Ex-police officer sentenced for child sex offence

Ryan Clinton pleaded guilty to the offence in October

An ex-police officer has been sentenced for attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child.

Ryan Clinton, 30, of Tamworth, was sentenced on Thursday at Stafford Crown Court, having pleaded guilty to the offence at Cannock Magistrates' Court on 16 October.

The former Staffordshire Police officer, who was with the force at the time of the offence, was sentenced to a community service order for two years, up to 40 community requirement days, six months mental health treatment and 100 hours unpaid work.

He was also placed on the sex offenders register for five years, was given a sexual harm prevention order for five years, and banned from future law enforcement work.

Clinton spoke to a person posing as a 13-year-old girl on a social media platform on 4 and 5 December 2023.

He was arrested and his mobile phone was seized at his home on 5 December 2023.

Police said Clinton admitted the offence in an interview and resigned.

'Abhorrent'

A misconduct hearing, held on 28 November, chaired by Chief Constable Chris Noble, found there was a case to answer for gross misconduct and that Clinton would have been dismissed had he not resigned.

He will be placed on the College of Policing's barred list, preventing him from working within policing and other law enforcement bodies.

Deputy Chief Constable Jon Roy said: "Clinton's actions were abhorrent and his behaviour is totally at odds with the oath that he took when he became a police officer and what the public rightly expect.

"Clinton's offending was identified, investigated and acted upon quickly, leading to him pleading guilty at the first opportunity and his conviction at court."