Operation Midland was one of the most disastrous investigations in the history of the Metropolitan Police.
Between 2014 and 2016, police officers mercilessly harried a number of people prominent in public life about allegations of child sex abuse and murder made by a fantasist, Carl Beech, who is now serving an 18-year prison sentence. The police chose to believe his lies, and treated the innocent people they interviewed as if they were guilty.
The police were heavily criticised in the report of the independent inquiry into Operation Midland carried out in 2016 by the retired High Court judge, Sir Richard Henriques. The many blunders included using search warrants that were not legally valid.
Nothing was done to discipline any of the officers who had made grave errors until May last year when the official watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), belatedly announced gross misconduct proceedings against Mr Steve Rodhouse, who was in charge of Operation Midland, for “allegedly lying in public.”
In an oral question in the Lords on 18 December, Alistair Lexden asked “why, after 18 months, is there no sign of the outcome of this organisation’s gross misconduct proceedings against Mr Steve Rodhouse, who was inexplicably made Director General Operations at the National Crime Agency after leading the disastrous Operation Midland, which inflicted immense distress on two distinguished members of your Lordships’ House—Lord Bramall and Lord Brittan—and many others?”
He continued: “As it goes about its leisurely work, does this organisation have any conception of the feelings of Lady Brittan and others who have suffered as a result of Mr Rodhouse’s misconduct, which incidentally has not stopped him receiving a £10,000 pay rise recently?”
Alistair Lexden added: “Finally, does it come as any surprise that having found Mr Rodhouse guilty on a separate misconduct charge of jeopardising police operations against organised crime, the IOPC kept its decision secret until the Daily Mail revealed it?”
The Home Office Minister in the Lords replied lamely that he was unable “to give advice or commentary on that investigation until such time as it is complete.”
What a Minister should do is to get this watchdog to work more efficiently in the public interest—and bring it up to a standard which would stop it failing in its duty.
A Labour member of the Lords kindly paid tribute to Alistair Lexden “for his campaigning in this area.” The campaign goes on.
