4 days ago
Misconduct probe against ex-Met officer over handling of fake abuse claims ended
A police watchdog has withdrawn gross misconduct proceedings against a former senior Metropolitan Police officer over his handling of false abuse claims made against a string of high-profile figures.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said it had stopped the investigation into former Met deputy assistant commissioner Steve Rodhouse after a 'large volume of relevant material was recently disclosed to the IOPC by the Metropolitan Police'.
Mr Rodhouse was due to face a disciplinary hearing for potentially breaching police professional standards of behaviour for honesty and integrity and discreditable conduct.
The allegations centred around comments made to the media in March 2016 concerning his beliefs about the honesty of two witnesses to Operation Midland – a Met investigation into allegations of non-recent sexual abuse.
They also involved remarks he is alleged to have subsequently made to former High Court judge Sir Richard Henriques, who had been commissioned to carry out an independent review of the handling of Operation Midland in August 2016.
Operation Midland was launched off the back of lurid and false allegations made by fantasist Carl Beech – later jailed for 18 years for what a judge called 'cruel and callous' lies.
The Metropolitan Police's 16-month investigation into fake claims of a VIP paedophile ring saw raids on the homes of former home secretary Lord Brittan, as well as D-Day veteran Lord Bramall and ex-Tory MP Harvey Proctor.
The probe ended in 2016 without a single arrest, after Beech made a series of baseless allegations, including of three murders.
The force was heavily criticised for believing Beech too readily despite inconsistencies in his evidence, including naming witnesses who did not exist.
The IOPC said there was 'no evidence' within the material provided from the Met that there was 'any inappropriate motivation in Mr Rodhouse's comments to the media' or which 'supports that he made those remarks during Sir Richard's review'.
In a statement on Thursday, the policing watchdog said there was 'substantial evidence' to indicate comments made to the media were the 'result of collaboration between senior Met officers and staff' and there had been appropriate considerations, including a 'desire not to discourage victims of historic sex offences coming forward'.
It added that by failing to follow Sir Richard's recommendation to investigate witnesses, the Met's service was 'unacceptable' and its subsequent reviews concluding no investigation was needed were 'flawed'.
The IOPC said it had reported a potential crime to the Met during its investigation, adding this was being investigated by Sussex Police.
A 2016 review of Operation Midland, led by Sir Richard Henriques, found offences of attempting to pervert the course of justice should be considered.
As then deputy assistant commissioner, Mr Rodhouse was in charge of Operation Midland. He went on to take up a senior role at the National Crime Agency.
The new material, amounting to more than 3,500 emails and attachments, was provided to the IOPC in March following a further request to the force in preparation for the gross misconduct hearing.
Mr Rodhouse said the allegations made against him were 'ill-founded and incorrect'.
In a statement, he added: 'I am pleased that the IOPC has finally recognised that I acted with honesty, integrity and care throughout a difficult investigation.
'I welcome the IOPC's apology, but I have yet to receive an adequate explanation as to how this debacle occurred.
'I recognise that senior police officers must be held accountable for their actions, and that public complaints must be properly considered.
'However, if police officers are to willingly take on complex and challenging investigations, they must have the confidence that any complaints made about their conduct will be competently investigated in a balanced and timely fashion. That was not the case here.
'Vital evidence was not considered despite it being readily available and repeatedly requested.
'I am grateful for all of the support that I have received, and I now look forward to resuming my career investigating and prosecuting serious criminals.'
IOPC director Amanda Rowe said: 'Today's announcement does not change our finding that by failing to follow Sir Richard's recommendation in his review to investigate the witnesses, the Met's service was unacceptable and its subsequent reviews concluding no investigation was needed were flawed.'
Ms Rowe added: 'It is highly regrettable for all concerned that material we requested three years ago during our investigation, and we believed had not been retained due to the Met's retention policy, has only recently been discovered and disclosed.
'Police forces have a legal obligation to provide information to the IOPC when we request it.
'However, we acknowledge that we could have taken further steps during the investigation to seek additional assurance from the Met that relevant email material was definitely unavailable.
'We apologise to all of those affected and we are working with the force to establish exactly how and why this situation has occurred, and to reduce the risk of it happening again.'
