Charing Cross: 15 officers committed gross misconduct, 15 more under investigation
A Met officer, who told a female colleague he hoped that she would ‘get raped’ on the way home from a night out, has become the 15th officer found to have committed gross misconduct, as part of our ongoing investigations into officers based at Charing Cross police station in central London At an accelerated misconduct hearing - a fast-track disciplinary process used where the evidence is incontrovertible - PC Mason O’Connor was dismissed without notice and barred from policing in future. A disciplinary panel today found he breached police professional standards relating to discreditable conduct, equality and diversity, and authority, respect and courtesy. He has been dismissed without notice and placed on police’s barred list. Allegations against Charing Cross officers first came to light in a BBC Panorama documentary broadcast in October. All except one of the 15, a former PC, have been barred from policing.* Investigations continue into the conduct of a further 15 officers or police staff. We identified misconduct for several additional officers after further footage that was not included in the documentary was provided to us by the BBC. A witness appeal was also launched which resulted in further allegations coming to our attention from both members of the public and staff who had worked at Charing Cross station. One of these matters regarded PC O’Connor and related to an off-duty incident in October 2024. IOPC Director of Engagement Amanda Rowe said: “We were all extremely concerned and appalled by some of the abhorrent conduct shown in the BBC documentary, particularly in light of our previous investigation into similar allegations at the same police station. “The public would expect that those responsible are rooted out swiftly and within days of the broadcast we decided there was incontrovertible evidence of gross misconduct and the officers should face accelerated proceedings to enable the Met to dismiss them. “Those officers, which include three who held supervisory roles as sergeants, have been barred from working in policing again. “But our investigation didn’t end there. “A dedicated team of investigators have subsequently worked through a significant amount of additional footage, as well as new information that came in as a result of appeals, to ensure that our investigation is as thorough and robust as possible, and that quick action is taken to hold those involved accountable. “This has resulted in investigations into 30 police officers and staff. Fifteen have already faced accelerated misconduct hearings with all but one barred from policing. “This is one of our largest ever investigations in terms of the number of officers investigated, and the sheer number of fast-tracked disciplinary proceedings show how seriously the IOPC and the Met, who held the misconduct hearings, are treating this matter.” Eight active investigations continue to be progressed, including two officers who are under criminal investigation. One relates to officers allegedly perverting the course of justice and the other relates to the alleged use of excessive force. We recently completed a criminal investigation into a third officer potentially perverting the course of justice and we decided not to refer the matter to the Crown Prosecution Service for a charging decision. The same officer has already been dismissed and placed on the barred list as part of our Charing Cross investigation, which related to discriminatory and Islamophobic comments that were recorded. Alongside the criminal matters, investigations continue into the conduct of 15 officers or police staff. All except one - a British Transport Police constable - work for the Met. One of these, a designated detention officer based at Charing Cross custody suite, is due to face a gross misconduct hearing on 25 September over comments that were recorded regarding the treatment of people detained in custody. *Below are the 15 officers who have faced accelerated misconduct proceedings. All officers were found to have committed gross misconduct and all except one officer - former PC Sharkey - have been placed on police’s barred list:
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