Description
A former police officer has been jailed for sending "inappropriate" and "sexualised" messages to a vulnerable woman whose case he was investigating.
Stuart Trentham, 41, was a South Yorkshire Police officer based in Doncaster when a woman reported that sexual images of her had been posted on the internet without her consent.
Sheffield Crown Court heard that Trentham was in charge of the investigation and lied to the victim, telling her that a suspect was being interviewed when in fact the case had been closed.
The prosecution said the defendant's behaviour became increasingly inappropriate, and started to deteriorate when he began to sign his messages to the victim with a kiss.
Prosecutor Joseph Bell said Trentham then told the woman he "liked a bit of meat" and that there is "nothing worse than a flat, boney butt".
Mr Bell said the woman blocked the defendant but decided to unblock him as she thought he might still have legitimate information about the investigation she wrongly believed was ongoing.
The court heard Trentham later sent the woman a picture of him in police uniform with the message "working hard" accompanied by winking and kissing emojis.
Mr Bell said said the woman had trusted Trentham when he investigated the sexual images but said in her victim personal statement: "I have now come to the painful realisation that I was simply a target for exploitation by him."
Jailing him for nine months, Judge Jeremy Richardson KC said Trentham committed a crime that has "undermined" public trust in the police.
Judge Richardson said the defendant began sending WhatsApp messages which started off as "personal", progressed to being "inappropriate" and then to being "sexualised".
Judge Richardson said he was concerned that this kind of offending could result in vulnerable women not coming forward to report crimes.
He told Trentham: "I take no pleasure in sending a former police officer to prison for nine months.
"You have brought this on yourself. It is a terrible day for you.
"I hope this sentence restores some confidence the public repose in the police."
David James, defending, said his client wanted to apologise to the woman and to his former colleagues in the police.
Trentham had pleaded guilty to one count of wilful misconduct at an earlier hearing.
In response to the sentencing, Trentham's former force released a statement saying criminality and poor standards are not tolerated.
Ch Cons Lauren Poultney said: "Members of the public have the right to a police workforce which reflects the true values of policing at all times, and that is especially crucial when they are reporting a crime to us.
“The victim showed great courage coming forward and reporting Trentham’s criminal behaviour. I know this can be particularly difficult to do when the offender is a police officer.
“Ensuring that our officers uphold the force’s standards and culture is an utmost priority for me, and when misconduct and criminality is identified the perpetrators will be dealt with robustly.”