Policeman sacked for drugs in his system on duty

Deputy Chief Constable Andy Prophet said Adam Phillips' actions were "entirely unacceptable and he has rightly been dismissed"

A police officer has been dismissed for gross misconduct after a drug test revealed he had taken anabolic steroids.

Former PC Adam Phillips was found to have taken the Class C drugs in September 2021, while serving with Essex Police.

He was dismissed after a conduct panel hearing at Chelmsford Civic Centre.

Deputy Chief Constable Andy Prophet said it was "entirely unacceptable" that Mr Phillips "had knowingly taken Class C drugs and had them in his system while on duty".

Mr Phillips was suspended from duty after the sample results were revealed.

He was investigated by the Independent Office for Police Conduct.

The former officer was found to have committed gross misconduct at the end of the three-day conduct panel hearing.

Mr Prophet said: “To be a police officer you need to be calm in the face of potentially chaotic situations and focused on helping people in an emergency and making arrests.

“Any substance use can impact upon that ability and, potentially, put the safety and wellbeing of colleagues and the public at risk.

“This is behaviour we simply cannot tolerate."