‘Institutional corruption was only verdict they could come to’ – Daniel Morgan’s brother

Daniel Morgan’s brother has said he feels “a sense of vindication” after an inquiry accused the Metropolitan Police of “a form of institutional corruption” in how it dealt with the notorious unsolved murder.

Alastair Morgan told Channel 4 News that “institutional corruption” was “the only verdict” an independent inquiry could have come to after an eight-year probe into the Met’s handling of his brother’s killing.

He said: “It’s been a torment, almost non-stop. And you try to live a normal life in between murder investigations and even during them.

“But it’s been a terrible burden … Institutional corruption, I think, was the only verdict they (the panel) could come to.”

Met Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick has apologised to the family.

She said it was a “matter of great regret that no-one has been brought to justice and that our mistakes have compounded the pain suffered”.

‘Institutional corruption’

The body of father-of-two Daniel was found with an axe embedded in his head outside a south London pub in 1987.

The Daniel Morgan Independent Panel, which was launched by former Home Secretary Theresa May in 2013, found there were “multiple very significant failings” during the initial Met Police investigation.

The force also failed to acknowledge its “many failings” in the ensuing inquiries, the panel said, adding: “Concealing or denying failings for the sake of the organisation’s public image is dishonesty on the part of the organisation for reputational benefit and constitutes a form of institutional corruption.”

‘Vindication’

Daniel’s family have campaigned to bring his killers to justice for the past 34 years.

The case has been the subject of five police investigations which have failed to successfully prosecute anyone.

Mr Morgan said: “I feel a sense of vindication. The Met has sort of actually colonised my life for the last 30-odd years with their misbehaviour and their dishonesty and telling lies. And obviously, I want to see what effect this verdict has on the police.”

Justice?

The independent inquiry has recommended that “necessary resources” are allocated to the “task of tackling corrupt behaviour among police officers” and that a “statutory duty of candour” is created.

The panel expects the Home Office to take the lead on implementing these recommendations.

Asked how much confidence he has in the Met Commissioner or Home Secretary Priti Patel to implement the recommendations, Mr Morgan said: “Well, I have to say not a lot. The home secretary is not somebody I place great confidence in.”

Mr Morgan believes full justice will never be achieved.

He added: “I don’t think I’ve got the full truth, but then I never really expected it because the panel didn’t have statutory powers. It couldn’t call witnesses, it couldn’t subpoena witnesses.”

Met Apology

Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick said: “I would like to acknowledge, both personally and on behalf of the Met, the extraordinary resilience and determination of Daniel Morgan’s family in their pursuit of the truth and for the conviction of those responsible for his murder.

“It is a matter of great regret that no one has been brought to justice and that our mistakes have compounded the pain suffered by Daniel’s family. For that I apologise again now.”

She said the Met Police provided the panel with the fullest level of co-operation and added that the force would need time to consider the “powerful and wide-ranging report”.

‘We cannot ignore this’

The home secretary said she had written to the Met Police’s commissioner to provide a detailed response to the report.

Ms Patel told the House of Commons: “We cannot ignore the findings of this report. Its recommendations are wide ranging and far reaching – across aspects of policing, conduct, culture and transparency in public institutions.