37 Suspects Identified in Abuse Inquiry
A total of 37 suspects have been identified so far by detectives investigating allegations of historic sex abuse at care homes in North Wales.
Operation Pallial was set up in November 2012 and is currently looking at offences believed to have been committed against alleged victims aged between six and 19 from 1953 to 1995.
A total of 28 care homes feature in the investigation led by the National Crime Agency (NCA).
One man has been charged with a string of child sex offences and awaits trial later this year, while 12 suspects are believed to have died and efforts are ongoing to trace three others.
The rest of the suspects have been interviewed by police as inquiries continue into allegations made by more than 200 people.
The NCA was selected at the request of North Wales Police to ensure the inquiry's independence.
The operation was set up to re-examine claims of sex crimes and to look again at the original police investigations into abuse at care homes in North Wales.
In 2000, the Waterhouse Inquiry was established to study claims linked to homes in the former council areas of Gwynedd and Clwyd since 1974.
Following Waterhouse, eight people were prosecuted, seven of whom were convicted.
Last July, a damning report which revealed "extensive'' child abuse in North Wales care homes was finally published - 17 years after it claimed police officers and other professionals could have been identified as potential "perpetrators of assaults''.
The operation's senior investigating officer Ian Mulcahey provided an update on Pallial to partner agencies earlier this month.
He told them: "The number of people coming forward to report historical allegations of abuse in the care system in North Wales continues to increase. Up to February 8, 2014, a total of 255 people have reported one or more allegations to us.
"Information given to us by 212 people is under active investigation at this time and has resulted in 37 people being identified as potential suspects.
"Of these, 19 suspects have been arrested and interviewed, three more have voluntarily attended police stations for interview under caution and 12 are believed to have died. Efforts to locate three others, one of whom may be abroad, are ongoing.
"To date, the Crown Prosecution Service has charged one person with a large number of sexual offences.''
He added that his team had been provided with more than 120 names or partial details of individuals suspected of being responsible for physical or sexual abuse and work continued to identify these individuals.
There were potentially 61 repeat offenders within this number, of whom around 17 may be deceased but further investigation was needed for that information to be confirmed.
Mr Mulcahey said: "It is reassuring to know that individuals have had the confidence to come forward and we will fully investigate all information they are able to provide. In cases where people have contacted us but have declined to support further inquiries we will still ensure they receive any advice and support they need.''