Reporter 'exposed wrongdoing'

A former News of the World investigative journalist today told an inquiry into press standards in the UK that his work had led to more than 260 “successful criminal prosecutions”.

Mazher Mahmood, who was the defunct newspaper’s investigations editor, told the Leveson Inquiry that his most high-profile inquiry had been into Pakistani cricketers who were subsequently convicted of match-fixing.

Mr Mahmood, who became known for disguising himself as a “fake sheikh” in order to carry out undercover reporting, said he had exposed “criminal and moral wrongdoing” during a 20-year career at the News of the World.

He gave evidence in a room occupied only by lawyers to protect his identity. His words were broadcast to an annex where journalists and members of the public could listen.

Inquiry chairman Lord Justice Leveson, who is sitting at the Royal Court of Justice in London, said he had made an order allowing Mr Mahmood, who now works for The Sunday Times, to give evidence away from the public gaze for “good reason”.