The Police What Powers Do They Have ?
The abuse of police powers for purposes of sexual
exploitation, or even violence, is something that
fundamentally betrays the trust that communities
and individuals place in the police. It therefore has
a serious impact on the public’s confidence in
individual officers and the service in general. It is
essential to ensure that systems are in place to
prevent, monitor and deal swiftly with any
individual who exploits that trust.
For that reason, and in the light of the Mitchell
conviction, the IPCC and the Association of Chief
Police Officers (ACPO) separately began examining
this type of case. This joint report draws from both
pieces of work. Both organisations recognised the
value of sharing findings and identifying common
themes, to increase public confidence that there is
a commitment to tackle this kind of abuse and to
assist the police service as whole and individual
forces to identify and prevent it. It is not possible to know precisely how many
people have been victims of police officers or staff
abusing their powers. There is no evidence to
suggest it is commonplace, but nor can we be
confident that all such cases are reported.
Each of the cases in this report represents a
serious betrayal of the trust and confidence that
individuals should have in the police. Together,
they reveal a number of themes that underlie this
kind of behaviour. They include the need to ensure
robust standards of vetting, including for sensitive
or vulnerable posts; provide effective supervision
to identify worrying trends, ensure proper
boundaries and respond to reported concerns effectively use and manage intelligence; and
review individual cases in order to identify lessons.
The report includes a checklist of questions for the
service as a whole and for individual forces.
The behaviour described in this report has parallels
with abuses carried out by other professionals,
such as those in healthcare and social work and
the clergy. All are people who are in a privileged
position of power – and trust – within society. In
the context of the police service, however, this
behaviour is also a form of corruption and it
should be dealt with as such.
The police service has a responsibility to do
everything in its power to prevent such abuse,
identify as soon as possible if it occurs, deal with it
effectively and learn lessons quickly.
Case study two
Following an investigation managed by the IPCC a
police officer was convicted of misconduct in
public office, one offence of making indecent
images of children, and several counts of
possession of indecent images of children. He was
sentenced to three months imprisonment.
The investigation identified that he used his
position as a police officer to legitimise contact
with a teenager, living in bed and breakfast
accommodation with her teenage sister, following
difficulties within their family. After going to an
incident at the family home, the officer began
regularly contacting the teenager by telephone
and meeting her while on duty. He had no further
reason to contact the family, and his supervising
The abuse of police powers to perpetrate sexual violence Case studies
officer was unaware he had done so. Despite this
the officer later tried to justify his ongoing contact
as being motivated by concern for the welfare of
the victim and her sister. The officer was aware of
social services involvement with the family, that
they suspected the victim was misusing drugs and
alcohol, and had concern about the adverse
influence of their group of friends.
After several meetings the officer, while on duty,
visited the victim, who was alone. In interview he
described that sexual contact took place, which he
perceived to be entirely consensual. The
investigation report noted that in interview the
victim appeared timid, and unable to talk about
sex directly. She was also thought to have mental
health difficulties. Nevertheless, the officer
appeared unable to comprehend the victim’s
vulnerability, or that he had abused his position as
a police officer by pursuing her.
The investigation report detailed that some
months before the above assault the officer was
warned about his behaviour after making
inappropriate sexual comments to a member of
the public.
Robust monitoring in the light of the previous
allegation, leading to more intrusive supervision,
could have identified this officer’s behaviour
earlier.
Case study three
Following an investigation managed by the IPCC
an officer was dismissed from the police service for
misusing police computer systems.
The investigation found that the officer carried
out 176 unauthorised checks on females over a
three year period. Forty-eight of the checks were
carried out after the officer received a written
warning for misuse of police computer systems
relating to checks on himself, his vehicle, and
his family.
An investigation was launched following an
allegation made by social services. The initial investigation had focused on a possible offence of
engaging females under the age of 16 in sexual
activity. It found no evidence to support this.
However, the existence of robust IT audit
mechanisms identified additional unauthorised
checks undertaken by the officer concerned. The
women identified were contacted to find out
whether they knew the officer, and if so, what the
nature of their relationship with him was.
In common with some of the other cases in this
report, the police officer involved misused police
computer systems to identify women. It is
conceivable that his behaviour would have
escalated in the same way as the other cases
discussed had it not been discovered.
Case study four
An officer resigned following an investigation
managed by the IPCC into allegations that he had
conducted a number of relationships with women
in a vulnerable position while on duty. The conduct
occurred over a number of years. The investigation
was referred to the Crown Prosecution Service
which concluded that there was insufficient
evidence to prosecute the officer for a criminal
offence.
The investigation began following intelligence
received about the officer’s behaviour while on
duty. It covered a four year period and ended with
his suspension.
The investigation identified that the officer had
a sexualised relationship with at least six women,
all of whom he met as a result of his role as a
police officer, and two of whom were in a
vulnerable position. The investigation identified a
further four women with whom the officer had
attempted to instigate relationships. The
investigation found that the officer sent a large
number of texts using a private phone while on
duty. It concluded that the officer’s behaviour
had escalated following his transfer to a more
rural post with less supervision. Three officers
who had worked with the officer provided
statements to the investigation stating that
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The abuse of police powers to perpetrate sexual violence Case studies
having worked with him they had concerns about
his conduct towards female members of the
public. A member of the public also provided a
statement describing how she had wanted to
begin a petition to remove the officer from
policing the local area because his behaviour
around women was felt to be inappropriate. Other
colleagues stated that the officer was not a team
player and they did not engage with him
professionally because they disapproved of how he
carried out his duties.
Whilst working for a different police force the
officer was given words of advice about his
conduct after being found in an area frequented
by prostitutes.
Though the officer’s conduct was brought to the
attention of the Professional Standards Department
by his supervising officer, it is apparent that this
officer’s behaviour continued for a significant period
of time before it was identified. This was despite
intelligence both internally and from members of
the public that the officer’s conduct was, at the very
least, a matter for concern. This raises questions
about the level of supervision the officer received. It
also prompts questions about the procedures in
place for fellow officers and staff to raise their
concerns regarding the unacceptable or suspicious
behaviour of colleagues, in addition to their levels of
confidence in reporting.
Case study six
An officer resigned from the police service and
was later convicted of a number of computer
related crimes following an investigation managed
by the IPCC.
An investigation began after a man made
allegations of sexual assault against the officer.
Insufficient evidence was found to support a
prosecution in relation to the alleged assault.
However, following extensive auditing of the
police force’s computer systems, the investigation
found that the officer had improperly accessed
police computer systems on hundreds of occasions
over a significant period to check information
about a number of individuals.
In interview the officer admitted these searches
were entirely for personal use; to find the home
addresses of the persons searched, view
photographs and, in some cases, contact the
individual in order to pursue a sexual relationship.
A number of these individuals were considered to
be in a vulnerable position as a result of their
individual personal circumstances.
There are several familiar themes in this case. The
police officer was able to make hundreds of
improper searches of police computer systems over a significant period of time to target
individuals for sexual purposes. What is different
here is the officer targeted men. Though this type
of crime disproportionately affects women and
girls, some victims will be male or transgendered
individuals.
In common with some of the other case studies,
this case raises questions about the kind of
supervision the officer worked under, the possible
need for auditing the use of police computer
systems, and the effectiveness of warnings to
users about the consequences of misuse: Every
time the officer in the case conducted a search a
warning about misuse appeared on his computer
screen, which the officer felt able to ignore
The report urges senior leaders in the police
service to be alert and determined to root out this
kind of abuse of power. All cases of serious
corruption cases should be referred to the IPCC.
That includes all cases involving sexual
exploitation by officers or police staff, which the
IPCC will prioritise and investigate independently
wherever possible. Work in this area has been
greatly assisted by a leading academic and two
voluntary sector organisations who have specialist
knowledge in this area: Professor Liz Kelly of
London Metropolitan University, Davina JamesHanman of Against Violence and Abuse and
Dianne Whitfield of Coventry Rape and Sexual
Abuse Centre and Rape Crisis (England & Wales).
Their insight and practical suggestions have been
invaluable in the development of our thinking.
There is no doubt that the specialist knowledge and services offered by these and many other
national and local voluntary sector organisations
could be used by the police service to assist with
cases involving sexual exploitation by police
officers and staff – for example, in supporting
victims and encouraging reporting. This report
therefore recommends that police forces establish
or improve relationships with organisations that
have specialist knowledge of sexual exploitation
and abuse.
This report is a first step in understanding the
scale and nature of the problem and setting out
the way forward. More work and resources are
needed to build on this foundation, learning from
experience and the recommendations and insights
in this report. Both ACPO and the IPCC are
committed to doing so.
Case study one
A police officer pleaded guilty to a charge of
misconduct in public office and resigned from a
police force during an investigation managed by
the IPCC.
The investigation began after a woman
complained to police that she had been raped by
a police officer. The woman, Ms Z, came into
contact with the officer when she made an
emergency call saying she felt suicidal. A number
of officers went to see her. They left after making
sure she was no longer having suicidal thoughts,
and having made arrangements for her to stay
with a friend. One of the officers later went to the
house where Ms Z was staying, where the offence
occurred.
Ms Z was known to police, who were also aware of
previous mental health difficulties. When she
contacted the police she was also heavily
intoxicated. The perpetrator would have known
this.
The officer initially provided ‘no comment’ answers
to questioning by police. After DNA evidence was
found at the house Ms Z had stayed in, the officer
told police that a sexual act had taken place, but it
was entirely consensual and had occurred on a
different day. He later resigned.
The investigation did find two further issues.
Between the time that the offence took place, and
Ms Z reporting it to a police officer she knew and
trusted, she had made a number of emergency
calls to the police. During the course of these
conversations she had alluded to being assaulted
by a police officer. Reports relating to these
conversations recorded that the caller was thought
to be intoxicated and was incoherent to varying
degrees. Nevertheless, the police missed several
opportunities to ask more questions and help Ms
Z. All of those who came into contact with her
during these exchanges received advice from a
senior officer about the consequences of their
handling of telephone calls from Ms Z, with the
intention that they learn from what happened.
The investigation also found that after being
suspended from duty the officer contacted several
colleagues telling them about the investigation
and admitting that a sexual act had taken place.
None of the officers reported what they had been
told. All received advice from a senior officer, or a
written warning, as a result.
Following this investigation the police force
concerned began raising the profile of this kind of
misconduct: A formal message from the Deputy
Chief Constable about the implications of this kind
of misconduct and proper professional
relationships with members of the public was
disseminated to all officers and staff.
This case contains two very worrying issues.
Several opportunities were missed to identify what
had happened and help Ms Z. Ms Z’s accounts of
what happened were consistent during the
investigation. However, when she first made the
reports she was often intoxicated, and the assault
was sometimes alluded to during other reports
made to the police. Those talking to her were aware of her mental health difficulties and
intoxicated state. It seems likely that as a result of
these two factors call handlers did not take what
Ms Z was saying seriously. Ms Z herself told
investigators that she had not reported the
offence immediately because she did not think she
would be believed.
The officers who were contacted by the
perpetrator during the investigation had a duty to
report his improper conduct; that he had told
them about a sexual encounter he had with
someone he came into contact with through his
role as a police officer. The officer was held in high
regard by his colleagues, and this may have
impacted on their behaviour. However, why they
ignored that duty and did not report what they
had been told is not clear. Did they consider his
behaviour acceptable? Did they feel uncomfortable
approaching someone about it? Did they think if
they did report it, it would impact negatively on
them? Did they just not want to become involved
because they were aware that the officer was
already under investigation? All of these
possibilities suggest that the police force
concerned needed to raise awareness about sexual
abuse cases and review whether their policies for
officers and staff reporting concerns about
colleagues might be improved
Case study five
A police officer was convicted of five offences of
misconduct in public office and received a prison
sentence following an investigation managed by
the IPCC.
Two complaints were received from members of
the public about the officer. The police force began
a covert investigation into his conduct. This
identified a pattern of behaviour whereby the
officer would use police computer systems to
search for and target individuals who might be
vulnerable to abuse, and then attempt to develop
a sexual relationship with them. The investigation identified four women with
whom the officer had had a sexual relationship.
Three of these were considered to be in a
vulnerable position and one of the relationships
had taken place more than 20 years earlier.
One of the women, Ms B, was 17 years old and
was living in a hostel for vulnerable adults with
drug or alcohol dependencies and mental health
issues. On several occasions the officer gave Ms B
money, which was seemingly used to buy alcohol.
He requested sex, which was refused. A friend of
Ms B complained to a local inspector about a
police officer, identified as the officer under
investigation, supplying alcohol to Ms B. It would
seem that beyond speaking with him, no further
action was taken and the matter was not recorded.
Another of the women, Ms C, was dependent on
alcohol. The officer and a colleague went to her
home to serve a summons upon her. The officer’s
colleague later described Ms C as being five on a
scale of one to ten for drunkenness. The officer
later returned alone to the home of Ms C, where
he was later alleged to have sexually assaulted her.
The officer was not prosecuted for sexual assault
because of a number of inconsistencies in Ms C’s
account felt to be caused by her dependency on
alcohol.
The investigation found that the officer had on
several occasions improperly disclosed information
to some of these women, seemingly in an attempt
to obtain sex.
The investigation report noted that the officer had
two previous disciplinary findings against him.
Both concerned inappropriate sexual behaviour.
These were not considered when he applied for a
role in the force’s public protection unit.
The investigation made two learning
recommendations. Firstly, that the professional
standards department should maintain a register
of disciplinary findings against officers which are
of a sexual nature or involve behaviour towards a
third party that might be prejudicial to a further
role within the force. Secondly, that the force
should consider implementing a tiered access
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The abuse of police powers to perpetrate sexual violence Case studies
system to personal telephone numbers of
individuals held on intelligence systems so that
there is no general access for all police staff.
The fact that the officer’s behaviour continued for
a number of years raises questions regarding the
kind of supervision he was subject to. The fact that
he had two related disciplinary findings against
him, prompts questions about the level of
monitoring of his behaviour subsequent to these
allegations and prior to his application to a public
protection unit. Robust auditing of computer use
could have identified the officer’s misuse at an
earlier stage. Additional or specialised vetting for
applications to such units would have been likely
to have highlighted his conduct history and raised
serious questions about suitability for the post.
