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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Anthony France and Ross Lydall

Met Police officer who hired prostitutes can stay in role hiring women into force

A high-flying Scotland Yard officer who was allowed to keep his job despite using prostitutes will face no further action, it has emerged.

In May, the Standard revealed the man has a key role helping to recruit women to the Metropolitan Police.

Lib Dem London Assembly member Caroline Pidgeon asked Mayor Sadiq Khan whether he would be reviewing the case, highlighting that junior officers are routinely sacked for similar activities.

Mr Khan replied that due to the investigation being finalised, it is not possible to re-open disciplinary procedures unless new information comes to light.

Ms Pidgeon said on Wednesday: “It is unbelievable that an officer who has engaged in such serious misconduct is still in post, in a role with a responsibility to recruit more women into the Met.

Caroline Pidgeon, a Liberal Democrat member of the London Assembly (Liberal Democrats)

“Processes need to be changed to allow the Met to revisit the decisions of previous disciplinary processes in light of recent scandals that have rocked the service.

“Women need to be able to be confident the Met is there for them and that it is a safe working environment for a career. Unresolved issues like this seriously undermine that confidence.”

Payments of hundreds of pounds to sex workers by the unnamed middle-aged officer were uncovered when anti-corruption officers from the force’s professional standards unit seized his phone over an unrelated matter, which was later dropped.

Instead of going before a gross misconduct board where he could have been sacked, he was given “words of advice”, the lowest form of censure.

He kept his job in 2019 after agreeing to treatment for sex addiction.

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