Met officers guilty over offensive Katie Price son messageson April 13, 2023 at 4:11 pm

Eight serving and former Metropolitan Police officers have been found guilty of gross misconduct over offensive messages shared in a WhatsApp group.

The “discriminatory and offensive” messages included some that made fun of Katie Price’s disabled son.

The seven men and one woman were found by a panel to have sent sexist, racist, homophobic and transphobic messages.

Daniel Hobbs, representing the force, called for all eight to be dismissed and placed on the police barred list.

Speaking at the hearing after the guilty rulings, Mr Hobbs said this should happen “as a priority”. This would mean they would never be able to work for the police again.

Two of the eight officers are still serving in the force, while the other six have resigned or already been dismissed. 

The panel is set to hand down its sanctions for each officer on Friday. 

The hearing concerned former Sgt Luke Thomas, former acting Sgt Luke Allen, former PC Kelsey Buchan, former PC Carlo Francisco, former PC Lee South, former PC Darren Jenner, PC Glynn Rees, and “Officer B”, who has been granted anonymity.

The panel found the eight officers had also failed to challenge other group members’ conduct.

Some of their messages, sent between May 2016 and June 2018, “applauded sexual violence against women”, the fifth day of the hearing in central London was told.

The panel heard that “Officer B” posted an edited photograph of Harvey Price in a chat, accompanied by a caption that had a “racist tone” and made fun of his disability.

Mr Price, 20, has Prader-Willi syndrome, autism and is partially-sighted.

Legal chairman of the panel Christopher McKay described the post as “inappropriate and offensive” to Mr Price, and said it had constituted “gross misconduct”.

He described gross misconduct as a “breach of the standards of professional behaviour that is so serious as to justify dismissal”.

TV presenter and model Ms Price previously described the messages as “disgusting”. In February, she posted a letter from the Met Police to her Instagram account, which informed her of the upcoming misconduct hearing.

Ex-PC Luke Thomas, the most senior-ranking officer in the group, “appears to have been one of the most active participants” in the WhatsApp group, the panel found.

Mr Thomas mocked Mr Price’s weight in some messages and called a junior female officer “ugly”.

He also joked he should name his dog “Auschwitz” or “Adolf”, or “Fred” or “Ian” after “my two favourite child sex killers”, the hearing was told.

Mr McKay said Mr Thomas’s failings were “extremely serious”.

“He could and should have closed the WhatsApp group as soon as the highly inappropriate nature of the messages became apparent.

“Instead he became one of its main contributors,” Mr McKay said.

The disabilities charity Mencap, for whom Mr Price is an ambassador, described the officers’ actions as “absolutely appalling”.

A charity spokesperson said the outcome of the hearing should “serve as a warning to those who turn a blind eye or, worse, partake in bullying”.

The hearing follows a string of high-profile scandals at the Metropolitan Police.

A year-long review into the force concluded last month that racism, misogyny, and homophobia were rife within the ranks.

Baroness Louise Casey was appointed to review the force’s culture and standards after the abduction, rape and murder of Sarah Everard by serving police officer Wayne Couzens, in 2021.

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