This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21954339
The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Ex-PC who sold information about John Terry's mother jailed | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A former Surrey Police officer has been jailed for 10 months for selling information to the Sun newspaper. | A former Surrey Police officer has been jailed for 10 months for selling information to the Sun newspaper. |
| Alan Tierney, 40, sold details about footballer John Terry's mother and Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood. | |
| Tierney, of Hayling Island, Hampshire, appearing at the Old Bailey, admitted two counts of misconduct, dating back to 2009, earlier this month. | |
| Mr Justice Fulford said Tierney's offences had been "a disgraceful way for a police officer to act". | |
| Tierney was charged as part of the Operation Elveden inquiry into corrupt payments made by journalists to public officials, in return for information. | Tierney was charged as part of the Operation Elveden inquiry into corrupt payments made by journalists to public officials, in return for information. |
| He passed on details about two stories, the first of which was about the mother of Chelsea captain John Terry, who had been cautioned for shoplifting. | |
| The other was about Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood, who was cautioned for assault after an incident with his then girlfriend. | |
| Tierney's defence team, addressing the Old Bailey hearing, said he had "suffered a collapse of his mental health" since his arrest and had tried to commit suicide. | |
| The court was told Tierney had lost his wife, family and reputation. | |
| The judge said it was "wholly against the public interest for those who hold public office cynically to profit out of the misery or unfortunate circumstances of those for whom they are responsible". | |
| The court was told Tierney had sold the name and address of a witness to the Wood incident. | |
| "The most serious aspect of the two offences is that, in relation to count two, the defendant provided the name and, most significantly, the address of the witness," said Mr Justice Fulford. | |
| The judge went on: "The fact that the individual coincidentally tried to sell the story to another newspaper is neither here nor there in terms of what this defendant had in mind. | |
| "Put bluntly, it could easily have led to that witness withdrawing all co-operation as regards being a witness." | |
| Tierney is the second police officer to be convicted under Operation Elveden, following the case of ex-counter-terrorism detective April Casburn. | |
| She was jailed for 15 months after offering to sell information to the News of the World newspaper after the inquiry into hacking by the tabloid reopened in 2010. | |
| The operation is being run alongside Scotland Yard's Operation Weeting, which is looking into phone hacking. | The operation is being run alongside Scotland Yard's Operation Weeting, which is looking into phone hacking. |