New police misogyny claims: Serving Humberside officer says female recruits seen as ‘fresh meat’
“For a while, seeing a police officer in uniform, I’d have flashbacks,” says “Sally”, who is herself a serving police officer, left traumatised by sexual abuse from a fellow officer.
Sally, not her real name, works for Humberside Police and her testimony perhaps indicates the need for a Louise Casey-style review in every force.
She is one of two women we’ve spoken to from Humberside who reveal problems with misogyny within the local constabulary; a problem, which she describes as “a monster.”
The other woman, a victim we are calling Anna, says police records show they in part blamed her “lifestyle choices” and “attention seeking” after she reported being groomed and raped.
This comes after the Casey review found that the Met police was institutionally sexist, racist and homophobic, and said women were being failed because of a misogynistic culture.
Serving officer Sally says this is true too in Humberside. She claims any young female recruit is considered “fresh meat” and senior female officers have their achievements undermined by mutterings that they’ve “slept their way to the top”.
She says she was seduced by a senior officer and found herself in a controlling, sexually violent relationship.
Humberside Constabulary was rated outstanding by the police inspectorate, but Sally says when it became known she’d reported a fellow officer her colleagues rallied around him.
“I was ostracised, given the cold shoulder. It was like passive-aggressive behaviour,” she says.
“So, I’d be stared at, or given dirty looks. They were like schoolyard bullies. I’d come down the stairs and they’d be all sat together, just look up and stare at me.”
She adds: “After the misconduct hearing, so after he lost his job, I lost count of the amount of officers that came up to me and said – ‘oh he’s always been like that.'”
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How have the Met failed women?
“I thought well why have they not said anything then? He had basically the same nicknames as those monsters in the Met.”
She is referring to Met officer Wayne Couzens who was nicknamed “the rapist” by colleagues before he abducted, raped and murdered Sarah Everard. Serial rapist David Carrick was in the same unit.
The Casey report found the Metropolitan Police force badly failed women and questions are now being asked whether the rot spreads beyond London. Sally believes it does.
She says several colleagues in Humberside knew that one predatory officer would sift through victims’ statements to find women he could ask out.
Wayne Couzens
‘I was really vulnerable’
Sky News has found evidence of bad attitudes being applied to investigations in Humberside.
Anna, not her real name, alleges that as a teenager she was being raped by a gang of men, who intimidated her into repeatedly going back to them.
After her investigation was closed, she used what’s called a Subject Access Request (SAR) to gain police records on herself. She found the following types of comments made by officers:
“The female herself is making lifestyle choices of her own.”
“This victim doesn’t come across as the best type of witness/victim that I have seen.”
“She finds herself in a position where it could be suggested she is allowing sexual tension to rise.”
Read more:
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Policewoman ‘repeatedly raped’ by colleague: Key findings of report
Now in her 20’s, Anna says: “That whole time I was still under social services I was really vulnerable.
“I was on a protection plan. It said how I was getting strangled. I was being sexually assaulted I was high risk but they never did anything to stop that.
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“If you read those records, they’re saying ‘we’ve got an unreliable witness, not the perfect victim. She wouldn’t stand a chance in court.’
“There’s no wonder the case was never brought to court because before it’s even got there, they’ve completely undermined it.”
In one extract they seem to accept the alleged attacker’s story over Anna’s, even after she has been injured.
The SAR reads: “The victim states that she has received injuries, and these have been seen by police officers.
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‘Challenge for police nationally’
Read: Six of the worst scandals the force has faced in recent years
“The issue that we have is that the suspect admits to causing these injuries to the victim but states that these were with consent as the victim ‘liked it’.
“It is difficult for us to disprove this, and I would suggest the victim is too undermined in this investigation to take her word above that of the suspect.”
Anna says it is “disgusting” to suggest that she would enjoy being injured.
‘Misogynistic behaviour will not be tolerated’
Louise Casey, whose findings have rocked London’s police force, has told Sky News there should be versions of her study done in every other police force.
She says: “I think we need a wholesale change of public protection particularly for women I think we all say violence against girls and women is a priority, then you see what is actually happening on the ground in relation to that and I don’t think it’s good enough.
“It rings hollow to me, and I think it rings hollow nationally.”
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Still ‘toxic individuals’ in Met
Humberside Police Deputy Chief Constable Paul Anderson says in response: “Misogynistic behaviour will not be tolerated. There is an existing robust process in place to put an end to any type of misogyny in our Force.
“Anyone who exhibits any form of misogynistic or discriminatory behaviour will be held accountable for their actions.
“We are internally communicating with all officers and staff in regards to sexual harassment and have launched our ‘knowing the line’ campaign to raise awareness and to fully encourage reports, whether personal or witnessed, to be made to our Professional Standards Department.
“Whilst Baroness Casey’s report into the culture at the Metropolitan Police makes for some incredibly hard reading, we welcome the findings and see it as a step forward in rebuilding public trust and confidence in policing nationally.”
‘The problem is now a monster’
With regard to “Anna”, DCC Anderson adds: “Child sexual abuse and exploitation is a deplorable and condemnable crime and we are determined to bring offenders to justice and hold them accountable for their actions.”
Anna’s investigation was reopened last year and for that reason, the force adds: “As the investigation is active, it is imperative we protect its integrity; as such are unable to comment on aspects of the investigation as this could impact or jeopardise any criminal or judicial proceedings.”
Sally says she’s still proud to be a police officer, but she’s speaking out because she wants her colleagues to make the changes from within.
She says: “They’ve been battening it down that much its now snowballed into a massive thing. It’s now a monster.”
The Casey review suggests that the monster needs to be exposed and acknowledged before it can be properly tackled.
Have you got a story to tell about your experience with the police? Email news@skynews.com
Premier League match tickets at Chelsea have been selling for more than twice the price of a season ticket on an American exchange website with a familiar director and investor to supporters – club chairman Todd Boehly.
Amid growing fan fury, Sky News was able to access the Vivid Seats platform on different devices last week from London – and saw tickets for the visit of Liverpool on 4 May, priced by Chelsea at a maximum of £80, being sold for between £537 and £2,666.
Some tickets were listed as being sold by traders.
Chairman of Chelsea Todd Boehly. Pic: Reuters
Chelsea’s official website appeared to show no availability for this premium fixture, with the Blues battling for Champions League qualification and Liverpool potentially celebrating being crowned Premier League winners.
The most expensive Stamford Bridge season ticket for this campaign was £1,015.
Vivid is listed by the Premier League among “unauthorised ticket websites” with a message: “We would urge fans to exercise extreme caution when dealing with these websites.”
Vivid insisted it adheres to laws and regulations in Britain
The Chelsea Supporters’ Trust has written to the Premier League to ask that Vivid – given its ties with a club’s shareholder – “ceases facilitating the sale of tickets for significantly above face value”.
Mr Boehly – part of the consortium that replaced Roman Abramovich as owner in 2022 – has not addressed accusations of a “conflict of interest” or claims he is undermining efforts to combat ticket touting.
There are anti-touting warnings on signs in the streets approaching the stadium.
Sky News found some tickets for more than £2,000 on Vivid Seats
An official Chelsea Ticket Exchange allows season ticket holders to sell their tickets “at the pro-rata price of season tickets” to a club member “in a safe, secure environment”.
While Chelsea’s website says to only buy tickets in the UK from official sellers, it adds: “Many of the websites that advertise and sell tickets online are not within the jurisdiction of UK law.
“This means, while we report these sites when we see Chelsea tickets on them, there is little we can do to shut down the sites.”
Sign at Stamford Bridge warning against ticket touting
On Vivid, we did see warnings telling visiting users not to buy seats in the home sections and a pop-up eventually appeared after browsing the availability, saying: “Tickets for the EPL matches are not currently available for purchase in your location.”
No attempt was made by us to buy tickets. But should we have been able to see the listings at all?
Sky News first asked for comment from Vivid last Monday and continued to see ticket listings with variable prices in pounds during the week. It took until Friday night for any form of response.
“Vivid Seats respectfully adheres to the laws that are in place in the United Kingdom and is not in violation of any regulations around EPL tickets,” the email read in part. “As such, Vivid Seats’ policy restricts the sale and marketing of EPL tickets in the United Kingdom.”
Pic: Reuters
When Sky News checked the website again on Saturday the listings for Premier League matches were no longer visible as they are from outside of Britain.
Asked if they were no longer visible after our inquiries, Vivid’s official replied: “The conclusions that you are drawing are factually incorrect.
“We understand that people will try to find ways to circumvent technology and as such, we have validation protocols in place in order to restrict the sale and marketing of EPL tickets in the United Kingdom.”
Again, Vivid insisted it adheres to laws and regulations in Britain.
But the same official did not respond to an email detailing how we were able to view the tickets listings from London on separate days, without using VPN software that can make your browser seem as if it’s accessing the internet from another country.
Chelsea’s match against Ipswich at Stamford Bridge. Pic: Reuters
‘It’s the only way I was going to get here’
Ticket exchange websites can be the only way for some fans overseas to come to matches.
When Ipswich played at Stamford Bridge on 13 April, Baz Gillespie was able to watch after 20 years living in Cyprus by paying a vastly-inflated £300 for two tickets on a website other than Vivid.
“The only way I was going to get here was that way,” he said, remembering the days he could just queue up and pay a fiver for a ticket.
The same match was Martin van Dijk’s first-ever game at the Bridge, having come from the Netherlands after paying €150 (£128) on another exchange website after initially trying through Vivid.
“If there’s no other option, and you want to visit, it’s the only way, but I’d rather get it through like the normal way,” he said.
Chelsea fan Martin van Dijk paid €150 for a ticket on a resale website
‘An absolute disgrace’
It is the “normal way” that so many supporters want to protect and are aghast at Mr Boehly’s links to Vivid, predating his purchase of a stake in Chelsea.
“It’s an absolute disgrace,” supporter Ben Grey said. “He shouldn’t be involved in Chelsea and a reselling website. It’s unethical from a basic perspective.
“The club are coming out with communication saying that they’re against ticket reselling and our semi-majority shareholder [has a website] reselling tickets to our games.”
Asked what the Premier League should do, he replied: “I’m a massive Chelsea fan, I don’t want Chelsea to be hit hard by anything.
“But the fact of the matter is they need to sort that out and if they’re allowing there to be an owner of a club who’s reselling tickets, it’s a disgrace.”
Fan Ben Grey said Mr Boehy shouldn’t be involved in Chelsea and a reselling website
‘Not a very good look’
Another fan, Rich Still, called it “21st century greed”.
The issue is resonating with young children.
Rhys Edwards, watching with his father, said: “It doesn’t look too good on Chelsea and their owners to be fair.
“Saying that [the website] is not authorised by the league they’re playing in isn’t a very good look.”
Officials with Chelsea, the Premier League and Mr Boehly declined to comment.
The Vivid statement to Sky News stressed: “It is important to note that Vivid Seats does not set the base price for tickets sold on its marketplace or receive any revenue from that base price; only the seller sets and receives the base ticket price.”
Labour MP Rupa Huq has proposed a law change to improve pricing transparency
‘It’s like the Wild West’
Vivid highlighted to Sky News its “long-standing partnership”, including being a backer of a 2023 summer tour of the United States.
Chelsea’s website featured a quote saying: “We are pleased to join with a company committed to becoming the ultimate partner for connecting fans to the live events, teams and artists they love.”
The government has launched a consultation to prevent people from being ripped off in Britain by the resale of tickets.
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The limit could range from the cost of the original ticket to a 30% uplift to stop the public being “fleeced” by professional touts.
Labour MP for Ealing Central and Acton, Rupa Huq, has separately proposed a change to the law to improve pricing transparency on secondary ticketing sites.
“It’s an unregulated market,” she told Sky News. “It’s like the Wild West. It needs getting back into control.”
A murder investigation is under way after a woman was stabbed to death in north London.
Police were called to an address in Ayley Croft, Enfield, around 7pm on Saturday following reports of a stabbing.
Emergency workers treated a 45-year-old woman but she died at the scene, the Metropolitan Police said.
The victim’s next of kin has been informed and is being supported by specialist officers.
Officers at the scene in Enfield
No one has been arrested in connection with her death.
Police have been seen focusing on Gainsborough House, a high-rise block on the estate.
An officer was spotted at the window on the fifth floor. Patrols have also been seen outside.
An officer in Gainsborough House
Detective Chief Inspector Neil John said: “Our thoughts are with the victim’s family at this difficult time.
“As our investigation continues, there will be an increased police presence in the area, and a crime scene remains in place.
“We understand this will be very distressing to the local community and anyone who has concerns can speak to local officers.”
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Police are appealing for dashcam footage from anyone who was driving through Ayley Croft between 6.30pm and 7.30pm on Saturday.
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