Big rise in police officers reported for abusing their role for sexual purposes
The number of police officers being reported for abusing their role for sexual gain has soared in the past year following changes to strengthen how the issue is investigated.
Two thirds of the cases investigated by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) between 2018 and 2021 happened in the past year.
The IOPC’s Deputy Director General Claire Bassett says it’s proof that allegations of sexual abuse are taken “very seriously”.
“Those figures have gone up because it has become a mandatory referral, so people have to report it to us now,” she said.
“But we would hope it also reflects an increased awareness where we are seeing fellow officers, for example, reporting people who they believe might be doing that.”
From 2018 to 2021, 66 officers and members of police staff faced disciplinary proceedings for alleged “abuse of position for a sexual purpose” or APSP.
Of those, 42 occurred in the past year.
In 63 of the 66 cases, misconduct was proven with six people convicted of crimes, three of whom were jailed.
The increase in individuals being investigated comes at a time when trust in police has been seriously eroded.
Wayne Couzens pretended to be on duty when he kidnapped 33-year-old Sarah Everard, before raping and then murdering her earlier this year.
He is now serving a whole life sentence after admitting his crimes.
Wayne Couzens raped and murdered Sarah Everard
Other cases of alleged serious sexual offences by officers are currently going through the court system.
But despite the increase in cases being investigated, Jessica [not her real name], who had no idea she was in a year-long relationship with an undercover officer back in the 90s, is unconvinced.
“If they break the law, then surely there should be absolutely zero tolerance policy,” she said.
“Far too many police officers that have done something wrong – it’s sort of swept under the carpet. There’s the sort of the policy of ‘the old boys club’.”
She added that too many officers leave the police rather than take the consequences of their actions.
“There needs to be proper accountability to actually stop officers resigning rather than facing misconduct hearings,” she said.
Of the 63 cases, in which misconduct was proved, 29 individuals were dismissed and 10 resigned prior to their hearing.
Anna Birley from the campaign group Reclaim These Streets, which organised a vigil on Clapham Common following Sarah’s murder, believes more needs to be done to identify those who pose a risk.
“If we are only measuring incidences of harassment and violence, we’re missing all of the warning signs and essentially this report from the IOPC talks about sexual offences, where an officer abuses their power, but that’s the worst case scenario,” she said.
“Before that point that officer has probably done things which make women uncomfortable. Wayne Couzen’s nickname was ‘the rapist’.”
The vigil for Sarah Everard on Clapham Common in March
Ms Bassett said the IOPC is already challenging “very inappropriate content on social media and network groups”.
“We see sexist or misogynistic language, homophobic jokes that sort of thing,” she said.
“We have seen some officers reporting fellow officers and we’d like to see much more of that.
“We’d like to see a zero tolerance of this sort of behaviour and we think if we root out that and change the culture, that will have an impact across the board.”
Alleged cases of APSP currently make up nearly 60% of investigations by the IOPC.
But the data does not provide a complete picture of all action being taken as forces can also carry out their own inquiries.
An amber warning has been issued for snow in a part of the UK, likely to cause travel delays and “stranding some vehicles and passengers”.
The warning, which covers south west England, also warns some rural communities could become cut off and is in place until 2pm this evening.
Pic: Met Office
There is also a yellow weather warning for snow covering the southern counties of England until midnight on Wednesday.
The warning stretches from Kent to Cornwall and up to south London and the Met Office said between 2cm and 5cm of snow could accumulate fairly widely, with as much as 10cm over higher ground.
This week is expected to see the coldest nights of the year, with temperatures potentially reaching -14C on Wednesday night and -16C on Thursday night, both in the North East of England and Scotland, the Met Office said.
Weather warnings issued on Tuesday for snow and ice covering the parts of Wales, the North West of England, west and northern parts of Scotland as well as Northern Ireland will remain in place until midnight tomorrow.
The forecaster said some roads and railways are likely to be affected and there could be icy patches on untreated roads.
Pics: AP
Meanwhile the Environment Agency has said at least 300 properties have flooded across England since New Year’s Eve. It estimates more than 41,000 properties have been protected.
Heavy rainfall over the New Year caused significant river and surface water flooding across the North West of England and Yorkshire and snowmelt has brought further disruption to parts of England, particularly the Midlands, the agency said.
Read more from Sky News:
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Man says flooding ‘came out of nowhere’
Floods minister Emma Hardy said: “My sympathies go out to the people, businesses and communities impacted by the recent flooding across the country.
“I want to express my heartfelt thanks for the vital work that the Environment Agency and emergency services are doing to keep people safe. People must continue to follow their advice and sign up for flood warnings.”
Flood warnings
Some 100 flood warnings were in force across England on Wednesday, with people urged to remain vigilant over the coming days.
A danger-to-life warning was issued on Tuesday morning for the River Soar near Barrow upon Soar, Leicestershire, but was later removed.
People living in caravan parks in the area were urged by the Environment Agency to act, with a large-scale evacuation needed to save lives.
Firefighters have rescued dozens of people across Leicestershire since Monday, Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service said.
Hundreds of schools were closed across the UK, with road and rail links blocked, as Manchester, Bristol and Liverpool John Lennon airports suspended flights because of the conditions.
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