It's emerged today that Scotland Yard have been contacting families of victims who died in the 7 July bombings to tell them their phones may have been hacked by the News of the World.
Graham Foulkes, father of David Foulkes who died at Edgware Road, was on the Today programme this morning, saying that police have informed him that his personal details – including an ex-directory phone number – were found in private investigator Glenn Mulcaire's files. Mulcaire went to jail in 2007 after being convicted of accessing the private voicemails of eight people connected to the Royal Family. There is, as yet, no proof that Mulcaire listened in to the messages of grief-stricken families nor that he was directly instructed by the NotW, but the evidence is mounting.
The revelations this week about the extent of the News of the World's phone hacking – which seems to have included Milly Dowler's phone (which had voicemail messages deleted by persons unknown, offering the family false hope that she was alive) and the parents of the Soham victims – take the phone hacking scandal out of the realm of celebrity gossip and into places where decent people would fear to tread.
There are also questions to be asked of the Met. They've had Mulcaire's files since 2006 but it's taken them until now to do a thorough review. It's also come out that News International – Rupert Murdoch's empire, which publishes the NotW – has handed over emails that (allegedly) show former editor, and advisor to David Cameron, Andy Coulson sanctioning payments to the police. Just how cosy was the relationship between our coppers and the tabloid?
Now if you'll excuse us, just writing about this has made us need a shower.
Photo by Annie Mole from the Londonist Flickr pool
