Ombudsman did report theft of file used in film: police chief

Durham police chief Mike Barton DURHAM’S chief constable has insisted the Police Ombudsman did report the theft of a confidential document that triggered the arrest of two journalists, despite a denial from the watchdog.

Mike Barton and Ombudsman Dr Michael Maguire appeared at odds last night after Mr Barton countered an assertion from the Ombudsman’s office that it did not make a “complaint of theft” to the PSNI.

The PSNI, concerned about conflicts of interest, had asked Durham Constabulary to probe the alleged theft of a document that featured in Trevor Birney and Barry McCaffrey’s film on the 1994 Loughinisland massacre. Officers from Durham subsequently oversaw the arrest and questioning of the documentary makers in August.

A Durham police press release issued at the time said the investigation was triggered when the Ombudsman reported the alleged crime to police. But yesterday that claim was directly contradicted by the Ombudsman’s office itself, which insisted: “We did not make a complaint of theft.”

The controversy took another twist hours later when Mr Barton insisted a report had been made by the Ombudsman. He further claimed the report was followed up by a “written statement of complaint by a member of their senior management team”.

“Durham Constabulary has been tasked to conduct a criminal investigation into the loss of secret documents and their subsequent use in a film documentary, resulting in the potential for lives to be put at risk,” he said.

He added that the Ombudsman’s Office “did report the theft of their material” to the PSNI at a meeting on October 4, 2017 immediately after identifying the fact that ‘secret’ documents it had created had featured in the documentary film.

Earlier, lawyers for the filmmakers had said the arrests were to be challenged in court, as the lack of a complaint “fundamentally undermines the entire integrity of the decision to pursue this flawed arrest strategy”.

The PSNI declined to comment.