A failed rape case against former Victorian MP Theo Theophanous was "deficient" but he should still have been charged and prosecuted, the state's corruption watchdog has found.
The former state upper house MP was accused of raping a woman in parliament house but the case was thrown out in 2009 before it went to trial due to a lack of evidence.
Mr Theophanous maintains his political career was ruined because he was pursued by biased detectives.
The Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC) has found police did not have a strong case against him, but still backed officers for moving ahead with a rape charge.
"There was evidence of some lack of objectivity on the part of the investigating Victoria Police member and that in some respects the investigation was deficient," the report, released on Tuesday, states.
"IBAC maintains that on all of the evidence, the prosecution case was not so deficient that it can say he should not have been charged and subjected to committal proceedings."
Mr Theophanous resigned from parliament despite being cleared and exonerated.
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