- Published
An ex-police sergeant who asked to share a female suspect's sex video with "the lads from footy" has been jailed for four years.
Former Cambridgeshire Police officer Paul Street, 41, engaged in "salacious gossip" with former PC Josh Williams after he found intimate pictures and footage on the woman's personal phone.
The Old Bailey heard how Street, of Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, created a "toxic" WhatsApp culture at work.
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Street → publish → work
He was found guilty of two charges of misconduct in a public office.
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He → find → office
Judge Mark Lucraft KC said: "The public should expect to be able to trust police officers to act fairly in the execution of their powers to prevent, detect and solve crime."
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public → say → crime
On Wednesday, the woman told of her "overwhelming sense of shock, violation, anger and humiliation" as Street was sentenced.
The court also heard Street encouraged colleagues in WhatsApp messages to "bully" a teenage detainee.
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Street → tell → detainee
Street admitted two offences of unlawful disclosure of personal data relating to confidential information and screenshots he sent to his partner in 2020.
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he → admit → 2020
During sentencing, the judge described his actions as "both appalling and inexplicable", adding: "I am sure there will be many thousands of officers in police forces in this country and abroad utterly horrified by your actions and by the attitude you have each displayed here."
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you → describe → attitude
Lucraft noted the "collateral impact" of Street's offending, with 67 cases he was connected with being discontinued - and a further 14 now under review.
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he → note → review
Williams, 38, also of Huntingdon, who admitted misconduct in public office, was handed a 16-month prison sentence.
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who → admit → sentence
Street had appeared in television crime shows on the BBC and Channel 4 and was known for getting "impressive results" through his "robust" style.
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Street → appear → style
However, in November 2021, an anti-corruption team seized his mobile phones for examination as part of an audit of Cambridgeshire officers and staff.
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team → seize → officers
The offences were committed while he was leading a unit at Cambourne police station, dealing mainly with county lines and organised crime.
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he → commit → lines
During the trial, prosecutor Anne Whyte KC described how Street created a "toxic culture" which led to investigations into 11 other officers.
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which → describe → officers
In April 2020, Street called on his team to "bully" a 17-year-old detainee, encouraging them to "please hit him" and "smash his head in".
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Street → call → head
In the autumn of 2020, Williams was tasked with examining the phone of a female suspect he told Street was "quite fit".
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he → task → Street
Street asked him if there were "any nudes", and Williams replied there was a video of the woman committing a sexual act.
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woman → ask → act
Williams went on to send Street a photo from the woman's phone.
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Williams → go → phone
The following year, Street asked on WhatsApp if Williams still had the intimate private video because he wanted to show it to "the lads from footy".
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he → ask → footy
Reading her victim personal statement in court, the woman said: "The photographs and videos on my phone were deeply private and intimate.
"
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photographs → read → phone
Learning that people in positions of authority deliberately accessed and circulated these images has left me feeling exposed, degraded and powerless."
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people → learn → me
Mitigating, Jennifer Dempster KC said Street "enormously regrets his behaviour", adding: "He recognises he has not only let the public down, he has let the police down and he has let his family down."
For Williams, Robert Morris said: "He recognises what he did was deeply inappropriate, driven by misguided and stupid desire to engage in salacious gossip."
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did → mitigate → gossip
Senior specialist prosecutor Lisa Rose, from the CPS, said: "Police officers are entrusted with significant powers and are expected to uphold the highest standards at all times.
"
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officers → say → times
The actions of Paul Street and Joshua Williams represented a serious breach of that trust."
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actions → represent → trust
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