LABOUR Councillor Charged With Possessing Indecent Images of Children

THE Labour Party have been asked why they allowed a man to stand as a Councillor candidate – and then go on to win a seat – despite him being arrested one month before for possessing indecent images of children. 

Tom Dewey, 36, was charged as part of an NCA investigation into child abuse photographs found at his home. He briefly served as a councillor in Hackney before resigning over the incident – attempting to hide the true reason by citing “personal reasons.”

After years of Labour campaigning, Dewey was elected as a councillor for the De Beauvoir ward in May 2022. However, a month before he was elected to the council, in April 2022, NCA officials detained him at his Hackney house before releasing him while the case was being investigated.

As with most resignations relating to one of their politicians, the national Labour Party failed to disclose the reason behind his suspension – worryingly concealing Dewey’s paedophilia from the local public.

Mr Dewey has now been charged with three counts of making indecent images of children, possession of extreme pornographic images and possession of prohibited images of children.

He has been bailed to appear at court at a date to be confirmed. Dewey’s resignation triggered a by-election which saw Joseph Walker elected in July last year, with 758 votes out of 1,822.

Meanwhile, opposition parties in Hackney are demanding an inquiry into why the local Labour group accepted Dewey as a candidate despite him being arrested a month before the selection process.

A Hackney Council spokesperson said: “Tom Dewey was elected on May 5, 2022 and resigned on May 16, 2022. The council was not notified of his arrest prior to the elections of May 2022 by the National Crime Agency (NCA). As the case is subject to criminal proceedings, we are not in a position to provide any further comment.”

It is of particular interest that Mr Dewey was living with Hackney Labour Mayor Philip Glanville at the time of his arrest – however Mayor Glanville has not been charged with any crime.

Group leader councillor Zoë Garbett said: “Tom Dewey resigned less than two weeks after being elected in May last year, with no statement from him or Hackney Labour to explain why. We have now learned from media reporting that he had been arrested in April 2022, before the council elections, and has now been charged with serious offences.

“We recognise that the charges are subject to court proceedings and we make no comment on these. However, an independent inquiry is needed to establish what the Mayor, councillors and Hackney Labour knew about the circumstances surrounding Dewey’s resignation and the fact of his arrest. Hackney residents were kept in the dark while they were voting in the council elections and the subsequent by-election in De Beauvoir.”