Police officers resign over ‘seaside trip’

Feb 28 2008 Western Mail

TWO police officers investigated over claims they had taken seaside day trips while on duty have been forced to resign and two others have been fined, it was announced yesterday.

The Gwent Police officers, along with a fifth constable who resigned last week on an unrelated conduct matter, were allegedly accused of driving to some of South Wales’ most popular beaches in police cars while on duty.

It has been claimed the Blackwood-based officers, dubbed the “seaside five”, were taking part in a “dare” competition to see who could travel the furthest from their police station.

The officers are understood to have travelled as far afield as Barry Island and Porthcawl, more than 30 miles away, and well outside their force area.

A conduct hearing was held this week, leading to two officers being asked to resign. The other two were fined 13 days’ pay each.

An investigation into their behaviour was managed by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC).

IPCC Commissioner Tom Davies said, “This investigation has shown that the public can have confidence that the IPCC and the police service will vigorously tackle misconduct.

“Gwent Police has dealt with the officers’ behaviour following the IPCC-managed investigation and is to be commended for its willingness to tackle a very small number of officers who have abused the trust put in them.

“I will now ensure that the investigation concludes with a look at management processes within the force to ensure that appropriate lessons are learnt.”

The four officers also faced charges of behaving in a way likely to bring discredit to the police service, while one was charged with failing to treat a member of the public with courtesy and respect.

Three were charged with being neither open nor truthful.

It has been reported that the officers – who have not been named because they are not facing criminal charges – took mobile phone photographs at the popular South Wales seaside resorts.

A source, speaking before the hearing, said the phones were seized as evidence.

It is alleged the images even showed officers on a log flume ride in a bid to prove how far they had travelled.

But their game is said to have been uncovered when a patrol car broke down over the English border – believed to be heading towards the Somerset seaside resort of Weston-super-Mare – leading senior officers to question why the car was in another force area.

A fellow officer is believed to have blown the whistle on their actions.

The source added, “The female officer who reported it was concerned taxpayers’ money was being wasted and that an area of Gwent was being left uncovered.”

The conduct hearing started on Monday, and had been due to conclude tomorrow.

A Gwent Police spokeswoman said, “Four police officers have this week been subject to a misconduct hearing concerning the misuse of police vehicles whilst on duty.

“Whilst it is not the normal policy of Gwent Police to comment on internal matters, following speculation amongst the media last year, we were mindful that the public’s confidence in Gwent Police could be compromised by a lack of comment from the force, and therefore confirmed such an investigation was under way in August 2007.

“Our success in policing the communities of Gwent depends to a great degree on public support for, and trust in Gwent Police. Our officers, just like employees of other organisations, must face the consequences of their actions.

“We will not tolerate any behaviour that falls below the standard expected and required to deliver a top quality service to the public of Gwent.

“As has been demonstrated in this case, any behaviour that threatens this delivery and the public’s confidence in the force will be dealt with swiftly and fairly.”

A file was initially passed to the Crown Prosecution Service, but no action was taken.

An IPCC spokesman said four of the officers, including the one who resigned last week, are male, and the other is female.