Northamptonshire Police call handler 'unsatisfactory' over death

The investigation found the call handler had not completed a thorough review of the man's records on the computer database

A call handler's performance was "unsatisfactory" when dealing with the case of a suspected suicidal man who was later found dead, a report says.

Northamptonshire Police was told in March 2018 that a man had failed to attend work and was a suicide risk.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said the case was graded "medium-risk", but the call handler had not fully reviewed records on the man.

The force said the call handler would receive "management action".

The IOPC, which assesses police conduct, said following the missing person report an officer called at the man's home, but there was no reply.

The case was subsequently classified as "medium-risk".

However, Northamptonshire Police later received intelligence that led to the grading being increased to high.

Officers went back to the man's home, forced entry and found the man dead.

The IOPC said it did not find anything to justify the bringing of disciplinary proceedings, or that anyone had committed a criminal offence.

However, it found the "call handler had not completed a thorough review of the man's record on the computer database, which would have highlighted some warning markers at an earlier stage".

"We were of the opinion that the performance of the call handler may be considered to be unsatisfactory," it added.

The IOPC said Northamptonshire Police agreed with the investigation's findings.