Operation Yewtree

Operation Yewtree was a British police investigation into the sexual abuse, predominantly the abuse of children, committed by multiple media personalities. The investigation, led by the Metropolitan Police, started amid the exposure of Jimmy Savile as a paedophile in October 2012. After a period of assessment, it became a full criminal investigation, involving inquiries into living people, notably other celebrities, as well as Savile, who had died the previous year.

The report of the investigations into Savile himself was published, as Giving Victims a Voice, in January 2013. In June 2014, investigations into Savile's activities at 28 NHS hospitals concluded that he had sexually assaulted staff and patients aged between 5 and 75 over several decades. Operation Yewtree continued as an investigation into others, some, but not all, linked with Savile. By October 2015, 19 people had been arrested by Operation Yewtree; seven of these arrests, including Rolf Harris, Gary Glitter and Max Clifford, led to convictions. The "Yewtree effect" has been credited for an increase in the number of reported sex crimes, while the operation also sparked a debate on police procedure and rights of those who were later cleared of wrongdoing, such as Cliff Richard.