Veteran cop probed by own force after finding CCTV missed by detectives investigating vicious attack on his son
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A former detective has revealed how he was reprimanded by his own force after he found CCTV footage which was missed by officers investigating an attack on his son.
Even though he helped nab the assailant, Pete Jackson, who was a detective superintendent before retiring, was investigated by Greater Manchester Police after conducting the probe on his own time.
The former officer was left stunned as he was subjected to an internal disciplinary inquiry for grilling colleagues over the standard of the investigation into the assault.
Mr Jackson's whistleblowing prompted detectives to reopen the case and sparked a three year probe by a police watchdog, the Manchester Evening News reports.
(Photo: Greater Manchester Police)
GMP closed down the investigation into the attack on 18-year-old student Thomas Jackson within hours of the incident after officers missed key CCTV footage of the brutal city centre assault.
His furious father walked from his bedside at Manchester Royal Infirmary - where he was being treated for two fractures to his jaw - and immediately found the footage he says his colleagues had missed near Albert Square.
It showed the attacker get out of a taxi and knock Thomas out, leaving him unconscious on the road for five minutes.
The key evidence helped police bring violent Anthony Bamgbose to justice.
Bamgbose was jailed for 23 months after he admitted the unprovoked assault on Thomas and his friend, who had also been knocked unconscious.
(Photo: Greater Manchester Police)
But Mr Jackson, then the head of GMP’s major incident team, ended up in trouble with his own force.
The six-month internal probe concluded there was no evidence he had directly accessed information on Bamgbose on GMP computer systems while his anger had been ‘poor judgement’ rather than a disciplinary offence, according to an internal GMP report.
Mr Jackson was recommended for ‘constructive developmental feedback’.
He said: “I was disgusted by the police response to an incident which could have resulted in my son’s death and the death of his friend. I just didn’t believe there would be no CCTV in Albert Square. I walked from the MRI down Oxford Road and conducted my own enquiries.
“I went and stood in what was left of the pool of blood where my son lay, looked up and within seconds I saw two CCTV cameras which captured the whole incident.
(Photo: Manchester Evening News)
“I asked the pub manager and he played the CCTV back. The first frame I saw was my son unconscious on the floor. That’s what should have happened already as part of normal enquiries.
“The standard of the investigation was a disgrace. In fact, there was no real investigation at all. Without my intervention, a really dangerous man wouldn’t have been brought to justice."
Deputy Chief Constable Ian Pilling conceded there had been ‘poor investigative practice’ which resulted in ‘management action’ for those who missed the CCTV.
He added: “Separately the conduct of another officer was investigated following concerns about his inappropriate involvement in the inquiry and he received constructive developmental feedback.”