Victims of rape and serious sexual assault who refuse to give police access to their mobile phone contents could allow suspects to avoid charges, according to The Guardian.
Metropolitan police assistant commissioner Nick Ephgrave said that there were difficulties of disclosure in the digital age that risked pitting the pursuit of justice against preserving privacy.
The director of public prosecutions, Max Hill, said: “You can end up in an extreme case where there’s there’s outright refusal [by a complainant] to allow access [to mobile phone contents] … and that can have consequences for our ability to pursue a prosecution.”
Everyone, he said, needs to understand that if they get caught up in a crime, whether as witness or complainant, there may be information on their mobiles that is relevant.
