Police must apologise to rapist

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/scotland/8385683.stm

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Central Scotland Police have been told to apologise to a convicted rapist after officers lost evidence relating to their investigation.

The Police Complaints Commissioner for Scotland, John McNeill, said officers lost underwear from the rape victim after the attack in December 2003.

The evidence went missing from police custody shortly after her attacker was arrested. He was later convicted.

Mr McNeill said this was "potentially important evidence".

He said police must apologise to the attacker, and explain how the evidence could have gone missing.

Mr McNeill said the complainant should "be offered an apology for the loss given that the item in question might have been relevant to his defence to the charge".

'Learning point'

The complaint was one of 10 investigated by the commissioner involving six out of the eight police forces in Scotland.

The commissioner also investigated four complaints of assault against officers from Northern Constabulary - which he said had been dealt with "reasonably" by the force - and a further incident where a complaint had been made that officers had threatened a detainee.

The commissioner also investigated three complaints against Grampian police, two against Strathclyde police, and one against Dumfries and Galloway and Tayside police.

Mr McNeill said: "We should acknowledge the fact that in many of the cases I review, the police investigate complaints about themselves thoroughly and well.

"The learning point for the police in my reviews may arise from a single incident but by publicising them through these reviews all eight police bodies can learn from each other and together we can accelerate the positive changes we need to make to drive up standards."