Category Archives: Procedure

Intelligence and Evidence – Keep it or Bin it?

In response to a number of queries on retention, I’ve had a wee think and come up with three little rules for you to follow, and a little advice on what else to do.
1) Keep sufficient for audit purposes for six years following the end of the current year – this is fairly standard for audit purposes in both the public and private sectors.
2) Keep unused material according to CPIA rules.
3) Everything else – keep only as much as you need, and keep it for just as long as you need it (DPA rules).

We suggest that prosecution paperwork is kept for six years following release from prison, six years where there is a conviction but no prison term or two years if there was an acquittal or the case was withdrawn.

If your information is held on a system then bulk retention for a six-year period seems acceptable, as long as you have a process for removing unnecessary material (spurious or malicious) sooner, if you deem it reasonable ; you should also ensure that anything that is required beyond that period can be retained.

If you wish to keep material (intelligence) for a long period of time, there is a police scheme called the National Retention Assessment Criteria. It’s quite helpful, although (obviously) aimed at the police so… The key points are:
• How much is an individual’s privacy invaded by retaining their personal information? This must satisfy the proportionality test.
• Before disposal, you should be confident that any records you dispose of are no longer necessary for investigative purposes.
• You should have a consistent approach to retaining investigation information. Creating and following a process (an a process map) is key to this.
• Generally there is no issue with searchable records (as long as they are accurate, adequate, up to date and necessary) being held for a minimum of six years from the date of creation. These are used, for example, to identify offending patterns over time, and to help guard against individuals’ efforts to avoid detection for lengthy periods
• Retention beyond the six-year period should only happen following a review, if it is clear that it is still necessary to keep the record for your purposes. The NRAC template may be useful in helping to establish whether or not information is still needed for a legitimate purpose.

Auntie

URGENT – CHANGES TO RIPA

URGENT – CHANGES TO RIPA

With only a couple of weeks to go before the introduction of Judicial supervision of Local Authority RIPA applications, the Court Service have issued guidance as to the required process.

(1)        The first stages are as normal :  you process the application in the same way that you do currently, getting the decision from one of your Authority’s named authorising officers.

(2)        You complete the Court Service form.

(3)        You contact the court for a hearing date and send the form and the authorised application to the Court Officer (this will normally be by email).

(4)        An officer who is authorised to appear for the Authority attends the hearing to confirm the truth of the application and to answer any questions the Magistrate might have.

(5)        A decision is given.

Things you need to do right now :

(1)        Familiarise yourself with the form.

(2)        Make sure that you have contact details for the court (including out-of-hours details for emergency applications).

(3)        Ensure that sufficient investigators have been authorised to appear for the Authority under s.223 of the LGA 1972 to appear in Magistrates’ Court on behalf of the Authority.  (The guidance expects investigators, not lawyers, to appear for these applications.)

(4)        Update your policies now.

The full guidance is here :  http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/counter-terrorism/ripa-forms/local-authority-ripa-guidance/local-authority-england-wales?view=Binary

The form is here :  http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/counter-terrorism/ripa-forms/local-authority-ripa-guidance/approval-order-form?view=Binary

If you’d like some training, the ITS course details are here :  http://www.its-training-uk.com/InformationSheets/RIPA2012.pdf

Auntie

P.S. :  Our colleagues in Scotland do not need Judicial approval for surveillance ;  the guidance for Comms Data is here :  http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/publications/counter-terrorism/ripa-forms/local-authority-ripa-guidance/local-authority-scotland?view=Binary  

Digging into a Bank Account

Dear Auntie,
I have conduct of a social care fraud case and I would like to examine the cared for person’s bank account because I have evidence that her son, who has power of attorney, is abusing his position, in that he is not declaring all his mother’s income for her care needs. I cannot apply for the bank statements as I have no power to do so under SSFA.
However, I have established that there is also an investigation ongoing by another Authority into an allegation of benefit fraud by persons who are renting the former home of the elderly woman above. She is being cited as the landlord of the property but the rental income is not being declared to the authority administering the social fund.
I know that the other Council cannot apply for the elderly person’s bank statements as they are not investigating her, just the tenants in her property.
Have you any suggestions on how I can move forward with this case. Without sight of her bank accounts I believe I will not be able to progress my case.
Thanks,
Frustrated

Penalties

Dear Auntie,
Hope all is well with you, I am currently reviewing some procedures and I just wanted to confirm a point relating to administrative penalties.
Should an Adpen be given to the claimant by a Senior Officer / Management or can an IO give one of these? We have always used a Senior or Management but I am aware in some authorities an IO will administer these. I am aware that the person giving the Adpen should not have been present in the IUC for a fair and transparent process.
Many thanks for your help with this,
Vicky

Entrapment

Dear Auntie,
I am wondering if you can help clear up something relating to entrapment, we seem to be getting conflicting views as to what is and is not permissible in the course of an investigation.
I was always under the impression that if you planted something in the expectation that someone would take it, this was entrapment as you had enticed them to commit the crime (e.g. putting something in a void council house which you expect a housing officer to take.)
However, we have just had a case which we have been working on with the police where they told us to plant a purse and a camera in a building to see if they get stolen by a suspect following a spate of thefts (which they duly were). Why wouldn’t that be seen as entrapment?
Can we use the evidence we got from planting the evidence in a prosecution?
Your confusedly,
Trapped