Operation Angle 441

Request Number: FOI/15610

Category: Operational policing, Investigations and Events - Investigations and Operations

Subject: Operation Angle 441

Request and Answer: 
Your request for information has now been considered. In respect of Section 1(1)(a) of the Act we can confirm that the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) does hold some information to which your request relates and some of this is being provided to you.

We can also Neither Confirm Nor Deny (NCND) that any information is held in respect of Request 2 by virtue of sections 30 and 40 of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and have detailed our rationale as to why this exemption applies. We have also provided you with links to guidance issued by the Information Commissioner’s Office which we have followed in responding to your request.

Request Details
Through FOI/15331, the PSNI confirmed that as of 30th July 2025 there have been 53 arrests made re Op Angle and 19 of those persons have had reports of domestic abuse made against them previously.

Request 1
How many of the 53 arrested were aged 18 or older?

Answer 1
42 of the 53 arrests have been 18 or older.

Request 2
How many of that number (answer to A) had reports of domestic abuse made against them previously?

Answer
In accordance with the Act, this letter represents a Refusal Notice for this particular Request. The Police Service of Northern Ireland can neither confirm nor deny that it holds the information you have requested.

Section 1 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) places two duties on public authorities. Unless exemptions apply, the first duty at Section 1(1)(a) is to confirm or deny whether the information specified in the request is held. The second duty at Section 1(1)(b) is to disclose information that has been confirmed as being held.

Where exemptions are relied upon Section 17(1) of FOIA requires that we provide the applicant with a notice which
a) states that fact,
b) specifies the exemption(s) in question and
c) states (if that would not otherwise be apparent) why the exemption applies.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) can Neither Confirm Nor Deny that it holds the information relevant to your request as the duty in Section 1(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 does not apply by virtue of the following exemption:

Section 30(3) – Investigations and Proceedings
The duty to confirm or deny does not arise in relation to information which is (or if it were held would be) exempt information by virtue of subsection (1) or (2).

Section 40(5B)(a)(i) – Personal Information - The duty to confirm or deny does not arise if to do so would contravene any of the data protection principles.

The full text of exemptions can be found at www.legislation.gov.uk and further guidance on how they operate can be located on the Information Commissioners Office website www.ico.org.uk.

‘Neither Confirm nor Deny’ (NCND)
There may be occasions when complying with the duty to confirm or deny under section 1(1) (a) would in itself disclose sensitive or potentially damaging information that falls under an exemption. In these circumstances, the Act allows a public authority to respond by refusing to confirm or deny whether it holds the requested information.

The decision to issue a ‘neither confirm nor deny’ response is not affected by whether we do or do not hold the information but relates to the consequences of confirming or denying the information is held. The starting point and main focus in most cases will be theoretical considerations about the consequences of confirming or denying that a particular type of information is held. The decision to neither confirm nor deny is separate from a decision not to disclose information and needs to be taken entirely on its own merits.

PSNI follow the Information Commissioner’s Guidance in relation to ‘NCND’ and you may find it helpful to refer to this at the following link:

https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guidance-index/freedom-of-information-and-environmental-information-regulations/when-to-refuse-to-confirm-or-deny-holding-information/

Section 30 is a qualified class based exemption and there is a requirement to conduct a public interest test.

Section 40 is a Class-based exemption, therefore it is not necessary to evidence the harm caused by disclosure nor is it necessary to carry out a public interest test in this case. 

Exemptions Explained

Section 40(5B)(a)(i) - Personal Information
Information disclosed under the FOIA is disclosed into the public domain, effectively to the world and not just to one individual. To confirm or deny whether personal information exists in response to your request could publicly reveal information about individuals, thereby breaching the right to protection of their personal information afforded to them under the Data Protection Act 2018. When confirming or denying that information is held would breach an individual’s rights under the Data Protection Act legislation, Section 40 (5) becomes an absolute exemption, and there is no requirement to provide evidence of a prejudice occurring, or to conduct a public interest test. To confirm or deny that the PSNI hold or do not hold information would in fact confirm information about an individual including the fact it may or may not be held. This would amount to a release into the public domain of personal information about an individual. The individual would have no expectation that these details would be released into the public domain, therefore their data protection rights would be breached by release.

Individuals may try to use the FOI legislation to circumvent the law and may try to obtain information which they are not entitled to or to try and find out whether the police hold any information about others. To ensure this does not occur, police services use a ‘neither confirm nor deny approach’ and this has to be used consistently to ensure that we can protect this method of response and do not and undermine the rationale for adopting the NCND response in the first place.

PSNI considers the information you have requested is exempt by virtue of Neither confirm nor deny exemptions which PSNI is entitled to rely upon. Due to the specific nature of this FOI request, to confirm or deny that the PSNI hold any of the requested information would in fact confirm information which is personal to an individual.

Public Interest Test – Section 30 (3) – Investigations and Proceedings
Factors Favouring Confirmation or Denial - Section 30
Confirming or denying whether information exists relevant to this request would lead to a better informed general public by identifying that the PSNI robustly investigate crime. This may promote public trust by providing transparency and demonstrating openness.

Factors Against Confirmation or Denial - Section 30
In some cases the confirmation or denial that information is held is a disclosure in itself. In such cases, PSNI takes advantage of its ability under FOIA legislation to, where appropriate, neither confirm nor deny that information is or is not held.

If the PSNI were to confirm or deny any information is held, it could prejudice any ongoing investigations or future court proceedings, thus hindering the course of justice by prematurely releasing information. Irrespective of what information is or is not held, any information which could be used to undermine investigations and potentially hinder the course of justice, is not in the public interest.

Decision
The PSNI is committed to demonstrating openness and accountability, however, the benefits that would result from issuing a confirmation or denial do not outweigh the considerations favouring the neither confirm nor deny response. This is namely because of the impact it could have on the ability of the PSNI to fulfil our law enforcement purposes.

Whilst there is a public interest in the transparency of policing investigations, there is a very strong public interest in protecting our investigative functions and procedures.

The Public Interest therefore must favour neither confirming nor denying that the requested information is held.

However, this should not be taken as conclusive evidence that the information you requested exists or does not exist.