St Saviour Deputy Terry McDonald recently lodged a proposition calling for the States to pay £360,000 to Roy Boschat, who was named as a suspect in an anti-corruption investigation in 2006 following claims that he offered favours to officers in order to generate business for his vehicle-recovery firm.
The investigation was spearheaded by Mr Harper, who alleged that Mr Boschat gave the favours so that the officers would choose his firm to tow away vehicles involved in accidents.
At the same time, Mr Harper sent a letter to the 12 parish Constables advising them not to use Mr Boschat’s company.
The former tow-truck firm owner was never convicted of a criminal offence in relation to the allegations.
Deputy McDonald claims that the business suffered hugely as a result of Mr Harper’s investigation and actions. Mr Boschat eventually sold the company.
Mr Harper, who is due to give evidence to the Independent Jersey Care Inquiry about the 2008 police investigation into the abuse allegations, which he led, has claimed that the proposition is an attempt to discredit him ahead of his evidence.
Mr Harper has also questioned the justification for using taxpayers’ money to compensate Mr Boschat and believes Deputy McDonald has been ‘duped’ by people opposing the inquiry.
He said: ‘This is a clear, if rather predictable, attempt to divert attention from my forthcoming evidence to the Independent Jersey Care Inquiry.
‘Certain people in Jersey are now running scared that the truth about the suppression of the child abuse scandal is about to revealed.
‘Deputy MacDonald has clearly been duped by Boschat,’ he said, adding that others, including Senator Philip Bailhache, were trying to stop him giving evidence.
‘Boschat is the man who sent me almost a hundred letters among which were threats to burn my house and my car. If there is a vendetta it is Boschat and Philip Bailhache who are carrying it out.’
He added: ‘Boschat admitted under oath in court during the trial of a convicted corrupt police officer that he had committed criminal offences with a corrupt police officer. I had no influence in him being charged.
‘The evidence was presented to William Bailhache who was then Attorney General, and he instructed that Boschat should be charged by the honorary police.
‘Presumably Mr Bailhache was convinced there was a good chance of conviction. Where is the justification for giving this man taxpayers’ money?’
The St Saviour Deputy has denied that his proposition is about anything other than ‘doing what is right’.
He said: ‘It is irrelevant who is involved. I felt that Roy Boschat had been treated very badly and this is about justice. There is certainly no skulduggery involved.
‘The speech I gave in the States during the funding debate was supportive of the inquiry. This proposition has nothing to do with the inquiry.’
The proposition is due to be debated on Tuesday 23 June.
