Two British police officers are sacked after lying about how hard they searched for a man seen walking on a dual carriageway who was later run down and killed

The independent panel, headed by Neil Dalton, found the officers' actions in relation to the search for Mr Brooks amounted to misconduct.

And the officers' response to the allegations, which included statements that were determined to be false, amounted to gross misconduct, the panel ruled.

Both officers were dismissed with immediate effect.

Speaking after the hearing, director of support services at Essex and Kent Police Mark Gilmartin said the pair were dismissed because they lied.

He said: 'These officers responded to a call and carried out a search but failed to find a man reported to be walking on one of the main roads.

'The panel heard strong evidence of the officers' previous exemplary records and were left in no doubt that they were highly regarded by their line managers and peers.

'They have been dismissed because they were found to have lied.

'They were shown not to have followed the fundamental values expected of officers to maintain public confidence in policing.

'To maintain the highest standards, the panel believed dismissal without notice was the most appropriate sanction.'

Mr Brooks father Robert, 59, of Harlow, said he wanted the pair to face prosecution.

He said: 'It's not going to bring my son back, so to be honest I couldn't give a monkeys if they got the sack or not.

'It's just a shame that's the worst that could happen to them, I would like to see them both go to prison.

'I don't know if I'm going to seek a prosecution, but I'm going to take legal advice.'

Mr Brooks added: 'As a family it's all come back up again. I knew it was coming months ago but it's a nightmare for me.

'For the two police officers to stand up and physically lie, what does that say about our police force?

'At the end of the day right or wrong if they'd done their job properly or reacted differently my son could still be alive today. But I don't know if that's ever be the case no one will ever know that.

'I can't change what happened and I've got no sympathy for them losing their jobs.'

Mr Brooks also paid tribute to his son, calling him 'a son any parent would be proud of'.

He said: 'My son was a very popular young man. He's a son any parent would be proud of. In 28 years of his life I never heard a bad word said about him from anybody.  'Anyone who knows him or has ever met him would say the same as me. The kid was a one off.'

Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), Commissioner Mary Cunneen, said: 'The death of Kyle Brooks on the A12 in October 2014 was a tragedy and our thoughts remain with his family and friends.

'We conducted a thorough, independent investigation into the handling of three separate emergency calls from members of the public to Essex Police prior to Mr Brooks' death.

'Our investigation found evidence to suggest Pc Joanne Jeggo and Pc John Simpson had lied in written statements they made in relation to why they had not searched a stretch of the A12 that night.

'The cases against these officers have now been found proven at misconduct hearings conducted by Essex Police and both officers have been dismissed from the force.'

It is understood neither officer will face a criminal charge of misconduct in public office but they are considering appealing the panel's decision.

Following the conclusion of the misconduct hearings, the IPCC's final report is now being considered for publication.

Original report here


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