‘Corrupt’ former officer jailed for misconduct in public office
A former Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officer who accessed police records and passed on sensitive information, stole items from a member of the public, and used deceased people’s bank details to purchase “hundreds of pounds worth of electronic goods”, has been jailed for 40 months.
Former police constable Muhammed Mustafa Darr, aged 39, was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on Monday (September 16) after pleading guilty to three charges of misconduct in public office (MIPO).
The charges related to offending between December 2018 and September 2020, when he was a MPS constable in a response unit in North London. He resigned in February 2023 shortly before he was charged.
The investigation into Darr’s offending was carried out by the MPS’s Directorate of Professional Standards under the direction of the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) following a conduct referral from the force.
The first MIPO charge related to events between June 2019 and September 2020, when Darr abused his position as a police officer by looking up files relating to a fraud investigation into himself. He also accessed the police national computer (PNC) to access the criminal record of a family member and crime reports of a friend who had been arrested.
On multiple other occasions he was requested by friends and people known to him to access police records about them and others, which he did before passing on confidential information, the IOPC said.
In June 2020, as part of the second offence, Darr stole a laptop computer and a bag from a member of the public’s unlocked vehicle after his colleagues had arrested a man for a driving offence. The laptop and bag were later found in a vehicle parked on his driveway.
“As the result of further inquiries by the MPS, Darr admitted to the third MIPO offence for using the bank details of two deceased people after attending their addresses following reports of their deaths,” said the IOPC. “He used their bank details to purchase items including electronic goods worth hundreds of pounds.”
A further charge of perverting the course of justice was agreed to lie on file.
IOPC director Steve Noonan said: “Muhammed Darr was a corrupt officer and his offending, which spanned several years, was appalling.
“He repeatedly showed a willingness to break the law by accessing police records without a legitimate purpose, which is strictly forbidden, and passing on confidential information about investigations.
“On top of this his dishonesty offending, where he stole from a member of the public and deceased victims were truly shocking.
“There’s no place in policing for corrupt officers and it’s this behaviour which significantly tarnishes the public’s trust in police. The seriousness of his offending has been reflected in his prison sentence.”