The scale of Scotland Yard’s investigation into alleged illegal activity by newspapers was revealed today by the police chief in charge.
Deputy assistant commissioner Sue Akers told the Leveson Inquiry more than 800 “likely” phone hacking victims had now been identified by the force.
She also told the inquiry that the investigation into alleged phone hacking - one of three major probes into alleged illegal activity - is approaching the “finishing line”.
Operation Weeting began last January after Scotland Yard received "significant" information from News International (NI) - publishers of the now shut News of the World - relating to the interception of voicemails.
Ms Akers, who is overseeing all three probes, indicated that Operation Weeting was coming to a close.
She said: “We have a number of key witnesses that we will want to see and that process is ongoing now. It will take a few more months.”
Questioning her, Robert Jay QC asked her: “You’re probably nearer to the finishing line than the starting gun, is that right?” She answered: “I’d like to think so, yes.” The deputy assistant commissioner said 6,349 potential victims of phone hacking have been identified by name so far.
The telephone numbers of 4,375 of them have been found in documents belonging to private investigator Glenn Mulcaire.
She told the inquiry, sitting at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, that so far Operation Weeting had identified 829 “likely” victims - 581 have been contacted, 231 could not be contacted and 17 have not been contacted for “operational reasons”, she said.
“We have defined likely victims as those that have details around their names that would make it suggest to us that they had either been hacked or had the potential to be hacked,” Ms Akers said.
A total of 17 people have been arrested so far as part of Operation Weeting. No further action is being taken against two, with the remaining 15 currently on bail.
Ms Akers said there are 90 people working on the operation, including 35 tasked with working with the victims.
A total of 300 million emails that were originally thought to be lost have now been recovered and are being examined, Ms Akers said.
She is also overseeing Operation Elveden, looking into allegations that NI journalists made “inappropriate” payments to police.
She revealed the number of Scotland Yard officers assigned to the operation is set to increase.
"We have 40 police officers and staff but we are going to grow the team to take account of the fact that we moved last weekend into an investigation into The Sun, or journalists within The Sun." There will eventually be 61 officers working on the operation, she said.
Asked about the progress made so far, Ms Akers replied: “I am less confident in saying that we are near the end than the beginning of Elveden than I was when I made that comment about Weeting.”
The third operation, Operation Tuleta, has been set up to investigate computer hacking. Ms Akers said it is currently at the “scoping” stage and that the force is looking into launching a full investigation.
The Met has faced heavy criticism over the phone-hacking saga which intensified after it failed to reopen inquiries in 2009 amid allegations that thousands of mobiles were intercepted by journalists at the former Sunday tabloid.
Two of its most senior officers sensationally resigned over the scandal.
Then commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson made his shock announcement after coming under fire for hiring former News of the World deputy editor Neil Wallis and accepting free accommodation at a luxury health spa worth thousands of pounds sterling.
Assistant commissioner John Yates handed in his notice the next day following a furore over his handling of a review of the initial hacking probe.
A series of high-profile figures have been arrested in connection with police investigations, including former News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks and ex-Downing Street communications chief Andy Coulson.
PA