Police are investigating the alleged theft of a top-secret dossier on Tayside Police’s last chief constable from a secure unit in their own Dundee headquarters.
It is understood the file was compiled last year by Angela Wilson, who was deputy chief constable of Tayside Police before the creation of a single national force, and detailed a series of allegations of unprofessional behaviour made against former chief constable Justine Curran and her deputy Gordon Scobbie.
The Courier understands the dossier was being kept in the executive corridor in Bell Street.
This is an area that is kept locked at all times and is only accessible to senior staff who are given the necessary access code.
A source told The Courier that the theft is being treated so seriously officers from Strathclyde have been brought in to Dundee to carry out the investigation.
The source claimed they have been searching for traces of DNA and fingerprints in the executive corridor to help them find who has stolen the file.
Offices of the force’s confidential unit, which carried out the investigation into the “Sweeney style” methods used by the drugs squad, have also been searched. All drugs squad officers were cleared of the accusations of over-zealous policing.
It is understood the dossier includes information relating to the former chief constable’s inappropriate conduct regarding a sex text she sent to her personal assistant, Theresa Noble.
Ms Curran is alleged to have sent a text about the size of a colleague’s manhood. Although she had admitted behaving unprofessionally, Ms Curran was given the full backing of Tayside Police Joint Board.
Ms Noble and her former partner Paul Martin were arrested a few weeks after the texts were sent in connection with alleged insurance fraud and wasting police time. Charges were dropped against Ms Noble when she agreed to act as witness againstMartin, who was later found not guilty of both charges.
Ms Noble’s mobile phone was taken as evidence during the police’s investigation into Noble and Martin. The Courier understands one of the claims made against Ms Curran and Mr Scobbie is that staff were told to delete Ms Curran’s inappropriate texts.
The source said: “No more than a dozen officers have access to that area and some civilian staff.A major inquiry team from Strathclyde has been over investigating for the past three or four weeks.
“They’ve been taking DNA samples andfingerprints and the confidential unit has also been searched.”
Tayside Police was abolished when Scotland’s eight forces were merged into one, national body on April 1. No executive officers from Tayside were given promoted posts within Police Scotland.
Gordon Scobbie is now retired and Ms Curranis chief constable ofHumberside Police.
She was appointed chief constable of Tayside Police in 2010 and her time as top cop in Tayside was often dogged by controversy.
As well as the humiliation she suffered when her texts to Ms Noble were revealed, The Courier was also sent a dossier containing a number of potentially damaging allegations made about Ms Curran by an anonymous group calling themselves “Staff loyal to Tayside Police.”
These were handed into the force but Tayside Police Joint Board dismissed all the allegations 12 days later, claiming they were “without foundation”.
A spokesman for Police Scotland said: “Police Scotland are conducting an inquiry into a theft from within Tayside division headquarters in Dundee.As this is an ongoing investigation, it would not be appropriate to comment further at this time.”
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