Police conduct investigator fined after unlawfully obtaining sensitive case details
An investigator for the police complaints watchdog has pleaded guilty to unlawfully obtaining sensitive personal data.
Mohammed Ejaz, 42, from Bradford, who worked as a lead investigator for the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), sent an email to his private Hotmail account containing restricted, sensitive information.
This included recordings of 999 calls which had been referred to the IOPC and were related to an incident which resulted in death.
Following an investigation by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), Ejaz pleaded guilty at a hearing on July 15 at Leeds Crown Court to unlawfully obtaining personal information.
He was fined £200 and ordered to pay £2,000 costs.
ICO head of investigations Andy Curry said: “It is only right that people expect the information they provided to the IOPC to be treated with integrity and professionalism. Ejaz clearly abused the position of trust he had been given by the IOPC in the way he misused this highly sensitive information.
“We hope this successful prosecution makes other employees in such positions realise they cannot take advantage of the trust placed in them by their employers and members of the public.”
The IOPC is responsible for investigating the most serious complaints and conduct matters involving the police. This includes cases where there is an indication that police contact (direct or indirect) may have caused or contributed to a death.