By Gabriel Princewill-
The IOPC failed to properly hold police accountable for a paedophile allegation blunder by cops who accused a sausage thief of being suspected of sexually assaulting a 13 year old girl, a comprehensive investigation by The Eye Of Media.Com has found.
Highly negligent cops at Cleveland police wrongly described a man arrested for stealing Greggs sausage rolls as a paedophile, leading him to committing suicide, an inquest heard.
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Brian Temple, 34,(pictured) from Redcar, committed suicide on New Year’s Eve in 2017 , several months after the alleged theft of a packet of Greggs snacks, Teesside coroner’s court was told.
He was too distraught after his girlfriend discovered he had been accused of sexually assaulting a 13 year old on his bail report from custody, after he was arrested for stealing a sausage.
Cleveland police officially claimed the inclusion of an allegation of a suspected assault on a 13 year old girl was an error.
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However, a painstaking six weeks investigation by The Eye Of Media.Com suggests found that the error stated to have occurred in accidentally stating that he had been suspected of assaulting a 13 year old girl was next to impossible , after speaking to a number of police officers and Custody Sergeants across the Uk. The police forces spoken to were approached by researchers who disclosed no association with the press but participated as part of research.
Custody Sergeants and officers spoken to across the Uk by this publication were told that the researchers were investigating a suspected paedophile’s claim that a mistaken allegation of paedophilia had been included in his bail papers.
This process of subterfuge was used to obtain as much information as possible about the true likelihood of the error in question in this serious case involving Cleveland police .
It would also be helpful on enlightening us about the full processes involved in releasing a man from custody on bail.
Virtually all accounts, custody sergeants across the Uk approached about the matter said there was no chance of the described scenario happening. The probability of the claim of an error being genuine looks very slim, raising questions about motive.
The existence of a tight process that required the bail conditions of a prisoner being read out to him or her before release, singularly exposed the fallacy of the claim. It has still not fully revealed the motive behind the seeming mischief of the sexual assault allegation by Cleveland police.
The finding is incredible, but still to undergo further examination.
No evidence of a 13 year old who alleged a sexual assault has been identified, even within the anonymous framework available to cater for Data protection issues.
Researchers informed custody sergeants spoken to that a particular force(without naming it) had cited an error in explaining how an allegation of sexual assault was said to have accidentally been added to the bail sheet of a suspect previously held is custody.
Officers from six forces have so far been spoken to about the issue, with a few more underway see whether a variety can consistently provide the same outcome without a deviation from one of the other forces. In the event of a deviation, the different scenario presented will be assessed for its level of plausibility and appeal.
As thing s stand , most appear to suggest the account from Cleveland Police to be porkies.
Clever police themselves have not responded to a request for comment.
Breach Of Conduct
A custody officer at the Haringey police who we won’t name officially stated to researchers that: “This was a major breach of conduct related to following policy, which is more likely to have affected a case like this”.
“Also, when a suspect is released on bail, details of his conviction should have been read out to him before he signs against the offence on the bail sheet”. The only possibility of human error would have been if the incorrect suspect’s details were printed out without being read to him.
Another officer from Islington police force explained that “Neither of these two documents can be combined on a bail sheet; a patch will only make it easier to identify the correct detainee, and if one is installed, it will only enhance the process of navigation whilst using their databases. Other contributions are being assessed in its final stages of a fuller conclusion.
All insights obtained were presented to the IOPC for a plausible explanation. A spokesperson said: ”our investigation has to look at the information available to them over the months they look at each case.
Every investigation is different to another so they will always taken into account what is presented to them and what they uncover. The investigators have the information to hand and like I say have presented that to the coroner and the family who will have been kept informed throughout”.
Failings
The Eye Of Media.Com found that Cleveland police had failed to show where they got the idea of a 13 year old girl from, and that Cleveland police did not appear to have properly examined this point.
Further research about Cleveland Police revealed that the force has been in special measures for the past three years, and still is. Extensive report from the HMCTS reveal a string of malpractices which included dishonesty, lack of integrity, and a culture of cover ups.
In some cases, officers had been found to have dishonourably tampered with sensitive information for personal reasons connected with their sexual life.
Against such background , the IOPC should have been more diligent in its scrutiny of the force, and not just accepted the flimsy excuse Cleveland Police provided without greater scrutiny.
Major Breach Of Policy
In an ongoing assessment of the situation , one custody sergeant from London whose identity is anonymised, told this publication : ”the question of an error occurring in the manner stated in the scenario presented is next to impossible. At best, there was a major breach of policy. when a suspect is released on bail, his bail conditions are read out to him before he signs off the bail sheet”
The IOPC has also been asked to explain whether the particular officer who made the allegation had any other connection with Temple, or any possible cause for a vendetta against him. We also asked for details of the interaction between Mr. temple and Cleveland police on the day of his arrest. No such information has yet been forthcoming.
Temple was unaware of the error when he received the bail papers. He thought was only about the sausage roll theft to his then girlfriend to read , the court heard. When she read about the paedophilia allegation, she spread the fake news, this straining their relationship and eventually leading to them splitting up.
The court heard he was subjected to physical and verbal abuse as a result of the allegation , and that his situation was made worse after he reported threats and assaults to the police, because visits by police welfare officers to Temple’s home only fuelled unfounded suspicions about him, the court was told.
The broken man later turned to drink and drugs to cope with the excessive abuse. Coroner Claire Bailey cited a toxicology report conducted after Temple’s death which found quantities of alcohol in his system, and traces of cocaine, anti-anxiety drugs and a sleeping pill.
His body was found by his brother Paul, after the family became concerned that they had not heard from him for a day. The court was read statements from members of his family, including his mother who has since died. She had described her son as “happy go lucky” before she said the incorrect release papers prompted depression.
Officers whose negligence bring the honourable efforts of competent and law abiding police officers bring the force to disrepute, and should be investigated and disciplined.
In his statement, his brother said Temple never showed any suicidal tendencies. Paul Temple said the mistake on the release sheet “would drive anyone mad”.
Temple’s sister-in-law, Crystal at the time of his death accused the police of failing in its “duty of care” to Temple, who she said had mental health problems at the time of his arrest.
No evidence of malice has been found in this tragic case, but suspicions abound as to how the false allegation found its way to his bail sheet. The concern is enough to spark further questions. It questions whether there were interactions between any of the officers and Mr. Temple which could have led to such a strange end.
Duty
The IOPC appears to have failed in its duty to properly hold the police to account for the embarrassing blunder , but says it dealt with the case strictly according to what was presented to it.
With newer insight on stream , the IOPC is poised to consider the findings of this investigation , and decide whether a future review is necessary, or whether matters will be left where they are, just for lessons to be learnt by the force.
Lessons can’t be fully learnt without proper answers. Unless the true reason behind the false allegations is identified, lessons can’t be learnt in this case.
A Freedom of Information Requests has been made for the full details of the case connected to Mr. temple for a fuller assessment of all that transpired in this case of Mr. Temple.
The case remains within sight.
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