I was right not to charge Huntley, insists ex-detective

A detective who decided no action should be taken against Ian Huntley over three separate allegations of underage sex stood by his decisions today.

Humberside Detective Inspector Peter Billam dealt with three cases of suspected unlawful sex with a minor concerning Huntley in the mid-1990s.

In each case, the officer, who is now retired, said there was either insufficient evidence or the girls in question refused to cooperate.

The decisions not to proceed meant details of the allegations did not emerge when Huntley was vetted for the job of school caretaker in Soham, Cambridgeshire, in 2001.

It was there that he abducted and murdered 10-year-olds Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in August 2002.

Mr Billam’s comments came in a statement to the Bichard Inquiry today as the officer became the first live witness to give evidence.

The inquiry, chaired by Michael Bichard, is investigating flaws in vetting procedures and police intelligence handling which allowed Huntley to get his job at Soham Village College.

It has already heard that between August 1995 and July 1999 Humberside Police and North East Lincolnshire Social Services had been made aware of 11 separate criminal allegations against Huntley.

They included suspicion of four rapes and an indecent assault and four allegations of underage sex.

But the records were not kept and the allegations did not emerge when Cambridgeshire Police vetted Huntley for the Soham job.

Mr Billam dealt with three of the four allegations of underage sex in his role as head of the Grimsby office of the child protection unit for Humberside police.

In his witness statement, he said: “In reviewing the files, I know that I made the correct decisions on the evidence given at the time.”

The first case involved suspected sex with a 15-year-old who was living with Huntley in August 1995.

She admitted to having sex, as did Huntley in police interview, but refused to give a statement or make a complaint, the officer’s evidence said.

Mr Billam took no action because of the girl’s reluctance and said the only other option would have been to caution Huntley.

But he would still have needed a full complaint, which he did not have.

A second allegation, concerning a separate underage girl, came in May 1996 but again the youngster refused to cooperate.

In the third case, it was delayed for several days because “the child was in no danger and the investigating staff were involved in duties of higher priority”, Mr Billam’s statement said.

When seen by police, the girl denied being involved in a sexual relationship and no action was taken because of a lack of evidence.

In his statement, Mr Billam said: “During my attachment to the Grimsby office, I also made decisions on the final submission of each individual crime file that was submitted to me.

“Those decisions were recorded by myself, on the files, and to the course of action to be taken or otherwise.

“I based these decisions on the evidence I was presented and in conjunction with Force policies.”