Officer admits neglecting duties

Matthew Turner deliberately failed to log incidents

A policeman who threw away details of more than 14 crimes and invented excuses as to why they should not be investigated is facing jail.

Matthew Turner carried out the shirking campaign at Falkirk Police Station between November 2004 and August 2005.

Turner, 30, pleaded guilty to 14 charges of wilful neglect of duty at Falkirk Sheriff Court on Friday.

Among the crimes he failed to investigate were two assaults, three thefts and eight vandalisms.

The court heard when members of the public phoned up or dropped in to report crimes, Turner, of Fallin, near Stirling, deliberately failed to log the incidents in the force's Crimefile computer system.

The public and the communities we serve must have faith in the service delivered by its police force and for that reason, Central Scotland Police places the highest priority on professional standards and integrity Dep Ch Con Colin Mather

He made no reasonable enquiries to trace those responsible and lied repeatedly to other officers to get incidents on his caseload recorded as "disposed of", the court also heard.

On one occassion, when he detained a man on suspicion of commiting vandalism at a pub in Falkirk's Bank Street, he released the man without charge and failed to report the matter to the procurator fiscal.

He then lied to colleagues telling them the damage was an accident and the man was going to pay for it.

On another occassion he lied to colleagues in two cases of serious assault, falsely stating the alleged victims had not been seriously hurt and did not want to make a complaint.

The offences came to light when he changed shifts and his new supervisor became suspicious about the fall in crime figures since Turner's arrival.

A routine audit by Central Scotland Police's professional standards department also noticed that a high number of crimes investigated by Turner ended being marked as "no crime".

Turner was suspended from duty in 2005 and first appeared at Falkirk Sheriff Court in August 2006 before he resigned from the force.

'Breached standards'

Sheriff William Gallacher deferred sentence on Friday for social background reports and an assessment of his suitability to carry out community service as an alternative to prison.

He told Turner: "The charges before me today are of a serious nature and before I can deal with you I need to have the fullest available information."

Speaking afterwards Dep Ch Con Colin Mather said: "The public and the communities we serve must have faith in the service delivered by its police force and for that reason, Central Scotland Police places the highest priority on professional standards and integrity.

"This case came to light as a result of the pro-active work being undertaken in the force to ensure that those professional standards are as high as they can be."

He added: "Any breach of those standards is treated extremely seriously by the force as it has the potential for damaging the good work being carried out by the vast majority of officers."