Phone hacking: Rupert Murdoch hit by 600 fresh claims

[Eugene]

Source: The Guardian

Lisa O'Carroll, Patrick Wintour, Josh Halliday
The Guardian, Friday 15 March 2013 21.36 GMT

Detectives are examining an estimated 600 fresh allegations of phone-hacking incidents at Rupert Murdoch's now closed News of the World on the back of fresh evidence obtained by the Metropolitan police from a suspect turned supergrass.

Further details are expected to emerge on Monday morning at the high court during a hearing relating to the existing litigation by hacking victims against Murdoch's News International (NI) – hours before MPs are due to vote on joint Labour and Liberal Democrat amendments that would introduce a backstop law to stiffen regulation of the press.

Sources say Scotland Yard detectives believe they can identify as many as 600 new incidents after obtaining the phone records of an insider who is now being lined up as a crown witness. As a result of the new information, the force's Operation Weeting is revisitng the timetable for concluding its investigation, which had been due to be completed with the conclusion of trials this year. Police now expect their work to continue into 2015.

The 600 new potential litigants fall into three groups: new victims; others who sued over hacking but signed agreements with NI allowing them to sue the company again; and a third group who signed agreements potentially barring them from suing again. The indications are that there may be "some hundreds of new legal actions" from the first two groups.

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Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2013/mar/15/phone-hacking-murdoch-news-world

[Angry Dragon]

1. Prison for Rupert and his son

[aquart]

2. Sweet

[longship]

3. The more clams, the better.

These are the razor variety, hopefully more than a close shave for Rupert. Haul his ass into court.

[randome]

5. 'Claims'! Not...oh, never mind.

[They_Live]

8. Beat me to it!

oh well, Keep Clams and Carry One!

[christx30]

11. Glad I'm not the only one that saw that n/t

[randome]

4. Huh. 'Supergrass' is British slang for 'informer'.

You learn something new every day.

[Rozlee]

6. I wish he'd be hit by hacking claims in the U.S.

Whatever happened to those claims that he'd hacked into the phones of the families of victims of 9/11? That man is evil. I wish that he and his family empire would crumble to dust.

[midnight]

7. Aaron Swartz was accused of hacking too, but I guess the prosecutors find Murdoch to big to

jail....

[alfredo]

10. We now need to have News Corp declared a criminal enterprise.

[Jack Rabbit]

9. Holy Shadenfruede, Batman!

Pass the popcorn.

[LeftishBrit]

12. I hope this leads to the press barons having far less power

There is a lot of debate at the moment on what should be done:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21753230

These unelected moguls are ruling my country; and yours. It is a threat to democracy when the government runs the media, but it is also a threat to democracy when the media runs the government, and this is what has been happening.

[Bosonic]

13. Labour MP Siobhain McDonagh accepts "very substantial damages" from The Sun

Update: Labour MP Siobhain McDonagh accepts "very substantial damages" from @thesunnewspaper at London's High Court

https://twitter.com/BBCBreaking/status/313612636212326400