Rachel Simpson Wiki – Rachel Simpson Biography
Paralegal Rachel Simpson conducted repeated searches of CPS and crown court computers regarding cases she was not working on, to find information vital to criminals. A corrupt law enforcement officer has been jailed for six years for illegally using the Crown Prosecution Service’s computers to pass information to organized crime gangs.
The court heard that Simpson began the corrupt investigation of her after beginning a relationship with a man ‘involved in serious organized crime’. Prosecutor David Temkin KC said that some of the confidential information she obtained was passed on to the criminals through a third party.
But the mother-of-one was caught when investigators hacked into an encrypted chat between high-level drug dealers and found an image of a top-secret CPS document. The form contained details of police tactics and led criminals to change their tactics in an attempt to “avoid detection”.
Rachel Simpson Age
Rachel Simpson is 39 years old.
Rachel Simpson was Jailed for six years
Police then searched the ‘very limited number of people’ who would have had access to the document and were taken to Simpson. Mr Temkin said: “The defendant abused her position to investigate and obtain confidential information about prominent criminals and investigations into organized crime in South Wales.”
She “did it through unauthorized access to the Crown Prosecution Service’s computer system and the Crown Court’s digital system.” Mr Temkin said that while many of the searches could not be proven to have been passed on to criminals, they twice “disseminated sensitive information to third parties”.
He added: “In turn, that same confidential information found its way to the criminal fraternity.” “Many of the cases the defendant agreed to were handled by the complex cases unit of the Crown Prosecution Service, which deals with the most serious, sensitive or complex cases, the defendant has never worked in that unit and should have been inaccessible to her”.
He said the crime came to light after intelligence agents broke into an EncroChat encrypted messaging system used by criminals. Mr Temkin said: “As part of an EncroChat conversation, the National Crime Agency discovered photographs of a confidential and privileged police document.
‘That had been sent from one criminal to another, both criminals were involved in trafficking several kilograms of Class A drugs. South Wales Police investigations identified the case to which that document referred and the very limited number of people who had access to that document and brought it to this defendant.
“Defendant provided material to third parties rather than directly to the criminal fraternity,” Temkin said a second case in which information reached criminals involved in documents related to convicted drug dealer Jerome Nunes after he was jailed.
The documents seized by Simpson were passed to Nunes’s lawyers, who mounted an unsuccessful appeal on the grounds that the prosecution was flawed. Simpson later told police that he had notified bosses that he knew Nunes and other criminals, including one named Thomas Reynolds, whom he described as a “sex pest” with whom he had “flirted like crazy” and exchanged Facebook messages.
The Cardiff Crown Court heard that Simpson has held a number of roles within the CPS since he started working there in 2003, including as a paralegal and victim liaison manager. The bosses had given him his own laptop, and after his arrest, the police were able to trace his entire illegal search history.
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They discovered that he searched late at night, on holidays, or when he was off work sick. Simpson admitted to unauthorized access to highly confidential CPS files 29 times and two counts of misconduct in public office.
Simpson was arrested by officers from the South Wales Police Anti-Corruption Unit along with four other suspects, but he was the only one charged. Simpson, of Newport, Gwent, was charged with two counts of misconduct in a public office and 29 counts of unauthorized access to a computer system between 2016 and 2020 and pleaded guilty to all of these offenses.
Andrew Heatherall, defending himself, said the single mother Simpson began when she began an “adult relationship” with a criminal and was “vulnerable” to requests for information from her. He said: “That was a relatively short-lived relationship but in her desire to continue she left her with a particular lever.”
He said that she suffered from depression and likely autism. The judge, Mrs Justice Jefford DBE, told him: ‘She was an employee of the Crown Prosecution Service and she knew full well that what she was doing was illegal. ‘It was a repeated and serious violation of the trust that her employer had in you.
‘The public, the courts, and everyone involved in the criminal justice system has a right to expect the highest levels of integrity from CPS, has a right to expect the highest levels of integrity from those who work for CPS, and was entitled to expect that of you
“What you did fundamentally undermines public confidence in that integrity and in the ability of CPS to properly prosecute defendants.” Ms Jefford said that although her actions were ‘inexplicable’ and not for financial gain, she began the crimes after a romantic relationship.
She said: ‘You said you had a relationship with a man for a few months. About a year later, and out of the blue, he asked you to find someone at work for him. You did it and you kept doing it when he asked you to. You wanted his attention and you would do anything he asked of you. He has not identified it.
Simpson was jailed for six years. Andrew Penhale, Chief Crown Prosecutor, said: “As a CPS employee, Rachel Simpson held a position of trust and was only expected to access sensitive and confidential information when necessary for her job.” “She regularly accessed the material when there was no commercial need and, on two occasions, the confidential material she obtained was passed on to organized criminals.
‘CPS expects all staff to act with integrity in handling data stored in their systems and Simpson fell far short of these standards. We will not hesitate to prosecute individuals who engage in unlawful conduct. We are also constantly reviewing our digital systems to ensure they are as secure as possible.’
A CPS spokesperson added: ‘CPS is committed to maintaining the public’s trust in our ability to effectively manage the data entrusted to us. “Steps are already being taken to ensure that we effectively learn from the issues identified in this case and make appropriate changes to prevent a recurrence.”
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