Phone hacking: 11 suspects face threat of prosecution

 
Calls bugged: Scotland Yard
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The cases of 11 suspects have been referred to prosecutors by the Met’s phone hacking squad, it was revealed today.

The cases of four journalists, one police officer and six other individuals are being considered, said Director of Public Prosecutions Keir Starmer.

He said prosecutors are “much closer” to bringing charges over the phone hacking scandal after receiving four files of evidence from Scotland Yard on alleged crimes by journalists.

Offences under consideration include misconduct in a public office, Data Protection Act breaches, perverting the course of justice, witness intimidation and breaches of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act.

Mr Starmer refused to give a time-scale for a decision on charges but said: “We are getting much closer. The fact that we have got the files tells us that things have moved on a stage.

“We are now entering a period where we are likely to make a decision one way or another.” Five separate Met investigations have been launched since the phone hacking scandal broke covering alleged offences of listening into voicemails, perverting the course of justice, bribing police officers and other crimes.

Among those who have been arrested are former News International chief Rebekah Brooks and David Cameron’s former Downing Street director of communications Andy Coulson.

Mr Starmer added that he now faced “very difficult and sensitive” decisions.He also warned that the total of 43 people on bail was likely to increase and that prosecutors expected to have to take decisions “on most” of the cases, raising the prospect that large numbers of suspected offenders could be taken to court.

Mr Starmer’s disclosures came as he unveiled new Crown Prosecution Service guidelines covering when charges will be brought against journalists involved in criminal activity.

The guidelines state that human rights laws protecting freedom of expression must be taken into account and that journalists who commit offences could escape prosecution in cases where their actions expose a miscarriage of justice, criminal conduct by another person, or the failure by an individual to comply with a legal obligation.

The new rules also say that journalists who commit crimes while revealing conduct which is relevant to an “important matter of public debate” could also avoid charges.

But they warn too that there is no general exemption for the media and that prosecutions will take place if there is sufficient evidence and there is no justifiable public interest defence for a journalist’s actions.

Mr Starmer added: “This is an issue of great public concern. Freedom of expression and the public right to know about important matters of public debate are an essential foundation of our society but there are limits for those who cross the line into criminality.

“These guidelines will assist prosecutors in striking the right balance between those interests in cases affecting the media.”

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