A senior police executive who had a raunchy affair with an administrative assistant has been allowed to keep his job after two investigations into his conduct.
John Purcell (pictured) will keep his job at WA Police after a second investigation into his behaviour after it emerged he had affair with an administrative assistant
John Purcell, 64, was the assistant director of the Office of Information Management at WA Police when he had an affair with Sarah Colja, 31, from 2011 to 2016.
Ms Colja was a 21-year-old university student at the time while Mr Purcell was in his 50s and in a relationship with another WA Police employee.
Mr Purcell was demoted after an email audit found more than 23,700 personal emails between the pair – as well as a dozen explicit photos of Ms Colja ‘nude, semi-nude or wearing only underwear’.
A second investigation was launched after Ms Colja alleged they would have sex at work, which led to the birth of their daughter, who is now four years old.
But on Friday, it was revealed Mr Purcell will remain employed by WA Police after the follow-up investigation concluded.
Sarah Colja (pictured) was a 21-year-old university student at the time of the affair while Mr Purcell was in his 50s and in a relationship with another WA Police employee
A WA Police spokeswoman said ‘the fresh investigation into Mr Purcell’ has ‘now been completed’ but ‘no further action will be taken’ against him.
Mr Purcell is ‘currently on personal leave’ but ‘still employed by the WA Police Force’, according to the spokeswoman.
The father-of-four, who is now married, previously tried to appeal his demotion but was rejected by the WA Industrial Relations Commission.
Mr Purcell was demoted from a senior position at the Office of Information Management to a more junior role in the Vehicle Impounding Unit.
Coincidentally, Ms Colja was also moved to the the Vehicle Impound Unit after news of their affair broke, although she no longer works there.
But it appears Mr Purcell, who is not a sworn officer, is no longer working in the Vehicle Impounding Unit after the second investigation.
A colleague from the unit said ‘he doesn’t work here anymore’, according to The West Australian.
WA Police refused to disclose which department Mr Purcell has been moved to.
Ms Colja is pictured with her daughter, who she shares with Mr Purcell. She said her daughter was conceived after she had sex with Mr Purcell in a Maylands park
A WA Police spokeswoman said ‘the fresh investigation into Mr Purcell’ has ‘now been completed’ but ‘no further action will be taken’ against him. He is currently on personal leave
Police Minister Michelle Roberts said Mr Purcell’s demotion ‘should send a strong message to the workforce that this sort of conduct will be dealt with more harshly’.
‘I like many, was disgusted at his behaviour and agreed with the Industrial Relations Commission’s findings that Mr Purcell was shown considerable leniency in being allowed to keep his job,’ Ms Roberts told The West Australian.
Daily Mail Australia understands Ms Colja has signed a magazine deal in the UK and is unable to speak about the situation to media.
Now a single mum, she previously released other details of the ‘f***ed up and toxic’ five-year affair, saying she wanted to show other women they were ‘more than just another name’.
‘Looking back and having grown up, I do realise his position of power did have a big play in how he could manipulate the situation. I was treated like crap for being in love, all while trying to create a career for myself,’ she told Daily Mail Australia.
‘Enough people knew about it, especially the higher-ups in his circle, that I was known as the ”hussy” at work. And him being in the position of power he was, he had the power to move me to different floors or offices.’
Ms Colja was moved from the Office of Information Management to the Vehicle Impound Unit, which is coincidentally where Mr Purcell was demoted to, although neither of them work there any longer
Soon after Ms Colja began working for the force she was granted access to Mr Purcell’s office so the pair could have sex during their work day.
His partner – who is now his wife – worked next door during their midday romps.
‘We were acting like young teenagers – making out in cars and all that,’ Ms Colja said.
They used their work emails to arrange secret meet-ups.
Ms Colja would also send explicit photos of herself to Mr Purcell’s work email to avoid his partner from finding out about their relationship.
She said she fell in love with Mr Purcell and at the time believed he was also in love with her.
‘I thought that somebody in his position must be a good person. I believed him in a lot of ways because he was older.
‘Looking back, I don’t know if he was in love with me or if he was going through a mid-life crisis.’
Ms Colja, 31, (pictured) described the relationship with Mr Purcell, who was her boss and more than 30 years her senior, as ‘f***ed up and toxic’
The affair continued from 2013 to 2016, even after Ms Colja left the force.
She went on to list the Perth parks where they had sex, even using a Maylands park on the day their young daughter was conceived.
But after years of sneaking around, the relationship turned sour.
Ms Colja, now 31, said it was when she told him she was pregnant that the relationship fell apart.
Mr Purcell has no relationship with the couple’s four-year-old daughter, Ms Colja said.
Ms Colja, who has a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications, has struggled to secure work in the aftermath of the affair.
She now suffers from panic attacks while in office environments.
Mr Purcell (pictured) has slid down the WA Police Force’s ranks after an internal audit uncovered a scandalous affair with a younger colleague