FOIA request
Mark Armstrong made this Freedom of Information request to Independent Office for Police Conduct This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.
Dear Independent Office for Police Conduct,
The Cleveland Police launched an investigation in 2014 into the sexual, psychological and physical abuse of children whilst they were being detained at Kerklevington detention centre. This investigation is called Operation Magnolia. Around 800 victims have now come forward. Nearly a decade later the operation is still ongoing and to date no one has been charged. Some victims believe the investigation (for whatever reason) is been deliberately slow walked by the Cleveland Police and answers to simply questions have been stoned walled.
Background for concerns:
Operation Sacristy also again in 2014. It uncovered that the Cleveland Police buried an accusation of historic child abuse made against the then chair of Cleveland Police Authority in 2006. Following Operation Sacristy the Chief Constable of Cleveland Police was sacked for gross misconduct and the then chair of Cleveland Police Authority was jailed.
The HMICFRS 2017-2019 report found that Cleveland Police investigations often lacked evidence of supervision and this contributed to inconsistent outcomes for victims of child abuse.
On 15 March 2020 the Daily Mail reported that in 4 previous investigations carried out by the Cleveland Police the investigations were of poor quality ( Operations Resolute, Ardent, Seyton and Sturgeon). As a direct result Operations Pandect was launched. This operation uncovered that the previous 4 investigations had potentially missed 3 murders of girls and 153 unrecorded crimes including 49 rapes and multiple child sex offence’s. This Operation cost the tax payers 25 Million pounds and took six years.
Moreover, On 24 November 2016 the Teesside live report that the Cleveland Police had self referred itself to the IOPC in relation to 4 investigations into child sex abuse cases in which the Cleveland Police potentially failed.
On 22 July 2021 Teesside live reported that the Cleveland Police had 6 Chief Constables (that will be 7 now) in the past decade and HM Inspectorate of Constabulary described the Cleveland Police as “rudderless and clueless”. The Cleveland Police was the first police force in the country to be inadequate in all areas inspected.
On 4 November 2021 the Evening Standard also reported that the Police and Crime Commission for the Cleveland Police faced allegations of historic sex assaults.
Request:
Under the Freedom of Information Act would you please provide me with all information (including all background information)in relation to investigations and/or reports produced by the IOPC in relation to any of the above mentioned Cleveland Police operations or provide working links.
Yours faithfully,
Mark Armstrong
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Dear Mark Armstrong
Thank you for your information request which is being considered under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA). We will now consult with the relevant department to gather the response to your request.
We propose to respond to you on or before the 4 October 2023 in line with the timescales prescribed by the FOIA.
If you have any questions about this request please contact us. Please remember to quote reference number 5024412 in any future correspondence about this matter.
Yours sincerely
The FOI and DPA Team
Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC)
PO Box 473
Sale
Manchester
M33 0BW
Tel: 0300 020 0096
www.policeconduct.gov.uk
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Dear Mark Armstrong
Thank you for your information request. You have asked for information held by the IOPC relating to a number of Cleveland Police operations and investigations. You have specifically named Operation Magnolia, Operation Sacristy and Operation Pandect and refer to a number of media articles that identify other cases, although you have not provided links to those media articles.
This is potentially a very broad request. We have provided below our comments regarding the three Operations that you have named. We find that there is insufficient information provided regarding some of the other cases that you have mentioned to allow us to perform appropriate searches of our case management systems. We will require further details, such as a link to the articles that you have referenced, to respond fully to these aspects of your request.
Operation Magnolia appears to be an ongoing operation conducted by Cleveland Police you should therefore direct any information requests to them.
Operation Sacristy was led by Keith Bristow, Director General of the National Crime Agency (NCA). The IPCC independently investigated certain allegations against senior police officers at Cleveland Police and our reports can be found on the National Archives website here: https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov..... You may also wish to redirect this part of your request to the NCA for further information about Operation Sacristy.
In relation to Operation Pandect we have searched our case management system and do not appear to hold any information. This was a major inquiry conducted by Cleveland Police and we would therefore recommend that you approach them directly. We note that they have published a publication strategy in relation to this inquiry which can be found here: https://www.cleveland.police.uk/foi-ai/c...
We also note that your request makes reference to comments made by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary - now known as HMICFRS, and you may also wish to consider approaching them to request the information you are seeking.
The IPCC/IOPC has been involved in three investigations as part of Operation Forbes which looked at allegations of corruption and discrimination at Cleveland Police, and therefore this may be of interest to you. The latest information on the progress of those investigations can be found here: https://www.policeconduct.gov.uk/news/op... . An Operation Forbes final report can be fund here https://www.policeconduct.gov.uk/publica...
In relation to the remaining matters referred to in your request, and as mentioned above, we will require further information such as links to the media articles you have referenced so that we can conduct adequate searches to establish whether we hold any relevant information.
We hope that you find this information helpful.
Yours sincerely
The FOI and DPA Team
Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC)
PO Box 473
Sale
Manchester
M33 0BW
Tel: 0300 020 0096
www.policeconduct.gov.uk
Follow us on Twitter at: @policeconduct
Find out how we handle your personal data.
The IOPC is proud to have achieved Customer Service Excellence accreditation
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