Wednesday 4 November 2020

A Reminder, If We Needed It...

...that 'police intelligence' is an oxymoron: 

The notebook contained part of the force’s ‘Gang Matrix’, a controversial list of suspected gang members and associates used by police forces.
It was stolen on May 29 after officers from the gangs unit left the car unattended when they went on a footchase in the Ladywood area of Birmingham.

It doesn't say that the car was stolen. Surely they didn't just take the book? 

Nah. That would be suspicious, wouldn't it? 

The force believes that the blunder did not ‘directly’ put anyone in risk but is ‘continuing to monitor potential risks’ and has written to all whose details were involved.
It said the officer responsible for the notebook had been given ‘management advice’.

 Is that all? 

Danny Long, the assistant chief constable, said the professional standards department has investigated and the force had referred itself to the Information Commissioner’s Office [ICO] and the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
He admitted the force had no idea where the notebook was.

Didn't really need those last four words in that sentence, did you? 

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

It must be great to live a life where you have never once made a mistake .
Jaded
Come on down Mr Perfect from Huddersfield

Bloke in Germany said...

Of course, it isn't a serious problem because the notebook will have definitely been encrypted, and the password was definitely not guessable, something like Plod1234.

Oh, not even that kind of notebook?

Doonhamer said...

So Plod have told everyone that the book is a genuine article and then told all the suspects, who never knew of this book, and never knew that they are named in the book, that they are named as gang members.
But Plod could be bluffing, and the book is just a cunning ploy. Or
Maybe there is no book and they are hoping that the bad- yins get in touch to complain that they are not in the book and feel dissed.
Or.....
Nah. The Plod are just fick.

Anonymous said...

West Midland plod and just another of 'there' everyday oversights?

'Stolen' my backside, Jaded. Wake up to the poisson putride.

MTG said...

Corruption can also conceal itself under the natural veneer of stupidity.

JuliaM said...

"It must be great to live a life where you have never once made a mistake "

This isn't 'a mistake', though, Jaded.

A mistake is forgetting your coffee cup is on the roof and driving away. This, though, is deliberate contravention of every rule on data privacy in the book. It's as if they looked at GDPR regulations and then wiped their fat bums with it.

"Oh, not even that kind of notebook?"

🤣

"...the book is just a cunning ploy."

It would be nice to think so, wouldn't it?

"Corruption can also conceal itself under the natural veneer of stupidity."

Not least because with WMP, it stands a good chance of being believed!