GERS DUO SUE COPS
Duff & Phelps pair to take court action over arrests
Two of the men involved inn Rangers’ administration are to sue police over their arrests.
David Whitehouse and Paul Clark are takingn action against Police Scotland Chief Constable Phil Gormley andnd Lord Advocate James Wolffe over a failed fraud prosecution.
It comes after a court last month ruled police
They’re no longer the subject of any investigations or allegations
and prosecutors “abused state power” in a raid during the investigation into the alleged fraudulent takeover of Rangers.
Charges against Duff& Phelps accountant Clark and colleague Whitehouse were dropped in June.
The pair were accused of offences relating to the acquisition of the Rangers old coin May 2011 after a consortium led by Charles Green purchased the Ibrox club in a deal handled by administrators Duff & Phelps.
Lawyers for Clark launched the civil case against Gormley at the Court of Session in Edinburgh on Friday.
A statement issued by Whitehouse’s legal team Livingstone Brown confirmed the proceedings against the Chief Constable and Lord Advocate but said it would be “inappropriate for us to say anything more”.
Police added: “Civil claims against Police Scotland concerning Dufuf f & Phelps’ engagement ment with Rangers FC have been intimated. ted. However, it woulduld be inappropriate te to comment at this stage.”
Clark said: “I’d ’d love to say morere but, for a numberr of reasons, I’ve been advised against that.”
The Crown lastst night refused to comment. ment.
The men claimm their names have been dr ag gedd through the through the mud during an 18-month ordeal.
After the case against them collapsed, they insisted the prosecution “should never have been brought”.
A statement said: “On 14 February 2012, David Whitehouse and Paul Clark were appointed as joint administrators of Rangers FC.
“For reasons that were never made clear, the Crown decided to bring criminal charges against them in late 2014.
“On Friday, 14 November 2014, Mr Whitehouse and Mr Clark were arrested, held in a police station for the weekend, and taken to court. This process was repeated in September 2015.
“From the outset, both Mr Whitehouse and Mr Clark have emphatically denied all allegations of criminal conduct against them. With the assistance of their lawyers, they have consistently argued that the Crown’s charges against them were entirely without foundation.
“At a hearing in February 2016, the Crown finally accepted the defence position in relation to the majority of the charges brought against the administrators. The remaining two cha rges were then dismissed by the court.
“Since then, the defence has repeatedly asked the Crown to confirm that the case against David Whitehouse and Paul Clark is at an end.
“That has at last been confirmed. They are no longer the subject of any investigations or allegations. David and Paul are relieved at the outcome. They are grateful to their families, friends, colleagues and legal teams for their support during a very difficult period.
“They will now be considering what further steps might be open to them to address the damage caused to thei r reputations and careers by a prosecution which should never have been brought.” Former R angers ow ner Craig Whyte, 45, will be the only person to stand trial over fraud allegations relating to the club’s acquisition in 2011.
Proceedings against the club’s ex-chief executive Green, 63, and former director Imran Ahmad, 46, in relation to the indictment involving Whyte have also been shelved. Last month, judges ruled the seizure of company files linked to Duff & Phelps “unlawful”.
The High Court in London heard Police Scotland and the Lord Advocate snatched privileged documents.
The judges also slammed the “heavy-handed” way in which officers conducted the raid.