- Thames Valley Police Constable Andrew Fairhurst texted a covert detective
- Panel found if he had not resigned on February 9 he would have been struck off
- Former traffic police officer was placed on College of Policing’s barred list
A policeman who sent sexual messages to a person he thought was a 13-year-old girl was found guilty of gross misconduct.
Thames Valley Police Constable Andrew Fairhurst was snared by a covert detective posing as a schoolgirl who he spoke to about kissing techniques and being naked in bed with her.
Fairhurst quit the force on February 9 after the revelations about his behaviour came out, but a force misconduct meeting on Wednesday found he had been in breach of Standards of Professional Behaviour in respect of Discreditable Conduct.
The panel ruled that his offences amounted to gross misconduct and Fairhurst would have been sacked without notice had he not previously resigned.
The former traffic police officer was instead placed on the College of Policing’s barred list.
Thames Valley Police Constable Andrew Fairhurst was snared by a covert detective posing as a schoolgirl who he spoke to about kissing techniques and being naked in bed with her (pictured: Thames Valley Police HQ)
A Special Case misconduct hearing, chaired by the Thames Valley Police Chief Constable Francis Habgood at Thames Valley Police Headquarters, revealed that Fairhurst engaged in inappropriate sexualised conversations with a person he believed was a teenage girl.
Mr Habgood said that police officers were there to serve the community and vulnerable people and that Fairhurst breached professional behaviour expected of him.
Deputy Chief Constable, John Campbell, said: ‘Former PC Fairhurst’s conduct fell far below the high standards expected of a police officer.
‘For the public to have confidence in the police it is vital officers uphold the professional standards expected of them whether on or off duty.’
The officer had previously been based at Taplow Roads Policing centre in Buckinghamshire and was originally arrested in January this year.
Advertisement