Former Essex Police officer sentenced over indecent images of children

Benjamin Allen received a suspended sentence after admitting possessing indecent images of children

A former police officer has been sentenced after admitting possessing indecent images of children.

Benjamin Allen, a ex-PC with Essex Police, who resigned from the force, pleaded guilty to five counts of possessing indecent images of children.

Allen was sentenced to 10 months imprisonment, suspended for two years, at Ipswich Crown Court.

Chief Constable Ben-Julian Harrington said Allen's behaviour "undermined" the force's core values.

Allen was also made subject to a sexual harm prevention order and placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years.

'Blatant risk'

Essex Police said an investigation "found no evidence of direct contact with any person" but Allen had made indecent images of children in 2021.

A police misconduct hearing found his actions to be gross misconduct and the force said he would have been dismissed had he not resigned.

Mr Harrington said: "The public expect the highest standards of the entire police family; to pose such a blatant risk to the very people we are here to protect is not and never will be acceptable.

"Our job is to protect the most vulnerable members of our communities, and unquestionably, this officer's behaviour undermined our core values.

"We will continue to root out any officer who behaves in a similar way."