News of the World bosses 'know who commissioned Milly Dowler hacking'

News of the World owner News International believes that it has uncovered evidence which reveals who at the tabloid commissioned a private investigator to allegedly hack Milly Dowler's mobile phone.

According to BBC political editor Nick Robinson, "executives believe they know who was responsible" for sanctioning the widely-condemned actions of private investigator Glenn Mulcaire.

"The evidence is said to have emerged in a document trawl carried out in the immediate aftermath of the revelation by The Guardian of the hacking of the murdered girl's phone," Robinson wrote in a blog post this morning.

"I am told that the evidential jigsaw is not yet complete but executives believe they know who was responsible."

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News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks, who was editor of the Sunday tabloid when Dowler's phone was allegedly hacked, has told staff that it is "inconceivable" that she knew of or sanctioned the reported actions.

Robinson added that the "newly-uncovered evidence" does not "contradict" Brooks's claims.

Further reports have suggested that Brooks personally commissioned work by private investigator Steve Whittamore, who reportedly also provided contact details for Milly Dowler's family to the paper.

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