Detective cleared in jailed rock star probe
ADETECTIVE accused of gross misconduct over his investigation into paedophile rock star Ian Watkins has been cleared of any wrongdoing.
Detective Sergeant Andrew Whelan, who worked with the South Wales Police’s child abuse investigation unit, was described as a “diligent, dedicated and conscientious” officer by the police misconduct hearing panel at the Waterton Centre in Bridgend yesterday.
Chairman Robert Vernon said Det Sgt Whelan’s closure of a log containing intelligence that the Lostprophets singer was abusing children was a “momentary lapse” made in “difficult circumstances bearing in mind his workload and his professional and personal circumstances at the time” and did not amount to misconduct.
Mr Vernon added: “DS Whelan has for a very long time recognised that his decision was not the right decision to take.”
Watkins was sentenced in December 2013 to 35 years in prison for a string of child sex offences, including the attempted rape of a baby.
The Pontypridd-born singer was first arrested in 2012 but a subsequent IPCC investigation found South Wales Police had first been given information about him in 2008 and recommended three detectives face disciplinary action.
The hearing heard Det Sgt Whelan was involved in investigating an allegation made by a former lover of Watkins, Joanne Mjadzelics, at the end of 2008, in which she said Watkins was involved in child sex abuse but that by the summer of 2009 it had been determined that there was insufficient evidence to support her claims.
The misconduct hearing related to further information that came to light between June 2010 and March 2012, and Det Sgt Whelan’s investigation of it.
He was accused of failing to act on intelligence received by South Wales Police via the Metropolitan Police from an informant, who has not been identified, in October 2010, that Watkins had boasted about having child porn on his computer.
According to the intelligence, Watkins had also said he wanted to marry a woman, “turn her into a junkie and have children with her and abuse them”, the hearing was told.
Representing Det Sgt Whelan, Mr Beggs said his client had admitted making a mistake in relation to that incident during a period of “intense professional pressure” and questioned whether such an “isolated” mistake could amount to misconduct.
The hearing heard Det Sgt Whelan had been placed on a three-week course with no-one covering his normal workload and had been coming in early every morning to go through 30 to 40 child abuse logs.
Mr Beggs said: “How rare is it for an accused officer just to put his hands up straightaway in interview and say ‘that’s a mistake’?”
The other charge against him related to three Crimestoppers logs received by South Wales Police in 2010 which it was said the detective became aware of on October 4 that year when he looked at the intelligence from the anonymous informant.
He was accused of failing to take any action in relation to those logs despite it being clear from the police database that they had not been investigated.
Det Sgt Whelan initially faced eight allegations, two of which were dropped prior to the hearing and four of which were dismissed by the panel yesterday after hearing legal argument.