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A Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) officer has been terminated following an investigation that revealed he initiated a sexual relationship with a woman he encountered during his official duties. The Police Ombudsman’s inquiry also uncovered that the officer failed to disclose several conflicts of interest, intimidated a former partner, attempted to manipulate evidence, and asked a colleague to provide false testimony.
Ombudsman Jacqui Durkin described the conduct as a “catalogue of corruption,” emphasizing that it posed a significant threat to public trust and confidence in policing. The PSNI condemned the officer’s behaviour as “unacceptable,” stating that it fell far short of the professional standards expected from police officers and staff. Durkin identified the officer, referred to as Police Officer B during the investigation, as a “constable of some experience,” and categorized the allegations against him as “one of the most serious types of police corruption.” She stressed that no police officer behaving in such a manner has a place within the PSNI, making it clear that such misconduct would lead to dismissal.
The case originated from allegations of assault in 2018, when one woman lodged a complaint against another. Police Officer A was assigned to investigate the matter and asked Police Officer B to take a statement from one of the parties, Woman B. However, Officer B did not disclose that he had been in a sexual relationship with the other woman involved, Woman A, in 2016 and continued to maintain a social connection with her. Within a day of taking Woman B’s statement, Officer B contacted her through social media platforms and soon began a sexual relationship. They eventually lived together and had a child before separating in early 2020.
Further investigation extended to 2021 when another former partner of Officer B reported receiving an anonymous threatening letter. The correspondence contained an intimate photograph of her and threats to expose more images to her family. The woman had only shared the photo with Officer B, who had also downloaded all the images she sent two weeks prior to the letter’s delivery. Examination of the officer’s phone revealed 51 images of the woman, including intimate photos similar to those sent anonymously. Following a misconduct hearing in April, Officer B was dismissed without notice for breaching the PSNI Code of Ethics.
Chief Superintendent Stephen Murray, head of the PSNI’s professional standards department, condemned the misconduct, saying it was “unacceptable and clearly falls far below the standards the public rightly expects at all times from police officers and staff.” He highlighted the trust placed in police officers, emphasizing that it must never be abused for personal or sexual gain. Murray described abuse of position for sexual purposes as a “serious abuse of authority” that violates public trust, noting that Officer B’s behaviour involved dishonesty, conflicts of interest, and actions detrimental to the integrity and professionalism expected of police officers. The swift dismissal without notice underlined the seriousness with which the PSNI treats such offences and reaffirmed their position against corruption and abuse of authority in policing.
Since 2020, Police Officer B is the seventh officer to be dismissed following Police Ombudsman investigations into abuse of position for sexual purposes (APSP), which now account for 36% of the most serious cases under the Ombudsman’s review. Another officer involved in similar investigations received a written final warning. The Police Ombudsman’s office spent nearly two years conducting a detailed and complex investigation that ultimately led to the completion of the inquiry and submission of evidence to the Public Prosecution Service, which decided not to pursue prosecution in October 2024
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