A liar and a bully – top policeman who arrested innocent man gets 4 years

Published on Monday 8 February 2010 21:40

A SENIOR Scotland Yard officer's career is in ruins after he was jailed for assaulting and falsely arresting a man in a petty row over money.

Commander Ali Dizaei, 47, was sentenced to four years after a jury ruled he was a corrupt officer who had abused his position to bully a young businessman.

They heard he assaulted and falsely arrested Waad al-Baghdadi, 24, after he asked for 600 he was owed for a website showcasing Dizaei's controversial career.

The judge, Mr Justice Simon, said he must "send a clear message that police officers of whatever rank are not above the law".

Mr Baghdadi, an Iraqi, told Southwark Crown Court that he ran into Dizaei by chance at the Persian Yas restaurant in Hammersmith, London, in July 2008.

After asking for the money, he was confronted in a side-street as he called 999 to complain about his treatment. Dizaei assaulted him and said: "I am going to f*** up your life."

Dizaei told colleagues who raced to the scene that he had been threatened and stabbed with the mouthpiece of a shisha pipe, but his lies later began to unravel.

Sentencing Dizaei, the judge told him: "You knew how the system worked and you thought you would never be discovered. It is to the credit of the investigators in this case that, early on, they questioned your account.

"You should have drawn a very clear line between your personal position with regard to Mr al-Baghdadi and your duty as a police officer. You crossed that line."

The convictions spell the end of an accomplished but contentious 24-year career that took the Iranian officer to the top of the police service. He emerged unscathed from a series of earlier inquiries, including a multi-million-pound undercover operation examining claims of corruption, fraud and dishonesty.

Dizaei rose through the ranks at the Metropolitan Police to become west link commander, covering ten London boroughs and overseeing tens of thousands of officers. At the same time, he was an outspoken opponent of racism, ultimately becoming president of the National Association of Black Police Officers.

But his botched attempt to frame a man who pestered him for a few hundred pounds over a website exposed him as a violent bully and a liar.

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson said Dizaei's "disgraceful behaviour" had damaged the reputation of the entire police service.

He continued: "It is extremely disappointing and concerning that this very senior officer has been found guilty of abusing his position and power.

"The public expect the police to treat them fairly and honestly and we are resolved to tackle corruption at every opportunity. He has breached that trust and damaged not only his own reputation but that of the entire police service."

He added: "Bearing in mind his rank and disgraceful behaviour, he should not be surprised at the severity of his sentence."

After the verdict, Mr Baghdadi said: "I would like to thank all those who listened to me after I made my complaint, in particular the jury who have delivered justice and found Ali Dizaei guilty."

Dizaei will remain a senior police officer until the bureaucratic process of removing him from the force can be completed.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission, which investigated the complaint, must pass its files to the Metropolitan Police Authority for a decision.

London's most wanted: high flyer falls

ALI Dizaei has compared himself to London's most-wanted criminals because of his notoriety within the Metropolitan Police.

Dizaei's 24-year police career followed enviable trajectory as he was fast-tracked through the ranks. But it was most notable for a series of bruising encounters that left him joking he should wear his stab vest when inside New Scotland Yard.

Dizaei was born in Tehran, Iran, in 1962. His father headed the traffic police and his grandfather was an assistant commissioner. Dizaei claimed police work was his destiny and joined Thames Valley Police after attending boarding school and City University Law School.

As politicians and senior officers worked to increase the number of ethnic minority recruits, Dizaei was tipped to become the first Asian chief constable. He joined the Met in 1999, and was promoted to superintendent.