PSNI: Officer dismissed after sex with vulnerable woman

The incident came to light in 2019 when the woman called 999 to seek assistance

A Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) officer has been dismissed after an investigation found he had sex while on duty with a vulnerable woman.

The police ombudsman investigated the incident which happened at an industrial estate in Antrim in 2016.

It came to light in 2019 when the woman called 999 to seek assistance.

The ombudsman, Marie Anderson, said the dismissal demonstrated "predatory behaviour has no place in policing".

Ch Supt Stephen Wright, head of PSNI's professional standards, said this was "an appalling and despicable breach of trust".

Following the 999 call, officers had concerns about the woman's safety and took her to Antrim police station.

She told officers she had been at the same station in 2016 to report a burglary where she met the officer in question.

The woman said she was experiencing a number of challenges in her life at the time.

She added that a short time after having consensual sex with the officer in a secluded area of trees in the industrial estate, he called to warn her not to tell anyone.

'Lied repeatedly'

Ms Anderson said the investigation showed the officer had "preyed on a woman who was obviously vulnerable".

Marie Anderson says the officer's behaviour was "reprehensible and ill befits the standards" of policing

She added that the officer had "lied repeatedly" when evidence of his misconduct mounted.

"His behaviour was reprehensible and ill befits the standards required of police officers," said Ms Anderson.

She added police often come into people's lives at a time in which they feel most vulnerable.

"Those members of the public should be protected rather than exploited," she continued.

Ms Anderson said her office was investigating cases involving similar allegations.

Ch Supt Wright said the officer was "rightly dismissed" in 2022 following a formal misconduct investigation.

Instead of protecting the woman, the officer "used his authority to take advantage of her", he said.

The ombudsman report highlighted what it found to be a number of lies told by the officer.

On one occasion, after being questioned about a number of calls to the woman, the officer claimed he had been seeking information about a stolen bracelet.

However, the police file made no specific mention of the bracelet and other officers who had worked on the case could recall no enquiries relating to it.

The officer appealed the outcome, and in December 2022 his dismissal was upheld following an appeal hearing

After completing their investigation, Police Ombudsman investigators submitted files to the PPS in relation to the offences of sexual assault and misconduct in public office.

The PPS directed no prosecution, after which the Police Ombudsman submitted a file to the PSNI's Professional Standards Department recommending that the officer should be disciplined.

A PPS spokesperson said that "following a thorough consideration of all available evidence, it was determined that there was not a reasonable prospect of proving either case to the criminal standard of 'beyond reasonable doubt' and therefore the test for prosecution was not met".

In March 2022 a misconduct hearing reached a unanimous decision that he should be dismissed without notice for multiple breaches of the PSNI code of ethics.

Panel members found the officer guilty of gross misconduct, and noted that any lesser sanction than dismissal would have been "manifestly inadequate".

The officer appealed the outcome and in December 2022 his dismissal was upheld following an appeal hearing.

Ms Anderson said cases like this can be "challenging and complex to investigate".

"In this case, the victim was vulnerable and unwilling to make a complaint due to fear and intimidation, and only reported the incident three years later," she said.

"This presented significant evidential challenges, but as this case demonstrates, I will use all the powers available to me to ensure that all such allegations are thoroughly and robustly investigated."

The PSNI also addressed the length of time taken for details of the officer's dismissal to be made public.

A spokeswoman said: "On conclusion of certain cases, including where the Police Ombudsman has initiated an 'own motion' investigation like this one, a detailed report must be drafted for issue to PSNI, NIPB and DoJ.

"This process is time-consuming and takes place among competing priorities, including progressing live investigations."

Jon Burrows, a former head of the PSNI's discipline branch, said officers who abuse their position are a "disgrace to the uniform"

Jon Burrows, a former head of the PSNI's discipline branch, described the case as "alarming" and said officers who abuse their position are a "disgrace to the uniform".

He told the BBC's Good Morning Ulster programme it was "important that people like that are out of the police service and never get an opportunity to exploit their position of power and trust again".

Mr Burrows said more work should be done to ensure officers are properly vetted during recruitment as a way of preventing such cases.

He added: "We need to get the eyes and ears of police who are serving and the public, who police should be serving, to report concerning behaviour so that either someone can be exonerated after investigation…or they can be identified and swiftly exited out of the organisation."