Sussex Police Officer Dismissed For Gross Misconduct

A police officer has been dismissed without notice after an investigation found he worked in another job while being off sick, and drove a vehicle without a valid MOT.

The Constable, who was based at Eastbourne Police Station, appeared before a misconduct hearing held at Sussex Police headquarters from Monday (July 1) in front of a panel led by an Independent Legally Qualified Chair (*LQC). The LQC granted anonymity to the officer who cannot now be named for legal reasons.

The hearing was told that the officer held a business interest before and after joining Sussex Police which he did not declare, and consequently was carried out without the required permission.

The officer accepted that his behaviour amounted to gross misconduct in relation to his business interest and use of a vehicle without an MOT on 12 separate occasions during a week and that it amounted to Discreditable Conduct

Detective Superintendent Andy Wolstenholme, Deputy Head of Professional Standards, said: 

“To ensure that the public receive the best possible service, and in order to prevent conflicts of interest, Police Officers are subject to additional restrictions to their private lives; needing permission to have a business or second job is one of those restrictions.

"Knowing that such a permission was not in place, this officer carried on this business despite claiming to be too unwell to work as a police officer.

"Police officers must behave in a manner that does not discredit the police service or undermine public confidence. The actions of this officer on this occasion were not in line with the values and standards that we expect, lacking integrity and compromising the trust of the public whom we serve.”

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*LQCs are selected from a list of independent, legally-qualified persons to conduct police misconduct hearings, and are governed by Police Conduct Regulations. LQCs work with the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners and others to instil and embed transparency and proportionality into misconduct hearings.