Officers cleared after police spying inquiry

● No further action after attempt to find journalist’s source in murder case

Seven officers have been cleared of wrongdoing after Police Scotland breached spying guidelines attempting to uncoverajournalist’ssources.

Deputy Chief Constable Rose Fitzpatrick said she had reviewed the findings of an investigation by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) and determined there was no misconduct by any of the officers involved.

The PSNI investigation followed a separate inquiry by Durham Constabulary in 2016 after a complaint from two serving and two retired officers.

The English force was brought in after the Interception of Communications Commissioner’s Office (Iocco) said Police Scotland had been “reckless” in failing to obtain judicial approval when trying to access communications data.

Officers from the nowdefunct Counter Corruption Unit (CCU) began the search for a journalist’s source after media reports about a “forgotten suspect” in the unsolved murder of Emma Caldwell in 2005.

Detective Chief Superintendent Clark Cuzen, the former head of the CCU, is understood to be among those cleared following the PSNI investigation.

Police Scotland said restrictions on all the affected officers had been removed, allowing them to return to operational duties.

None of the seven officers had any involvement in the investigation into Ms Caldwell’s murder.

The 27-year-old was working as a prostitute when her body was found in woods near Roberton, South Lanarkshire.

Ms Fitzpatrick said she had decided no misconduct had taken place after reviewing the report by the PSNI’S Assistant Chief Constable Mark Hamilton.

She said: “Police Scotland acknowledged the Iocco findings. We accepted that the service did not adhere to new guidelines covering access to communications data and that standards fell below those required.

“Following the Iocco ruling, Police Scotland asked Durham Constabulary to investigate complaints from four people who were affected by that failure and I subsequently apologised to each of them wholeheartedly and unreservedly for what had happened and for the impact on them.”

She added: “This has clearly been a long and complicated process, but Police Scotland has continued to focus on the ongoing investigation into Emma Caldwell’s murder. We will do everything we can to bring her killer to justice.”

Published last month, the Durham Constabulary report found deputy chief constables Ruaraidh Nicolson and Neil Richardson – who have both retired and are not among the seven officers investigated for misconduct – “misled those seeking the truth” about the CCU investigation.

The report said answers given during appearances before the Scottish Parliament’s justice committee had not been “entirely helpful or accurate”.

The report said the senior officers had not “set out to deceive” but had misled through being “overly defensive”.