Five detectives held in data probe

Nov 15 2012

Five police officers have been arrested as part of an anti-corruption investigation which reportedly centres on allegations that statistics were manipulated to meet crime reduction targets.

Four men and a woman, detectives from Kent Police, were questioned on suspicion of persuading suspects to admit to offences they had not committed to boost their unit's performance statistics, The Times said.

The claims, involving a detective inspector, detective sergeant and three detective constables working in a group dealing with persistent offenders, are said to focus on the suspected handling of undetected crimes which are later labelled "taken into consideration".

A Kent Police spokesman said: "Five people arrested in Maidstone on Monday over allegations of administrative irregularities in the way prisoners had been dealt with have been released on police bail."

Disclosure of the arrests comes on the day the public vote for the newly created role of police and crime commissioners, with many candidates vowing to drive down crime levels.