Janner gave his children deeds to his £2m home at height of abuse probe
In echo of Stuart Hall case, move could slash potential payouts
‘Sufficient mental capacity’
LORD Janner signed over the deeds of his £2million home to his children at the height of the police paedophile case against him.
It puts the luxury apartment out of reach for potential child abuse victims suing the peer for compensation.
His flat, in a gated community near Hampstead Heath, north London, was transferred free of charge to his two daughters and son in March last year – the same month that police raided his Westminster office, and three months after they had swooped on his home.
The revelation follows an outcry over the decision not to prosecute the former Labour MP for child abuse.
Victims and leading politicians accused Director of Public Prosecutions Alison Saunders of ‘damaging public confidence’ in the justice system with her ruling that Lord Janner’s dementia made him unfit to stand trial – despite a tide of evidence against the 86-year-old.
But his mental health did not seem to stand in the way of him signing legal documents to transfer ownership of the flat.
Last night, Liz Dux, a solicitor from Slater and Gordon representing several of the peer’s alleged victims, said: ‘They will be asking how a man who lacks the mental capacity to stand trial has sufficient capacity to give valid instructions to transfer his assets.
‘It will be of great concern to them to see what may be their last opportunity to achieve any sort of justice deliberately obstructed.
‘The court would be asked to look at any transactions undertaken in recent months which could constitute efforts to defraud potential creditors.’
Peter Garsden, a solicitor representing two other alleged victims, said: ‘Obviously it puts obstacles in the way … There must be suspicions about the intention of the transfer. It would be looked on very critically by a court of law.’
Lord Janner’s duplex apartment over ground and basement floors, with private off- street parking, is likely to have been the peer’s most molested a string of youngsters. Ownership was transferred to his children, Daniel Janner, Marion Janner and Laura Janner-Klausner, on March 26 last year. A Land Registry official confirmed the mortgage-free flat had not been sold, quoting from a transfer document that said: ‘The transfer is not for money and not for anything that has a monetary value.’ Any solicitor assisting with the conveyancing process would have had to be sure Lord Janner was of sound mind. Since he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2009, the former Labour MP has claimed more than £100,000 in parliamentary expenses and allowances. On April 9, he was fit enough to sign a letter saying he wanted to remain in the House of Lords. A week later, the Crown Prosecution Service decided Lord Janner would not be tried over child sex allegations as he was suffering so much from Alzheimer’s disease that he could not understand any charges against him, let alone answer them. This was despite the fact it ruled there was enough evidence to charge him with 22 sex offences against children from 1969 to 1988. Victims have accused authorities of helping to cover up the crimes of a once powerful man and destroying any hope they had of justice. Campaigners, MPs, police and victims have vowed to challenge the decision in the courts. Lord Janner is accused of preying on boys at care homes around his former Leicester West constituency. He was first investigated over abuse claims in 1991 but no further action was taken. An alleged victim gave evidence to the police in 2002 but it was never passed to the CPS. After another alleged victim came forward in 2007, the CPS decided there was insufficient evidence to prosecute. Last night a spokesman for the Janner family said they would not be commenting. In a statement last week, they said the peer is ‘a man of great integrity’ who is ‘entirely innocent of any wrongdoing’.