Retired PC 'would have been sacked' over contact with women

The IOPC said its investigation after Mr Watson left the force "sends a clear message that such behaviour has no part in policing"

A retired PC who tried to form inappropriate relationships with two women he met through his work would have been sacked if he was still serving, an investigation has found.

Norman Watson left Leicestershire Police after 13 years in July.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said he also had inappropriate contact with a third woman.

Three cases of gross misconduct were found against him.

The IOPC said it received a referral from the force in March 2021 after a lawful review of Mr Watson's work devices last year found "conversations of concern between the officer and a woman he'd met through his duties".

Further investigation found contact with two more women, and the PC was suspended.

'Undermined public confidence'

In one case, Mr Watson had befriended a woman after the death of her father in May 2020.

"[He] ended messages to the woman with kisses, provided her with his personal phone number encouraging her to use it, and informed her that he'd wished he could have taken her in his arms on the day they first met," the IOPC said.

Mr Watson also "entered into a romantic relationship" with a woman "a matter of weeks" after he had given her his personal number following a call for concern raised over a suspected overdose in January.

Investigators also found more than 300 messages to a third woman, some of which included "inappropriate language" such as "hun" and "darling".

Derrick Campbell, regional IOPC director, said Mr Watson had "undermined public confidence in police".

"The force would have dismissed the officer without notice had he still been serving, which sends a clear message that such behaviour has no part in policing," he said.

Det Supt Rich Ward, head of Leicestershire Police's professional standards department, added: "The force and the public rightly expect all of our officers to maintain the highest standards of behaviour.

"Former PC Norman Watson clearly breached this standard of behaviour and abused his position which is a very serious matter."