Undercover officers had tacit approval on sexual relationships

A report has indicated that there was informal tacit authority for undercover police officers within the Metropolitan Police Service’s (MPS) Special Demonstration Squad (SDS) to enter into sexual relationships with those in groups they infiltrated although no official explicit approval was found.

Operation Herne investigated a number of allegations made between 2010 and 2013 by Peter Francis, a man claiming to be a former undercover officer between 1993 and 1997, including that he was tasked with smearing the family of Stephen Lawrence, the teenager murdered in 1993.

In a report published on March 6 by Chief Constable Mick Creedon, it was revealed that in secretive covert surveillance on groups linked to protests and extremism, there is evidence within the SDS’ ‘Tradecraft’ document which provides informal tacit authority and guidance for officers faced with the prospect of a sexual relationship although no evidence has been found of sexual activity ever being explicitly authorised. To date, no evidence of sexual activity being utilised as a management supported tactic to aid infiltration has been found.

“Officers were provided with limited instruction and in effect left to make individual choices while operationally deployed. There is evidence of some managers within the SDS expressly forbidding sexual relationships,” the report states.

However, officers have admitted to inappropriate sexual relationships while deployed undercover but there is no evidence SDS management between 1993 -1997 endorsed or authorised the activity.

Several women are currently involved in legal action against the MPS after they became involved in relationships with the covert officers. Three children are known to have been born out of these relationships.

The report states that the ‘Tradecraft’ document provides advice recommending that if there is no other option officers should try to have fleeting and disastrous relationship.

Mr Creedon said there is an ongoing criminal investigation into the matter and there may be a case for misconduct in public office and an advice file has been submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).

“Counsels’ advice has been received that a consensual sexual relationship between an undercover officer and a subject is unlikely to be an offence under sexual offences legislation. A decision has yet to be made by CPS,” he added.

Other allegations made by Mr Francis included that undercover officers appeared in court under their pseudonyms, that they were tasked with infiltrating black justice campaigns against deaths in police custody, police shootings and serious racial assaults.

Operation Herne found that some SDS officers were arrested and subsequently attended court under their pseudonyms. Undercover officers were authorised to engage in minor criminality to maintain their cover.

Legal advice has been obtained which concluded that by appearing in court under false identities no offences have been committed as long as their identification was not subject to the charge and they did not lie under oath.

Operation Herne continues to examine the individual cases to see if a referral to the CPS is required.

The investigation did not find any evidence to show that undercover officers were tasked with smearing the Stephen Lawrence or other black justice campaigns. Intelligence reports submitted and a statement from an undercover officer who infiltrated a group close to the Lawrence family shows they were never tasked into the Stephen Lawrence family at any time, or asked, instructed or ordered to ‘smear’ the family or name of Stephen Lawrence or Duwayne Brooks, Stephen’s friend who was with him the night he died.

Mr Francis also alleged that he was tasked with supplying information to The Consulting Association, a body operating a ‘blacklist’ of employees potentially subversive or disruptive in the workplace.

The report found that Mr Francis ended his deployment two years before the Consulting Association was first established in 1999.