Metropolitan Police pay out £100,000 after bungled Operation Midland investigation
2 min read
The Metropolitan Police have paid Lord Bramall and Lady Brittan £100,000 after their poor handling of the investigation into child abuse in Parliament.
The peer and widow of Lord Brittan both had their homes raided during the disastrous investigation. No evidence of wrongdoing was found.
Lawyers for Scotland Yard agreed the sum after accepting the searches were unjustified.
Representatives of Lord Bramall, a D Day veteran, and Lord Brittan, a former home secretary, refused to discuss the details of any payout.
A source told the Daily Telegraph the final agreements between the police and victims contained gagging clauses.
Operation Midland was built around the testimony of an alleged victim named Nick. He claimed he to have been raped by a VIP pedophile ring operating around Parliament during 1970s and 1980s.
Despite a lack of evidence to support the extraordinary allegations, Scotland Yard launched and 18-month investigation, which cost in excess of £2.5 million.
During the probe, teams of more than 20 officers mounted dawn raids on the homes of some of the suspects.
The probe ended without a single arrest and Nick is now under investigation for perverting the cause of justice and fraud.
The Met is yet to agree a sum with another victim, 70-year-old former Conservative MP Harvey Proctor.
Mr Proctor lost his job and his home after he was falsely accused of rape murder.
Despite a personal apology from former Met chief Bernard Hogan-Howe, Mr Proctor is believed to be chasing a compensation claim of £500,000.
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