The widow of the former home secretary Leon Brittan and a former army chief have received compensation from Scotland Yard over its heavily criticised VIP sexual abuse investigation.
Diana Brittan, who has held a range of senior charitable appointments, and Edwin Bramall, a D-day veteran, are reported to have received about £100,000 in payouts, although the Metropolitan police would not confirm figures.
The Met raided the homes of Brittan and Lord Bramall as part of Operation Midland, the doomed investigation into salacious allegations of child sexual abuse and murder.
The force faced criticism over the £2.5m investigation into claims made by a single accuser, known only as Nick, of a high-level paedophile ring linked to Westminster.
It closed without a single arrest and, after a scathing review found there were “numerous errors”, the Independent Police Complaints Commission opened an investigation into officers involved.
A spokesman for the Met said: “The Met has reached a settlement with both Lady Brittan and Lord Bramall.”
It is not known whether Harvey Proctor, the former Conservative MP who was also targeted by Operation Midland and who has been a fierce critic of the force since the inquiry collapsed, has received a payout.
The Daily Telegraph said the figure paid out was £100,000 and the settlements included confidentiality clauses.
A damning report from the retired judge Sir Richard Henriques said senior detectives fell for Nick’s “false allegations” and misled a judge to get warrants to search the homes of innocent members of the establishment.
The IPCC said in March that three detectives who worked on Operation Midland were to be investigated for allegedly misleading a judge in order to secure search warrants.
