Police face questions over 'ignored evidence' of phone hacking in Milly Dowler case
Surrey Police faces "serious questions" about whether it ignored evidence of phone hacking after it emerged that a News of the World reporter played officers a recording of Milly Dowler's voicemails within a month of her disappearance. - Instead of pressing charges against the newspaper for illegally accessing the schoolgirl's messages, a senior officer from Surrey Police invited two of the tabloid's staff to a private meeting to discuss the case. An internal investigation by the Surrey force An internal investigation by the Surrey force found that a reporter told police that the newspaper had obtained Milly's mobile number and voicemail PIN from her schoolfriends. In fact, the tabloid had paid the private investigator Glenn Mulcaire to do so. The newly released report also suggested that a News of the World investigator posed as Milly's mother, Sally, in an attempt to gain information about her. Milly was abducted on her way home from school in Walton–on–Thames, Surrey, on March 21, 2002. Her body was found six months later.