Ian Bell

The request was partially successful.

Dear National Archives,

I wonder if you could help me. I am researching Ian Bell.
The following information is available on on your records.

"Reference: MEPO 26/344
Description:

George Wayne JACOBS, Ronald William FORTUNE and Brian Arthur JOHNSON: convicted of indecent assaults on three boys at Orpington, Kent, in May 1974. Ian BELL and Peter Frank HICKMAN, members of the same paedophile gang, convicted of indecent assaults on other boys. Orderable at item level.

Note: The naming of a defendant within this catalogue does not imply guilt
Date: 1974 Jan 01 - 1977 Dec 31
Held by: The National Archives, Kew
Former reference in its original department CR 209/74/130
Legal status: Public Record
Closure status: Closed Or Retained Document, Open Description
Access conditions: Closed For 86 years
FOI decision date: 2006
Exemption 1: Personal information where the applicant is a 3rd party
Exemption 2: Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1992
Record opening date: 01 January 2064

Context of the Record
All departments
- MEPO - Records of the Metropolitan Police Office
--Records of the Office of the Commissioner and successors
---MEPO 26 - Metropolitan Police: Registered Files, Crime (CR Series)
----MEPO 26/344

MEPO 26/344/1
MEPO 26/344/2
MEPO 26/344/3
MEPO 26/344/4
1974 Jan 01 - 1977 Dec 31

This record is closed and cannot be viewed or reproduced as a digital or printed copy. You can submit a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to The National Archives to review the reasons why it is closed and to request that it is opened. As part of the review we will consult the responsible government department.

If the record can be opened, it will be made available for public access and for copies to be made. It is possible that only parts of the record can be opened. Once your FOI request has been received it will be processed and you will receive a response within 20 working days. Please note that in certain circumstances the review process will take slightly longer."

I am not sure of several things, and so I wonder whether you could answer them under Section 16 , Assistance and Advice. Maybe this information is covered in some place where I have not found them, if so please could you direct me to the place to avoid wasting your time.
What is an " item" and how do I know what items are in these records?
Who/ what role or position of person in what organisation makes the original decision to close these for 86 years?
What the rationale is behind 86 years and what time options are available? What guidelines cover this?

I am also interested in the FOI review process mentioned above.
I use the word "classified" to described the process of deciding whether information is closed and for how long- is there a more accurate term you use?
It is very difficult to challenge without having seen the papers! However I would like the decision to be reviewed.
Perhaps the most best way is for me to tell you which information I would specifically like, and "guesstimate" other information that may have been wrongly held closed.

I wish any specific information released that should be released to the public, such as trial dates, what offences were committed, what charges brought, which court, pleas, senior investigating officer in charge of the investigation, date of convictions, sentence, what institutions if any were affected etc

Obviously victims names and sensitive information should be redacted, butall the information should be released under FOI that does not fall under
Exemption 1: Personal information where the applicant is a 3rd party
Exemption 2: Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 1992

I would like if possible the sections of FOI Act that the exemptions refer to and the Sections of the Sexual Offences Act 1992 which is referred to.

I would like to know how many documents and pages are in each of
MEPO 26/344/1
MEPO 26/344/2
MEPO 26/344/3
MEPO 26/344/4
and headings or titles of documents, names of reports and copies of executive summaries where appropriate.

Some information may not have been released due to connections of individuals to those in positions of power. It is very much in the public interest that these cases ARE made public as much as possible otherwise the powerful are allowed to subvert justice and democracy.

Yours faithfully,

Ann McNeil

foienquiry, National Archives

Dear Ms McNeil,

Thank you for your enquiry of 29/04/2016 regarding a review of:

MEPO 26/344/1-4

George Wayne JACOBS, Ronald William FORTUNE and Brian Arthur JOHNSON:
convicted of indecent assaults on three boys at Orpington, Kent, in May
1974. Ian BELL and Peter Frank HICKMAN, members of the same paedophile
gang, convicted of indecent assaults on other boys.

Your request has been handled under the Freedom of Information Act 2000
(FOIA)

In accordance with the FOIA, The National Archives has processed your
request further in line with your additional request for information
directly relating to the record. Unfortunately, this document has been
temporarily retained by the Metropolitan Police Service is therefore not
held by The National Archives.

Please contact the Metropolitan Police Service to request a review of this
document.  We will not be forwarding your request so you will need to
contact them directly.

Please use the following web form to submit your FOI request to the
Metropolitan Police Service:

[1]http://www.met.police..uk/information/me...

However, in your request for information, you asked a number of additional
questions. We are pleased to be able to provide a response to some of
these questions below:

1. What is an item and how do I know what items are in these records:
An item is a supplementary level used to provide information about
separate parts of a piece.  A piece is an individual record, with an
allocated series and piece number.  An item may be created when:
a) Splitting a piece in two or more parts, for preservation purposes, due
to its thickness
b) When extracts or redactions have been made from the piece because of
their sensitivity, and the extracts are closed under the FOI Act 2000
c) When it is useful to describe individual reports or sub files within a
piece
The TNA catalogue, Discovery, will indicate how many items make up the
main piece. If the main piece is fully open or closed, the content of the
items will be accurate to the description given to the main piece.  
Should the item be a closed extract, or significant individual report, the
description of the item will carry the salient information.

2. Who/ what role or position of person in what organisation makes the
original decision to close these for 86 years?
The files of all departments are, initially, reviewed for sensitivity by
expert reviewers within the department to which the files function
relates.  Is this case, MEPO26/344, has been reviewed for sensitivity by
an expert reviewer within the Metropolitan Police.  Having reviewed the
file, the reviewer then makes a recommendation for closure (if applicable)
based on the content of the file(s) and the list of exemptions available
under the FOI Act 2000.

3. What the rationale is behind 86 years and what time options are
available? What guidelines cover this?
The years for which a file is closed is based on the FOI exemption under
which the file is deemed sensitive and suitable for closure.
In the case of MEPO26/344 the file is closed under Section 40(2) and the
Sexual Offences Act 1992.  If a file is closed under multiple exemptions,
the longest applicable closure period is applied.
Under Section 40(2) closures are made until the point at which the
youngest known person(s) within the file is 100 years old.  At 100 years
old it is deemed safe to assume that the individual has died and,
therefore, the personal information sensitive to them, will no longer be
sensitive.  In the case of MEPO26/344, the youngest known individual was
14 years old in 1977 and, as a consequence, the file is closed until 31st
December 2063, 86 years on from 1977.

4. Use of the word "classified" to described the process of deciding
whether information is closed and for how long- is there a more accurate
term you use?
Terminology varies, generally, relating to the exemption under which the
file is closed.  Generally, however, the term sensitive is used.

If you are dissatisfied with the handling of your request or the decision
which has been reached, you have the right to ask for an internal
review.  Internal review requests must be submitted within two months of
the date of this response and should be addressed to:

Quality Manager
Public Services Development Unit
The National Archives
Kew
Richmond
Surrey
TW9 4DU
[email address]

You have the right to ask the Information Commissioner (ICO) to
investigate any aspect of your complaint.  However, please note that the
ICO is likely to expect internal complaints procedures to have been
exhausted before beginning his investigation.

Yours sincerely,

Joseph Merrington

FOI Assessor
Transfer and Access Department
The National Archives

If you would like to contact us again regarding
this request, please contact the helpdesk:

via e-mail: By replying to this e-mail
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Dear foienquiry,

Much appreciated

Yours sincerely,

Ann McNeil