Counter corruption unit admits 13 breaches

Police Scotland’s counter corruption unit (CCU), which illegally snooped on journalistic sources, has been found to have authorised its own spying, instead of obtaining judicial approval.

The CCU breached this rule last April when it attempted to find out whether officers had leaked information on the Emma Caldwell case to journalists.

The Herald found that a “designated person” had handled 13 applications under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 since last March.

After initially refusing to release the figures on how many such internal application there had been the single force released them following an appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner.

Police Scotland stated: “Thirteen of the Counter Corruption Unit applications for communications data were handled by a designated person who worked in the CCU at the time the application was submitted.”

It also stated that “internal structures and processes were reviewed and adjusted to ensure the independence of Designated Persons in respect of CCU investigations”.