that, after a particular press article had appeared, his house and his car had been destroyed and he had received numerous threats: he was not taking any chances any more. | "Witness B was, however, very reserved about these allegations when he gave oral evidence, saying that, after a particular press article had appeared, his house and his car had been destroyed and he had received numerous threats: he was not taking any chances any more. |
| "He said, for example, that he knew the Christian name of X but that he was unwilling to disclose it. His recollection in the witness box was that he had seen X three times, including once at the Crest Hotel. X had a young man who was his driver and this man liked people to think he was a member of X's family. B was unable to say who had told him X's name." | "He said, for example, that he knew the Christian name of X but that he was unwilling to disclose it. His recollection in the witness box was that he had seen X three times, including once at the Crest Hotel. X had a young man who was his driver and this man liked people to think he was a member of X's family. B was unable to say who had told him X's name." |
| Waterhouse said a 2nd witness, "C", failed to corroborate the identity of X: "He said that John Allen introduced him to two men with whom he had oral sex but that the identity of these men had not been established. However, he had purported earlier to identify one of them as a member of the X family by reference to a photocopied picture (one of four) produced to him by a journalist. | Waterhouse said a 2nd witness, "C", failed to corroborate the identity of X: "He said that John Allen introduced him to two men with whom he had oral sex but that the identity of these men had not been established. However, he had purported earlier to identify one of them as a member of the X family by reference to a photocopied picture (one of four) produced to him by a journalist. |
| "His account had been that … he had been taken for a meal with John Allen and this man, who had paid for the meal with a gold credit card and who also had a Harrods account card. C had subsequently indicated, however, that he could not be 100% sure that his abuser was a member of the X family, and it is clear that he was referring to a different person from the man of whom B spoke." | "His account had been that … he had been taken for a meal with John Allen and this man, who had paid for the meal with a gold credit card and who also had a Harrods account card. C had subsequently indicated, however, that he could not be 100% sure that his abuser was a member of the X family, and it is clear that he was referring to a different person from the man of whom B spoke." |
| Waterhouse concluded: "It is obvious on this evidence that we cannot be satisfied that any member of the X family was involved in paedophile activity". | Waterhouse concluded: "It is obvious on this evidence that we cannot be satisfied that any member of the X family was involved in paedophile activity". |
| However, the claims by both witnesses were repeated in last Friday's Newsnight. Angus Stickler, the reporter who has investigated the story for more than 20 years, said: "Steve has always maintained the same story and has named the same person." He said it was only Waterhouse's opinion that the two witnesses were describing different individuals who had molested them: "My view is that these are allegations that weren't investigated by Waterhouse." He said they needed to be investigated "in the light of the new public mood" after the Jimmy Savile revelations. | However, the claims by both witnesses were repeated in last Friday's Newsnight. Angus Stickler, the reporter who has investigated the story for more than 20 years, said: "Steve has always maintained the same story and has named the same person." He said it was only Waterhouse's opinion that the two witnesses were describing different individuals who had molested them: "My view is that these are allegations that weren't investigated by Waterhouse." He said they needed to be investigated "in the light of the new public mood" after the Jimmy Savile revelations. |
| Richard Scorer, the solicitor who represented Messham at the Waterhouse inquiry, said that inquiry had been constrained by its terms of reference. "The inquiry was set up to examine the abuse of children in the care system … It meant it couldn't and it didn't look beyond the care system to some of the paedophile networks that were said to be operating beyond the immediate north Wales area. | Richard Scorer, the solicitor who represented Messham at the Waterhouse inquiry, said that inquiry had been constrained by its terms of reference. "The inquiry was set up to examine the abuse of children in the care system … It meant it couldn't and it didn't look beyond the care system to some of the paedophile networks that were said to be operating beyond the immediate north Wales area. |
| "It did look at some of the things happening in Wrexham, paedophile rings operating in Wrexham, but it couldn't and didn't look beyond that." | "It did look at some of the things happening in Wrexham, paedophile rings operating in Wrexham, but it couldn't and didn't look beyond that." |
| He said: "What I think was really required once the report came out was for the police to follow up potential lines of inquiry that had been identified particularly about wider paedophile networks. | He said: "What I think was really required once the report came out was for the police to follow up potential lines of inquiry that had been identified particularly about wider paedophile networks. |
| "The problem at that stage is that by the time the inquiry was set up there was a complete breakdown in trust between many victims and North Wales police and there was very little confidence that North Wales police would seriously examine investigations." | "The problem at that stage is that by the time the inquiry was set up there was a complete breakdown in trust between many victims and North Wales police and there was very little confidence that North Wales police would seriously examine investigations." |
| • This article was amended on 7 November 2012 to correct an editing error. |
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