RIPA Offences; Cautions in 2008

Dear Home Office,

I received information from the MoJ recently, concerning the number
of people cautioned for RIPA Part I offences in 2008.

I understand from the data provided that 4 people were cautioned by
Police in 2008 for "Unlawful intercepting of a postal, public or
private telecommunications scheme - S.1(1), (2) & (7)".

Concerning the consequences of a caution, your web site states that
"if a crime victim requests your name and address for civil
proceedings, the police are legally obliged to give this
information out, so you may still be sued for damages".

Further I understand that a Police caution will be recorded on the
police national database.

Please could you disclose to me;

- The Police force which issued those cautions

- Any Police report to the Home Office associated with those
cautions

- Details of conditions (if any) associated with those cautions

- The circumstances of the offence (for example which communication
service provider(s) were affected, the duration of the offending
behaviour, the technology used to effect that interception)

- The name and address of the four people cautioned for the
interception offences in 2008, in order that civil proceedings may
commence

Yours faithfully,
P John

Dear Home Office,

please could you acknowledge receipt of my FoI request; 'RIPA
Offences; Cautions in 2008' (dated 18 March).

In passing, please can I draw your attention to the Data Protection
Act section 35, which exempts personal data from non-disclosure
where it is required 'for the purpose of, or in connection with,
any legal proceedings (including prospective legal proceedings), or
for the purpose of obtaining legal advice, or is otherwise
necessary for the purposes of establishing, exercising or defending
legal rights'.

To reiterate, I believe the details of the offenders cautioned for
RIPA s1 offences in 2008 would enable myself (and others) to
commence legal proceedings against the offenders.

See also Home Office circular 30/2005.

Yours faithfully,

P. John

Dear Home Office,

Thanks for your reponse. I am writing to request an internal review
of Home Office's handling of my FOI request 'RIPA Offences;
Cautions in 2008'.

In the data received from the MoJ(**) I was told that cautions data
held by the Ministry of Justice does not include the name of the
person cautioned. "Such information will be held by the individual
police forces in England and Wales. As the police forces in England
and Wales come within the remit of the Home Office you may wish to
contact the Home Office...".

So as guided by MoJ I asked you to confirm
- The Police force which issued those cautions
- Any Police report to the Home Office associated with those
cautions
- Details of conditions (if any) associated with those cautions
- The circumstances of the offence
as well as
- The name and address of the four people cautioned for the
interception offences in 2008, in order that civil proceedings may
commence

I understand that the Home Office have access to the Police
National Computer.

From that source I would expect you could tell me, by force region,
how many cautions for RIPA offences were issued in 2008.

You have access to the offenders' names and address data (which is
held on the PNC). I would be grateful if you would also disclose
that too (per s35 of the Data Protection Act, Disclosures required
by law or made in connection with legal proceedings etc) to allow
legal proceedings to commence.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is
available on the Internet at this address:
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/ri...

Yours faithfully,

P. John

(**)
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/26...

Dear Mr Lister,

concerning my FoI request;
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/ri...

...I'm confounded.

MoJ tell me they have no idea which police forces are responsible
for issuing cautions, but directed me to the Home Office. Despite
the instructions the Home Office issue to Police forces, telling
them to inform the Home Office in writing of cautions, I am told by
you the Home Office do not have that information.

One of Police forces I have contacted speculatively (Metropolitan
Police Special Crimes) refuse to confirm or deny the identity of
the offenders, or circumstances of the criminal behaviour. (Other
forces simply deny holding the data at all).

Consequently there is a danger here that justice is being
obstructed, effectively protecting a criminal against his victims.

Please help me understand. How do I discover the Police force which
issued cautions for RIPA s1 Offences in 2008, and how do I confirm
the identity of the criminals who were cautioned in 2008, such that
myself (and others who may be affected) can take legal action
against them?

This matter is eroding any shred of confidence I had in the
integrity of UK law enforcement.

Yours sincerely,

P. John