THE sister of Christopher Alder, who died in police custody, says she isn't surprised by claims the police wanted to smear the family of murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence.
Janet Alder believes her own family were spied upon by police in an attempt to undermine them.
In a television documentary, undercover officer Peter Francis claims he was instructed in 1993 to find information that could discredit the family and anti-racism campaigners.
Miss Alder believes she and her family were also targeted in a similar fashion because they spoke out against the police after the death of her brother, a former paratrooper, in 1998.
She made allegations at the time but they were dismissed by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), which investigated the handling of the case.
But she said: "The Stephen Lawrence claims don't surprise me. I know something like this happened to me.
"As soon as I walked out of the police station after Christopher died, I was followed by a police officer who was taking notes."
Miss Alder also expressed concerns about the extent the police went into Christopher's family background, which were also raised in the IPCC report.
She said: "The police went through the whole family background.
"They obtained records from social services about our time in care. What relevance did that have to Christopher's death?
"I was also sure my phone was being tapped but I didn't dare say anything because people would just think I was paranoid and crazy."
She believes families have enough to go through without further problems.
Miss Alder said: "It is appalling that police forces can compound the grief of victims and their families like this.
"The families are already suffering enough. It is absolutely disgusting.
"We are finding out this is happening more and more, whether it is Stephen Lawrence or Hillsborough."
Miss Alder has backed calls for an inquiry into the Stephen Lawrence claims.
She said: "There needs to be an inquiry because this seems to be happening time and time again."
Lord Condon, Met chief at time of the Stephen Lawrence murder investigation, has denied any knowledge of a smear campaign.
Mark Ellison QC, who is already conducting a review into police corruption in the initial investigation of Stephen Lawrence's murder, is expected to carry out a further inquiry.
Mr Ellison was one of the prosecutors in the trial of Gary Dobson and David Norris, which saw the pair convicted of Mr Lawrence's murder in January 2012.
Former Labour Home Secretary Jack Straw told the BBC he would be asking the IPCC to investigate the allegations.
Stephen Lawrence was stabbed to death, aged 18, in an unprovoked attack by a gang of white youths as he waited at a bus stop in Eltham, South East London in April 1993.
In January 2012, Dobson and Norris were found guilty of his murder by an Old Bailey jury after a review of forensic evidence.
