Shamed: 40 Yorkshire police staff sacked for crime and misconduct

The officer, who has not been named, was one of more than 40 police officers and staff to have been sacked in Yorkshire and the Humber over the last 17 months for a variety of criminal offences and misconduct issues.

At West Yorkshire Police, an officer was dismissed for visiting a "gambling establishment" – while on duty and off sick – and another was relieved of their duties for involving themselves in "practices and procedures" concerning housing benefits that may have been dishonest, and having unapproved business interests.

Another was sacked for being involved in "domestic incidents" in their private life after previously being warned about it.

Five staff were sacked from the force, one for failing to attend work, one for being involved in an off-duty assault, and another for "inappropriate behaviour" towards a colleague and a member of the public.

Of the four community support officers who were dismissed, one had used police computers for personal use and two behaved inappropriately towards colleagues and the public.

A force spokesman said: "Sadly there are occasions when a minority of officers or staff fall below what is expected of them.

"In such cases we will not tolerate any form of wrong-doing and when appropriate will go so far as to take matters to court, as well as through our own internal disciplinary procedures."

South Yorkshire Police sacked five officers, four staff and the PCSO who lied about the illness.

A member of staff was sacked for being drunk at work, and another for drink-driving and making an application for a loan using relatives' details.

An officer was sacked over their conduct in an incident involving criminal damage.

The force's deputy chief constable, Bob Dyson, said: "South Yorkshire Police takes all instances of misconduct seriously and will take appropriate action having regard to the individual circumstances of each case."

In Humberside, an officer was dismissed for associating with known criminals and another for inappropriate conduct towards the public.

Two members of staff got their marching orders – one for drink-driving and the other for misuse of a computer. A community support officer was sacked for an off-duty assault.

Humberside Police's deputy chief constable, David Griffin, said: "All allegations of misconduct by police officers and staff are treated with the highest degree of seriousness and are investigated rigorously."

One officer was sacked during the period in North Yorkshire for a range of issues, including disobeying orders, discreditable conduct and questions surrounding the officer's integrity.

Two PCSOs were thrown out of the force; one for poor performance and the other for misconduct.

The force also dismissed 10 staff – six for misconduct, two for poor performance and two during their probation period.

Its head of professional standards, Steve Read, said: "It is absolutely essential that officers and staff of North Yorkshire Police conduct themselves to the very highest standards in order to maintain the integrity and professionalism of policing as well as engender public confidence in the police service."

In January, a "stunningly successful" former Humberside Police detective was jailed for 15 months after he was caught taking cocaine.

Andrew Watts, 27, who once had the highest arrest rate for an officer in Hull, was seen snorting the drug with three dealers on several occasions in 2008. He had also accessed a CID database to read intelligence reports on five drug-dealing friends.

And last December, Lee Rackham, 33, got a five-year sentence after he was convicted of attempting to rape a woman while on duty, and committing two sexual assaults on other women while he was a serving officer with the same force.