Wiltshire Police officer dismissed for gross misconduct

PC Joshua Harper shared inappropriate material with a member of the public

Author: Faye TryhornPublished 17th Dec 2024

A Wiltshire Police officer has been sacked for gross misconduct, following a hearing at the county force's HQ.

A panel, chaired by Chief Constable Catherine Roper, found PC Joshua Harper breached Professional Standards and has been dismissed without notice.

Four allegations against PC Harper were considered, with the chair upholding two of them.

PC Harper will also be placed on the national barred list which means he will not be able to work in policing in the future.

Deputy Chief Constable Mark Cooper said: “The actions of PC Harper go against everything we stand for in policing.

"PC Harper shared inappropriate material with a member of the public for his own sexual gratification and, in the process undermined the trust that the public place in us to serve them according to the highest possible standards.

“We continue to act robustly where behaviour is reported to us that falls short of what our communities expect and deserve. We will not stop until we root out behaviours such as those displayed by PC Harper from our organisation. Only through doing this can we ensure that we maintain the highest standards of professional behaviour and build the trust and confidence of the communities we are here to serve.”

The officer has 10 working days to appeal the outcome.

Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.