Policeman sacked for posting Facebook insults about colleague

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said the 35-year-old Metropolitan Police constable, who was based in Islington Borough, posted comments on Facebook last Friday referring to another officer as a “grass” and a “liar” and using deeply offensive language.

In a statement, the IPCC said the officer had also been involved in a brief, casual relationship with a colleague which ended acrimoniously in April last year. The statement continued: “He sent the woman a series of abusive text messages and subjected her to verbal abuse and threats.

“On one occasion, when both officers were off-duty, a member of the public was so concerned about the male officer’s behaviour that he followed them off a bus and intervened when he saw the male officer smashing up a bin in the street. The male officer then verbally threatened the member of the public.”

Both cases were investigated by the Metropolitan Police’s professional standards directorate under the management of the IPCC. A report was submitted to the Crown Prosecution Service, which decided there should be no criminal proceedings.

The case went before a Metropolitan Police gross misconduct hearing which concluded the officer was guilty of “discreditable conduct and failing to meet police conduct standards of respect and courtesy”.

IPCC commissioner Rachel Cerfontyne said: “I am pleased that the Met’s misconduct panel clearly shared our view that this sort of person does not belong in the police service.”