Two serving Metropolitan Police officers have been dismissed over discriminatory messages they sent to colleagues in a WhatsApp group, including some about Katie Price’s disabled son.
This comes after eight serving and former Metropolitan Police officers were found guilty of gross misconduct over “discriminatory and offensive” messages they shared, which included some that mocked Harvey Price.
Seven men and one woman were found to have sent sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic and disablist comments in a WhatsApp group called “Secret Squirrel Shit” between May 17, 2016 and June 26, 2018.
Legal chairman Christopher McKay described gross misconduct as a “breach of the standards of professional behaviour that is so serious as to justify dismissal”, during the fifth day of hearings at Palestra House in Southwark, central London, on Thursday.
Mr McKay found the officers committed gross misconduct over their own messages, as well as by “failing to challenge or report” others in the group.
The hearing concerned former sergeant Luke Thomas, former acting sergeant Luke Allen, former Pc Kelsey Buchan, former Pc Carlo Francisco, former Pc Lee South, former Pc Darren Jenner, Pc Glynn Rees, and Officer B, who has been granted anonymity. None of the officers attended the hearing.
Their messages included derogatory comments about Katie's 20-year-old son, who suffers from Prader–Willi syndrome and autism, and about a junior female officer, who's identity has been protected and was known in the hearings as Officer A.
Mr McKay said Officer B, posted an edited photograph of Harvey in the chat with the caption: “You’ve heard of elf on a shelf, now get ready for Harvey Price eating Uncle Ben’s basmati rice after trying to read three blind mice on spice, saying ‘hello you c***.”
The legal chairman said: “The rhyme has a racist tone and refers to his disability – he is partially sighted. There is no need to refer to Uncle Ben’s rice unless pointing to the racial origins of Uncle Ben and Harvey Price being similar. The words ‘trying to read’ also highlight his disability.”
Meanwhile, serving Pc Rees described an image of Harvey riding a child’s train as “genius”, which the panel found to be “obviously sarcastic” and “making fun of him behaving in a childlike manner because of his disability”.
Mr Thomas, the most senior-ranking officer in the group, “appears to have been one of the most active participants” in the WhatsApp group, the panel found.
Mr Thomas, who resigned in February, mocked Harvey’s weight in some messages, called Officer A “f****** ugly”, and joked that he should name his dog “Auschwitz”, “Adolf” or “Fred” or “Ian” after “my two favourite child sex killers”.
Mr McKay said: “Given his supervisory role as a sergeant, he failed to adequately supervise or guide his team in respect of conduct. His failings are extremely serious. He could and should have closed the WhatsApp group as soon as the highly inappropriate nature of the messages became apparent.
“Instead he became one of its main contributors. This was undoubtedly gross misconduct.”
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