A serving police officer who took a photograph of an 18-year-old woman's breasts and sent it to his friend has been found guilty of sexual assault.
PC Paul Hinchcliffe's victim said the picture of her chest left her so “self-conscious” that she had a boob job. Hinchcliffe, 46, denied the charge of sexual assault and claimed the woman 'consented' to the photograph, which he took on a work's night out in October 2020.
But he was found guilty by a jury after a trial at Leeds Crown Court on Tuesday (January 10). During the trial, jurors heard the incident took place during a work social event in a pub, where Hinchcliffe had first “simulated ejaculation” by flicking beer foam on her chest.
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And after taking a photo of the women’s face on his mobile phone and saying he was “going to have a w**k” to it, he went on to pull open her top and photograph her breasts, the court heard. Later, when the woman returned home and was "reduced to tears” following his advances, Hinchliffe texted her saying: “God I’d do you, is that bad?”
The jury heard a police interview where the woman said she had chosen to go ahead with a “boob job” knowing the photo of her chest was “circulating”. She said: “I was like so conscious of obviously the fact that people have been viewing a photo. To know there was a photo, that’s obviously kicked me into doing that so soon.
“I’d had a telephone appointment but I think I ended up getting a car on finance instead so it just got put to bed because I couldn’t afford it. It’s something I have always been self-conscious about but I think after this and knowing that there was a photo circulating - it’s quite embarrassing - I think that encouraged me more to have it so soon.”
Following the hearing, his honour judge Mairs thanked the jury for their service and ordered a probation report be made before his later sentencing. He told Hinchcliffe: "I don't know what I'm going to do with you. I will need a pre-sentence report from the probation service. That report may well be in your best interests."
The incident unfolded when Hinchcliffe, a training officer with South Yorkshire Police, was drinking in a pub in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, on October 3, 2020, with three other members of the force. Louise Reevell, prosecuting, said Hinchcliffe began flicking beer foam onto the woman's chest and down into her breasts while making “grunting” noises.
Ms Reevell told the court: “He said she had a 'good bum' and also took a picture of her in her glasses and then said, ‘I’m going to have a w**k to that tonight’. She tried not to acknowledge it and to move on, even though it was a bit weird.
"The defendant then flicked foam at [her]. Initially, it hit her glasses. But the defendant then began flicking bits of foam into her chest and down into her breasts and made grunting noises. He then pulled out his phone and took a photo down her top, saying he was going to send it to a friend as he would regret not coming.”
At another point in the evening, Hinchcliffe heard his victim mentioned she wanted to have breast enhancement because she had the 'breast of a 12-year-old' to which he commented she had the 'bum of a 12-year-old'. During his cross-examination, Hinchcliffe said he sent the photo to a pal called “Ian” as it was “funny”, adding the snap should be viewed within the “context” of the evening.
He said: “You have to put the photo in the context of when it was taken. I don’t think it was sexual. I took the photo to send to Ian because he said ‘Keep me updated with things’. I thought it was funny, he would find it funny.”
Jurors were told that when the woman later returned home, Hinchliffe sent her a text saying, “God I’d do you, is that bad?” to which the woman replied: "Yeah it is." He also sent her a message which was accompanied by a series of emojis that she took to represent masturbation.
Speaking about the message, Hinchcliffe said: “I wasn’t saying I was masturbating, which is a ridiculous thing in my mind anyway. I was saying she looked nice in the picture. When I sent the message to my friend before, it was funny, and I just meant she looked pretty. I was drunk. I didn’t fancy her. She was less than half my age.”
When Hinchcliffe was interviewed in April last year, his solicitor made a prepared statement saying the victim had consented to him taking the photo of her. He has been suspended from duties while an internal misconduct investigation is on hold pending the outcome of the criminal proceedings.
He will be sentenced before the same court following a probation report.
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