Parliament enacted the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 over 40 yearsago which revolutionised policing, protecting British Citizens from corrupt police practices and unscrupulous behaviour.
To date, despite the findings in the Leveson inquiry, payments by newspapers for illegally hacking private individuals and several aborted trials at enormous public expense, there is still nothing in place with teeth, to prevent rogue and dishonest journalists securing a story against individuals using any methods they see fit, regardless of the human cost.
Following his (prison) sentence today, having been convicted by 12 members of a jury good and true, the public now sees that Mazher Mahmood has been proved a dishonest journalist with dishonest practices, who routinely manipulated evidence, lied and cajoled witnesses to obtain a story for his paymasters, whatever it took.
I was, as were many of his targets, victims of this vile, corrupt regime – he was given enormous budgets and carte-blanche to create crimes that would never have existed but for his existence. In my case Mazher Mahmood withheld evidence, destroyed tape recordings and lied on oath again and again, hiding behind a false cloak of ‘journalistic privilege.’ This didn’t happen to just me, but on dozens of occasions to others, who have had their lives ruined.
During his ‘career’ he has hoodwinked prosecution barristers, respected judges and the great British public. There are a number of cases involving him and his methods, including mine, with the Criminal Cases Review Commission. Today is a day of hope for all of his victims and a day of victory for those proper journalists that stood up to him and are willing to report the truth.