BENT COPPERS - JAMES MORTON

Bent Coppers: A Survey of Police Corruption  

Since the days of the Bow Street Runners, allegations of brutality, bribery and underhand dealing have been a constant reminder that criminal activity is not restricted to the criminal fraternity. Given their positions of power, and the diversity inherent in human nature, it is perhaps inevitable that there should be occasions when policemen and women are themselves guilty of the very offences they are trying to prevent. This is a study of police corruption in all its forms in the United Kingdom. The author then traces the history of criminal activity within the force from its earliest days, thoroughly documenting such cases as the sergeant who ran a string of brothels in Manchester and the infamous Soho porn scandal of the early 1970s, which led to the conviction of several senior officers. This book offers a sobering antidote to the myth of the guileless British bobby, and an insight into some of the problems, both actual and potential, faced by the British police force today.

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BENT COPPERS - GRAEME McLAGAN

Shocked by the extent of corruption within its ranks, Scotland Yard set up a new anti-corruption unit in the early 1990s. Its members had to operate in conditions of unprecedented secrecy. They became known as the "Ghost Squad". Corrupt officers had access to the whole police computer system and anyone working undercover against them had to have a "cover" that withstood scrutiny. Only now can the story of the "Ghost Squad" be revealed. Award-winning BBC home affairs correspondent Graeme McLagan has followed the investigations since the beginning. He has interviewed undercover officers and many of the bent coppers they have exposed. This is the inside story of the "Ghost Squad" and how it broke into the secret world of police corruption. Bent coppers really did believe they were untouchable: they stole cash and property, fitted-up innocent people and sold secret information to cripple court cases. Many of the bent coppers are now in jail or awaiting trial but the battle against corruption is not over. Graeme McLagan's gripping account reveals the ugly underside of London's police force and why teams from America and Australia have now come to Britain to find out how the Met is winning the battle against bent coppers.

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