A police officer has kept his job after he assaulted a female colleague during an argument.

PC Peter Kay, based at Crawley, grabbed and squeezed the arm of a colleague during an argument while off duty.

After his colleague, PC B, noticed bruising on her arm, she reported it to her supervisor and PC Kay was suspended pending a criminal investigation.

While no criminal charges were brought, PC Kay was given a final written warning following a disciplinary hearing this week.

Sussex Police Detective Chief Inspector Jon Robeson from the force's Professional Standards Department said: “We expect our officers to act with the utmost integrity, and in accordance with the Code of Ethics and the Standards of Professional Behaviour, and we have invested in a comprehensive programme of cultural change towards challenging, reporting and tackling unethical or unprofessional behaviour.

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“The actions of this officer in this case fell far short of the standards we expect, which is reflected in the findings by the panel.”

At the hearing, PC Kay accepted he had breached police behaviour standards and a panel found the assault amounted to gross misconduct. The panel gave the officer an extended final written warning for three years.