Secret police dossier of paedophiles and victims found dumped in a skip
Cleveland Police is under investigation after more than 20 highly sensitive pages were found dumped near a skip
A SECRET police dossier containing personal details of paedophiles and their victims has been found dumped in a street in Hartlepool.
Cleveland Police is under investigation after more than 20 highly sensitive pages detailing around 15 different sex cases were found scattered across a public road next to a skip.
The dossier reveals names, addresses, bank details and family information of a number of convicted sex attackers.
Most worryingly of all, it also identifies a number of the beasts’ victims – a clear breach of law which is meant to ensure victims of sexual crimes are given lifetime anonymity.
The dossier was found by a stunned dog walker, who asked not to be named, in June, and handed to The Sun Online.
The dog walker decided not to go to the police fearing officers would not deal with the situation properly.
He said: “It’s completely wrong that someone can just walk along and see this sort of information blowing along a street.
“It’s a blunder. Someone could have been killed.”
The 39-year-old was walking his dog at around 5pm on Wednesday June 20 when he spotted the notes scattered across a suburban road.
He said: “I saw the pages with ‘sex offender’ on and then a police logo and traced them back to an overflowing skip where this blue book was lying on the ground.
“I looked inside and there were all these details.
“I was shocked.”
The Sun Online has decided not to reveal full details of cases involved, but the book contained in-depth notes from an officer tasked with visiting sex offenders.
Inside the pages were profiles of their behaviour, alcohol problems, family relations, time in prison and even their hobbies.
It also contained details on some victims that would easily enable people to identify them.
The case work dated back to 2016 and included offenders with a wide range of ages.
The majority of the men were sexual predators but in one instance there was even mention of manslaughter.
The dog walker believes that if the police documents had fallen into the wrong hands there could have been blood on the streets.
The dad-of-three said finding the notes made him feel “let down” by the police.
He said: “[I came to The Sun] This is a big story and it needs to be brought to someone’s attention.”
The Sun Online immediately handed in the files to Cleveland Police station in Hartlepool.
Cleveland Police spokesman Will Green said: “We take information security very seriously and an investigation has been launched to determine exactly how this happened.
“This is clearly unacceptable and we have personally contacting all those directly involved.
“We have also referred the matter to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) and have made a voluntary referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).
“We believe at this time that the book has not been widely circulated and this is in part down to the swift actions of the reporter in bringing it to our attention.
“We would like to thank The Sun for handing the book in and by doing so reducing the risk of it being seen more widely.”
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A spokesman for the Information Commissioner’s Office said: “We are aware of an incident concerning Cleveland Police and are making enquiries.”
An Independent Office for Police Complaints spokesperson said: “We have begun an investigation following a referral by Cleveland Police.
“Our investigation, which is in its early stages, is looking at the removal and disposal of sensitive material from Cleveland Police premises."
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