Top officers to be investigated
An investigation by a police watchdog into alleged failings to protect children in Rotherham from widespread sexual abuse is to turn its attention to senior officers.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is to investigate South Yorkshire Police’s former senior command team between 1997 and 2013.
AN INVESTIGATION by a police watchdog into alleged failings to protect children in Rotherham from widespread sexual abuse is to turn its attention to senior officers at the time.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is to investigate South Yorkshire Police’s former senior command team members over a complaint that they failed to protect children from sexual exploitation in the town between 1997 and 2013.
The complaint had been referred by the force itself, the IOPC revealed.
A report by Professor Alexis Jay in 2015 found at least 1,400 children from Rotherham were sexually exploited by gangs of predominantly Pakistani heritage between 1997 and 2013 while those in authority failed to act.
Earlier this year, the National Crime Agency, which is investigating historic cases of abuse in a bid to find offenders, said the number of victims had risen to 1,510. The IOPC, which launched Operation Linden to look into the actions of police officers during the same period, will now focus on former senior command team members over claims that reports were shared with them that raised the alarm over abuse in Rotherham.
In 2015, Dr Angie Heal, who was a drugs analyst for South Yorkshire Police when she wrote her reports, said one of them in 2006 was sent to about 90 people, including high-ranking officers and different agencies involved with the protection of children.
But Med Hughes, South Yorkshire Police’s chief constable at the time of the 2006 report, told MPs in 2014 that he had not seen Dr Heal’s reports and had had “no understanding of the scale and the scope of the problems that have come to light”.
The IOPC’s acting deputy director for major investigations Steve Noonan said: “It’s important to say that we’re in the early stages of this particular strand of the investigation and the next steps will be to draft the terms of reference, which will be vital to bring focus to this complicated case. I’d like to make it clear that no individual officer is under investigation at this stage.
“The force’s strategy to tackle child sexual abuse during the period we are investigating has already been highlighted through Operation Linden. This is an area we feel needs to be fully investigated to give the survivors, and people living in Rotherham, confidence that we have carried out a thorough investigation.”
There are currently 33 police officers under notice that they are under investigation by the police watchdog.
It is expecting to complete 84 individual investigation reports, with a small number of cases being discontinued as they had been unable to follow any significant lines of enquiry.
Mr Noonan added: “As we have stated all along our intention is to produce an overarching report for Operation Linden that pulls together all of our key findings, outcomes and learning from our investigations all in one place. Our ultimate aim is to ensure that all those affected can be confident that their complaints have been comprehensively investigated, and for South Yorkshire Police and indeed all forces across the country, to learn from our findings.”
A spokeswoman for South Yorkshire Police said: “We continue to co-operate with the IOPC in relation to their investigation into non-recent allegations of child sexual abuse in Rotherham.
“While we are awaiting the exact parameters of their investigation, it is independent and ongoing and as such it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time.”
This is an area we feel needs to be fully investigated. Steve Noonan, of the Independent Office for Police Conduct.