Paedophile tape found on rubbish tip

Police are investigating how a taped interview with a paedophile was allegedly found on a rubbish tip.

The suspect - who is believed to be dead - was being questioned by North Wales Police over the abuse of two young sisters.

The names and addresses of the girls and details of the alleged abuse carried out against them are given on the audio cassette.

We will be investigating this as a matter of urgency

Clive Wolfendale, North Wales Police

The suspect was being questioned over the abuse of the girls, which police claim on the tape was carried out in the 1970s.

The tape of the police interview, which took place at Bangor police station in January 1991, was found on a rubbish tip in Maghull, Merseyside, by a member of the public.

Personal details of the suspect are given on the tape, while detectives can also be heard reading out a statement by one of the girls, giving details of how the man allegedly raped her.

The suspect initially denies abusing the girls but later breaks down and admits trying to rape one of the sisters when she was aged between 11 and 13.

Cassette abandoned

After finding the cassette abandoned at the tip, the member of the public listened to it at home before handing it over to the Daily Post newspaper.

The paper published selected details of the police interrogation of the suspect, but preserved the anonymity of both the man and his alleged victims.

Clive Wolfendale, Assistant Chief Constable of North Wales Police, said the force was reviewing its tape-handling procedure and the matter was being investigated "as a matter of urgency".

He added: "Clearly it is an old matter but something we take very seriously.

"We will be investigating this as a matter of urgency and treating it with the utmost seriousness."