Humberside Police officer guilty of gross misconduct over betting racket

PC McGrory was found guilty of gross misconduct after a two-day hearing

A former police officer has been found guilty of gross misconduct over his links to an online betting syndicate.

A disciplinary panel heard PC Joshua McGrory joined the group "with the aim of facilitating fraudulent online gambling and money laundering".

The panel heard he allowed the syndicate to use his bank and gambling accounts for his own financial gain.

After a hearing it was ruled the former Humberside officer should have been sacked had he not already resigned.

The panel was told McGrory, who was based in Grimsby, allowed his accounts to be used by members of the syndicate over an 18-month period between 2018 and 2020.

The former officer, who resigned in November 2021, allowed this despite knowing that they were going to be used by people who he should have suspected of being involved in fraud, the panel heard.

His actions came to light during an investigation by Humberside Police and Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

The panel heard two police employees were also involved in the syndicate - both of whom resigned before disciplinary proceedings concluded they too should have been dismissed.

The IOPC said the former officer had shown a complete disregard for rules and had "acted dishonestly for his own personal gain".

Speaking after the hearing, Supt Andy Maultby, head of professional standards at Humberside Police, said: "There are some individuals who should not wear a police uniform and McGrory is one of them."