Staffordshire officer dismissed without notice

The officer was dismissed after a public misconduct hearing, chaired by an independent legally qualified person, found that their conduct amounted to gross misconduct.

The two-day hearing, which concluded last week found that they had breached authority, respect and courtesy standards. The officer has been suspended since the start of the investigation in October 2021.

Deputy Chief Constable Emma Barnett said: “Tackling inappropriate sexual behaviour within our own workforce is a priority and we are determined to deal with any individual whose behaviour falls short of the standards we expect. We have delivered an internal programme to ensure colleagues actively intervene and challenge inappropriate behaviours and also to increase confidence of reporting unacceptable conduct.

“The good conduct of officers is essential to ensure continued public confidence in the police and to allow officers to effectively discharge their duties. This officer completely undermined our efforts and in doing so, lost the confidence of both colleagues and the public.

“The officer will be placed on the national College of Policing’s Barred List preventing them from working within policing and other law enforcement bodies.”