Labour urges action after report shows Met officers ‘joked’ about raping women

Yvette Cooper has called for “abuse, racism, misogyny, bullying and disrespect” to be “rooted out” of the police and has criticised the “appalling behaviour” of some officers after a report on Charing Cross police station was published today.

The findings of ‘Operation Hotton’ – nine investigations into officers mostly based at Charing Cross Police Station – shows evidence of “discrimination, misogyny, harassment and bullying”, including discussions of raping and hitting women.

The probe related to incidents from three years ago, but the Independent Office for Police Conduct report says they were “not isolated”. Officers were found guilty of misconduct, gross misconduct, and improper use of public electronic communications network.

The numerous misogynist messages and messages endorsing domestic violence included the following:

A WhatsApp conversation between two police officers:

• Officer 1: “And my bird won’t stop taking the piss. Swear to got [sic] I’m going to smack her 😂”
• Officer 2: “Slap her one…say you didn’t”
• Officer 1: “I`ll fucking do it. She`s fucked off home.”

A separate WhatsApp conversation between two police officers:

• Officer 1: “I fucking need to take my bird out, won’t see her until next Saturday. Then I have to work. Promised to take her out the Friday after. Making it up to her from when I backhanded her”
• Officer 2: “Grab her by the pussy”
• Officer 1: “You ever slapped your missus?”
• Officer 1: “It makes them love you more. Seriously since I did that she won’t leave me alone. Now I know why these daft cunts are getting murdered by their spastic boyfriends. Knock a bird about and she will love you. Human nature. They are biologically programmed to like that shit.”
• Officer 2: “Lmao”
• Officer 1: “I’m right though”

Messages sent by a male officer to a female officer:

• “I would happily rape you”
• “if I was single I would actually hate fuck you”
• “if I was single I would happily chloroform you”

Other evidence of discriminatory and offensive communications included:

• “Just walked past the big mosque all the fanatics turn up at to radicalise the young muslims….”
• “My dad kidnapped some African children and used them to make dog food.”
• “PWPEHCLM – People with pre-existing heart conditions lives matter. Should of offered him a kit kat and a nice lie down. Murdering cunts.”
• “Bring all the lefties I say, we can sing ““cum by ya” and embrace our multi gender/ethnic and sexual backgrounds whilst denouncing all the fascists in the MET…yay for Xmas partied [sic]…except of course that’s a Christian celebration and I believe in ALL religions so it’s not on!! Stick to our own…😉”
• “Some uniform or plain clothes work on Somalian rats… I battered one the other day…weighed less than [police officer’s name].”
• “Opened my balcony door and loads of flies flew into the front room. So I got the fly spray and turned my gaff into Auschwitz.”
• A police officer sent another officer an image of a Black man wearing a white shirt. His colleague asked, “What’s good about it I don’t get it lol.” He replied, “Ignore the robber…I like the shirt.”
• Use of derogatory terms about people with disabilities, including “spastics” and “retard”.

One officer was referred to as “mcrapey raperson” on WhatsApp, where two officers also discussed “high class hookers” and taking steroids. Officers who objected to such conduct said they were “harassed, humiliated and excluded”.

An officer who bullied and harassed a female officer was dismissed. In other cases, officers were placed on the barred list, given words of advice or a written warning, “management action” followed, or no further action was taken.

Labour’s Shadow Home Secretary has described the IOPC recommendations in the report as “important and welcome”, and noted that “some action has been taken”, but concluded that the response seen so far “does not go far enough”.

Cooper said: “This IOPC report has uncovered appalling behaviour by officers at Charing Cross Police Station. This kind of abuse, racism, misogyny, bullying and disrespect is a disgrace and should never have any place within policing, where the highest standards must always be maintained. It must be rooted out swiftly wherever it is found.”

She added: “There needs to be action by police forces to ensure that training and vetting are improved, that a strong culture of respect is always maintained, and that the use of social media is reviewed and, where necessary, overhauled. Police officers across the country work incredibly hard every day to keep communities safe and that is why it is so important that high standards are always maintained.

“The Home Office must not stand back and leave it to individual forces. Ministers need to take responsibility for ensuring the highest standards are always met across policing and must ensure the College of Policing and police forces work together on the action needed.”

Bas Javid, the Met deputy assistant commissioner, concluded that “we have a lot of work to do to ensure bullying and discrimination does not exist in any part of the Met” and “there is need for real change in the Met”.