Britain's highest-ranking Asian police officer is set to receive around £300,000 in compensation after threatening to air dynamite claims of racial discrimination at an employment tribunal.
Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur, 53, is close to agreeing an out-of-court settlement after originally claiming £1.2million from Scotland Yard.
Negotiations between his legal representatives and Metropolitan Police Authority officials are understood to be at an 'advanced stage' and an announcement could be made within days.
Mediation talks have been taking place to reach an agreement before December 1, when Sir Ian Blair steps down as Metropolitan Police Commissioner.
The payout to Mr Ghaffur is likely to intensify the debate about the compensation culture engulfing Britain's biggest force.
Insiders believe that one of the reasons for the deal is to avoid a potentially embarrassing public hearing at a tribunal next year - at which he may have levelled accusations that Sir Ian and other top officers were racist.
A source said: 'The Yard wants to wipe the slate clean before a new man - or woman - takes over.
'There is an acceptance that Mr Ghaffur may have been badly treated on occasions. However, it has been strongly argued that his race was not a factor.'
In addition to his payout, the Ugandan-born officer will be entitled to a lump sum pension payout of £522,000 and an index-linked pension of £85,000 per annum - meaning he will walk away from policing with close to £1million. He could also even be handed his legal costs.
Two months ago, Mr Ghaffur was effectively suspended from his £180,000-a-year job after accusing Sir Ian of racism in his employment tribunal claim.
The move came days after he staged a televised press conference to detail his allegations of racial, religious and age discrimination.
He pointed the finger of blame directly at Sir Ian who, he said, had sidelined him from his Olympic security role.
His statement brought a swift rebuke from the Met, with Deputy Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson calling publicly for Mr Ghaffur to 'shut up' and get on with his job.
Sir Ian said the officer had been placed on 'authorised leave' because of fears his statements to the media were affecting the Met's 'operational effectiveness'.
But within hours of Sir Ian's statement, Mr Ghaffur hit back saying he was being 'victimised' because of his stand against racism in the force.
Now a settlement is near. As part of the deal, Mr Ghaffur is expected to drop or soften his race allegations against Sir Ian and Met Deputy Assistant Commissioner Richard Bryan.
Exact details of his compensation award - said to be in the region of £300,000 - will remain confidential. A Scotland Yard spokesman said: 'Negotiations are continuing but have not yet concluded.'
Sir Ian quit last month on the day the Daily Mail revealed he had used public money to pay a friend a five-figure sum for an image make-over.
The extraordinary deal was unearthed in an official investigation into Sir Ian's dealings with a firm run by his friend of 30 years, and skiing companion, Andy Miller.
In September, Mr Ghaffur suffered huge embarrassment after the Daily Mail revealed that his lawyer is a crook with suspect legal qualifications.
Dr Shahrokh Mireskandari has a criminal conviction for playing a leading role in a telemarketing scam and obtained his law degree from a discredited 'mail drop' university in Hawaii.
He is at the centre of a probe into his past and concerns over the running of his West End law firm by the UK solicitors' watchdog.
No comments:
Post a Comment