PSNI officer's laptop falls from car on motorway in Belfast

A police officer's laptop and notebook fell from the roof of a moving vehicle on the M2 motorway, the Police Service of Northern Ireland has confirmed.

The laptop, believed to belong to a detective chief inspector, was recovered and "immediately deactivated", police have said.

However sections of the notebook have still not been found.

The incident happened on the Foreshore stretch of the M2 motorway in north Belfast at about 16:15 BST on Thursday.

A police spokesperson said the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) would be contacting the Information Commissioner and had already informed the Northern Ireland Policing Board and the Department of Justice.

The incident follows a major data breach which saw the surnames and initials of 10,000 PSNI employees accidentally included in a Freedom of Information response.

Officer repositioned

In a second incident, a police-issue laptop and radio, as well as a document containing the names of more than 200 staff, were stolen from a private vehicle at a retail park in Newtownabbey, County Antrim, on 6 July.

It emerged on Friday that the superintendent involved in the incident has been repositioned within the organisation, while a misconduct investigation takes place.

The PSNI has provided no further details around his move, which occurred in recent days.

In the incident, the PSNI's data risk management unit was first informed of the theft on 27 July.

However, individuals were not advised of the incident, which could have compromised their security, until 4 August - almost a month after the incident occurred.

The PSNI has said the computer has been remotely erased of its contents and the radio deactivated.

'Beggars belief'

SDLP Policing Board member Mark H Durkan said the latest laptop incident "beggars belief".

"The PSNI cannot just say a police laptop and notebook fell from a moving vehicle on a motorway and leave it at that," he said. 

"There is an urgent obligation on the PSNI to explain the full circumstances of this incident."

Former police detective superintendent Alan Mains told the same programme he wouldn't be overly concerned "about whatever information's on the laptop, it could be wiped very quickly".

He said the missing pages from the notebook was a different scenario: "It could be nothing, it could be something, we just don't know."

Mr Mains added: "I'm sure the chief constable and his senior team are pulling their hair out at the minute with these lapses of security."