Humberside Police officers sacked over 'deplorable behaviour'

Edward Cook, left, and Scott Snowden were previously serving officers with Humberside Police

A police superintendent who secretly filmed female colleagues and the public for his own sexual gratification is among seven officers sacked by their force for gross misconduct.

Humberside Police said Edward Cook and the other six officers had also exchanged inappropriate messages and videos via text and WhatsApp.

The findings had been withheld due to an ongoing criminal investigation.

Assistant Chief Constable Dave Marshall called their actions "deplorable".

A summary of Mr Cook's misconduct hearing, which was held in January 2019 but published on Monday, revealed he had been dismissed without notice.

Chief Constable Lee Freeman heard Mr Cook had used cannabis between 2003 and 2006, hired a prostitute in Cleethorpes in 2003 and, in May 2018, disclosed details of a "sensitive armed police operation to a journalist".

He said Mr Cook had displayed a "complete lack of integrity [and] a complete lack of respect for females".

The proceedings also involved Insp Scott Snowden who, the panel heard, had "engaged in inappropriate text conversations" with a colleague, which included "inappropriate" images and comments that were "misogynistic and suggestive of violence".

Humberside Police ruled Mr Snowden should be dismissed without notice had he not resigned prior to the hearing.

A third officer involved in the proceedings, referred to a Former PC A, was also found to have "sent offensive videos to another member of Humberside Police whilst both on and off duty".

The force said he also would have been dismissed without notice had he not already quit.

The officers had exchanged offensive messages and in some cases video

A second set of misconduct hearings held in June 2019 related to six other officers, who have not been named, who "exchanged wholly inappropriate offensive, sexist, racist, homophobic, misogynistic and/or anti-Semitic messages" via a WhatsApp group.

All six were found guilty of gross misconduct.

Three of the officers were dismissed without notice, while one would have been dismissed had he not already resigned, the force said.

Two of the officers received final written warnings as their messages were deemed to be not as persistent and targeted as some other messages in the group.

Mr Marshall said: "The actions of these officers were deplorable and Humberside Police, its leadership and more importantly, our staff will not stand for this behaviour."

He said the force had acted quickly when the allegations came to light and the delay in reporting the outcomes was solely due to criminal proceedings.

"I would like to reassure the community that while the actions of these officers may have tarnished their view of the police service, these aren't the beliefs held by the overwhelming majority of officers at Humberside Police."