Crime

Police are investigating a gathering attended by Sir Keir Starmer and deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner for potential breaches of Covid laws.Durham Constabulary said it initially decided to take no action over a gathering at the constituency office of Labour MP Mary Foy in April 2021.“At that time, it was concluded that no offence had been established and therefore no further action would be taken,” a spokesperson added.“Following the receipt of significant new information over recent days, Durham Constabulary has reviewed that position and now, following the conclusion of the pre-election period, we can confirm that an investigation into potential breaches of Covid-19 regulations relating to this gathering is now being conducted.”The Labour Party has maintained that Covid laws were not broken at the gathering, where Sir Keir was pictured drinking a beer with colleagues during campaigning for the Hartlepool by-election. A spokesperson said: “We’re obviously happy to answer any questions there are and we remain clear that no rules were broken.”At the time of the alleged gathering, non-essential retail and outdoor venues including pub gardens were open but social distancing rules, which included a ban on indoor mixing between households, remained in place.Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper defended the Labour leader and said the Durham incident was “very different from what we saw in government”.She told BBC Radio 4’s World At One programme: “The Labour Party has always been clear that no rules were broken. This was a work event, it was in the middle of a local election campaign and it was eating a meal in an election campaign.“I think that’s very different from what we saw in the government where you had the very people who were making the rules, the very people who were asking people to make great sacrifices across the country – and we’ve seen the evidence of the parties.”Emily Thornberry, Labour’s shadow attorney general, said Durham Constabulary had been “put under a lot of pressure” to investigate by Conservative MPs and right-wing news outlets.“Tere’s lots of people who’ve been campaigning for the police to open this investigation, lots of Conservative MPs have been asking about it, lots of the Conservative-supporting newspapers have been making a big fuss about it,” she told Sky News. More

A “victim-blaming culture” could be leading to “missed opportunities” to collect vital evidence of spiking, according to an inquiry by MPs.There are “few deterrents” for offenders as it stands, with barriers preventing victims from reporting and low prosecution rates, their report found. The Home Affairs parliamentary committee launched an inquiry into drink and injection spiking last year following a wave of reports involving needles and nightclub boycotts calling for tougher action to stamp out the crime. The final report highlights the experiences of victims – including how they were treated by authorities – and makes recommendations over how to better tackle the crime.The MPs concluded “improvements in reporting, investigating and prosecuting spiking incidents” were “urgently needed” to support victims and deter offenders from committing the crime in the first place. They found barriers to reporting included a belief the police would not do anything and not knowing where to turn.Experts had told the inquiry spiking incidents get “underreported quite significantly”.One of the committee’s recommendations was a national communications campaign to address this, which would tell people who think they may have been spiked what to do, where to go and to reassure them they would be believed. But the report suggested the last point was something that could be improved upon. “Even when victims report the crime, a victim-blaming culture can compound trauma and mean missed opportunities to collect evidence,” it said.Spiking victims have previously told The Independent they had been treated as if they were too drunk by bouncers and hospital staff, while charities and campaigners said incidents were often “dismissed” by police and the NHS.The Home Affairs committee said there was “an urgent need for improved education and awareness around spiking across several sectors”. The inquiry also looked into prosecution rates for spiking. Earlier this month, figures obtained by The Independent revealed fewer than 2 per cent of spiking offences had resulted in a charge accross a period of nearly five years. “The level of prosecutions for spiking offences is very low, a key factor being absence of evidence in many incidents, arising from delay in reporting, insufficient forensic testing provision and difficulties in identifying and apprehending perpetrators,” the report said. The MPs also pointed out there was no specific offence to prosecute spiking. “This, together with limited reporting, investigation and prosecution, means there are few deterrents for offenders,” they said. Dame Diana Johnson, the chair of the Home Affairs committee, said: “It isn’t good enough to tell people to put lids on their drinks or normalise taking a testing kit out with you. Everyone should have the right to go out and enjoy themselves without fear.”She said: “The message needs to be sent to perpetrators that spiking is absolutely unacceptable and will be punished.”While the MPs welcomed the fact the government was considering making spiking a specific criminal offence, it said a “more pressing need” was data on perpetrators and their motives – which could help strategies to tackle the crime. Rachel Maclean, the safeguarding minister, said the government would consider all of the report’s recommendations. “As part of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, the government has also committed to undertaking a wide-ranging review into spiking, and is considering whether further legislation is needed to help the police and courts better tackle the issue,” she said. “This has already started, earlier this month we reclassified GHB, a drug used to spike drinks and introduced harsher sentences for those found in possession, as well as those involved in supply and demand.” More

A 15-year-old boy was left feeling “scared, vulnerable, numb and shocked” after he was allegedly groped in his bunkbed by a Tory MP, a court was told on Wednesday. Imran Ahmad Khan, 48, MP for Wakefield, is on trial for sexually assaulting the then-teenager at a house in Staffordshire in January 2008. The complainant, now 29, detailed how he ran “as fast as I could” to his mother after the alleged assault and told her “that guy was trying to touch me”.The Conservative MP had been at the house for a family party and was staying in a bed in the same room as the 15-year-old and his brother, the court was told. The alleged victim described how he had been in his bunk bed in a sleeping bag and under a duvet because it was cold in the room at the top of the house. Around the top-bunk there was a wooden bar to prevent whoever was sleeping there from failing, the court heard. When the two boys turned the lights out and went to bed, the teenager could hear Khan’s “heavy breathing”. “He started off at the end of my bed where the bookcase was,” he told the police in a video interview that was played to jurors at Southwark Crown Court. “He would put his hand through the bar and try and touch my feet. I was in my bed I had… my duvet on top of me. Also had a sleeping bad that I was in.“He kept trying to get in to feel my feet and he couldn’t get to them because of the sleeping bag and he started working his way around the bed to my left and kept sort of trying to get in and was feeling up my leg and kept sort of going in.”The complainant told officers how he had been “leaning all the way over the other side of the bed” to try and get away from Imran Khan’s probing hands.“I kept sort of pushing his hand away pushing it back and it kept, sort of kept coming. “And then he went over the bar and I thought as long as it doesn’t get to my groin it’s okay.”He continued: “There were pockets where [the sleeping bag] opened up and there was quite a big pocket and he managed to get in one at that point I kind of froze and I didn’t really know what to do. “He went into the sleeping bag… lifted his arm up over the bar.. and then got to my groin and I freaked out really and I jumped out of bed.“I ran as fast as I could. I ran to my mum and I just told her that that guy was trying to touch me.” More

An MP has attracted criticism after he suggested police were wasting resources by investigating the killing of an eagle.Chris Loder urged police to focus on county lines drug trafficking “rather than spend time and resources” investigating the death of a white-tailed eagle in the county in a tweet on Thursday evening. A day earlier, the Tory MP for West Dorset had expressed support for a separate police probe into footage showing West Ham player Kurt Zouma kicking a cat.Responding to a Dorset Police appeal for information relating to the incident in late January, Mr Loder tweeted: “Dorset is not the place for eagles to be reintroduced. I’m not challenging government for more money for Dorset so it goes on this. “I don’t condone this at all, but I want @dorsetpolice to focus on #countylines rather than spend time and resources on this.”Conservationist Chris Packham, a vocal advocate of animal rights who has presented BBC’s Springwatch series, called the MP’s remarks “not just undemocratic but sinister”.Others took to social media to express their disapproval of the Conservative MP’s stance. “This is a crime, they should investigate. It’s not for you to choose,” wrote one. “Maybe the police are capable of doing more than one thing at a time?” said another. A third person tweeted: “What an ignorant comment from @chrisloder Our rural crime police do a fantastic job and deserve thanks and respect from everyone including our elected representatives.”However Mr Loder, who grew up on a farm, told The Independent he was not calling for police to shelve the investigation and his primary concern with regards to the eagles was their propensity to kill lamb and small sheep.He added that the population of white tailed eagles had “boomed” and said to “suggest that I am an animal heater couldn’t be further from the truth”.On Wednesday, a day before he tweeted about the police investigation into the eagle, Mr Loder had expressed his support for Essex Police, after the force confirmed they were liaising with the RSPCA animal charity as part of “urgent enquiries” into the behaviour of West Ham’s Kouta, “We didn’t work long and hard to change the law last year for @WestHam footballers to treat animals like this,” Mr Loder wrote. “I’m pleased that @RSPCA_official @EssexPoliceUK are taking action and I hope will consider using the full force of the new law.” More

Politicians and civil servants who participated in alleged Downing Street parties could be handed significant fines if police conclude that they broke Covid laws.The Metropolitan Police’s investigation is currently focused on whether various events broke the Health Protection Regulations that were in force at the time, and changed frequently through the pandemic.Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick told the London Assembly that fixed penalty notices would not “necessarily be issued in every instance and to every person involved”.She said that retrospective investigations for Covid breaches were only carried out for “the most serious and flagrant type of breach” where there was evidence and three criteria were met.“My three factors were and are: there was evidence that those involved knew, or ought to have known that what they were doing was an offence, where not investigating would significantly undermine the legitimacy of the law, and where there was little ambiguity around the absence of any reasonable defence. In those cases, where those criteria were met, the guidelines suggested that we should potentially investigate further and end up giving people tickets.”The announcement on Tuesday came after weeks of mounting pressure on the force to step in, as it maintained it would only investigate if it received evidence of potential criminal offences from Sue Gray’s inquiry.Dame Cressida said the investigation was triggered “as a result firstly of information provided by the Cabinet Office inquiry team and secondly my officers’ own assessment”.Scotland Yard said Ms Gray’s team had provided “outline findings” from its inquiry in recent days, and that it had formally requested all relevant evidence.The Green Party is calling for the police investigation to look at charges of misconduct in public office, but Scotland Yard said it would not “speculate” on whether the probe could be broadened beyond Covid laws.The offence is committed when a “public officer”, which includes MPs and ministers, “wilfully misconducts himself, to such a degree as to amount to an abuse of the public’s trust in the office holder without reasonable excuse or justification”.Fines have been the main method of enforcing Covid laws throughout the pandemic, and were used as a “last resort”, according to police guidance, but people can be prosecuted for offences and handed larger penalties if they refuse to pay.Cressida Dick confirms ‘Met is now investigating’ Downing Street partygate allegationsThe Independent understands that any punishments for people found to have broken the law with Downing Street and Whitehall parties will be governed by the law that was in place at the time.The default punishment during the alleged Number 10 garden gatherings in May 2020 was £100, but the government then increased penalties.During a string of reported Whitehall and Downing Street events in November 2020, England was in the grip of a national lockdown that forbade gatherings of two or more people inside unless an exemption applied.By then, the default fine for breaching the law had doubled to £200 and unprecedented £10,000 fines had been introduced for people responsible for organising large gatherings involving 30 or more attendees.Covid laws changed as different “tiers” came into force in December 2020, when a series of alleged Christmas celebrations took place, but the same fine scheme was in place and large social gatherings were banned.In April 2021, when two “boozy” leaving parties were reportedly held in Downing Street on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral, indoor celebrations remained illegal.Default fines were £200 for Covid offences, but a new £800 fine had been introduced for people attending parties of more than 15 people, and organisers of large gatherings could still be fined £10,000.Announcing the new £800 fine in January 2021, Priti Patel had told a press conference they were necessary because there remained a “small minority that refuse to do the right thing”.“To them my message is clear. If you don’t follow rules then the police will enforce them,” she added. More

Disgraced former Labour peer Nazir Ahmed should be stripped of his title after his conviction for the attempted rape of a girl and the sexual assault of a boy, according to a Conservative MP.Lord Ahmed of Rotherham was convicted on Wednesday of two counts of attempted rape and one of buggery.Sheffield Crown Court heard he carried out the attacks when he was 16 or 17 in the 1970s, but the girl was much younger.Alexander Stafford, the Rother Valley MP who has launched a petition calling on justice secretary Dominic Raab to withdraw the peerage, described the title as “an insult to his victims”.“There is no getting away from the fact that this paedophile is in possession of a peerage and this is absolutely and categorically unacceptable,” he said.He tweeted: “As I said in the Commons last year: ‘There is no individual crime more horrific than paedophilia and there is no punishment too severe for the perpetrators of these heinous acts’.”Ahmed, 64, was created a life peer in 199 bu resigned from the House of Lords in 2020 after an investigation recommended he be expelled.However, only an Act of Parliament with royal assent can strip him of his title.A former Labour councillor in Rotherham, he left the party in 2013.Mr Stafford, who has previously spoken out against child sexual exploitation, said: “The focus now needs to be on the victims of this sick abuser and their decades-long fight for justice.“I thank them sincerely and wholeheartedly for their bravery and persistence and I welcome this verdict.”He added: “I will be speaking to my colleagues in the Department of Justice to ensure that this individual is not allowed to continue to hold a peerage, which would be an insult to his victims.”During the trial, a woman told the jury that Ahmed tried to rape her.Ahmed, who was both a Labour and non-affiliated peer throughout his 22-year parliamentary career, denied all the charges.The judge, Mr Justice Lavender, bailed Ahmed to appear for sentencing on 4 February. More

People were prosecuted and fined up to £1,100 for illegal gatherings on the same day as Downing Street’s Christmas quiz last year, court documents show.Boris Johnson helped host the event, which took place virtually but allegedly saw quiz teams gather in person inside government offices.London was under tier 2 coronavirus restrictions at the time, meaning there could be no mixing of households indoors other than for work or another reason listed as a legal exemption.The Metropolitan Police has so far refused to investigate the quiz but other gatherings on the same date, 15 December 2020, resulted in fines and prosecutions.A 25-year-old woman was fined £1,100 at Westminster Magistrates’ Court earlier this month, after being found to have “participated in a gathering, which was indoors and consisted of two or more people, in the tier 2 area of London” that day.Prashanthi Bhupathiraju, of Woolwich, was not present to argue her case and had no defence lawyer, but a court document said an offence was found “proved” and the fine must be paid by 29 December. The hearing took place behind closed doors under the controversial single justice procedure, which sees cases decided by a single magistrate, advised by a professional lawyer, based on written evidence provided by the police. The same procedure was used to fine a 49-year-old man over an “indoor gathering” in Wembley on 15 December 2020. Abdulkadir Sharif Mohamed pleaded guilty and was handed a smaller penalty of £200 as a result.At least three women, all aged in their 20s, were fined £1,100 each after attending house parties on the same day as the 18 December 2020 Downing Street Christmas party.None of them had pleaded guilty, and the charges were again found proved at closed single justice procedure hearings at Westminster Magistrates’ Court.Cabinet secretary Simon Case has been tasked with investigating alleged gatherings or parties held in government buildings during restrictions, which include a leaving do on 27 November 2020 where the prime minister made a speech.Tory minister suggests Christmas quiz wasn’t party because there was ‘no alcohol’Several other people were prosecuted and fined £1,100 for parties in London during December last year, including a 44-year-old man caught at a gathering in Barking after the tier 4 restrictions were imposed, and a 20-year-old woman who went to a New Year’s Eve party in Croydon.The Independent has seen court records showing prosecutions and fines for gatherings last December across the country, including in Hampshire, Norfolk and parts of Wales. In single justice procedure cases, defendants are notified of the charge by post with a statement setting out the facts of the offence and guidance on what steps to take.They have the option to plead guilty or ask for a court hearing. If they plead guilty or do not respond within a 21-day time limit, their case will be dealt with through the single justice procedure.Cases processed under the controversial scheme are not covered by a Crown Prosecution Service review of coronavirus charges, which has found around a third to be unlawful so far.A letter delivered to the justice secretary earlier this year warned that hundreds or “likely thousands” of people have been convicted for coronavirus offences in their absence, or even without realising as a result. More

Police are contacting two people who attended a Christmas party at the Conservative Party headquarters over alleged breaches of coronavirus laws.The Metropolitan Police confirmed it was aware of the gathering at the building in Matthew Parker Street, Westminster, on 14 December last year.“Officers will be making contact with two people who attended in relation to alleged breaches of the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) Regulations,” a spokesperson said. Police did not identify the two people being spoken to.Former London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey apologised “unreservedly” for attending the party after being shown in a photograph published by the Daily Mirror. It showed him posing alongside more than 20 other people wearing party hats or holding drinks, next to a buffet.A spokesperson for the Conservative Party previously said: “Senior CCHQ (Conservative Campaign Headquarters) staff became aware of an unauthorised social gathering in the basement of Matthew Parker Street organised by the Bailey campaign on the evening of 14 December.“Formal disciplinary action was taken against the four CCHQ staff who were seconded to the Bailey campaign.”Labour, Liberal Democrat and Green Party politicians on the London Assembly had written to commissioner Dame Cressida Dick demanding an investigation, saying the photo indicated “a clear breach of the regulations”.Scotland Yard said it was still not investigating an alleged Christmas Party at Downing Street on 18 December 2020, or other reported gatherings including a festive quiz on 15 December 202, leaving do and a Department for Education event.A spokesperson said police were in touch with the Cabinet Office over a probe being led by Simon Case into the gatherings, and “if any evidence emerges of behaviour that is potentially a criminal offence it will be passed to the Met for further consideration”.The force said it had received a “significant amount of material in relation to the allegations reported in the media”. Boris Johnson dodges calls to come clean on what he knew about No 10 Christmas parties“All the material has been considered by detectives in detail and it does not provide evidence of a breach of the Health Protection Regulations,” a spokesperson added.“In line with our policy where we do not normally investigate breaches of these regulations when they are reported long after they are said to have taken place, unless there is evidence from the Cabinet Office or other evidence comes to light, the Met will not at this time commence an investigation.”The Health Protection Regulations were used to enforce national lockdowns and other coronavirus restrictions at different stages in the pandemic.At the time of the alleged Downing Street and CCHQ events, London was under “tier 2” restrictions that banned indoor gatherings unless legal exemptions applied.The scandal grew on Thursday after a joint investigation by The Independent and The Guardian revealed that Boris Johnson allegedly joined Downing Street officials for a party during the first Covid-19 lockdown.The gathering took place on 15 May 2020, after the then health secretary Matt Hancock had delivered a televised press conference, noting that 384 coronavirus deaths had been recorded in the previous 24 hours.When questioned about the alleged parties during a Downing Street press conference on Wednesday, the prime minister said: “I follow the rules. Everybody across politics should follow the rules.” More