Sun executives and Police Office arrested over illegal police payments

Detectives on Saturday searched the offices of Rupert Murdoch's The Sun and arrested four journalists and a policeman in a widening probe into the bribing of police for information.

The development finally drags Britain's biggest-selling newspaper into the turmoil at Murdoch's empire, after its stablemate the News of the World was shut down in disgrace in July amid a scandal over phone hacking.

Four journalists and a policeman in a
widening probe into the bribing
of police for information.

Police said they made the arrests after information was provided to police by Murdoch's US-based News Corporation -- in what commentators said was a clear effort by the company to detoxify the brand.

The BBC and the Guardian newspaper named the arrested Sun journalists as former deputy editor Fergus Shanahan, former managing editor Graham Dudman, current crime editor Mike Sullivan and current head of news Chris Pharo.

In an email to staff, Tom Mockridge, the chief executive of Murdoch's British subsidiary News International, said Saturday that the company had provided legal support to the arrested men.

"Despite this very difficult news, we are determined that News International will emerge a stronger and more trusted organisation," Mockridge wrote in the email, a copy of which was obtained by The Guardian.

"We must all support Dominic (Mohan, the editor of The Sun) who will be leading his staff to deliver, as always, a great paper for Monday and going forward."

A 29-year-old from the force's
Territorial Policing command was arrested .

Scotland Yard said in a statement that in dawn raids it had arrested two men aged 49 and 57 at their homes in Essex, and a man aged 48 at his home in London.

A 42-year-old man was later arrested after attending a police station.

They were held on suspicion of corruption, aiding and abetting misconduct in a public office and conspiracy in relation to both these offences.

A 29-year-old from the force's Territorial Policing command was arrested at the London police station where he works on suspicion of corruption, misconduct in a public office and conspiracy.

"The home addresses of those arrested are currently being searched and officers are also carrying out a number of searches at the offices of News International in Wapping, East London," a police statement said.

"Today's operation is the result of information provided to police by News Corporation's Management and Standards Committee.

"It relates to suspected payments to police officers and is not about seeking journalists to reveal confidential sources in relation to information that has been obtained legitimately."

News Corp. confirmed that the other four men arrested either worked or used to work at The Sun.

It said it had set up the committee after the phone-hacking scandal "to undertake a review of all News International titles, regardless of cost, and to proactively cooperate with law enforcement and other authorities if potentially relevant information arose at those titles."

"As a result of that review, which is ongoing, the (committee) provided information to the Elveden investigation which led to today's arrests."

Thirteen people have now been arrested under Operation Elveden, the police investigation into allegations that journalists paid officers for information.

It was sparked by concerns about the working practices of the British press after the News of the World scandal and runs alongside Operation Weeting, the probe into phone hacking under which 17 arrests have so far been made.

The scandal at the News of the World erupted in July when it emerged that journalists had listened to the voicemails not just of celebrities and politicians but also a murdered schoolgirl, Milly Dowler.

Amid public outrage, Murdoch closed down 168-year-old weekly.

The scandal also prompted Prime Minister David Cameron to order a wide-ranging inquiry into the practices and ethics of the press, which began hearings at the end of last year.

The Sun has daily sales of more than 2.5 million. It is known for its racy celebrity-driven content and colourful headlines, but also for self-proclaimed influence with the electorate.

Ahead of elections in 2010 it dropped its support for British prime minister Gordon Brown's Labour party in favour of Cameron's Conservatives.

Current Sun editor Mohan told the phone-hacking inquiry earlier this month that he had no knowledge of phone-hacking at the paper, adding that the daily could be a "powerful force for good."

Copyright © 2012 AFP. All rights reserved

Celebrities settle hacking claims

Dozens of celebrities and politicians, including Jude Law and Lord Prescott, have now settled damages claims over the News of the World phone-hacking scandal, the High Court has heard.

Shaun Russell, whose wife and daughter were killed in Kent in 1996, and Sara Payne, the mother of murdered schoolgirl Sarah, are also among 36 claimants who have reached settlements.

Details of some of the deals have been given in court.

Actress and designer Sadie Frost has received £50,000 in damages. Labour MP Chris Bryant received £30,000. Footballer Ashley Cole has also received damages but the figure was not disclosed.

The deals mean that 36 damages claims being brought against News International subsidiary News Group Newspapers (NGN), publisher of the now-defunct News of the World, have been settled.

But Mark Thomson, of law firm Atkins Thomson, who represents some of the claimants, said others would press ahead with a trial scheduled for next month.

Actor Jude Law is among those who have settled


damages claims over the phone hacking scandal

Others whose settlements were confirmed include former cavalry officer James Hewitt, who had an affair with Diana, Princess of Wales, former MP George Galloway, Welsh rugby star Gavin Henson, singer Dannii Minogue, Calum Best, the son of George Best, and Meg Matthews, the ex-wife of former Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher.

Mr Thomson said: "All of the claimants have been extremely brave to take on and succeed against a massive and influential multinational media organisation.

"They can take the credit for triggering the new police investigation, the parliamentary inquiries and the Leveson Inquiry. They should be very pleased with what they have achieved.

"A number of claimants are still pursuing the matter to trial and, as a result, NGN will continue to disclose further information and evidence."

Chris Bryant (MP) – £30,000 plus costs

Ashley Cole (footballer) – unknown

Sadie Frost (designer) – £50,000 plus costs

Lisa Gower (former partner of Steve Coogan) – £30,000 plus costs

HJK (anonymous member of the public) – £60,000 plus costs

Joan Hammell (former aide to John Prescott) – £40,000 plus costs

Gavin Henson (rugby player) – £40,000 plus costs

Ben Jackson (assistant to Jude Law) – £40,000 plus costs

Jude Law (actor) – £130,000 plus costs.

Denis MacShane (MP) – £32,500 plus costs

Ciara Parkes (PR to Jude Law) – £35,000 plus costs

Guy Pelly (friend of Prince Harry's) – £40,000 plus costs

John Prescott (former deputy prime minister) – £40,000 plus costs

Tom Rowland (journalist) – £25,000 plus costs

Graham Shear (footballers' lawyer) – £25,000 plus costs

Christopher Shipman (son of Harold Shipman) – "substantial damages" plus costs

Joan Smith (former partner of Denis Mac Shane) – £27,500 plus costs

Claire Ward (former MP) "substantial" plus costs.

Total declared damages: £645,000.


©Press Association 2012

Politicians and police to blame for hacking - Hislop

LONDON (Reuters) - A respected editor laid the blame for the country's phone-hacking scandal at the door of politicians and police on Tuesday, and said journalists did not need new rules but merely to observe existing ones.

Ian Hislop, editor of the satirical and investigative Private Eye magazine told a government-ordered inquiry into press standards that legislation was not needed because many of the tricks exposed by the hacking scandal were already illegal.

Hislop was appearing at the Leveson inquiry along with editors from the Times, Sunday Times and Guardian to urge the presiding judge to protect the country's cherished free press and show caution when considering new legislation.

"Most of the heinous crimes that came up and have made such a splash in front of this inquiry have already been illegal," he said. "Contempt of court is illegal, phone-tapping is illegal, policemen taking money is illegal. All of these things don't need a code, we already have laws for them.

"The fact that these laws were not rigorously enforced is again due to the failure of the police, the interaction of the police and News International -- and let's be honest about this, the fact that our politicians have been very, very involved in ways that I think are not sensible with senior News International people."

Ian Hislop blamed the police and politicians for the phone hacking scandal.

The Leveson Inquiry was ordered by Prime Minister David Cameron last year at the height of the phone-hacking scandal at the News of the World that prompted Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. to close the best-selling Sunday tabloid.

The scandal, which dominated the news agenda for weeks last year, drew attention to the level of influence held by editors and executives at News International, the British newspaper arm of News Corp, and other newspapers in the country.

It embarrassed politicians for their close ties with newspaper executives and also the police, who repeatedly failed to investigate allegations of illegal phone hacking at the News of the World.

Hislop said the conduct of the politicians, who socialised with newspaper executives and employed former editors, gave the impression to many that the industry was untouchable.

"If the prime minister appoints an ex-News of the World editor to be his communications director, you must think 'we're top of the pile, what could stop us?'" he suggested, adding that the current and former prime ministers should appear before the inquiry to explain their conduct.

Tom Mockridge, the head of News International who took over when a host of Murdoch executives departed last year, also urged the inquiry to protect the independent nature of Britain's press regulation, which he said was respected around the world.

"In this society, where there is not a constitutional guarantee of free speech, for the government to make laws which intervene in the press would contravene that basic principle and undermine the principle of a free press," he said.

He added that he had tightened the rules and governance at the company's newspapers since arriving last year.

Judge Leveson is using the lengthy investigation to consider new rules for the country's press which could range from statutory regulation to the more lenient and current system of self-regulation.

Most journalists and executives appearing before the inquiry have accepted that the current rules need to be changed to give more credibility and power to the body that oversees the industry.

All have been opposed to a system where the government regulates the press or has any control over its output.

"I think if the state regulates the press, the press no longer regulates the state," Hislop said.

(Reporting by Kate Holton; Editing by Steve Addison)
©Reuters

EX-POLICEMAN HELD IN HACKING PROBE

A former Scotland Yard officer was arrested today over allegations of unauthorised leaks to a journalist.

The 52-year-old man is being questioned on suspicion of misconduct in public office after being detained at his Berkshire home by officers from the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

Evidence was sent to the police watchdog from Scotland Yard detectives investigating corruption surrounding the phone-hacking investigation.

The former officer is being questioned by IPCC investigators at a Thames Valley police station.

A spokeswoman for the watchdog said: "A 52-year-old man, a former Metropolitan Police Service officer, was arrested by the IPCC at his home in Berkshire this morning on suspicion of misconduct in public office and Data Protection Act offences.

"The arrest is the result of information passed to the IPCC by the Metropolitan Police Service team investigating Operation Elveden and relates to the alleged passing of unauthorised information to a journalist."

Nine suspects have now been arrested as part of Operation Elveden, which was launched after officers were handed documents suggesting News International journalists had made payments to officers.

Sir Paul Stephenson, the then Met commissioner, said in July that evidence from the publisher suggested a small number of officers were involved.

Last month, a 52-year-old woman, understood to be a member of the force's specialist operations branch, was arrested on suspicion of receiving illegal payments.

Others questioned as part of the inquiry include former News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks, ex-Downing Street communications chief Andy Coulson, former News of the World managing editor Stuart Kuttner, the paper's former royal editor Clive Goodman, and a 63-year-old man whose identity has not been disclosed.

Mrs Brooks and Mr Coulson are both former editors of the News of the World, which was closed in July at the height of the hacking scandal following revelations that murdered teenager Milly Dowler's phone was involved.

The final total of people whose phones were hacked by the News of the World will be about 800, the force believes.

The scandal has led to the closure of the News of the World after 168 years, prompted a major public inquiry, and forced the resignation of Metropolitan Police commissioner Sir Paul and assistant commissioner John Yates.

The officer has never filled a position within the very top ranks at Scotland Yard, a source close to the investigation said.

©Press Association 2012

Murdoch staff defend Sun at hacking inquiry

Current and former editors of Rupert Murdoch's British tabloid The Sun defended the newspaper at the country's phone-hacking inquiry on Monday, saying it could be a "powerful force for good".

Staff at Britain's best-selling newspaper told the Leveson inquiry in London that they had seen no evidence that the The Sun was guilty of the hacking that led to the closure of sister paper the News of the World.

Kelvin MacKenzie -- who as editor from 1981 to 1994 presided over colourful headlines such as "Gotcha", about the sinking of the Argentine warship General Belgrano during the Falklands War -- said the paper had become more cautious.

"Towards the end of my time as editor I was less bullish than I was, perhaps, during the '80s," MacKenzie said.

"The editors (now) are more cautious and were probably right to be cautious."

He admitted some previous mistakes. In 1992, he had told then-prime minister John Major he was going to "throw a bucket full of s(expletive)" over him in the following day's paper after Britain left the European Exchange Rate Mechanism.

And MacKenzie said Murdoch was furious when The Sun had to pay £1 million in the late 1980s in libel damages to singer Elton John, saying that he had received 40 minutes of "non-stop abuse" by telephone from the Australian-born tycoon.

MacKenzie -- whose other most famous headline was "Freddie Starr Ate My Hamster", about a British comedian who put a rodent between two slices of bread and pretended to eat it -- now writes a column for The Sun.

Dominic Mohan, who has edited The Sun since 2009, said the paper could be a "powerful force for good" through its campaigns, support for charities and efforts to explain complex concepts in clear language.

The former showbiz reporter brushed off a comment he made in 2002 about phone-hacking at a rival tabloid, the Daily Mirror.

He said it was a "cheap shot" and a "joke" at the expense of then editor Piers Morgan, who now fronts a talk show on US-based news network CNN and denied phone-hacking when he appeared at the inquiry last month.

Mohan also appealed for a legal "level playing field" between Britain's press and the Internet, saying that over regulation could be a "potentially mortal blow" to an already struggling newspaper industry.

The paper's current royal editor Duncan Larcombe meanwhile told the inquiry, led by senior judge Brian Leveson, that he contacted Buckingham Palace before running any exclusive story on the royal family.

The Sun's showbiz editor Gordon Smart also told the panel that he had no knowledge of phone-hacking being used by the paper, or at the News of the World, where he worked for three months in the previous decade.

Prime Minister David Cameron ordered the inquiry amid a spiralling scandal over the illegal hacking of mobile phone voicemails by the News of the World, Murdoch's British Sunday tabloid, which was shut down in July.

The scandal has also threatened to engulf the The Sun, which has itself faced legal action for alleged phone hacking. It denies the allegations.

A string of people has been arrested over the phone-hacking scandal, including former Sun editor and News International boss Rebekah Brooks, and ex-News of the World editor Andy Coulson, who went on to become Cameron's spokesman.

Brooks' former personal assistant was reportedly arrested last week on suspicion of deleting emails belonging to News International, the British newspaper arm of Murdoch's empire.

Source: ©AFP 2012 & © Yahoo! 2012