Ironically despite being a specialist surveillance unit nobody at NETCU noticed Nicholas's unusual hobby. Too busy keeping an eye on 'domestic extremists' no doubt. Anyway despite the mountain of evidence, the NETCU Nonce was allowed to walk out of court a free man, for now at least, with the judge only saying that “all options, including custody” are open. His lawyer, Nerida Harford-Bell, mitigating, said her client was so full of self-loathing he had referred himself to a doctor. He was also described as “very isolated” and with a history of self harm. Must have fitted right in then!

For those who aren't so clear on what NETCU is, see here, here, and here for starters (and then just search the rest of our archive), as well as, of course, NETCU Watch, for a shedload more dirt on the sinister police spy agency. As we said a few years back - NETCU was essentially set up to protect corporations from increasingly effective animal rights campaigns such as SHAC. It monitors the policing of animal rights activists and other political movements; follows prosecutions through the courts and cultivates informants. Animal rights campaigners have been targeted with increasingly repressive new legislation in a series of show trials against the SHAC campaign and Stop Sequani Animal Torture (SSAT).

No doubt these revelations will do little to derail NETCU's political surveillance operation. What is clear however, is that the same system that's happy to see 4 year prison terms doled out to teenagers caught bullshitting on Facebook is treating Mr White very leniently indeed. After he quit his 'police worker' (OK, technically, not a police officer, but still cop enough for SchNEWS) job following his arrest he was allowed to step sideways into a cushy role as press officer for the Royal Society for Chemistry (he was sacked from the Royal Society after the verdict though). You'd imagine that you'd need a pretty good reference from your former employer to land a job like that, and it looks like NETCU did what they could to look after one of their own. But then what would you expect from what is effectively the spy arm of the exclusive club of Britains' senior coppers?