File on 4 Investigates

Latest Episodes:

Oiling Putin’s War? May 02, 2023

Show notes

File on 4 investigates the secretive world of oil shipping, dark fleets and camouflaged cargos. Sanctions were supposed to hit President Putin in the pocket, weakening his military capabilities. But have they simply created new markets and new millionaires? And why can a company in Essex enable Russian oil to move around the world without attracting the attention of the authorities? Reporter: Paul Kenyon Producer: Jo Casserly Editor: Carl Johnston

Police Complaints: A Crisis of Confidence Apr 11, 2023

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Britain’s biggest police force says there are hundreds of rogue officers amongst its ranks. It’s now The Met’s job to root them out, with dozens of staff diverted away from organised crime and counter-terrorism units to work in its professional standards department. But can the police be trusted to investigate themselves?

File on 4 can reveal how an officer working for a force outside of London, who had multiple rape allegations against him, was given a job in the professional standards department, investigating complaints made against colleagues. We’ve discovered how complaints to police forces across England and Wales are being regularly dismissed, with many people resorting to legal action to get accountability and winning damages from the police in court.

File on 4 also reveals how recent reforms to the complaints process have done little to improve accountability and restore public confidence.

Reporter: Hayley Mortimer Producer: Tom Wall Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Editor: Carl Johnston

Probation in peril Apr 04, 2023

Show notes

The Probation Service is meant to protect the public by monitoring released prisoners and offenders on community sentences - helping them to stay out of trouble and rebuild their lives. But a series of catastrophic failures have led to the murders of two women who were killed by men who should have been monitored more closely. File on 4 analyses the case of Damien Bendall who killed his pregnant partner Terri Harris and three children in 2021 while on probation. The Chief Inspector of Probation Justin Russell has said Bendall’s supervision “fell far below the quality that the public has a right to expect”. The programme hears from the families of Bendall's victims and from those probation officers on the front line who say the service is at breaking point.

Reporter: Danny Shaw Producer: Fergus Hewison Assistant Producer: Patrick Kiteley Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Editor: Carl Johnston

Rental Health: The Social Housing Perfect Storm? Mar 21, 2023

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Social housing providers say they are under more financial pressure than ever before. The sector has warned long-term Government funding cuts and the cost of improving homes to meet new fire safety laws, have now been compounded by high inflation, to create a perfect storm of pressure. But is it vulnerable tenants who are paying the price? File on 4 investigates record complaints about social housing providers and hears allegations of "degrading" treatment by some social housing providers. Reporter Iona Bain also uncovers failings by a housing provider which led to raw sewage flooding into residents' flats.

Reporter: Iona Bain Producer: Ben Robinson Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Editor: Clare Fordham

Punished for being mentally ill Mar 15, 2023

Show notes

Suicide or attempted suicide is not a criminal offence. But, as Adrian Goldberg discovers, mentally ill people are still being punished for attempts to take their own lives. They can be charged with 'intentionally or recklessly causing a public nuisance,' 'railway trespass' or 'obstruction of highways.' File on 4 hears from people who believe they should have been given care and compassion rather than face criminalisation. The programme also investigates concerns over a scheme called Serenity Integrated Mentoring, or SIM, which was adopted by many NHS mental health trusts in England. It was designed to enable police and hospitals to cope with patients who regularly call the emergency services or arrive at hospitals having self-harmed, attempted suicide, or threatened to take their own life. When tagged under the system, patients can be denied care, prevented from seeing doctors or psychiatrists, and sent home.

Reporter: Adrian Goldberg Producer: Vicky Carter Technical Producer: Nicky Edwards Production Manager: Sarah Payton Production Coordinators: Tim Fernley and Jordan King Editor: Carl Johnston

Details of organisations offering information and support with mental health or feelings of despair are available at: www.bbc.co.uk/actionline

Missing Migrant Children Mar 07, 2023

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200 children have gone missing from hotels used by the Home Office to temporarily house lone asylum seekers. File on 4 investigates what’s being done to find them and why so many have disappeared.

Reporter: Livvy Haydock Producer: Kate West Researcher: Nathan Standley Editor: Carl Johnston

Image credit: Ben Stansall\Getty

Looking for Levi Feb 28, 2023

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Levi Davis - a 24-year-old rugby player and X-Factor star went missing in Barcelona at the end of October last year. He’s not been seen or heard from since. Four months on, File on 4 pieces together his last known movements - speaking to his family and friends to try and understand more about what happens when someone goes missing overseas without a trace.

Reporter: Rachel Stonehouse Producer: Alys Harte Editor: Carl Johnston Technical Producer: Nicky Edwards Production Manager: Sarah Payton Production Team: Tim Fernley and Jordan King

Firefighters on Trial Feb 21, 2023

Show notes

A damning report into the culture of London Fire Brigade found a toxic mix of racism, sexism, misogyny and bullying. Launched after a young firefighter of colour took his own life, the review included terrible anonymous accounts from those serving in the capital, women groped during exercises, a black man who had a noose left on his locker. Now File on 4 has discovered shocking new evidence of problems within the fire service elsewhere across the UK. We hear from those subjected to sexual assault, violence and bullying while working on the frontline, left suicidal as a result of the treatment they suffered at the hands of colleagues and those who were hounded out or chose to walk away from a career they loved. Reporter: Jane Deith Producer: Nicola Dowling Technical Producer: Nicky Edwards Editor: Carl Johnston

Three Friends Feb 14, 2023

Show notes

They were born in the same month of the same year: Emily, Nadia, and Christie. The three young women who lived close to each other in the North East of England became friends, their lives intertwined due to severe mental health problems. They shared their innermost fears, their thoughts and laughs. But their tragic deaths came within eight months of each other while under the care of the same mental health trust. An investigation has higlighted multiple failings by the Tees Esk and Wear Valley Mental Health Trust. File on 4 tells their stories in their own words and hears from those closest to them, and asks what could have been done to save them all.

Details of organisations offering information and support with mental health or feelings of despair are available at https://www.bbc.co.uk/actionline

Reporter: Datshiane Navanayagam Producer: Fergus Hewison Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Production Team: Tim Fernley and Jordan King Editor: Carl Johnston

Living with Andrew Tate Feb 07, 2023

Show notes

A British woman tells File on 4 about her relationship with controversial social media influencer Andrew Tate, claiming that he pressurised her to work for his webcam company and that he was controlling and violent towards her. Tate is currently in detention in Bucharest along with his brother, Tristan, facing allegations of people trafficking and rape, which both men deny. Prosecutors allege that Andrew Tate recruited victims by seducing them and falsely claiming he wanted a relationship or marriage. 'Sophie' tells File on 4 what happened to her and other women who worked in Romania as webcam girls for Tate. The programme also interrogates Tate's claims that he's a self-made 'trillionaire' and asks whether his boasts around his vast wealth are all that they seem.

Image credit: EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

Producer: Hayley Mortimer Reporters: Georgia Coan and Paul Kenyon Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Production team: Tim Fernley and Jordan King Editor: Carl Johnston

*Since this episode of File on 4 was originally broadcast, lawyers acting for Andrew Tate have said that he denies all the allegations made against him in the programme.

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