The Special Commission of Inquiry sits in Newcastle.(Australia)
THERE are four volumes in the NSW Special Commission of Inquiry report released by Commissioner Margaret Cunneen, SC, yesterday.
But within those hundreds of pages is a single key line that validates, vindicates and justifies the efforts of so many.
There
is ‘‘sufficient evidence warranting the prosecution of a senior
Catholic Church official in connection with the concealment of child
sexual abuse’’ relating to the late Hunter priest Jim Fletcher, the
report found. And this is significant for so many reasons.
It is significant in world terms.
Although
many Catholic priests in Australia and across the globe have been
successfully prosecuted and jailed for sexually abusing children, the
number of church men prosecuted for concealing those crimes or failing
to report them can be counted on one hand.
WATCH JOANNE McCARTHY'S RESPONSE TO THE INQUIRY FINDINGS HERE:
A
bishop in France was prosecuted for a conceal-related offence about a
decade ago. A senior American Catholic cleric was convicted of a similar
offence in 2012 but subsequently appealed.
In
2012 the late Toronto priest Tom Brennan became the first Australian
Catholic priest to be charged with concealing the child sex crimes of
another priest, John Denham, but died before the matter went to trial.
The commission’s finding is also significant for other reasons quite particular to the Hunter.
Since
1995, with the charging of paedophile priest Vince Ryan, the region has
struggled to come to terms with the extent of child sexual abuse
committed by people in positions of authority – and not only in the
Catholic Church.
Since 2007, with
revelations the church knew of Ryan’s crimes for more than two decades
and did not stop him, has come the appalling realisation that people
have put the reputation of churches before children on a systemic basis
over decades.
And when the evidence of
church knowledge of offenders became overwhelming, victims, their
families and victims’ groups were entitled to turn their attention to
those systemic issues. That is why I took documents to the police in
2010 showing senior Catholic clergy had knowledge of the child sex
offending of Denis McAlinden.
It was time.
That
single line is vindication of the Hunter community that has supported
the victims in their fight for justice, in their campaign for a royal
commission, and in their need to see that no one, no matter how
powerful, is above the law.
The commission
report has criticised Detective Chief Inspector Peter Fox for the
allegations he made about police on ABC-TV’s Lateline program in
November 2012.
Commissioner Cunneen found
Inspector Fox was ‘‘obsessive’’, and I have sympathy for a person who
reaches that point while trying to negotiate the ugliness of the sexual
abuse of children for too long.
Five Hunter
police I had direct contact with in 2010, after giving a Strike Force
Georgiana detective the McAlinden documents, were on stress leave
shortly after I had contact with them. Three of those five police,
including Mr Fox, had been involved in significant child sexual abuse
investigations.
The consequences of child sexual abuse go much further than victims and their families.
The
report criticises Detective Fox for sending me material that police
referred to as ‘‘leaks’’. The bulk of that material related to his views
on other police officers, which did not translate into articles by me.
I
formed my views about the police handling of the McAlinden documents
based on my own experiences of trying to communicate with them.
Chris Denning will be charged over a string of alleged sex attacks on boys aged nine to 16. Photograph: Michael Stephens/PA
The former Radio 1 DJ Chris Denning will be charged over a
string of alleged sex attacks on boys aged nine to 16, prosecutors have
said.
The Crown Prosecution Service announced on Thursday that
Denning was accused of 41 crimes, including 34 counts of indecent
assault, on 22 alleged victims between 1967 and 1985.
Baljit
Ubhey, chief crown prosecutor for CPS London, said: "We have concluded
that there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest for
Mr Denning to be charged with 41 offences, including 34 counts of
indecent assault.
"These date from between 1967 and 1985, and
relate to 22 male complainants aged between nine and 16 at the time of
the alleged offending."
Denning was first arrested by detectives
from the sex crime inquiry Operation Yewtree in June last year, and had
been released on bail until Friday.
He is due to appear at Westminster magistrates court on Friday.
Ubhey
said: "The decision to prosecute has been taken in accordance with the
code for crown prosecutors and Crown Prosecution Service legal guidance
on rape and child sexual abuse. We have determined that there is
sufficient evidence for a realistic prospect of conviction and that a
prosecution is in the public interest."
Prosecutors found there was not enough evidence to prosecute in connection with three further alleged victims.
The charges that Denning will face are:
1. Two offences of indecent assault on a boy aged 12-14 between 1967 and 1970.
2. One offence of indecency with a child and one offence of indecent assault on a boy aged 9-11 between 1969 and 1971.
3. One offence of indecent assault on a boy aged 14-16 between 1971 and 1973.
4. Two offences of indecent assault on a boy aged 14-15 in 1973.
5. One offence of indecent assault on a boy and one offence of buggery of a boy aged 13-14 between 1973 and 1975.
6. One offence of indecency with a child and two offences of indecent assault on a boy aged 12-14 between 1976 and 1977.
7. One offence of indecent assault on a boy aged 14 between 1978 and 1979.
8. One offence of indecent assault on a boy aged 14 between 1978 and 1979.
9. One offence of buggery and two offences of indecent assault on a boy aged 14-15 between 1978 and 1979.
10. One offence of indecent assault on a boy aged 12 between 1978 and 1979.
11. Two offences of indecent assault on a boy aged 13-15 between 1978 and 1980.
12. Two offences of indecent assault on a boy aged 12 between 1979 and 1980.
13. One offence of indecency with a child on a boy aged 12-14 between 1981 and 1982.
14. Two offences of indecent assault and one offence of attempted buggery on a boy aged 10-13 between 1980 and 1983.
15. Two offences of indecent assault on a boy aged 10-13 between 1980 and 1983.
16. One offence of indecent assault on a boy aged 12 between 1982 and 1983.
17. Two offences of indecent assault on a boy aged 13-14 between 1982 and 1983.
18. One offence of indecent assault on a boy aged 14 in 1983.
19. One offence of indecent assault and one offence of indecency with a child on a boy aged 11-12 in 1982.
20. Three offences of indecent assault on a boy aged 12-14 between 1983 and 1984.
21. Two offences of indecent assault on a boy aged 12-13 between 1983 and 1984.
22. Two offences of indecent assault on a boy aged 16 between 1984 and 1985.
The victim, who was 16 at the time, has told how he was
forced into sex work as a masseur at the Elm Guest House near Barnes in
South West London in 1982
Fear: The Elm Guest House was investigated by police
An undercover cop probing VIP child abuse allegations at a gay sex
parlour ended up raping a teenage boy, according to sensational new
claims.
The victim, who was 16 at the time, has told how he was
forced into sex work as a masseur at the Elm Guest House near Barnes in
South West London in 1982.
Among the rich and powerful who he says abused him was disgraced former Liberal MP Cyril Smith.
Others
said to frequent the guest house included a government minister, a
high-ranking policeman, a member of the royal household, an MI5 officer
and traitor spy Anthony Blunt.
Authorities were so concerned at
rumours of a VIP paedophile ring that Met officers were sent in,
undercover, to gather intelligence in 1982.
After a surveillance operation, police raided the property.
The
couple who ran the Elm, Carole and Harry Kashir, were arrested along
with the teenage masseur and charged with keeping a disorderly house.
But the charges against the boy, who was under the age of consent for homosexuals at the time, were later mysteriously dropped.
Now aged 49 he has come forward to claim that he was raped by one of the officers at Elm Guest House.
And he plans to sue Scotland Yard in what could prove an embarrassing court case for the police.
The
ex-masseur, who now runs a successful photographic business, has also
told how he feared for his life while being forced to work in the gay
sauna and spa with its hugely influential client list.
He is
reported to have said he was naive and struggling with his sexuality
when his encountered the police approach. He says afterwards he was
offered money.
The man says he was pressed into becoming a masseur
after staying the night at the Elm without paying. He was allegedly
told by boss Carole that clients included politicians and judges.
He reportedly said: “I remember Cyril Smith but I didn’t know he was a politician until I saw his puppet on Spitting Image.
“Carole
told me not to let him in the sauna as he had got stuck in there before
and they had to take the door off to get him oput.”
Referring to
the alleged police encounter, he said: “One came round in the first
month. He was early 20s, good-looking, not the usual sort who went to
the house. He turned out to be one of the officers who later raided the
house.”
The man added: “I am considering legal action against the Met.”
The
Sunday People has been investigating events at Elm Guest House since
November 2012, when Labour MP Tom Watson first raised claims in the
Commons about an establishment cover-up of a VIP paedophile ring.
Allegation: Former Elm House owner Haroon - aka Harry Kasir
Yesterday Mr Watson, 47, told the Sunday People: “This is an
explosive revelation and if it is true it is sure to be a further
hammer blow to the credibility of the Met.
“It’s getting to the point where the public will not be able to trust anyone to get to the truth.
“I hope the Home Secretary will investigate whether a major trial was undermined by police misconduct.”
The
latest revelations come after Labour MP Simon Danczuk published a book
exposing child abuse by the former Liberal MP Cyril Smith.
The
overweight politician regularly visited the Elm, where he was known as
“Tubby” and once had to be freed after becoming stuck in a bath.
Mr Danczuk, 47, has spoken to the witness who was “very nervous”.
Afterwards a solicitor contacted the MP, who represents Rochdale, Smith’s old constituency.
Mr
Danczuk told the Sunday People: “The solicitor said the reason he’s not
speaking very much about it is because he’s taking action against the
Met.
“He says the reason he’s doing that is because he was at Elm Guest House some years ago.
“He
says that the Met acted as an agent provocateur when setting up the
situation in the Elm Guest House. And the allegation is they raped
him. He was 16 at the time so he was a child. And that’s the basis of
bringing a case.”
Mr Danczuk said the ex-masseur claims prosecutors were told to drop charges against him at the 1983 court case.
“The police were effectively told, ‘Listen, drop the charges against this lad, you’re implicating yourselves.
‘You’ve
gone in there as an agent provocateur and effectively had sex with
this lad. You’re implicating yourselves in having committed a crime.’
That’s how he ends up getting dropped.
“He said he was worried about what had happened to Carole and thought she was murdered.”
Mr
Danczuk said that during his initial conversation with the witness the
man had a guarded attitude about what had happened to him during his
time at the Elm Guest House.
The MP added: “He was jittery and not
full of confidence. He says he did know Cyril Smith and I tried to get
him to talk about him.
“He asked why we were not concentrating on
another figure higher up the food chain who visited Elm Guest House.”
This was a reference to a former Tory minister.
“He named him but I said we weren’t looking at him because the book is about Cyril Smith.”
Fears
of a cover-up by police and the security services around events at Elm
Guest House have led to frenzied speculation about goings-on there.
Owners Harry and Carole Kasir were convicted in 1983 for possessing obscene videos and keeping a disorderly house.
Carole died in 1990 in circumstances that are looking suspicious.
The 47-year-old was found dead in bed at her flat.
She was surrounded by injections and insulin bottles and had apparently left two suicide notes.
But an inquest later that year threw suspicions on her death and sparked fears of a cover-up that continue to this day.
Some campaigners believe she had photographs that could have implicated powerful figures in a sex scandal.
According
to reports, an ex-boyfriend of hers, David Isset, admitted: “Carole
said she had a load of photos of famous people doing stuff at the guest
house.
“The name I remember is that of the fat man, Cyril Smith.
“She said she kept them in a strong box at the Royal Bank of Scotland branch in Richmond.”
Mr Isset claimed Carole told her she had been offered £20,000 for the pictures but thought they were worth more.
But the truth was never revealed before her death.
And some campaigners believe she could have been killed to ensure she took her secrets to the grave.
The council official told a new witness, tracked down in a Mirror
investigation, that he suspected vulnerable youngsters were being
assaulted by an organised gang
Questions: Bulic and his daughter Kiddist
Cold case detectives are probing the murder of a council official who vowed to expose a paedophile ring allegedly linked to a future minister in Tony Blair’s government.
The daughter of Bulic Forsythe believes her father may have been killed
because he uncovered a children’s home vice ring involving powerful figures.
Bulic told a new witness, tracked down in a Mirror investigation,
that he suspected vulnerable youngsters were being assaulted by an
organised gang at one home said to have been visited by the Labour
politician.
But days later Bulic, 42, was beaten to death in his flat and the case has remained unsolved for 21 years.
Documents reveal detective Clive Driscoll advised the investigation
should be reopened when he found potential links to his 1998 children’s
homes probe in Lambeth, South London.
But Mr Driscoll was removed from the case for naming the Blair
minister as a suspect and Bulic’s murder file has not been touched for
14 years.
Kiddist Forsythe – born three months after Bulic’s murder and 21 next
week – said: “Police must examine whether my dad was killed because of
what he knew about child sex abuse in Lambeth and if it was linked to
people in power.
“We know that he told more than one person he was going to expose
wrongdoing in the borough shortly before he was murdered and that his
killer or killers remain free.”
Firefighters burst into Bulic’s blazing flat early on Friday, February 6, 1993, and found his blood-soaked body.
The social services manager’s skull had been fractured by a heavy weapon. Justice: Bulic Forsythe's wife Dawn and daughter Kiddist
In the months before his murder, Bulic had told colleagues at Lambeth
Council he was on the verge of exposing child sex abuse and corruption.
A new witness told detectives for the first time last year that a terrified Bulic confided in her shortly before his death.
Speaking after she was tracked down by the Mirror, the former Lambeth
worker said: “Bulic said, ‘With what I’m about to tell you I’m taking a
big risk.
"What if I was to say that council buildings are being used for child sexual abuse on a regular basis’.”
The witness added: “Bulic came to me a second time because South Vale
[youth assessment centre in West Norwood] had closed and he asked me
who had the keys.
"He said, ‘People are saying they are using it to make films’. He was very frightened about something and then he was murdered.”
Bulic died at the time of an internal Lambeth council probe
into alleged sexual abuse in the housing department where he had worked.
The resulting report, obtained by the Mirror, details allegations of
rape, sexual assault and the swapping of child abuse videos and violent
porn within the council. It implicated senior Lambeth officers as well
as police and local politicians.
The report, signed by chair of the panel Eithne Harris, states: “The
murder of Bulic Forsythe was seen by some witnesses as a possible
outcome for anyone who strayed too far in their investigation or who
asked too many questions.”
Published internally in December 1993, it adds: “The panel heard
evidence about BF [Bulic Forsythe] while he was working in Social
Services, speaking to a colleague and telling her he was going to ‘spill
the beans’.
"Three days later he was killed.”
This is not the witness traced by the Mirror. Investigation: A Daily Mirror front page
It states: “BF had allegedly expressed his fear of [boss initials] to another witness who visited him.
"He appeared very frightened to the witness. The witness at this point appeared fearful”
The report describes the atmosphere in the department as “one of intense fear”.
Though the panel found no “direct link” between his death and work it said its evidence should be handed to police.
Bulic was last seen alive at 8.45pm on Wednesday, February 4, 1993.
A BBC Crimewatch broadcast five months later revealed that at 10am on
the Thursday three official looking men were seen by a neighbour
carrying files away from his flat in Clapham, South London.
Two more men were seen in a car behind the property at 2pm. His bedroom was torched at 1am on Friday and the oven turned on.
Kiddist’s mum and Bulic’s widow, Dawn, 60, said: “I think someone wanted to shut him up.”
Paedophiles abused children in Lambeth’s homes for decades.
A former social services manager told Mr Driscoll in 1998 that she
saw the future Blair minister making evening visits to the Angell Road
children’s home in Brixton in the early 80s.
A privately-run immigration removal centre
for women failed to properly investigate allegations of sexual assault
against a female resident by one of its members of staff, it has been
claimed.
An investigation was carried out at Serco-operated
Yarl’s Wood, in Bedfordshire, after the claims relating to a 29-year-old
woman from Pakistan came to light, but now the outsourcing company has
been forced to disclose an internal report which reveals evidence that
it failed to properly investigate the claims.
The document, which
was made public following a legal battle between Serco and Guardian News
& Media, said another employee, who appeared to believe the claims
made by the alleged victim, should be given “guidance” to assist her
“objectivity” in future, and that Serco believed the alleged victim
lacked credibility because her allegations were too consistent and
detailed.
The claims by the woman that she was sexually assaulted
three times by a Serco health worker between November 2010 and January
2011 were investigated by police and the Home Office, but not taken any
further.
Serco’s report also suggested it was possible that the
woman was being advised by her solicitor of “actions to take in order to
thwart her removal directions”, while it was claimed that her alleged
attacker was a family man with strong religious views and would
therefore have much to lose.
Keith Vaz, chairman of the Home
Affairs Select Committee, called for an external investigation into the
“shocking revelations” and said the company should appear before the
committee.
He told the Observer: “It’s clearly the tip of
the iceberg as far as these allegations are concerned and the way Serco
has dealt with them. There needs to be an external examination
following these revelations, which will look at the entire history of
the allegations.”
A
team from Northern Ireland's Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry
will visit Australia for a second time to talk to more potential
witnesses.
The inquiry was set up to examine the extent of child abuse in the Catholic church and state-run institutions.
About 70 witnesses have so far given evidence in public hearings that began earlier this year.
Last September, the team met 30 out of the 65 people in Australia who applied to speak to the inquiry.
The lawyers, support staff and panel members will hold
interviews in Perth and Melbourne with the rest of those who still want
to engage with the biggest child abuse public inquiry ever held in the
UK.
The interviews are due to begin on 29 May.
Documentation examined by the inquiry has revealed that
between 1946 and 1956, at least 129 children were sent from institutions
in Northern Ireland to institutions primarily in Western Australia as
part of the UK government's child migration policy.
The Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiry (HIA) inquiry was
first announced in 2010 and was formally set up by Northern Ireland's
first and deputy first ministers on 31 May 2012.
Its aim is to establish if there were "systemic failings by
institutions or the state in their duties towards those children in
their care".
Campaign for justice
It will also determine if victims should receive an apology and compensation.
The inquiry was established as a result of a campaign for
justice, which gathered momentum in 2009 following the damning findings
of a similar institutional abuse inquiry in the Republic of Ireland.
The first phase of public hearings have focused on St
Joseph's Home, Termonbacca, and Nazareth House children's home, both in
Londonderry.
The inquiry's chairman, Sir Anthony Hart, said these hearings were expected to be completed "at the latest by early June".
He said the inquiry involved a "great deal of preparatory
work", and the visit to Australia was a major part of the second phase
of hearings that would begin in September.
While some applicants will speak to the inquiry's
acknowledgement forum that records the experiences of people who claim
they were abused, Sir Anthony said a "significant number" had to be seen
by the inquiry team.
The woman reported the alleged attack to police 45 years
after the event when detectives opened an investigation into an alleged
historic VIP paedophile ring
Investigation: Tom Watson
Campaigning Labour MP Tom Watson has called for Jane’s case to be
urgently investigated in a letter to Director of Public Prosecutons
Alison Saunders.
He also questions whether police are seriously pursuing the ex-minister, who has been under investigation for well over a year.
And he describes the decision not to proceed with the inquiry into Jane’s allegations as “highly irregular”.
Mr Watson said: “I have met the person making the rape allegations.
“She gave a very detailed account of a very traumatic episode.
“I
have asked the DPP urgently to review this case. From what I have
heard, she did not consent to sex with the alleged perpetrator.”
The alleged victim became so concerned about the failure of
police to act on information she gave them that she angrily confronted a
senior detective involved
Cover up: The alleged victim is worried the attacker may be being protected
The woman who accuses a budding Tory star of raping her believes he is being protected from arrest in a murky establishment cover-up.
She
became so concerned about the failure of police to act on information
she gave them that she angrily confronted a senior detective involved,
reports the Sunday People
The
alleged victim, who we are calling Jane, said in an interview with the
Sunday People and the investigative website Exaro: “Compare the handling
of this case with celebrity investigations.
"There appears to be an inconsistency.
“Celebrities
were quickly interviewed by police, and yet my allegations are similar.
I am concerned that people may be protecting this man.
“I am mindful of the fact that there have been cover-ups after cover-ups.
“I am realistic about what has gone on with regard to this person and how much has been done to cover up.
“I simply wanted to help the police, to be able to get things out in the open, which they have not been able to do.”
Her fears are shared by Labour MP Tom Watson , who made allegations of a network of sex abusers among senior politicians and dignitaries to the House of Commons in 2012.
Mr
Watson believes that by not interviewing the former MP who Jane
accuses, police failed to follow their own guidelines on rape
allegations.
At the centre of the dispute is whether or not Jane made it clear she did not consent to sex.
She says police have argued that she “voluntarily undressed” – which she disputes.
She
went to police after watching on TV the dramatic Commons exchanges
between Mr Watson and David Cameron, in which the Prime Minister was
urged to investigate historical claims of a “powerful paedophile network
linked to Parliament and No10”. Tom Watson MP leaves The Royal Courts of Justice after giving evidence to The Leveson Inquiry
Mr Watson’s extraordinary intervention followed the exposure of BBC DJ Jimmy Savile as a paedophile.
The
Metropolitan Police responded by launching Operation Fairbank, to
investigate claims, also revealed by the Sunday People, that senior
political figures sexually abused children.
Another inquiry,
Operation Fernbridge, began looking at claims from three decades ago
that senior Conservatives and other VIPs sexually abused boys at the Elm
Guest House in South West London.
Jane decided the time was right
to offer detectives her evidence that she was raped in 1967 by a man
who later became a Cabinet Minister.
She first contacted local police outside London, who interviewed her and took video testimony.
The case was then referred to the Metropolitan Police. Jane said: “They clocked it because of the name of the person.”
Scotland Yard passed the case to its paedophile unit, which was already investigating allegations that the man had sexually abused male teenagers and at one point planned to arrest him.
A female officer was assigned to liaise with Jane, who then gave a second round of detailed interviews.
Months later the liaison officer fixed an appointment with Jane and another CID officer.
Jane
said that during the meeting, at which her partner Michael was also
present, the liaison officer commented that she was already sexually
active at the time of the alleged attack and had “an illegitimate baby”.
Jane said: “It struck us as odd. What relevance did that have to what happened?
"It was very insensitive of her just to throw it at me like that.”
The detectives then told her the case would not proceed.
One
read from an email she believed was from the Crown Prosecution Service,
saying the reason was Jane had not explicitly refused to consent to
sex.
Jane recalled: “I was totally taken aback. I might not have
gone forward if I had known they felt they wouldn’t have enough to
prosecute.”
The detectives insisted the alleged attacker had
received no special treatment and had not been identified to the CPS,
ensuring objective treatment.
"Jane remembered the detectives seemed deeply disappointed by what she assumed was a CPS decision not to proceed.
She said: “I am not sure that they were surprised but I think that they were upset. Accusation: The alleged attacker went on to become a high profile MP
"They wanted to move forward but could not.”
Although
there was no DNA evidence and nothing to support Jane’s testimony about
the attack, the detectives accepted that her account of what happened on
a blind date with the man in 1967 was supported by other people,
including Jane’s former flatmate.
She said: “They said they fully appreciated what I had gone through and felt for me – but there was nothing more they could do.”
Jane asked the officers if it would help if she brought a private prosecution.
She was told: “If you want to lose your home.”
Some time later, Jane asked her liaison officer for sight of a letter from the CPS that would confirm, as had been implied to her, that its lawyers decided against proceeding.
She was astonished to be told there was no letter from the CPS, nor indeed any record they made that decision.
Jane then met a Detective Chief Inspector in charge of investigations into the former Tory minister.
Both
she and Michael recalled that the DCI told them he – NOT the CPS – took
the decision not to proceed because there was no evidence.
"He had, however, taken advice from prosecutors.
He said no one had spoken to Jane’s alleged attacker, who was neither arrested nor interviewed under caution.
The DCI said the evidence suggested Jane “voluntarily” took off her clothes – which she angrily rejected.
He then read from a summary of her alleged statements to police.
But she insisted: “It was nothing like what I told detectives. I asked him why he was doing this to me.
"He said: ‘We only have your word.’ But if they had questioned him it could’ve been tested.”
Jane said the DCI told her: “With you, it is all about who he is.”
But Jane, who says she feels “brutally misled”, added: “No. It is about what he has done.”
Scotland Yard said: “All matters under Operation Fairbank remain under review and we will not be discussing further.”
