West Midlands corruption probe continues
01 January 1991
West Midlands corruption probe continues
artdoc April=1992
The investigation by the Police Complaints Authority into the
activities of the West Midlands Serious Crimes Squad has entered
its second year, without any former members of the squad having
yet been suspended or prosecutions against them launched.
Since the enquiry began, 85 people, including 37 still in
prison, have made a total of 705 allegations of criminal or
disciplinary offences. A total of 513 of these complaints relate
to 56 police officers who were members of the Serious Crimes
Squad, and a dozen of these officers have each been subject to
over 20 complaints. In addition, 122 other West Midlands
officers, including divisional or regional crime squad
detectives, and seven from outside forces, have had complaints
lodged against them.
The PCA investigation has been hampered by missing police
files and pocket books and by the fact that original custody
records cannot be forensically examined because of the West
Midlands force's practice of disposing of documents. Deliberate
destruction of some paper work has not been ruled out, and it has
been revealed that the offices of the Serious Crimes Squad were
not sealed for several days following the decision of the former
chief constable, Geoffrey Dear, to disband it last year and start
the inquiry into its activities. Another factor delaying the PCA
investigation is that many of the officers concerned are on
extended sick leave with doctors' certificates saying they are
unfit to be interviewed. Although 60 officers have been
interviewed, their is now a backlog of 400 interviews still to
be conducted.
The PCA inquiry covers the squad's activities between 1986 and
1989, when 754 arrests were made. It has now been extended to
cover allegations of excessive overtime and expenses payments to
officers, training, the recruitment and deployment practices of
the squad and its chain of command, and the use of supergrasses
to obtain convictions. (Independent 13.8.90 and 22.8.90, Times
22.8.90)
Institute of Race Relations, Police-Media Bulletin, no 63
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