Officers jailed as Met appalled at disgusting messages.

A serving Met officer and a former Met officer have yesterday (Wednesday, 2 November) been sentenced for communication offences.

Commander Jon Savell, from Professionalism, said: “I speak for all of the Met when I say I’m appalled at the disgusting messages.

“I am deeply sorry these officers have let down the public, and their Met colleagues, with their vile language and behaviour. We welcome the sentence and it should serve as a reminder that we will investigate and work with the IOPC and CPS to prosecute any of our officers who break the law in this way.

“Our officers swear an oath to accord all people respect and we demand the highest standards of conduct from them. Those who corrupt us with unacceptable attitudes, language, and prejudices will be sought out and dealt with in the strongest possible terms.”

PC Jonathon Cobban, 35, attached to the West Area Command Unit, was found guilty of three counts of sending grossly offensive messages on a public communications network contrary to S127 of the Communications Act 2003. He was sentenced to 12 weeks’ imprisonment.

Former PC Joel Borders, 46, previously attached to West Area Command Unit, was found guilty of five counts of sending grossly offensive messages on a public communications network contrary to S127 of the Communications Act 2003. He was also sentenced to 12 weeks’ imprisonment.

Both have been bailed ahead of an appeal.

They had been charged with sending the messages in 2019 following an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

Following discussions with the IOPC and Crown Prosecution Service, misconduct hearings were not heard before criminal proceedings had concluded in order to preserve the integrity of the criminal case.

Now that criminal proceedings have concluded, the MPS is progressing internal misconduct proceedings without delay on behalf of themselves and other forces.

As Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley has outlined, work is ongoing to improve standards, and build trust and confidence in the Met once more. As part of this, there are plans to recruit more than 100 officers to the Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards.

We engaged with the IOPC throughout their investigation and thank them and the Crown Prosecution Service for their parts in bringing these officers to justice.

Cobban was found not guilty of two counts of sending grossly offensive messages on a public communications network contrary to S127 of the Communications Act 2003.

+ PC William Neville, 34, who was attached to the South West Command Unit but resigned in October, was found not guilty of two counts of sending grossly offensive messages on a public communications network contrary to S127 of the Communications Act 2003.

The Met will now progress misconduct proceedings for six officers without delay. These include Met officers PC Jonathon Cobban and former PC Joel Borders, who were convicted, and former PC William Neville, who was found not guilty. The proceedings will also include officers who were not subject to criminal proceedings; a Met PC, an officer from Norfolk Constabulary and an officer from the Civil Nuclear Constabulary.

They have agreed to hold what is known as a standard track gross misconduct hearing following careful discussions with the other forces and the IOPC. The officers are subject to different police conduct regulations due to their varying circumstances in terms of convictions and work status and this means they can all be dealt with in one hearing as swiftly as possible.