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Guardian Unlimited - UK
31 July 2006

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Lawrence case detective denies

The former detective at the centre of new claims of police corruption in the Stephen Lawrence murder inquiry said today he had not hampered the investigation "in any way".
Former detective sergeant John Davidson issued a statement in which he denied the "devastating and false" allegations made against him in a BBC documentary broadcast last week.

The programme included allegations that Clifford Norris, the gangland father of David Norris - one of the main suspects in the 1993 murder - had paid Mr Davidson to obstruct the case.

The allegation was made by Mr Davidson's former Metropolitan police colleague Neil Putnam, who himself was convicted of corruption in relation to other matters. Mr Putnam alleged in the BBC film that Mr Davidson received a "nice little earner" from Clifford Norris, a convicted drug dealer.
Mr Davidson worked alongside Mr Putnam in the south-east regional crime squad, south London, which he joined after serving on the first Lawrence murder investigation. Mr Davidson now runs a bar in Spain; when confronted about Mr Putnam's allegations by BBC reporter Mark Daly, he declined to comment.

In a statement issued today, Mr Davidson said: "I feel I must respond to the devastating and false accusations which have been made and which are extremely upsetting to me and my family.

"I refute all the allegations made by Mr Putnam in the programme. The first and only time I came into contact with Clifford Norris was in 1994 when, whilst leading an arrest team, I arrested him for offences including firearms and drugs. He was subsequently charged and convicted in relation to these offences. Other than in relation to this arrest, I have had no dealings either directly or indirectly with Clifford Norris.

"I am not corrupt. I did not hamper in any way the investigation into the death of Stephen Lawrence. I am not 'a friend' of, nor did I know, Clifford Norris other than that mentioned above.

"I would stress the only time I dealt with Clifford Norris was after I had stopped working on the Lawrence investigation."

Mr Davidson also denied claims made against him in the programme by John Yates, who headed the corruption investigation that arrested Mr Putnam and who is now a deputy assistant commissioner in the Met. Mr Yates branded Mr Davidson as corrupt. "From all the evidence I've seen, the intelligence I've seen, I have no doubt he was corrupt," Mr Yates said on the BBC documentary.

Today, Mr Davidson said in his statement: "I am also very concerned that ... [Mr] Yates thought it appropriate to condemn me as a corrupt officer in the programme.

"I have nothing further to add on this matter but I would like to express my profound sympathies with the family of Stephen Lawrence for any further hurt that these false allegations may have caused them. I sincerely hope that the killers of Stephen Lawrence are brought to justice."

Former deputy assistant commissioner John Grieve has also said he feared corrupt officers may have helped shield Stephen's killers. Mr Grieve led the third squad that tried to find enough evidence to gain murder convictions against the gang of five white youths believed to have stabbed the gifted student at a bus stop in south-east London.

Mr Grieve said last week: "During the investigation I led, we feared corruption might have played a part in the failure of the first investigation."

The Met has largely dismissed the allegations against Mr Davidson. A statement by Scotland Yard last week said: "There was an investigation into John Davidson and any possible corrupt behaviour in the Lawrence case by him. If we had found any information or evidence we would have brought that to the inquiry's attention."

The Metropolitan police commissioner, Sir Ian Blair, said, however, that the force would learn what it could from the documentary. He said the force would "never let up" in chasing the killers.

The BBC programme triggered 60 calls to a police hotline offering information about the killers, though officers said last week it was premature to talk of any kind of breakthrough in the case.

Scotland Yard is also facing pressure to re-examine its files on Clifford Norris. Michael Mansfield QC, the Lawrence family barrister, told yesterday's Independent on Sunday that the force should "go back to the beginning" on the case and investigate if other officers were in the pay of Norris.

Mr Mansfield told the BBC's Newsnight programme last week that he thought the Lawrence family would eventually get justice as there were witnesses who had yet to come forward and the crime remained "on their consciences".

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Article sourced from

Guardian Unlimited - UK31 July 2006

Lawrence case detective denies

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Guardian Unlimited - UK
31 July 2006