TORY OUTRAGE AS POLICE CHIEF CLAIMS THAT EDWARD HEATH WAS A PAEDOPHILE
TORY grandee Sir Malcolm Rifkind dismissed new child sex abuse claims against Sir Edward Heath yesterday as “unsubstantiated gossip”.
The former Cabinet minister attacked as “despicable” reports that police believe the allegations are “120 per cent” true.
Sir Edward, who died 12 years ago, is the subject of a Wiltshire Police inquiry into historic accusations of sex offences against young boys.
Chief Constable Mike Veale was said to be convinced that the complaints against the 1970s Tory prime minister are accurate.
Gossip
But Sir Malcolm warned it was wrong to “rubbish” someone who cannot defend themselves before police announced their findings.
The ex-foreign secretary said: “This sounds like unsubstantiated gossip to me.
“Until you know the facts you are not in a position to judge.
“It is despicable for a newspaper to rubbish somebody’s reputation when they are already dead and cannot defend themselves, based on sources who they are not prepared to name.”
In the latest threat to the Oxfordeducated Tory’s reputation, it was reported that more than 30 people have come forward to accuse him.
One source said: “Mr Veale believes in them 120 per cent and thinks they are totally convincing. There are very close similarities in the accounts given by those who have come forward. The same names used for him, the same places and same type of incidents keep coming up.
“What stands out is that the people giving these accounts are not connected but the stories and the details dovetail.
“It contains disturbing stuff. Investigators have been shocked by what they have learned.”
However, previous claims that Sir Edward took part in Satanic sex orgies have already been debunked.
Mr Veale’s officers launched Operation Conifer to investigate the allegations into Sir Edward two years ago, with a staff of 17 and costs running to £1million.