Scotland Yard
23 May 2012. Mike Schwarz, a partner at Bindmans LLP, told the Home Affairs Select Committee yesterday of possible cash payments made by private investigation firm RISC to sources of theirs who were “presumably police officers or those close to the investigation”. Roughly half a dozen payments amounting to about £20,000 over an eight- or nine-month period ware made to the police officers. The allegations surfaced during a parliamentary hearing on the role of private detectives.
The private detectives, aged 53 and 58, were both arrested on suspicion of bribery as part of an investigation by the directorate of professional standards (DPS), the Metropolitan Police said. A serving detective was also arrested.
The DPS referred the matter to the Independent Police Complaints Commission in October 2011 which agreed to supervise a DPS investigation into the allegations.
RISC was hired by the law firm representing Ibori, a former governor of one of Nigeria’s richest oil-producing states who was brought to justice in London.
Ibori pleaded guilty in February to a series of charges linked to the theft of money from the Delta state and fraud involving state-owned shares in a mobile phone firm.
