Jim Boyling tells public inquiry senior managers turned blind eye to long-term relationships with three women
An undercover officer who deceived three women into sexual relationships said his superiors did nothing to prevent him from doing so, the spycops public inquiry has heard.
Jim Boyling, who infiltrated environmental and animal rights activist groups for five years, said senior managers turned a blind eye to undercover officers having deceitful sexual relationships with women, often lasting years. His managers adopted an attitude of “don’t ask, don’t tell”, he said.
The three women have described how his betrayal devastated them. Boyling said he did not consider whether they would have consented to having an intimate relationship with him if they had known that he was a police spy. He believed that they would never discover his true identity “so it was not an issue”.
Boyling received formal letters praising his covert work from the then home secretary, Jack Straw, and senior police officers for gathering information about protesters.
