Celebrities, media personalities and sports stars among the accused in new Island child abuse inquiry

The 13 suspects are ‘well-known’ public figures including celebrities, media personalities, politicians and sports people, said police.

They are among dozens of suspects who are likely to be questioned by States police officers in the coming weeks as part of Operation Whistle – a local investigation mirroring the national Operation Hydrant being carried out by forces across the British Isles into historical child abuse.

In Jersey, the latest allegations of abuse include some suspects and victims not previously identified in the force’s 2008 child abuse investigation, Operation Rectangle.

In total the police have 45 suspects – some of whom are dead or not yet identified – and are aware of more than 50 alleged victims.

The alleged abuse is said to have occurred between the late 1930s and mid 2000s across four institutions, including Haut de la Garenne.

The other institutions, which have not been named, are no longer functioning.

And today Detective Superintendent Stewart Gull, who is leading a task force of six other detectives alongside Detective Chief Inspector Alison Fossey to investigate the claims of abuse, said he expected to begin interviews with some of the suspects ‘imminently’.

Speaking to the JEP about the identity of the 13 prominent figures Det Supt Gull said: ‘Some of them are celebrities, politicians, some of them are people in the media, some of them are sports people.

‘These are people who are well known.

‘Some of them are still alive and some of them are deceased but we will not be disclosing more than that.

‘Some of them were visitors to the Island, some will have been resident.

He added: ‘The most historic cases date back to the late 1930s but the majority are from the 1970s and 1980s.

‘The most recent cases have been reported in the last five to ten years.

‘There may be arrests made imminently but we do not necessarily have to arrest someone to speak with them.

‘There will be interviews soon and some of the suspects will have to travel to the Island from the UK.’

Det Supt Gull went on to say that there had been some crossover with the London Metropolitan Police’s Operation Yewtree investigation into sexual abuse carried out by the former children’s TV presenter, Jimmy Savile.

He added that he did not believe Savile was one of the 13 prominent suspects but said the force had fielded more complaints about abuse carried out by him in the Island.

‘There has been some crossover with Operation Yewtree,’ he said.

‘We had 11 complaints about Savile but within the last six to nine months we have had three more taking the total to 14.’

Asked if those reports of abuse occurred at Haut de la Garenne, Det Supt Gull said: ‘All of those abuse allegations happened in Jersey.’

The revelations come against a backdrop of an increase in reported child sexual abuse in the Island between 2011 and 2014.

Reported offences have almost doubled in that time.

The detective said national media coverage of child sexual exploitation, revelations about Savile’s widespread abuse and the Independent Jersey Care Inquiry had contributed to an increase in reports.

• 2007 – Towards the end of the year the then deputy police chief, Lenny Harper, announced that the States police were investigating alleged historical child abuse at former States children’s homes. An appeal for information was also launched and the investigation was overseen by police chief Graham Power.
• 2008 – Arrests relating to the abuse investigation began to be made at the end of January. Later, Mr Harper, the senior investigating officer, revealed that his team was excavating the former children’s home at Haut de la Garenne and that they had found what appeared to be a fragment of bone. The announcement led to a swathe of lurid headlines in national newspapers, which carried stories of child torture and possible murder. In August Mr Harper retired and was replaced by David Warcup and towards the end of the year Mr Warcup and the investigation’s new senior officer, Detective Superintendent Mick Gradwell, said that after a review of the evidence gathered, no child murders took place at Haut de la Garenne. They also concluded that no bodies had been hidden or burned. At the same time police chief Graham Power was suspended for his alleged poor handling of the abuse inquiry, but a report later found that he had been removed without proper evidence of incompetence.
• 2009 – In May, the fragment of material said to potentially have been part of a child’s skull was sent to botanists at Kew Gardens at the request of Det Supt Gradwell. The report that followed confirmed that it was, in fact, a piece of coconut. Also, Islanders arrested and convicted of abuse offences as part of the investigation began to be sentenced in 2009 as well.

• 2010 – The Wiltshire Constabulary’s report – an independent review of the handling of the Haut de la Garenne investigation into child abuse – was published in 2010. It levelled strong criticism at former police chief Graham Power and his deputy, Lenny Harper, for their handling of the investigation. The Roya l Court secured convictions against the last people involved in the abuse investigation. Following this, the victims of child abuse received a formal apology from the then Chief Minister, Terry Le Sueur, who said that they had been let down by the system. In June, 40 people who claimed they had suffered abuse while in States care made compensation claims. The year 2010 also saw a report into the financial management of the abuse investigation published in July. It found that public funds had been misspent on expensive meals, accommodation and first-class travel. It also emerged that the total police costs for the three-year investigation had reached £7.5m.
• 2011 – Following a proposition brought by Senator Francis Le Gresley, the States agreed to hold an inquiry into allegations of historical child abuse after the Haut de la Garenne investigation.

• 2012 – After a former Islander’s book was published, making claims of abuse at the former Grouville Girls’ Home, the police confirmed that six women had made complaints about the home to the force during the course of the historical child abuse investigation. However, the police said that there was too little evidence in relation to the claims to mount a prosecution. 2012 also saw Jimmy Savile linked to Haut de la Garenne after pictures of the disgraced BBC star surfaced and were published in newspapers and online.
• 2013 – It was hoped that the public inquiry into historical child abuse would get going in 2013, but half-way through the year Sally Bradley QC, the States-appointed chairman of the Committee of Inquiry, suffered a stroke. The inquiry was delayed while a new chairman was found. A few months later Frances Oldham QC, a senior lawyer with extensive experience in dealing with cases involving sexual abuse, was appointed to lead the inquiry, joined by abuse inquiry panel members Alyson Leslie, who has led serious case reviews into child abuse, and Sandy Cameron CBE, a former director of social work in Scotland. In one of the last States sittings of the year, it was revealed that 64 per cent of claims for compensation for historical abuse had been settled. Chief Minister Ian Gorst said that 131 claims had been received, 84 offers of compensation had been accepted, with 47 cases still under consideration.

• 2014 – In April, Ms Oldham opened the inquiry and set out the terms of reference for proceedings. Hearings began in September and so far the independent Jersey Care Inquiry has heard evidence from 150 former residents of States-run children’s homes including Haute de la Garenne, Sacre Coeur, La Preferance, and more recently, Les Chenes, plus family group homes and foster care. The inquiry has dealt with the evidence from the 1940s and is currently working on the period from the 1990s onwards.
• 2015 – The Chief Minister, Ian Gorst, last week lodged a proposition with the States asking for an extra £14m to bring the inquiry’s budget – which was originally £6m – up to £20m. The inquiry expects to have heard evidence from all witnesses who have so far come forward by early March. The inquiry will then move on to hear evidence from alleged abusers, those working in children’s homes, whistle-blowers, foster parents and Children’s Services. It will then hear evidence about the 2008 police investigation into child abuse at Haute de la Garenne, known as Operation Rectangle, and decisions made by the Law Department in respect of prosecutions following the investigation.