Gross misconduct found against Greater Manchester Police detention officer who sent inappropriate messages to woman

A Greater Manchester Police (GMP) custody detention officer (CDO) who sent unsolicited sexualised photographs, videos and inappropriate messages to a woman has been dismissed without notice following an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). 

At a one-day hearing held on Friday (29 May), the staff member was found to have breached the police standards of professional behaviour relating to honesty and integrity; authority, respect and courtesy; instructions; and discreditable conduct. He will now be placed on the barred list meaning he cannot work in policing again.

Our independent investigation, which followed a referral from GMP, relating to allegations of sexual harassment, found evidence the detention officer repeatedly sent the woman messages of a sexual nature which included photographs and videos.

At the end of our investigation in October 2025, we found he had a case to answer for gross misconduct and GMP subsequently arranged disciplinary proceedings.

IOPC Director Amanda Rowe said:

“The staff member’s actions were an abuse of his position and also seriously risks damaging the public’s confidence in policing. 

“His contact with a woman he met while on duty was entirely inappropriate and such behaviour has no place in policing.

“It is vital that those who experience or witness inappropriate behaviour by police officers feel confident to report it and this case should send a clear message that those concerns will be taken seriously by the IOPC and by police forces.”

In May 2024, the woman attended the custody suite at Bolton Police Station to act as an appropriate adult for a child. She made several attempts to report the behaviour of the detention officer over the following weeks and we received a complaint referral from the force on 13 July.

Our investigation, which was independent of the police, found evidence showed the staff member sent pictures of himself in uniform while at work and an image of his penis to the woman.

In interview, he admitted to investigators that he exchanged phone numbers with the woman and that the messages got “a bit sexual”.

We did not find any evidence to support a number of other allegations against him, including that he used police systems to obtain the woman’s number, and that he had touched her inappropriately.

At the end of our investigation we referred the case to the Crown Prosecution Service, which decided not to charge him with any offence.