Rosser's job is to be the voice of the Met which often conflicts with the reality of the world around him.

As journalists both Rosser and his partner in crime Robert Mendick have had complaints against them upheld by the Press Complaints Commission (PCC). 'Militants will hit Heathrow' (2007) was judged a breach of Clause 1 (Accuracy) of the Code of Practice "care had not been taken over the piece, which was materially misleading. This was a serious breach of the Code" said the PCC, and 'Eco-protesters target school run mothers' (2008) had to be retracted by the Evening Standard with a grovelling apology "we wish to make it clear that there is no evidence that climate-change protesters had plans to target school-run mothers, deflate tyres or cover the windscreens of moving vehicles".

Who then are the Del boy and Rodney of the crime reporters circuit? And how close is their relationship to Scotland Yard?

Mendick seems to be the more clueless and senior of the pair. Back in 2005 he invented a story about the Dar Al Taqwa bookshop off Baker street being a supplier of terrorist literature. After being proven untrue he apologised by saying cryptically “This is my job. Tony Blair has asked us to go and look at all Islamic bookshops.”
Mendick the fantasist beginning to emerge?

Nigel Rosser is a kind of middle class spiv, the sort journalism always attracts, desperate for approval from the Met boys and his bosses. Ironically Rosser quit his job as a journalist a couple of years ago to become a property developer. Given Rosser's back on the muck-raking scene it seems he didn't make a particularly good job of that either.

Mendick is 42 years old, claims to have been educated at Cambridge (1985-1988), married with 2 children. He lives in north London and his chief contribution to journalism is getting the New Deal underlings at the Standard to write his stories for him.

There's a story going round that four years ago Rosser asked a senior detective to describe exactly what Kenneth Noye [gangster involved in Brinks Mat robbery serving time for murder] was like. The policeman looked him up and down and replied: "A middle-class boy like you? Absolutely your worst nightmare."

We know you're listening Robert and Nigel...


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