A watchdog report investigated…
Over 300 police officers have been accused of using their position to sexually exploit people, this also includes victims of crime.
Abuse of authority for sexual gain has now become the “most serious” form of corruption facing police across England and Wales, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary said.
Watchdog gathered figures over two years to the end of March.
The watchdog was asked to investigate the extent of the problem earlier this year when Theresa May was home secretary.
A total of 306 officers, 20 PCSOs and eight police staff were involved in 436 reported allegations.
The data showed that all but one constabulary had received at least one allegation, 40 per cent of these accusations were made by victims of domestic abuse.
Others who were allegedly exploited included arrested suspects and people with drug and alcohol problems.
HM Inspector Mike Cunningham, who led the review told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Make no mistake about it, the sexual exploitation of vulnerable women is corruption. It is using authority for personal gain, which is a definition of corruption.”
“It is the most serious corruption problem in the sense that it is the ultimate betrayal of trust, where the guardian becomes the abuser. That is what we are seeing in these cases, and we’re seeing too many.”
“The allegations that we collected across the country are not closed allegations, they’re not confirmed or finalised allegations but nevertheless they are allegations.”
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