CPS News Brief

Max Clifford charged with 11 indecent assaults

The Crown Prosecution Service has today authorised police to charge Max Clifford with 11 indecent assaults allegedly committed between 1966 and 1985. Alison Saunders, Chief Crown Prosecutor for CPS London, said:

“We have carefully considered the evidence gathered as part of Operation Yewtree in relation to Max Clifford, who was initially arrested on 6 December 2012 over allegations of sexual offences.

“Having completed our review, we have concluded that there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest for Mr Clifford to be charged with 11 offences of indecent assault relating to seven complainants. The charges are:

• One offence of indecent assault relating to a girl, aged 14, in 1966
• One offence of indecent assault relating to a woman, aged 18, in 1974/75
• Three offences of indecent assault relating to a girl, aged 15, in 1977/78
• One offence of indecent assault relating to a woman, aged 19, in 1978
• Two offences of indecent assault relating to a girl, aged 16 or 17, in 1981/82
• One offence of indecent assault relating to a woman, aged 19, in 1980/81
• Two offences of indecent assault relating to a woman, aged 18, in 1984/85

“Mr Clifford will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 28 May 2013.

“We have also decided that there is insufficient evidence to authorise charges in relation to three separate allegations. These decisions were taken in accordance with the Code for Crown Prosecutors and our guidance for prosecutors on sexual offences.

"May I remind all concerned that Mr Clifford has a right to a fair trial. It is very important that nothing is said, or reported, which could prejudice that trial. For these reasons it would be inappropriate for me to comment further.”

Additional information

• To allow journalists to track progress, it may be helpful to know that until this point the CPS has described the file relating to Max Clifford in the following terms: “a man in his 60s from Surrey arrested on 6 December 2012 in relation to possible offences of a sexual nature.”

Terrorists jailed in high-tech and sophisticated prosecution

Richard Dart, Jahangir Alom and Imran Mahmood have today been sentenced at the Old Bailey following a guilty plea on 15 March 2013 to engaging in preparation for acts of terrorism contrary to section 5(1) of the Terrorism Act 2006.

Mark Topping, specialist counter-terrorism lawyer for the Crown Prosecution Service, said:

“When Richard Dart, Jahangir Alom and Imran Mahmood were making plans for two of them, Dart and Alom, to fly to Pakistan, they did not expect those travels to lead them to the dock at the Old Bailey and jail. But this case serves as another reminder that those who take steps to travel abroad for the purposes of preparing for terrorism can and will be prosecuted here in the UK.

“Although the men did not identify any specific targets for an attack, their determination and intent were very clear. The training that Dart and Alom sought, and which Mahmood attempted to assist with, would have taught Dart and Alom the skills and techniques necessary to commit acts of terrorism both aboard and in the United Kingdom. Mahmood had already undertaken training and was already asking Dart for help in locating a book that would allow him to make home-made explosives.

“This was a prosecution that was based on the most high-tech and sophisticated evidence gathering available. We know that Mahmood received terrorist training abroad because police found high explosive residue on his rucksack when he was searched at the airport. But even more impressively, computer experts have been able to retrieve the text that Dart and Mahmood typed out on the laptop in front of them as they sat together and communicated - presumably because they feared that any conversation would be overheard. Thanks to the diligent work of the Metropolitan Police Service, the Crown Prosecution Service was able to attribute this data to the defendants and prove to the court that they were engaging in preparation for acts of terrorism.

“These state of the art techniques not only left the defendants little choice but to plead guilty but also increasingly restrict the ability of terrorists to hide their intentions from the authorities.”

The case of 'F'

The High Court delivered its judgment yesterday in the case of 'F', allowing an application for a judicial review of a decision not to charge a suspect in a rape case.

This is an interesting and important development in the law and we welcome the opportunity to review this case in light of this judgment. As this matter remains before the courts it would not be appropriate to comment further at this stage.

Operation Elveden: Duncan Larcombe, John Hardy, Claire Hardy and Tracy Bell to be charged

Alison Levitt, QC, Principal Legal Advisor to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), oversees CPS decision making and all potential prosecutions in relation to the ongoing phone hacking investigations and other related matters.

Ms Levitt said:

"This statement is made in the interests of transparency and accountability to explain the decisions reached in respect of cases arising from Operation Elveden, which is the Metropolitan Police Service investigation into allegations involving the unlawful provision of information by public officials to journalists.

Duncan Larcombe, John Hardy and Claire Hardy

"Following a careful review of the evidence, we have concluded that Duncan Larcombe, John Hardy and Claire Hardy should be charged with a conspiracy to commit misconduct in public office.

“Duncan Larcombe was employed as Chief Royal Correspondent at The Sun, John Hardy served as a Colour Sergeant based at the Royal Military Training Academy in Sandhurst and Claire Hardy is his wife.

"It is alleged that from 10 February 2006 to 15 October 2008, 34 payments were made to either John Hardy or Claire Hardy totalling over £23,000 for stories relating mainly to the Royal Family or matters at Sandhurst.

Tracy Bell

“In addition we have concluded that Tracy Bell should be charged with one count of misconduct in public office. Tracy Bell was employed by the Ministry of Defence as a pharmacy assistant at Sandhurst Medical Centre.

“It is alleged that Tracy Bell received £1250 between 17 October 2005 and 7 July 2006 relating to five articles published in The Sun regarding matters at Sandhurst.

“We have also concluded that there is insufficient evidence to charge the second member of the public with any criminal offence.

“All four defendants will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 8 May 2013.

"These decisions were considered carefully in accordance with the DPP's guidelines on the public interest in cases affecting the media. These guidelines require prosecutors to consider whether the public interest served by the conduct in question outweighs the overall criminality before bringing criminal proceedings.

"May I remind all concerned that these defendants have a right to a fair trial. It is very important that nothing is said, or reported, which could prejudice that trial. For these reasons it would be inappropriate for me to comment further."

The full charge faced by Tracy Bell is as follows:

Between 17 October 2005 and 7 July 2006, whilst acting as a public official, namely a Pharmacy assistant, Tracy Bell wilfully and without reasonable excuse or justification, misconducted herself to such a degree as to amount to an abuse of the public’s trust in that office, contrary to Common Law.

The full charge faced by Duncan Larcombe, John Hardy and Claire Hardy is as follows:

Duncan Larcombe, John Hardy and Claire Hardy, between 9 February 2006 and 16 October 2008, conspired together to commit misconduct in public office, contrary to section 1(1) Criminal Law Act 1977.