Police chief: Green arrest should have been 'discreet'
Tuesday, 10 February 2009 12:00 AM
By politics.co.uk staff
Scotland Yard's head of counter-terrorism today said the arrest of Conservative minister Damian Green was supposed to be carried out discreetly.
Assistant commissioner Bob Quick said he planned a softly-softly approach to the investigation which would not involve the usual step of a dawn arrest.
This led to police being unable to locate the MP on November 27th last year when they searched his home and offices.
Mr Quick told a Commons committee that he even called Tory leader David Cameron in an attempt to find him but didn't inform Mr Cameron of the intention to arrest Mr Green.
He said he and other senior officers decided to proceed "with some significant caution" in the arrest of Mr Green, based on evidence gathered through the detention of home office civil servant Christopher Galley.
"The intention was to undertake the inquiry and operation in the most discreet way possible but clearly the very opposite happened," Mr Quick told the committee.
"It was our intention to arrest Mr Green earlier in the day but for the fact that he proved difficult to locate."
He said he was informed of Mr Green's arrest while informing key figures of the intention to search his parliamentary offices.
Mr Quick expressed regret about the controversy that has surrounded Mr Green's arrest and welcomed a review into police procedures when dealing with parliament.
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