Police officer attacked and 'gaslit' ex-girlfriend

Paul Whitehurst, 53, had been an officer with Warwickshire Police for more than 20 years when he retired in May

A former police officer has been jailed for repeatedly attacking his ex-girlfriend, including punching her and throwing her across a room, leaving her feeling imprisoned in her own home.

Paul Whitehurst, who was a detective sergeant in Warwickshire Police's anti-corruption unit at the time, admitted five charges of assault by beating.

However, the BBC has also heard complaints about his treatment of two other women were made to his force, but he was not charged.

The officer from Nantwich, in Cheshire, who served with Warwickshire Police for more than 20 years, was jailed for 18 weeks.

Only half of this is to be served in prison.

Judge Simon Berkson, sitting at Chester Crown Court, said Whitehurst was likely to be released the same day, because of the time he had already served.

He told the 53-year-old that all of the offences: "You should have known better.

"What you did in private was very different to your public persona as a police officer."

However, he added the court had "limited powers as far as the sentence is concerned".

The charges related to incidents occurring between October and December 2023.

In an assault on 13 December at the victim's home, the judge said that she was so terrified that she wet herself.

The prosecution said Whitehurst had pinned her to the floor, then ripped her underwear.

In an impact statement, the victim, who the BBC is calling Holly, said she was so scared that she did not realise he had exposed her breasts before she ran outside screaming to neighbours for help.

The judge described it as a humiliating experience for her, saying that while pinning his victim, Whitehurst had told her he would take her to bed.

Judge Berkson added that he had tried to "gaslight" her - meaning he had tried to make her question her perception of reality.

The prosecutor, Anna Price, said Whitehurst had told his victim "no-one would believe a drunk over a serving police officer".

Whitehurst was told he was likely to be released the same day, due to time he had already served

The incident was one of five counts that Whitehurst eventually pleaded guilty to, including throwing a drink over her at a pub in Nantwich and throwing her across a caravan, bruising her chest.

Holly said she suffered from severe chest pains due to stress and had been treated in hospital for severe anxiety.

Taking the bins out and going shopping are now difficult for her and she is on constant high alert in case she sees Whitehurst.

She also said she was selling her house and car as she did not feel safe there any more and did not want Whitehurst to know where she lived.

Holly added that he had destroyed how she felt about police officers and that he had affected her entire life.

A restraining order application has been made to prevent Whitehurst from entering Nantwich.

Holly said she was treated in hospital for severe anxiety after Whitehurst's attacks

Whitehurst denied all charges of common assault in January, before changing his plea to one of them in April and three others on the day of the trial.

A fifth count was added and he pleaded guilty to that on the day of sentencing.

A charge of sexual assault was ordered to lie on file.

Defending, Emily Woodside told the court that Whitehurst felt genuine remorse and that he understood he had caused distress to the victim, claiming alcohol had affected his behaviour.

Ms Woodside said Whitehurst found it difficult to be in prison and was not sure what his prospects were when he was released.

In his summing up, the judge said Whitehurst had "an unhappy childhood where domestic violence was common".

'It could have been stopped'

The BBC can also reveal complaints about Whitehurst's treatment of two other women were made to his own force but he was not charged.

One of them, Charlotte Smith, who says Whitehurst harassed and abused her for two and a half years, believes he could have been stopped if she had been listened to.

Whitehurst worked in Warwickshire’s anti-corruption unit, and his own colleagues had been tasked with investigating him before Ms Smith's case was eventually dropped.

"If my complaints were handled effectively or efficiently, then this would have prevented it from happening sooner," she said.

Charlotte added that she was worried it would happen again.

Charlotte told Warwickshire Police she was being stalked by Whitehurst

Warwickshire Police said it "welcomed the conviction and sentence handed down to him".

Following a complaint, the force said Whitehurst was removed from his public contact role in professional standards in November 2020.

In May 2022, he was suspended after a second complaint was made, and he retired two years later.

A gross misconduct hearing was held in June 2024 and Warwickshire Police determined that he "would have been dismissed" if he had not already retired.

"Officers working in the Professional Standards Department are expected to make sure other members of the workforce uphold the highest standards and that clearly did not happen in the case of Paul Whitehurst," it added.

Following the guilty plea, Det Con Lauren Constable from Cheshire Police said: "Police officers are placed in a position of trust and there are clear guidelines about the standards expected from them, both in and out of work.

"As this case demonstrates, Cheshire Constabulary is committed to investigating all offences - no matter who the alleged offender is."