User:Gilgongo/Yewtree summary: Difference between revisions

 

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On 4 October 2012, the [[Metropolitan Police]] said it would take the national lead in a process of assessing the allegations, announcing on 19 October that a criminal inquiry called ”Operation Yewtree” would be undertaken jointly with the [[National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children]] (NSPCC). They had formally recorded eight allegations against Savile, but announced they were following 120 lines of inquiry, covering up to 25 victims of abuse, mainly girls aged between 13 and 16.

On 4 October 2012, the [[Metropolitan Police]] said it would take the national lead in a process of assessing the allegations, announcing on 19 October that a criminal inquiry called ”Operation Yewtree” would be undertaken jointly with the [[National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children]] (NSPCC).

The allegations covered four decades, from 1959 until the 1980s, and were on “a national scale.” Commander Peter Spindler, head of specialist crime investigations, said, “At this stage it is quite clear from what women are telling us that Savile was a predatory sex offender.” The police were persuing over 400 separate lines of inquiry based on evidence of 200 witnesses via 14 police forces across the UK.

The allegations covered four decades, from 1959 until the 1980s, and were on “a national scale.” Commander Peter Spindler, head of specialist crime investigations, said, “At this stage it is quite clear from what women are telling us that Savile was a predatory sex offender.”

Various other people were arrested for questioning, and later bailed, as part of the inquiry. These included former pop star [[Gary Glitter]];<ref name=”guardian-gary-glitter-arrested” /><ref name=”:0″ /><ref name=”:1″ /> comedian [[Freddie Starr]];<ref name=”:2″ /><ref name=”:3″ /> former BBC producers [[Wilfred De’Ath]]<ref name=”:4″ /> and Ted Beston;<ref name=”:5″ /> DJ [[Dave Lee Travis]];<ref name=”:6″ /> publicist [[Max Clifford]];<ref name=”:7″ /> children’s entertainer [[Rolf Harris]];<ref name=”:8″ /><ref name=”:9″ /><ref name=”:10″ /> and an unnamed man in his 60s.<ref name=”:11″ /> Travis stated that his arrest had been connected with matters not linked to children.<ref name=”:12″ /> Clifford denied what he termed the “damaging and totally untrue allegations”.<ref name=”:13″ />

Various other people were arrested for questioning, and later bailed, as part of the inquiry. These included former pop star [[Gary Glitter]];<ref name=”guardian-gary-glitter-arrested” /><ref name=”:0″ /><ref name=”:1″ /> comedian [[Freddie Starr]];<ref name=”:2″ /><ref name=”:3″ /> former BBC producers [[Wilfred De’Ath]]<ref name=”:4″ /> and Ted Beston;<ref name=”:5″ /> DJ [[Dave Lee Travis]];<ref name=”:6″ /> publicist [[Max Clifford]];<ref name=”:7″ /> children’s entertainer [[Rolf Harris]];<ref name=”:8″ /><ref name=”:9″ /><ref name=”:10″ /> and an unnamed man in his 60s.<ref name=”:11″ /> Travis stated that his arrest had been connected with matters not linked to children.<ref name=”:12″ /> Clifford denied what he termed the “damaging and totally untrue allegations”.<ref name=”:13″ />

This is not a Wikipedia article: This is a workpage, a collection of material and work in progress that may or may not be incorporated into an article. It should not necessarily be considered factual or authoritative.

[ Draft summary of Operation Yewtree for use in Jimmy Savile sexual abuse scandal ]

(need to add/fix some citations)

On 4 October 2012, the Metropolitan Police said it would take the national lead in a process of assessing the allegations, announcing on 19 October that a criminal inquiry called Operation Yewtree would be undertaken jointly with the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC).

The allegations covered four decades, from 1959 until the 1980s, and were on “a national scale.” Commander Peter Spindler, head of specialist crime investigations, said, “At this stage it is quite clear from what women are telling us that Savile was a predatory sex offender.”

Various other people were arrested for questioning, and later bailed, as part of the inquiry. These included former pop star Gary Glitter;^[1][2][3] comedian Freddie Starr;^[4][5] former BBC producers Wilfred De’Ath^[6] and Ted Beston;^[7] DJ Dave Lee Travis;^[8] publicist Max Clifford;^[9] children’s entertainer Rolf Harris;^[10][11][12] and an unnamed man in his 60s.^[13] Travis stated that his arrest had been connected with matters not linked to children.^[14] Clifford denied what he termed the “damaging and totally untrue allegations”.^[15]

The report into his alleged offending, Giving Victims a Voice, was released in January 2013. The operation had involved 30 police officers, at a cost estimated at £2 million by that point.^[16] A total of 589 alleged victims of abuse had come forward in the inquiry, of whom 450 alleged abuse by Savile.

Reactions to the report were mixed. The former editor of The Daily Telegraph, Charles Moore noted that it did not reveal the “extent of abuse”, and that it “contains [no actual evidence], in a sense which a court would recognise”, saying that it “undermines justice” by “treat[ing] allegations as facts”. Other reponses were similarly critical of the report’s objectivity, while others held that it delivered something close to justice.

In late 2015, Operation Yewtree became part of Operation Winter Key, the Metropolitan Police’s component of Operation Hydrant, the ongoing national police investigations into into allegations of “non-recent” child sexual abuse.[23]

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[ text of current section in Jimmy Savile sexual abuse scandal –

information in bold doesn’t exist in main article ]

The Metropolitan Police Service stated on 4 October 2012 that its Child Abuse Investigation Command would lead a process of assessing the allegations.^[21] By 9 October, the Metropolitan Police had formally recorded eight allegations against Savile, but announced that it was following up 120 lines of inquiry, addressing up to 25 alleged victims of abuse, mainly girls aged between 13 and 16. These covered a period spanning four decades, from 1959 until the 1980s, and were on “a national scale”. An inquiry process, known as Operation Yewtree, was set up jointly with the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC), and involving other organisations including the BBC and ITV. Commander Peter Spindler, head of specialist crime investigations, said: “At this stage it is quite clear from what women are telling us that Savile was a predatory sex offender.”^[22]

On 19 October 2012, the Metropolitan Police launched a formal criminal investigation into historic allegations of child sex abuse by Savile over four decades. It stated that it was pursuing over 400 separate lines of inquiry based on evidence of 200 witnesses via 14 police forces across the UK. Commander Spindler said: “We are dealing with alleged abuse on an unprecedented scale. The profile of this operation has empowered a staggering number of victims to come forward to report the sexual exploitation which occurred during their childhood.” John Cameron of the NSPCC said that Savile was “a well-organised prolific sex offender, who’s used his power, his authority, his influence to procure children and offend against them.”^[23][24]

On 25 October, the police reported that the number of possible victims was “fast approaching 300”.^[25] It was also reported that police were looking at allegations that three doctors in hospitals with which Savile had been associated had been involved in the abuse of young people in their care.^[26]

By 19 December, eight people had been arrested for questioning, and later bailed, as part of the inquiry. These included former pop star Gary Glitter;^[1][2][3] comedian Freddie Starr;^[4][5] former BBC producers Wilfred De’Ath^[6] and Ted Beston;^[7] DJ Dave Lee Travis;^[8] publicist Max Clifford;^[9] children’s entertainer Rolf Harris;^[10][11][12] and an unnamed man in his 60s.^[13] Travis stated that his arrest had been connected with matters not linked to children.^[14] Clifford denied what he termed the “damaging and totally untrue allegations”.^[15]

In early 2013, comedian Jim Davidson and two unnamed men were arrested as part of the inquiry, bringing the total to 11.^[27] De’Ath was later told that he would not face any charges, and said that the police action had been “overzealous”.^[28] In May 2013, it was reported that Ted Beston would not face prosecution due to insufficient evidence.^[29]

On 12 December, Commander Peter Spindler said that the investigation had been completed and that the report of Operation Yewtree was being prepared for publication early in 2013. He said that a total of 589 alleged victims of abuse had come forward in the inquiry, of whom 450 alleged abuse by Savile. Of the alleged victims, 82% were female and 80% were children or young people. There were 31 allegations of rape by Savile across seven police force areas. Commander Spindler said: “Savile’s offending peaked in the 70s and what we… will be showing… is how he used his position in society… to get his sexual gratification.”^[30] The operation had involved 30 police officers, and its cost so far was estimated at £2 million.^[16]

[ Following overlaps with main Giving Victims a Voice article.

information in bold doesn’t exist in that article ]

On 11 January 2013, Giving Victims a Voice, a report into allegations of sexual abuse made against Jimmy Savile under Operation Yewtree by the Metropolitan Police Service and the NSPCC was published under the logo of the Crown Prosecution Service.^[31] Among its conclusions are that “It is now clear that Savile was hiding in plain sight and using his celebrity status and fundraising activity to gain uncontrolled access to vulnerable people across six decades. For a variety of reasons the vast majority of his victims did not feel they could speak out and it’s apparent that some of the small number who did had their accounts dismissed by those in authority including parents and carers.”^[31]: 6

The document was given wide publicity throughout the media. Journalist Charles Moore wrote in The Daily Telegraph that he had read the whole report and it did not reveal the extent of abuse as the BBC website had stated in the lead headline “Jimmy Savile scandal: Report reveals extent of abuse”. He remarked that there was no evidence in the report which a court would recognise. Instead it assumed that because uncorroborated allegations had been made, the offences were committed, and, treating allegations as facts, it declared that 214 incidents had now been “formally recorded” as crimes. Moore commented that by doing so the report undermined justice.^[32] Jonathan Brown, writing in The Independent, said that the report “revealed a man who used his celebrity status and outwardly well-intended works to gain access to and ultimately rape and sexually exploit hundreds of vulnerable young star-struck victims…”^[33]

In March 2013, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary reported that 214 of the complaints that had been made against Savile after his death would have been criminal offences if they had been reported at the time. Sixteen persons reported being raped by Savile under the age of 16 and four of those were under the age of ten. Thirteen others reported serious sexual abuse by Savile, including four under-ten-year-olds. Another ten reported being raped by Savile while over the age of sixteen.^[34]

DJ and friend of Savile, Ray Teret was found guilty of seven rapes and 11 indecent assaults in December 2014; while Teret was cleared of aiding and abetting Savile to rape a 15-year-old girl, he was found guilty of raping the same complainant.^[35] A lawyer for 169 of Savile’s alleged victims stated that Teret’s guilty verdicts represent “the closest the victims of Jimmy Savile will get to a conviction against their attacker”.^[36]