Chief Constable used corporate credit card for £1,000 flowers

Sean Price, who is currently suspended from his role at Cleveland Police, spent £3,000 in the upmarket town of Yarm, largely on restaurant bills, as more than £55,000 in total was spent on his corporate credit card over a five-year period.

Just over half the total was spent on hotel stays, with around £7,000 spent on restaurants.

Another £1,350 was spent in one purchase from a furniture supplier while smaller-scale spending was also recorded with the likes of John Lewis, Argos, Marks & Spencer and outdoor clothing and equipment supplier Nevisport.

Spending on the card is forming part of an ongoing police inquiry into a range of allegations surrounding Cleveland Police Authority and the Cleveland force. Any wrongdoing identified could result in either misconduct or potential criminal charges against Mr Price.

A law firm representing Mr Price, who lives in North Yorkshire, said he was unable to comment on the details of the spending while investigations continued. But the firm added he “strongly refutes any wrongdoing” and “all transactions/purchases were made in support of his role as chief constable.”

The Yorkshire Post has previously revealed that former Cleveland Police Authority chairman Dave McLuckie ran up restaurant bills on his corporate credit card totalling more than £4,000 with one bill running to £767.53, two topping £300 and five more above £200.

Mr Price’s credit card records show he bought flowers on 30 separate occasions with payments ranging between £20 and £98. Most of them were bought between 2007 and 2009.

Domestic hotel bills were as high as £819.72. One of the bills – £539.18 – was for Mr Price’s attendance at the Liverpool Lord Mayor’s parade on a Saturday in June 2008.

Mr Price previously worked for Merseyside Police but left in 1998. It is unclear why he attended the event or stayed overnight.

Cleveland Police Authority has declined to comment on any recorded explanations which may have been provided for spending on the credit card.

The Yorkshire Post has previously revealed how more than £30,000 was spent on two trips to the US and one to Estonia, all of which involved Mr Price and Coun McLuckie. Two also included the chief constable’s former staff officer, Heather Eastwood, who subsequently became his partner and the authority’s former deputy chief executive Julie Leng.

Mr Price’s credit card records show significant chunks of that spending were paid for on his card, including three transactions with Dial-A-Flight for £4,784.48, £3,537.85 and £3,788.36. Hotel bills running to £3,300 for one of the US trips are also recorded.

The Yorkshire Post obtained the spending records after protracted exchanges with the police authority following a Freedom of Information request. Some of the detail was ultimately redacted but most of the spending is clearly defined.

Mr Price and Coun McLuckie are among a clutch of senior officials connected to Cleveland Police and its police authority currently under an investigation run by Keith Bristow, head of the new National Crime Agency. Operation Sacristy is largely staffed by North Yorkshire Police. The chief constable was suspended last August after being arrested.

A spokesman for Operation Sacristy said: “We are not prepared to comment on any detail at this time as misconduct and criminal investigations are ongoing.”

A Police Authority spokeswoman said: “A comprehensive review of all governance processes is underway and many changes have already been made to ensure that such issues do not arise again.

“The Authority tasked its Auditors to carry out an independent review of the use of credit cards and the results of this have been published and are in the process of being implemented. The number of credit cards in use has been vastly reduced.

“In addition the Force has set up an Integrity Board to ensure the recommendations of the HM Inspectorate of Constabulary Report, ‘Without Fear of Favour’, are implemented in force. One of the issues that this is looking at is the use of corporate credit cards.”