Police accused of ‘preventing’ work of spy scandal probe

● English force was unable to question Scottish officers in inquiry

The chief constable of an English force brought in to investigate a spying scandal has told MSPS Police Scotland “prevented” him carrying out his work.

Durham Constabulary was asked to investigate after the Scottish force’s Counter Corruption Unit (CCU) acted unlawfully while attempting to establish the source of media reports about failings during the inquiry into the unsolved murder of Emma Caldwell.

Ms Caldwell was working as a prostitute when her body was found in woods in Biggar, Lanarkshire in May 2005.

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.

Chief Constable Michael Barton told MSPS on Holyrood’s justice sub-committee on policing yesterday he had been prevented from speaking to officers under caution.

He said: “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 but [who it was] certainly pivotal for us to speak to under caution.

“As far as I was concerned I was asked to investigate and as far as I’m concerned... that’s what the common man

0 Durham Chief Constable Michael Barton faced MSPS yesterday or woman would understand what an investigation is. That’s what I wanted to do and I was prevented from doing so.”

Mr Barton said the four complainants – two serving and tworetiredofficers–inthecase had been “gravely wronged” and he sought to correct information given to the committee by a senior Police Scotland officer, Assistant Chief Constable Alan Speirs, last year. Last month following an independent investigation by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) into allegations of misconduct against officers in the now defunct CCU, Police Scotland determined there was no misconduct.

Deputy Chief Constable Rose Fitzpatrick said: “A full misconduct investigation was carried out by PSNI at our request, which is the element of the process that Chief Constable Barton says he was prevented from undertaking. The PSNI investigation found that there was no misconduct on the part of any of the seven officers who were investigated.

“It is our position, supported by legal opinion from a QC, that our regulations would not have permitted Chief Constable Barton carrying out both the complaint enquiry and the misconduct investigation.”