Operation Elveden closes with final acquittal

A five-year investigation into illegal payments by journalists to public officials finished last week when the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) revealed the fate of a serving prison officer.

The officer, who had been arrested for misconduct in public office as part of Operation Elveden, was told that he will face no further action.

A total of 34 people were convicted over the course of the investigation –which has cost the MPS almost £15 million – including nine police officers and 21 public officials.

MPS Assistant Commissioner Patricia Gallan said the actions of these people “caused irreparable damage to public confidence”, and it was right that they faced prosecution.

“They were not whistle-blowers, but people working in some of the most trusted positions in the police, prisons and healthcare, who were only seeking to profit.

“Elveden has been one of the most difficult and complex investigations the Met has dealt with. Having received from News International what appeared to be evidence that crimes had been committed by police officers, an investigation was inevitable.

“It was right that we followed the evidence where it took us without fear or favour. As the police, our responsibility is to investigate crime and present evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service for them to consider appropriate charges, and this is what we did.”

Operation Elveden began in June 2011 after News International gave the MPS documents that showed journalists had been making payments to police and public officials.

After the force raised concerns of potential criminality, News International decided to reveal its sources.

Detectives looked through more than 200,000 emails, 28,000 documents and 12,000 exhibits over the course of the investigation.

These established that confidential information had been leaked on more than 400 separate occasions, and led to 90 arrests being made.

The operation had garnered criticism from the media, which claimed it was hampering press freedom by clamping down on a long-accepted practice.

More than 30 journalists were arrested or charged as part of Elveden, but only two have been convicted.

Mark Millar QC, a specialist in media issues, said: “What makes this different is that the Met took journalists into the criminal justice system.

“These cases could have been taken up in civil complaints, but I think this has set a bad precedent for democracy.

“If you look at the countries with the worst press freedoms in the world, Russia, China, these are the nations where criminal proceedings are taken out against journalists.”

He also questioned whether the case had been an appropriate use of resources.

However, Ms Gallan reaffirmed that the decision to arrest journalists was not taken lightly, and that the operation had not been an attack on them or on a free media.

She said: “It was necessary and right that we investigated all suspected crimes from the evidence News International provided to us, which directly led to the arrest of suspects. We presented the evidence that we found to prosecutors.”

She also thanked the detectives and staff who worked on the case for their “tireless” efforts, and said: “Their continued professionalism is a credit to them.

“Many have already moved on to investigate homicide and sexual offences, and over the coming months their remaining colleagues will join them.”