Whitewash: Year-long delay in Nunes inquiry report
An official inquiry into the botched murder investigation of Kevin Nunes is yet to publish its findings – a year after being completed.
A police watchdog was today coming under fierce pressure to release its report into serious failings by Staffordshire Police which led to five Black Country gangsters being freed from life sentences over the 20-year-old's killing in 2002.
A leading MP called the delay 'unacceptable' and a former senior police officer says the force has 'let the victim's family down'.
The four-year Independent Police Complaints Commission investigation, known as Operation Kalmia, has looked at why concerns over the handling of the murder cases's star witness were never disclosed to the original murder trial seven years ago.
A former police officer turned whistleblower today branded the delay as a 'whitewash'.
Former Detective Inspector Joe Anderson, who first raised concerns over the case to Staffordshire Police bosses a decade ago, spoke publicly for the first time to condemn the delay in the investigation's findings.
He now fears no-one will be held accountable for the failings that led to the 2008 murder convictions being quashed four years later.
Mr Anderson, said: "Staffordshire Police let down the victim's family and the public by the sloppy way this investigation was handled. It is disgraceful that no individual will be held to account. The whole thing is a whitewash."
"This inquiry has been incomplete and painfully slow, it has taken longer than many other major investigations including murders.
"This case has taken longer than the Chilcot Inquiry, the delay in publishing this matter is unacceptable, and reflects badly on Staffordshire Police and the IPCC."
The Express & Star has been handed shocking information about the case, however we are unable to publish these details for legal reasons until the IPCC report is published.
Mr Nunes was pistol whipped and shot five times in Clive Road in Pattingham.
Five men were jailed for life with a combined minimum jail term of 135 years for the murder in January 2008. But their convictions were quashed in 2012 at the Court of Appeal after concerns over the witness and the conduct of detectives was never disclosed to the original murder trial legal teams.
The court heard detectives went to nightclubs with the witness, a crime committed by the witness was not recorded properly, and that two officers on the case conducted an affair which could have contaminated the witness. The Crown Prosecution Service last year said there was 'insufficient evidence' to bring criminal charges of misconduct in public office and perverting the course of justice.
All but three of the 14 officers have now retired and can therefore face no police disciplinary action.
South Staffordshire MP Gavin Williamson called the delay 'unacceptable' and said it would 'undermine' the public's trust in the police. He will be writing to the watchdog calling for the report to be released. He said: "The public expect professionalism and honesty from the police service. Having this case go on for so long and the contents of what happened kept under wraps will only undermine the public's trust in the police. It is a real concern that after four years of investigation that the IPCC has not published its conclusions.
"It is completely unacceptable for the victim's family that this has been such a drawn-out process."
Exactly one year ago, the IPCC declared on its website that its investigation into 14 former and serving Staffordshire Police officers was 'now complete'.
At the time IPCC Commissioner Cindy Butts said: "The IPCC will soon be providing the appropriate Police and Crime Commissioners and relevant forces with a report detailing our findings as to whether or not a number of serving officers have a case to answer for either misconduct or gross misconduct and should face disciplinary proceedings."
Despite the report being handed to Police and Crime Commissioners and the relevant forces, its findings have never been made public.
IPCC spokeswoman Pip Rawson said: "A final decision on these matters will be made in due course, and we're not commenting further at this stage."
Staffordshire Police said: "Whilst the CPS has reviewed the Kalmia file and concluded that none of the officers involved should face any criminal charges, the IPCC inquiry is still ongoing. The full findings of this investigation have not yet been published by the IPCC and therefore, we are unable to confirm or comment further."
