It was what he was “meant to do”. To be part of the thin blue line protecting communities. He saw it as a job for life. But his trust in his own force was shattered after claims they failed to investigate his allegations that he was the victim of years of child abuse.
The GMP police officer, whose identity has been kept anonymous, retired from the force in 2020 – primarily on the grounds of his fragile mental health. He blames the force’s treatment of him, and the alleged flawed handling of his case for his condition, which continues to deteriorate.
The officer has revealed to the Manchester Evening News that he disclosed to a detective details of the abuse when he was a boy – including alleged attempted rape – in 2016.
But he alleges nothing was ever done, and no crime was ever recorded. In an email seen by the M.E.N, the detective later told the officer that due to the fact he hadn’t heard any more about the investigation, they could ‘only presume that a crime was never recorded.’
In another email, the same detective admitted taking their log book home, in which the officer’s statement was written, in what is alleged to be a breach of data protection laws – and is now being investigated.
GMP has now apologised to the officer after being contacted by the MEN.
The police officer initially complained to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) about his dissatisfaction with a failure to report a crime and possible concerns regarding data protection. But in a decision seen by the M.E.N, the IOPC said the complaint warranted internal investigation by GMP’s Professional Standards Directorate.
In response the PSD sent him a letter in April this year saying that under the Police Reform Act 2002 and the IOPC’s Statutory Guidance on the Police Complaints System they were “unable to record you as a complainant”.
The letter says that this is because under regulations “A person cannot make a complaint if: At the time of the alleged conduct they were under the direction and control of the same chief officer as the person whose conduct it was.”
The letter says the officer’s complaint has been reviewed by a Professional Standards Detective Inspector, and the Complaints Manager, but adds that as the officer who the complaint is about has left the force “this makes it very difficult to progress any further.”
It urges him to report the crime “via 101 or the online reporting system” adding “I appreciate going over the circumstances of the crime may be distressing however the crime should be reported so that we have a log on the system should at any stage you wish to pursue the crime further.”
Regarding his concerns about the possibility of missing day books it suggests he should report this to the data protection team online.
The officer, who worked for GMP for nearly two decades after joining as a teenager, suffered a breakdown in his 20s and was encouraged by the force to see a therapist. During those sessions he spoke of the alleged abuse and he was encouraged to report it formally to police.
He spent time in a mental health care facility which GMP approved and was diagnosed with trauma, depression, post traumatic stress disorder with the alleged abuse recognised as the underlying cause. He claims he reported the historic abuse to a detective.
“Something just clicked and it took a lot guts to do it. The detective said ‘leave it with me and we will see where we go with it’. They said because of the type of crime it was it would not be appropriate to be dealt with on division. I said okay, I will leave it in your hands let me know what will happen next.
“The detective said I had done the right thing and there were other officers in the room. The detective said they would speak to their Detective Inspector.”
The officer claims he later asked the detective for a crime number for his reporting of the abuse so he could submit a claim to the criminal injuries board. “I tried to find it myself but there was nothing recorded, I assumed it may have ben sanitised because of the nature of the crime and was therefore not readily accessible.
“The detective told me they had referred it to a senior colleague who was going to refer it to the Serious Sexual Offending Unit. I had given the initial statement because I wanted to get it out, and thought it might lead to a further video interview.”
The officer to whom the detective passed the case has since left the police.
The officer is now seeking a judicial review in a bid to get a test case heard so that the law might be changed regarding complaints against police officers in serious cases and that the statute bar for victims to seek legal compensation isn’t up after three years.
He believes his case was handled in a flawed way has because he is a male and that attitudes towards men reporting sexual abuse are still treated like ‘its the 1990s’. He is in discussions with survivors support groups about the issue to try and get the judicial review launched in the high court.
“I am now seeking compensation for the emotional turmoil and the loss of my career. All I ever knew was that job. It was who I was. I can’t over the fact of what they have done. I had envisaged doing the job until the day of my retirement. I have been battered in the job, run over. But when I left there were no goodbyes – just an email asking me to return my warrant card.”
“Nothing has happened regarding my own complaint. I had lost my trust of my own force. I felt betrayed by the way they had handled my complaint (regarding the abuse).
‘It’s totally unacceptable’
Detective Chief Superintendent Mike Allen said, “This individual has clearly been through a terrible ordeal. The way he has been treated is totally unacceptable and not how a staff member, nor any victim of crime, should be treated.
“We have been in contact with the victim so that we can now begin the process of investigating his disclosure. He will be offered the support and care he should have received when he first came forward. This support will remain on offer whether he chooses to continue with an investigation into the offences he has reported, or not.
“We have also made a report to our Information Management branch in relation to the data protection allegations raised by the victim.
“I want to thank the victim for continuing to pursue this matter and bringing it to our attention. I want to provide assurances that we are committed to doing right by him both now and in the future.”
Reporting that officers failed to handle and or investigate a report of child sexual abuse could be a serious breach of the standards of professional behaviour and therefore a matter for investigation.
In most instances though, once an officer has retired or resigned and they have left over 12 months ago there can be no disciplinary proceedings as they are not in employment. It is only in the most serious and sensitive cases such as Hillsborough, that disciplinary proceedings have reach after the officer has been retired or has resigned over 12 months ago. This is law, so therefore a national process, not unique to GMP.