Top cop blocked from spy probe
A CHIEF constable yesterday claimed he was “prevented” from carrying out a proper investigation into illegal spying by rogue Scots officers.
Michael Barton was asked by Police Scotland to investigate their countercorruption unit after they had attempted to uncover the source of a story that appeared in our sister paper the Sunday Mail.
The unit tried to access phone records of ex-police officers and a journalist after the paper exposed their bungled inquiry into the unsolved murder of Emma Caldwell, 27, in 2005.
Durham Chief Constable Barton said: “I was initially asked to conduct an investigation.
“Subsequent to that, the professional standards department in Police Scotland decided that we should only conduct an inquiry.
“I was never allowed to do an investigation. We were not allowed to have the investigation status which allows us to speak to officers who may or may not have been guilty of misconduct.
“I was asked to investigate and I was prevented from doing so.”
Barton blamed “ineptitude” rather than conspiracy.
Last month, an independent investigation into allegations of misconduct against officers in the former CCU, carried out by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), found that there was no misconduct.
Police Scotland’s Deputy Chief Constable Rose Fitzpatrick said: “It is our position, supported by external and independent legal opinion from a QC, that our regulations would not have permitted Chief Constable Barton from carrying out both the complaint inquiry and the misconduct investigation.”
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