Thames Valley: Officer Dismissed

8 September 2014, 16:11 | Updated: 8 September 2014, 16:14

A detective inspector who harassed and made inappropriate comments to a member of police staff has been dismissed for gross misconduct.

Kevin Elkins left Thames Valley Police following a misconduct hearing chaired by the force's assistant chief constable last Thursday.

The former police officer had been working in Force Crime but was suspended at the time of the hearing, and was dismissed with immediate effect for a number of breaches which were proven against him, a police spokesman said.

Deputy Chief Constable Francis Habgood said: "The actions of Mr Elkins fell well short of the standard of conduct and behaviour we expect from officers and staff working for Thames Valley Police.

"The harassment was over a period of time and included text messages and inappropriate comments being made to the complainant.

"It takes a significant amount of courage for people to come forward and make a complaint against someone they work with.

"I hope this will send out a clear message to all at Thames Valley Police that they will be listened to and action will be taken if they witness inappropriate behaviour at work.''

Mr Elkins has 10 working days from receipt of his dismissal notice to appeal against the decision, a force spokesman said.