SUSSEX Police are facing further controversy today after an officer accused of causing the collapse of two major drugs trials was given anonymity.
The officer is accused of failing to include vital CCTV footage and mobile phone data and then writing to one of the investigators to ask her not to mention footage even existed.
As a result of her actions a trial into a chemsex drug dealing gang collapsed and another linked case did not go ahead.
READ MORE: Sussex Police officers dismissed without public being told
This comes just days after The Argus revealed that many officers have been kicked out of the force without telling the public.
When asked, Sussex Police refused to name the 21 officers kicked out of the force in the last four years.
In this latest case, an officer at the centre of the chemsex investigation is due to face allegations of gross misconduct.
However, a disciplinary panel has ruled she can only be referred to as "Officer A" throughout.
It was ruled that she will not be identified after an order was made to protect her mental health.
This is despite the officer having previously been named in court.
In a statement, the panel chairman said: “I agreed to anonymise the officer’s details on the basis of the officer’s mental health issues and the potential impact the hearing is likely to have on her.
“There was good evidence provided in support of that. I appreciate that this matter was previously reported in the press. Nonetheless, under the regulations the matter is for me to determine.”
READ MORE: Sussex Police will not name officers dismissed for gross misconduct
At the time of the collapsed cases Judge Shani Barnes condemned the officer as “cavalier, disinterested and dismissive.”
She said: “I am confronted by an officer in the case admitting in writing that there were discs in a box with surveillance unseen, unscheduled, undisclosed.
“The attitude she expressed in writing reveals a cavalier, dismissive attitude to her duties as a responsible disclosure officer.
“She was disinterested in fulfilling her obligation to ensure that all material was viewed, scheduled and, where appropriate, provided to the defence.”
It is the latest in a series of high-profile disciplinary cases which has seen officers dismissed from the force.
And in the last month, three officers from the same Sussex police station have faced disciplinary action in the last month over sex exploits during working hours.
Next month Det Con Damien Cotgreave will face gross misconduct charges for allegedly bunking off work to have sex with a woman at her home.
The officer is also said to have sent obscene pictures and smutty messages to up a dozen different women while on duty.
His case comes after Sgt Rob Adams of Hastings Station was handed a final written warning for sticking a photo of a female officer onto a pornographic image of a naked model.
Days earlier Det Sgt Paul Elrick also from Hastings Station received a final written warning for pinging a ruler across the bottom of a female colleague and sending her obscene messages.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel