VIP abuse probe chief accused of gross misconduct
Police watchdog serves notice on bungling commander
THE head of Scotland Yard’s catastrophic VIP sex abuse investigation could face gross misconduct proceedings.
Steve Rodhouse has been served with a formal notice alleging he used ‘inaccurate or dishonest’ words at the conclusion of Operation Midland which cost £2.5million.
The accusations centre on a March 2016 press statement in which the former deputy assistant commissioner said ‘officers have not found evidence to prove that they were knowingly misled by a complainant’.
He reiterated this at a press conference over the collapse of the 16-month inquiry that centred on the Establishment rape and murder claims of serial liar Carl ‘Nick’ Beech.
Addressing reporters after a high-level ‘diamond group’ meeting chaired by assistant commissioner Patricia Gallan, Mr Rodhouse said: ‘As part of this inquiry I haven’t seen any evidence to prove that anyone, Nick or otherwise, has knowingly provided false information to the investigation. Of course if that situation changes, then we will review the evidence.’
But a two-part Daily Mail investigation has revealed that two serial liars who backed up Beech’s ludicrous claims escaped criminal charges despite clear evidence that they had made up stories about innocent VIPs.
In a confidential Metropolitan Police report written in the spring of 2016, and leaked to this newspaper, Mr Rodhouse – gold commander of Operation Midland – wrote in great detail about the appalling criminal records of the men, known as Witnesses A and B.
He also wrote extensively about their track record for being dishonest and the huge discrepancies and holes in their accounts of supposed VIP abuse.
Despite spelling out his strong suspicions that they had made up their stories, Mr Rodhouse concluded that no evidence had been uncovered which would prove their allegations had been ‘wilfully or maliciously made by people who knew it to be false’.
Yet months later in August 2016 he contradicted himself when he told ex-High Court Judge Sir Richard Henriques during his bombshell inquiry into Midland: ‘I am satisfied that both A and B have told deliberate lies.’
As a result of this, Sir Richard stated in a redacted part of his report published in November 2016 that, in addition to an independent criminal investigation into ‘Nick’, consideration should be given to the prosecution of A and B for perverting the course of justice and that another force should conduct the inquiry.
He expected Scotland Yard to follow his instructions. It is up to the Crown Prosecution Service to decide on action after evidence is gathered by police – but nothing was done about A and B.
Beech, a paedophile, was later jailed for 18 years for perverting the course of justice and a number of other offences. The latest twist is likely to be welcomed by those whose lives or reputations were hugely damaged Beech’s lies.
They include former Tory MP Harvey Proctor, the widow of falsely accused former Tory home secretary Leon Brittan and the family of the late head of the armed forces, D-Day hero Field Marshal Lord Bramall.
Not one officer has been held to account over Midland despite Sir Richard throwing the book at the Metropolitan Police over 43 major blunders in the inquiry.
The decision by the Independent Office for Police Conduct to serve a gross misconduct notice on Mr Rodhouse follows a further complaint by Mr Proctor and Daniel Janner KC, the son of Labour peer Greville Janner, who was falsely accused by Beech.
The bungling police chief was cleared by the independent police watchdog in 2017 without even being interviewed.
This came only three months after his actions during the Midland investigation were identified as potentially ‘gross misconduct’ by two senior officers of the Met’s internal department of professional standards. Mr Rodhouse, now deputy head of the National Crime Agency, is facing an uncertain future having already been snubbed for promotion to run the organisation earlier this year.
He also led shambolic probes into a false rape allegation made by a mentally ill Labour activist against Lord Brittan and true claims of abuse made against Jimmy Savile while still alive.
Retired detective chief superintendent Phil Flower, a former senior officer in the Met’s professional standards unit, said that Mr Rodhouse must not be given favours because of his rank.
He added: ‘The law must be applied impartially regardless of the office the individual holds. The system must not only be fair, it must be seen to be fair.’
In a statement, Scotland Yard said: ‘We are aware the IOPC has served a former senior Met officer with a gross misconduct notice as part of its ongoing investigation into this complaint. The serving of a notice of investigation does not
‘Perverting the course of justice’
‘Fair, impartial and diligent’
mean that disciplinary proceedings will necessarily follow.
‘We continue to fully co-operate with the IOPC investigation into our decision not to investigate two people, known as Witness A and Witness B, who made allegations during Operation Midland.’
The IOPC confirmed a former senior Metropolitan Police officer was served with a gross misconduct notice earlier this month and will be ‘interviewed in due course’.
It added: ‘The serving of a notice of investigation does not mean that disciplinary proceedings will necessarily follow.
‘Decisions will be made on conclusion of the investigation which we will announce at that stage.’
Mr Proctor said he wanted to meet new Met chief Sir Mark Rowley to discuss the issue, adding: ‘I would like Sir Mark to reassure me of his intention to change the culture of the Metropolitan Police. He must ensure that despite rank and seniority, there is always accountability.’