THE MOST senior British police officer to be convicted of corruption offences started a four-year prison sentence yesterday after a jury decided he had tried to frame an innocent man and told a series of lies in an attempt to cover up his abuse of office.
Ali Dizaei, a commander with Scotland Yard, was convicted of falsely arresting a web designer in a dispute over money and then lying in official statements when he claimed he had been assaulted and threatened by the man.
Dizaei’s 25-year police career will end with him being drummed out of the force in disgrace, and his is almost certain to lose his pension after a clash in the street outside a restaurant which saw him abuse his authority as one of the Britain’s top officers.
Dizaei (47) remained defiant and said the case was “completely outrageous and a fit-up”. He said he had been pursued by the authorities, who had a “vendetta” against him.
Dizaei was an outspoken critic of the police on race, leader of the National Black Police Association, and a key figure in a race war that erupted at the top of Scotland Yard in the summer of 2008.
He had been cleared of criminal charges in 2003 and returned to duty despite Scotland Yard having suspected him of serious offences. That inquiry was intensified after MI5 had suspicions that the Iranian-born officer was a danger to national security.
In the case that ended yesterday at Southwark crown court in London, the crown alleged that on July 18th, 2008, Dizaei had clashed with Waad al-Baghdadi, who claimed the police commander owed him £600 (€685) for a website he had designed for him.
Dizaei arrested the 24-year-old and, using a special call sign given to him as a commander, called for back-up to take his prisoner away.
Dizaei claimed to have been assaulted and poked in the stomach with the mouthpiece of a shisha pipe. He filled out official statements and maintained his false account on the witness stand.
Baghdadi spent 24 hours in a cell and six weeks on bail before it was decided he would not face charges.
Scotland Yard handed the case over to the Independent Police Complaints Commission, which investigated Dizaei.
The jury were unanimous in finding Dizaei guilty of misconduct in public office and attempting to pervert the course of justice, deliberating for two hours and 31 minutes following a four-week trial. – (Guardian service)