A police force was told an officer had “repeatedly asked a 15-year-old girl to send naked pictures of herself” before he went on to commit a child sexual offence, a new inspection has found.
The incident was flagged as one of at least five opportunities lost by Thames Valley Police to take stricter action against former PC Luke Horner before he engaged in penetrative sexual activity with a child aged 13 on 11 June this year.
The Police and Crime Commissioner for Thames Valley commissioned His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) to consider if there had been any lost opportunities in how the force dealt with intelligence and information relating to Horner during his service.
HMICFRS concluded Thames Valley Police could not have reasonably anticipated Horner would commit sexual offences against a child.
But the inspectorate found the force lost at least five opportunities to take stricter action against him, both at the initial vetting stage and during his police service, which could have led to him being refused initial vetting clearance or being dismissed.
Horner, who resigned as an officer on 26 July, travelled to Rushden in Northamptonshire while off duty to commit the offence, which he also recorded on his victim’s phone, the court heard.
He was jailed earlier this month for six years and four months.
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The force should have made further inquiries at the initial vetting stage into two separate issues – a potential sexual assault allegation in 2016 and his early departure from the British Army, HMICFRS found.
During his police service the force failed to identify that there were questions about his honesty and integrity after several incidents – and when considered together, these incidents “clearly indicated that Horner was not suited to being a police officer”.
During Horner’s police service, the force’s counter-corruption unit received anonymous intelligence from Crimestoppers which suggested he had been chatting online to a 15-year-old girl and had “repeatedly” asked her to send him naked pictures of herself.
The counter-corruption unit made one attempt to contact the person who gave the information to Crimestoppers, but the inspectorate said the unit should have made “repeated and exhaustive attempts” to contact them within the 14-day period the communication channel remained open.
Supervisors also identified that Horner “did not always handle evidence correctly” – in one incident officers found some cannabis in Horner’s work tray and in another, he took various items of evidence home in his bag, which he later reported stolen.
In another incident, he pointed his taser at a colleague and activated the red dot laser – at the time he was the subject of a live written warning for the mishandling of evidence, so the inspectorate believes the professional standards department should have “without hesitation” assessed the behaviour as gross misconduct, which could have led to a gross misconduct hearing, with a potential outcome of dismissal.
Two children and a woman have died in a shooting in County Fermanagh, police have said.
Two people were killed in the shooting on Wednesday morning, and a third, who was seriously injured, died in hospital in the afternoon.
A fourth person, a man, was seriously injured in the shooting in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland.
All victims were from the same household, Superintendent Robert McGowan, district commander for Fermanagh and Omagh, said at a news conference.
Police have cordoned off the scene in the village of Maguiresbridge, about 75 miles (120km) southwest of Belfast.
“We can advise there is no ongoing risk to the public,” a Police Service of Northern Ireland spokesperson said.
There was no mention of a motive behind the shooting.
Image: The scene in the Drummeer Road area of Maguiresbridge, Co Fermanagh. Pic: Oliver McVeigh /PA Wir
A murder investigation has been launched, with enquiries being at an early stage.
Supt McGowan said at the news conference that police don’t anticipate any arrests being made at this stage.
Emergency services were called to the Drummeer Road area of the village at around 8am on Wednesday following a report raised from the property, Supt McGowan said.
Two people were found dead at the scene, and two others seriously injured.
One patient was taken to the Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast, by air ambulance and the other to South West Acute Hospital by ambulance. Supt McGowan said the third person died at the South West Acute Hospital.
Drummeer Road is currently closed, police said, warning that this could lead to delays on alternative roads.
Image: Drummeer Road has been cordoned off. Pic: Oliver McVeigh /PA Wir
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Hilary Benn said: “The news from Maguiresbridge is tragic and deeply distressing.
“My thoughts are with the victims, their relatives and the local community in Fermanagh. I would urge the public not to speculate and to allow the PSNI to continue their investigation.”
Sinn Fein MP Pat Cullen has expressed her deep shock over the shooting, saying: “Firstly, my thoughts are with the victims and their families at this tragic time.”
DUP MLA Deborah Erskine, who represents the area in the Northern Ireland Assembly, said that the community was “stunned” by the shooting in “a rural, quiet area”.
“Everyone is deeply affected by what has happened this morning,” she said.
Five “violent” and “dangerous” gang members have been found guilty of murdering a boy and a young man at a music video shoot in a north London estate.
The men had gone to the Elthorne Estate in Archway “with the intention of killing anyone they could”, the Metropolitan Police said.
And the group mistook those they attacked for rival gang members.
Lorik Lupqi, 21; Jason Furtado, 28; Abel Chunda, 29; Xavier Poponne, 22; and Eden Clark, 31, were convicted of murdering 15-year-old Leonardo Reid and 23-year-old Klevi Shekaj and attempting to murder 28-year-old Abdullah Abdullahi.
Image: (L-R) Xavier Poponne, Lorik Lupqi and Abel Chunda. Pic: Met Police
Leonardo and Mr Shekaj were fatally stabbed and Mr Abdullahi was badly hurt when knifemen descended on the event on the night of 29 June 2023.
Leonardo and his brother had been watching a music video being filmed with friends.
Police said Lupqi, a gang member from Islington, saw the gathering at around 8.30pm and took it as an opportunity to hurt those he thought were gang opponents.
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He messaged his girlfriend stating that “opps were outside”. She advised him to remain inside, but Lupqi decided to contact his close friend and gang associate Jason Furtado.
They formed a plan and recruited gang members Chunda, Clark and Poponne to travel to the estate.
Lupqi had booked a taxi to pick up the three men from the area of Furtado’s home address in Canonbury, north London, telling the cab firm: “I’m in a little bit of a rush,” the jury heard.
They had worn masks and were armed as they went to the Elthorne Estate where they met Lupqi, the court was told.
Image: (L-R) Jason Furtado and Eden Clark. Pic: Met Police/PA
By the time they arrived, the filming had ended, and most people had left, but some local children and teenagers remained in the area.
The group then carried out their deadly attack.
The alarm was raised as a black-clad figure wearing a balaclava was spotted crouching down and moving towards Leonardo, his brother and others, with a large knife.
Three more males in black stood up from where they had been hiding behind cars as they edged towards the group, the court was told.
Leonardo was stabbed in the chest, with the wound cutting through his left lung and one of the major blood vessels in his body, causing fatal blood loss.
Leonardo’s brother had run away from the scene but later looped back and saw his sibling lying motionless on the ground, the court heard.
Mr Shekaj was stabbed in the back, with the wound cutting through his left lung and deep into his body.
He was driven to Whittington Hospital by members of the public but he died on arrival.
Detective Inspector Jim Barry said: “These violent men went into this estate with the intention of killing anyone they could, under the false impression that those there were rival gang members.
“This was a senseless, violent act which has shattered the lives of so many, especially Leonardo and Klevi’s loved ones.
“This dangerous group of men will now spend a long time behind bars but the effect of what they did will be felt by the victim’s shattered families for longer.”
The five killers will appear at the same court on 25 and 26 September for sentencing.
A third person has died in a shooting in Co Fermanagh, police have said.
Two people were killed in the shooting on Wednesday morning, and a third, who was seriously injured, died in the afternoon.
A fourth person was seriously injured in the shooting in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland.
All victims were from the same household, Superintendent Robert McGowan, District Commander for Fermanagh and Omagh, said at a news conference.
They have cordoned off the scene in the village of Maguiresbridge, about 75 miles (120km) southwest of Belfast.
“We can advise there is no ongoing risk to the public,” a Police Service of Northern Ireland spokesperson said.
There was no mention of a motive behind the shooting.
Image: The scene in the Drummeer Road area of Maguiresbridge, Co Fermanagh. Pic: Oliver McVeigh /PA Wir
A murder investigation has been launched.
Supt McGowan said at the news conference that police don’t anticipate any arrests to be made at this stage.
Emergency services were called to the shooting in the Drummeer Road area of the village at around 8am on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service said.
They confirmed that two people had been injured.
“Following assessment and initial treatment at scene, one patient has been taken to the Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast, by air ambulance and another to South West Acute Hospital by ambulance,” the spokesperson added.
Drummeer Road is currently closed, police said, warning that this could lead to delays on alternative roads.
Image: Drummeer Road has been cordoned off. Pic: Oliver McVeigh /PA Wir
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Hilary Benn said: “The news from Maguiresbridge is tragic and deeply distressing.
“My thoughts are with the victims, their relatives and the local community in Fermanagh. I would urge the public not to speculate and to allow the PSNI to continue their investigation.”
Sinn Fein MP Pat Cullen has expressed her deep shock over the shooting, saying: “Firstly, my thoughts are with the victims and their families at this tragic time.”
DUP MLA Deborah Erskine, who represents the area in the Northern Ireland Assembly, said that the community was “stunned” by the shooting in “a rural, quiet area.”
“Everyone is deeply affected by what has happened this morning,” she said.