Ali Dizaei

Ali Dizaei علی دیزایی
Born	Jamshid Ali Dizaei 1962[1] Tehran, Iran
Nationality	British-Iranian
Occupation	Police Commander Former President of the National Black Police Association Author
Spouse	Natalie Downing (1986-2005) Shai (2007-present)
Children	3 sons

Jamshid Ali Dizaei (Persian: جمشید علی دیزایی, Jamshīd ʿAlī Dizaī; Persian pronunciation: [dizɒːjiː]; born 1962) is a Commander in London's Metropolitan Police Service. Iranian-born with dual nationality, and formerly one of Britain's most senior Muslim police officers,^[2] he came to prominence as a result of his outspoken views on racial discrimination in the London Metropolitan Police and various allegations of malpractice on his part, eventually being jailed for perverting the course of justice in February 2010.^[3] He had received advancement after his criticism of the force following his claims of racism.^[4] He has been a frequent media commentator on a variety of issues, mainly concerned with ethnicity and religion.

In April 2008, he was promoted to Commander, in charge of West London. In August 2008, he was awarded the Long Service Good Conduct Medal by the then-Commissioner, Sir Ian Blair.^[5]

On 8 February 2010, he was convicted at Southwark Crown Court on charges of perverting the course of justice and of misconduct in a public office, and jailed for four years.^[3][6] He had been suspended on full pay since September 2008 and on 31 March 2010 was formally dismissed from the Metropolitan Police.^[7]

He was initially imprisoned at HMP Edmunds Hill, Suffolk but after an attack was moved to HMP Usk.^[8]

On 16 May 2011, Dizaei's appeal against this conviction was successful and the conviction was quashed. In the Court of Appeal Lord Justice Hughes said that the court "simply [did] not know whether this conviction is soundly based or not". He continued, "In those circumstances we are driven to the conclusion that it cannot be regarded as safe." ^[9] Dizaei is expected to face a retrial later this year. His comment after his release was that he "left prison with his integrity completely intact".^[10] He described his experience in prison as 'hell', and likened it to 'putting your hand in a wasps nest'.^[11] He has vowed to clear his name and rejoin Scotland Yard.^[12]

In September 2011 Dizaei was successful in an appeal against his dismissal from the Metropolitan Police, since his conviction had been quashed by the Court of Appeal. However he did not return to duty, but remained suspended pending his forthcoming retrial in the Crown Court on charges of perverting the course of justice.^[13][14]

Early life and career to 2000

Dizaei was born in Tehran, Iran^[15] where his father was a deputy commissioner of police. He moved to the UK in 1973.^[4] He was educated at Slindon College a private boarding school in Arundel, West Sussex; this was the wish of his father, who believed that the only way his sons would truly succeed was through a good British education. Dizaei studied law at university, gaining a BA (Hons) and LLM in Law from City University London^[16] and a diploma in policing from Cambridge University ^[17] later gaining a PhD from Brunel University ^[18] and joined Thames Valley Police in 1986. He served in Henley-on-Thames, in uniform and the Criminal Investigation Department, rising to the rank of Chief Inspector. He was appointed an adviser on race issues to the Home Secretary, and then transferred to the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) on promotion to Superintendent on 29 March 1999 as a staff officer to Assistant Commissioner Ian Johnston. On 17 May 1999 he was transferred to Kensington police station and on 3 April 2000 became Superintendent Operations there. He was already outspoken on race issues, first coming to media attention in November 1999 for his criticism of questions asked in promotion exams.^[19]

Controversies

Operation HELIOS

From 2000, Dizaei was investigated by the force after allegations of taking bribes, using drugs and prostitutes, and spying for Iran. There were counter-allegations by his supporters that the investigation was prompted by the belief of some senior officers that he was too ambitious, too critical of the police (particularly relating to racism), too close to the Iranian community, too flamboyant, visited expensive nightclubs and had an open marriage, none of which endeared him to other officers.^[20] The investigations, codenamed Operation Helios, cost £7 million and involved over 50 officers. It was the most expensive operation against a single officer in the history of Scotland Yard.

Dizaei was suspended on 18 January 2001. He was charged with perverting the course of justice, misconduct in public office, and submitting false mileage expense claims.

Dizaei was tried before the Recorder of London for misconduct in public office and perverting the course of justice. This arose out of an incident which occurred on 6 September 2000. The jury cleared Dizaei of the charges on 15 September 2003. The Crown Prosecution Service decided not to proceed with the charges of making false mileage expense claims. He was welcomed back by Commissioner Sir John Stevens.

The National Black Police Association (NBPA), of which Dizaei was at the time national president (having previously been vice-chairman and 'legal adviser'), called for an independent inquiry into the MPS's investigation. The Morris Inquiry headed by Lord Morris concluded that the investigation was disproportionate, unfocused and that the officer's race played a part in the manner in which the investigation was conducted.

Racial discrimination claims

Dizaei brought his own claim for racial discrimination in the conduct of the investigations by the MPS. This was withdrawn in 2003 after the MPS paid him a reported £80,000 and reinstated him.

In 2004, the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) described Operation Helios as having been "seriously flawed".^[21] Dizaei eventually faced a minor disciplinary action, having been cleared of all criminal charges. The MPS issued a public statement that Dizaei returned to work with his "integrity demonstrably intact".

Dizaei was promoted to Chief Superintendent in May 2004^[22] and became Borough Commander of Hounslow and later Borough Commander of Hammersmith and Fulham. In 2006 he was in the headlines again for criticising the Forest Gate raid^[23] and passenger profiling on aircraft. The Police Federation has accused him of "blissful ignorance" for the latter.^[24]

In December 2006, it was made public that during Operation Helios the MPS had unlawfully tapped over 3,500 private calls made by Dizaei.^[25] The ruling was made by the Investigatory Powers Tribunal after referral by the NBPA.

In 2008, Dizaei commenced Employment Tribunal proceedings against Catherine Crawford (the Chief Executive of the Metropolitan Police Authority), Sir Paul Stephenson and others, claiming that they had specifically targeted him for being an outspoken critic of their record on race and for Dizaei supporting Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur in his race discrimination claim against Paul Stephenson and Ian Blair. The claim is on-going and due to be heard in the near future.^[26]

Not One of Us

In March 2007, Dizaei published Not One of Us, an account of his police career to date, and of the Operation Helios investigation. Prior to publication, the MPS issued a statement noting that it "considers it a matter of regret that Chief Superintendent Dizaei has felt it necessary to write this book", and reiterating its support for the Helios team.^[27] Upon release the book was serialised on BBC Radio 4 and in The Times.

In June 2007, Sir Ian Blair apologised for Operation Helios, after the MPS and the NBPA agreed to resolve disputes arising out of Helios.^[28]

In March 2008, and at the third attempt, Dizaei was promoted to the rank of Commander.

On 12 September 2008 the MPS announced that Dizaei was the subject of a complaint alleging that he had improperly provided advice to solicitors defending a woman accused over a fatal hit-and-run accident. The Metropolitan Police Authority is to investigate the alleged misconduct, which Dizaei denies.^[29]

Dizaei claimed that this was a malicious complaint brought about by Lord MacKenzie to further his business interests. MacKenzie was rebuked by the Black Rod for using the House of Lords letterhead to make his complaint against Dizaei.^[30]

Yas Restaurant and criminal convictions

Dizaei was suspended again on 18 September 2008 after being investigated for various allegations including an arrest he made on 18 July 2008 outside his uncle's West London restaurant. A 24-year-old web designer, Waad al-Baghdadi, claimed that Dizaei had not paid £600 for a website he had commissioned and when Baghdadi confronted him about this, a public quarrel ensued. Dizaei arrested Baghdadi, who later made a complaint which was investigated by the IPCC.

On 21 May 2009, the Crown Prosecution Service announced that Dizaei faced two criminal charges. He was again charged with perverting the course of justice and misconduct in a public office. The charges related to the incident (above) in which Dizaei had arrested Waad al-Baghdadi. A decision not to charge that individual was made by the CPS in August 2008. In a statement, the NBPA said: "It is outrageous that the CPS, for the second time in four years, has commenced prosecution against the president of the National Black Police Association, Commander Ali Dizaei. This has not happened to any other senior police officer in the history of the MPS or the CPS."^[31]

The matter duly came to trial in the Crown Court at Southwark in January 2010 before the Hon Mr Justice Simon, with Dizaei facing counts of misconduct in a public office and perverting the course of justice.^[32]

On 8 February 2010, Dizaei was found guilty on both counts,^[33] and jailed for four years.^[3] On 22 June 2010 he was duly refused leave to appeal to the Court of Appeal, Criminal Division. He had sought to appeal against both conviction and sentence.^[34] The grounds of the proposed appeal were that al-Baghdadi had used a false name and nationality.^{[35][36][37][38][39]}

On 16 May 2011, the Court of Appeal granted leave to appeal and allowed the appeal, quashing the convictions. Lord Justice Hughes, Vice-President of the Court of Appeal said that the court "simply [did] not know whether this conviction is soundly based or not". He continued, "In those circumstances we are driven to the conclusion that it cannot be regarded as safe." ^[9] A re-trial was ordered. Dizaei was released with immediate effect.^[40]

Dizaei has subsequently vowed to clear his name and rejoin Scotland Yard as a Commander.^[41]

On 27 June 2011, the key witness in the quashed conviction of Dizaei, Waad Al-Baghdadi, was charged with benefit fraud (in excess of £21,000), which included false disability claims in the name of his deceased father.^[42]

On 3 July 2011, the Sunday Times reported that the police intimidated a young Muslim woman to withdraw her allegation of rape against Waad Al-Baghdadi.^[43]

Reinstatement

On Friday 1 October 2011, Dizaei was reinstated after a secret Police Appeals Tribunal meeting that resulted in a unanimous decision in favor of his reinstatement to the rank of Commander in the Metropolitan Police.^[44] However, it was decided by the MPA that Dizaei would be suspended on full pay. Dizaei has publicly stated that he will appeal that decision and would rather work for his salary and has claimed that there still many jobs he can help to perform until his trial early next year.^[45]

Defamation proceedings

In September 2009 Dizaei won a High Court action against the Daily Mail and the Evening Standard over a defamatory article published in June 2008. The newspapers were forced to issue an apology and pay substantial costs and damages.^[46] On receipt of the apology he issued further proceedings against the Daily Mail for an allegedly defamatory article published in September 2008 suggesting that Dizaei advised a lawyer over a criminal case.

Allegations of credit card misuse

In September 2008 he was accused by the Metropolitan Police Authority of using his corporate credit card inappropriately and his conduct was investigated by the Chief Constable of Dorset and the IPCC. Dizaei maintained that the allegations were without foundation. On 20 November 2009, after a 14-month investigation the IPCC found no evidence of dishonesty or impropriety. The IPCC managed investigation revealed that Dizaei was in fact owed £1,850, which was repaid to him by the Metropolitan Police Authority ^[47]

News of the World payment and apology

On 27 December 2009, Dizaei accepted a substantial payment and an apology from the News of the World for allegations arising from an investigation by Mazher Mahmood. The paper backed down and apologised in the face of legal action from Dizaei, after Mahmood claimed the officer "employed an illegal immigrant as his right-hand man and took him to the heart of the British establishment." It also admitted breaching Mrs Dizaei's right to privacy by publishing her private pictures. The paper paid Ace Bakhtyari, who was subsequently jailed for having a fake passport and deported from the UK.^[48]

Phone hacking

Between 2000 - 2001 Andy Hayman (former Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police) ordered that 3,500 of Dizaei's telephone calls should be intercepted and transcribed as part of Operation Helios. In 2006, the Investigatory Powers Tribunal ruled that the 3,500 calls were 'unlawfully' intercepted. The then-Commissioner Ian Blair apologised and many members of the public were paid substantial damages for the breach of their privacy.^[49] On 20 May 2011, Dizaei was once again informed that he may have been subject to phone hacking by News of the World.^[50]

Publications and speeches

Dizaei has frequently written articles about policing for police journals and national newspapers. He has covered various policing topics, these include: Sudden Care for our Morale ^[51] and Force for Change.^[52] His speeches and comments in the media include: Passenger Profiling at Airports ^[53] and comments made about the Forest Gate Shooting.^[54] He once referred to racial profiling as being synonymous with a fictitious offence of "travelling whilst Asian".^[55]

Personal life

He was married in August 1986 in Reading, Berkshire to Natalie Downing. He has three sons by her; Kamran, Kayvon, and Kourosh.^[56] Dizaei and Downing were married for 19 years, divorcing in 2005.^[57] His current wife is Shahameh, known as Shy, whom he married in August 2007 in Ealing. He has adopted her son Erfan.^{[citation needed]}

References

1. ^ Telegraph profile
2. ^ "Top Muslim police officer Ali Dizaei to stand trial in the summer"
3. ^ ^{a b c} "Met Commander Ali Dizaei guilty of corruption". BBC News. 2010-02-08. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8504308.stm. Retrieved 2010-02-08. 
4. ^ ^{a b} 'Teflon' commander brought down by his own arrogance
5. ^ [1]
6. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jR6ye_Aw3Y&feature=related
7. ^ "Senior officer Ali Dizaei dismissed from Met job", BBC News, 31 March 2010
8. ^ "Rat cop's cellmate is rapist aged 80", The Sun, 13 March 2010
9. ^ ^{a b} "Ali Dizaei hopes to return to police after appeal", BBC News, 16 May 2011
10. ^ "Integrity Completely Intact", Daily Mirror 16 May 2011
11. ^ "Dizaei wins Appeal", Sky News 16 May 2011
12. ^ "Dizaei vows to return", Ralli, 17 May 2011
13. ^ Ali Dizaei 'reinstated as Met police commander' The Guardian 30 Sep 2011
14. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-15123496
15. ^ "Top Met officer Ali Dizaei 'abused power' and faked injuries, court told"
16. ^ http://www.docstoc.com/docs/6469305/City_University__London
17. ^ http://www.ice.cam.ac.uk/institute-media/pdfs/annual/200405.pdf
18. ^ http://rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/prgpdfs/fprs107.pdf
19. ^ "Black police criticise cartoon test", BBC News, 29 November 1999
20. ^ "Dizaei 'had been set for top'", BBC News, 15 September 2003
21. ^ "Dizaei probe 'seriously flawed'", BBC News, 16 June 2004
22. ^ "Dizaei to get temporary promotion", BBC News, 22 April 2004
23. ^ "Officer demands critical analysis", BBC News, 14 June 2006
24. ^ "Police row over travel profiles", BBC News, 20 August 2006
25. ^ "Met tapped senior officer's calls", BBC News, 10 December 2006
26. ^ "Senior Scotland Yard officer "Ali Dizaei launches race discrimination claim", The Telegraph 17 December 2008
27. ^ "Publication of Chief Superintendent Ali Dizaei's book", accessed 13 March 2007
28. ^ "Sir Ian apologises for £4m probe", BBC News, 5 June 2007
29. ^ "Senior Met officer investigated", BBC News, 12 September 2008
30. ^ "Hugh Muir's diary", The Guardian 31 July 2009
31. ^ Dodd, Vikram (21 May 2009). "Police commander Ali Dizaei charged with misconduct". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/may/21/police-commander-dizaei-charge-misconduct. Retrieved 23 April 2010. 
32. ^ "Man 'scared by Dizaei challenge'". BBC News. 12 January 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8455181.stm. Retrieved 23 April 2010. 
33. ^ "The case against Commander Ali Dizaei" guardian.co.uk
34. ^ "Jailed ex-Met commander Ali Dizaei refused appeal". BBC News. 22 June 2010. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10383341. 
35. ^ http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23902467-ex-yard-chief-dizaei-could-be-freed-after-trial-witness-used-false-name.do
36. ^ "Ali Dizaei witness identity questioned". BBC News. 30 November 2010. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-11870744. 
37. ^ Bowcott, Owen (30 November 2010). "Ali Dizaei asks appeal court to consider fresh evidence". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/nov/30/ali-dizaei-appeal. 
38. ^ http://jimjay.blogspot.com/2010/11/but-surely-police-dont-frame-people.html
39. ^ http://www.henleystandard.co.uk/news/news.php?id=849937
40. ^ "Ali Dizaei hopes to return to police after appeal". BBC News. 16 May 2011. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-13409222. 
41. ^ "Ali Dizaei vows to rejoin Scotland Yard after corruption charges are quashed", The Guardian 16 May 2011
42. ^ "Ali Dizaei Trial Witness on Benefit Fraud Charge", BBC News 27 June 2011
43. ^ "Met officers 'intimidated' young Muslim rape victim", The Sunday Times 3 July 2011
44. ^ "Ali Dizaei to be given job back", BBC News 1 October 2011
45. ^ "Met Chief wants to work for salary", Daily Mail 2 October 2011
46. ^ Plunkett, John (24 September 2009). "Daily Mail and Evening Standard pay damages to London police commander". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/sep/24/daily-mail-evening-standard-dizaei. Retrieved 21 February 2010. 
47. ^ "Met chief cleared of card misuse". BBC News. 20 November 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/8370778.stm. Retrieved 21 February 2010. 
48. ^ Muir, Hugh (28 December 2009). "News of the World pays out to Ali Dizaei over false allegations". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/dec/28/news-world-police-ali-dizaei. Retrieved 23 April 2010. 
49. ^ "Met Chief's grovelling apology on Dizaei inquiry", Daily Mail 5 June 2007
50. ^ "Ex-policeman Ali Dizaei's phone possibly hacked", BBC News 31st May 2011
51. ^ [2]
52. ^ [3]
53. ^ [4]
54. ^ [5]
55. ^ [6]
56. ^ "My husband's mistresses come and go but I don't care; Speaking for the first time, the wife of controversial police officer Ali Dizaei reveals the truth about her open marriage". The Daily Mail (London). 2003. http://findarticles.com/p/news-articles/daily-mail-london-england-the/mi_8002/is_2003_Sept_27/husbands-mistresses-dont-care-speaking/ai_n37035076/. ^{[dead link]}
57. ^ See You in Court, 5 April 2011

Further reading

• Not One of Us: The Trial that Changed Policing in Britain Forever, by Ali Dizaei & Tim Phillips, March 2007

Persondata
Name	Dizaei, Ali
Alternative names
Short description	Police officer
Date of birth	1962
Place of birth	Tehran, Iran
Date of death
Place of death