Criminals are walking free because of 'lazy police'
Criminals are avoiding justice because 'lazy' police do not know or understand the law well enough, according to a former top prosecutor.
Nazir Afzal, who led cases against the child abuse ring in Rochdale, said 'basic' cases were being charged 'prematurely' without proper investigations.
The former chief executive of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners was due to share his views with chief constables and commissioners at an event this week.
But he stepped down in May so he could appear on the BBC's Question Time to discuss the Manchester terror attack, against the advice of his bosses.
Nazir Afzal, pictured, was set to slam 'lazy police' at an event for chief constables and crime commissioners this week
His speech for the event, seen by The Times, said officers 'do not understand the law' and see charges as 'more important than convictions'.
Writing for the paper, he added: 'In relation to trials, they do not understand disclosure, and do not understand the consequences of failing to disclose evidence that is not part of the prosecution case.
'This can often mean that cases are stopped because it would be unfair to have a trial and that means that defendants who may be guilty are allowed to go free. Often this is down to poor supervision by senior officers and the quality of investigations.'
His notes also say that he has seen 'lazy policing' where officers simply 'seize cash' from offenders inst ead of going through the formal proceeds of crime process.
Mr Afzal said: 'It is lazy because they know they are allowed to keep 50 per cent of the cash that they seize but if they proceeded to prosecute, they would get less than half of that.'
The Times also reports Mr Afzal slammed 'shameful' officers who 'focus on single theories' even if evidence suggests other lines of inquiry should be followed.
It means the CPS is left trying to 'fix' cases that have not been investigated properly, according to the ex-prosecutor, while he added junior officers are taking on cases 'beyond their experience' because of 'widespread redundancies'.Â
Mr Afzal stepped down from his position as chief executive of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) to make an appearance on the BBC's topical debate programme on May 25.Â
The former prosecutor said some officers were 'lazy' while junior officers were taking on work 'beyond their experience' because of 'widespread redundancies' (file picture)
The experienced lawyer oversaw a number of high profile convictions, including the Rochdale grooming gang and disgraced former BBC presenter Stuart Hall.
He also led the prosecutions of Coronation Street actors Bill Roache, who was cleared of rape, and Michael Le Vell, who was also acquitted of child sex abuse.Â
Mr Afzal led the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in North West England from 2011 to 2015. He became the first Muslim to be appointed to such a position and was Britain's most senior lawyer within the CPS.
In 2015 Mr Afzal quit his role at the CPS after he was accused of sending a text message to a defendant.
An internal inquiry exonerated him but he nevertheless handed in his resignation as more senior colleagues insisted his departure is due to an 'on-going drive for efficiency'.
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