A gross misconduct hearing has concluded that the behaviour of a former Wiltshire Police officer amounted to gross misconduct.
The hearing, held at Wiltshire Police Headquarters between 3 and 4 September and chaired by Assistant Chief Constable Deb Smith, concluded that the actions of former PC Stephen Yeates breached the Standards of Professional Behaviour for police officers for authority, respect and courtesy and equality and diversity.
In February 2024, whilst off duty, PC Yeates met an individual online through a mobile dating application, and then over the course of around a week, sent a video clip which was found to be offensive and acted in a sexually inappropriate manner toward them, both in person and via messages, which was unwanted.
The panel considered one allegation broken down into 24 points, with 20 found proven against former PC Yeates, who resigned in August 2024. Had he not resigned, he would have been dismissed without notice. He has also been placed on the barred and advisory list.
Deputy Chief Constable Craig Dibdin said: “The behaviour displayed by former PC Yeates falls short of the very high standards we expect of both officers and staff, on and off duty. We are extremely grateful to the witness in this case who assisted us with our investigation into his behaviour.
“I would like to underline the importance of officers upholding high standards of behaviour at all times and would urge members of our communities to report any concerns where they believe behaviour of our officers and staff has fallen short.”
In line with the Police Conduct regulations 2020, the officer has a period of 10 working days to appeal the outcome.
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