Met chief Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe in the clear even after probe finds 43 ‘serious failings’ in £2.5m VIP paedo probe
DETECTIVES under Met Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe misled a judge to ransack the homes of VIPs accused of child sex crimes by a fantasist, a damning report said yesterday.
Officers working on £2.5million Operation Midland, which closed after 16 months without a single arrest, should have picked up on key “inconsistences” in stories spun by an alleged victim named Nick.
Former High Court judge Sir Richard Henriques said these were apparent before they applied for search warrants but were only probed afterwards.
And he added: “It is also most regrettable that the district judge who granted the search warrants was informed that Nick had been consistent.”
He wrote in a covering letter to Sir Bernard that he had “great regret” at finding “such serious failings”.
Sir Richard’s report blasted cops’ unwavering belief in Nick’s vile allegations against dignitaries including 92-year-old D-Day hero Lord Bramall, former Home Secretary Lord Brittan and ex-Tory MP Harvey Proctor.
It called police raids on their homes “a grave error of judgment” and said zealous cops scoured Lord Brittan’s home “as if looking for bodies or body parts”.
Sir Richard identified 43 “serious failings” by the Midland squad and a separate investigation, codenamed Vincente, carried out into a false rape claim made against Lord Brittan — who died before learning he had been cleared.
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Though suspects were not arrested, they were effectively identified by Met statements confirming locations of searches.
Officers rejected concerns raised by one psychologist about Nick and relied on the advice of another who did not have enough time to assess police evidence.
And Sir Richard compared Nick’s favourable treatment by officers, receiving “continuous support and liaison,” to the treatment dished out to suspects.
He even suggested that blinkered senior officers still “decline to recognise the innocence of those accused by Nick”.
Yesterday, as it emerged Nick is being investigated for attempting to pervert justice, five officers up to the rank of Deputy Assistant Commissioner were referred by the Met to police watchdogs.
Sir Bernard escaped personal censure and apologised to Mr Proctor and Lord Brittan’s widow. She is refusing to meet until provided with details about the false claims.
Sir Bernard visited Field Marshal Lord Bramall, former head of the UK’s armed services, last month to say sorry.
Sir Bernard, who is retiring seven months early in February, said at a press conference: “I accept on behalf of the Metropolitan Police accountability for these failings.
“It is a matter of professional and personal dismay that the suspects were pursued for so long when it could have been concluded much earlier.”
He denied he should resign, saying he could not be expected to know details of all his force’s investigations. And he insisted publishing the report on the day of the US election was not a bid to “bury bad news”.
Just 85 pages of the 493-page report were revealed to avoid compromising confidential details of witnesses and suspects.
It made 25 recommendations, including referring to “complainants” instead of “victims” and scrapping instructions to always believe their accounts.
It said suspects should not be named before being arrested and they should be kept informed of progress.