A police constable has been dismissed from the force without notice after failing to make an arrest and then attempting to cover his tracks.
PC Aaron Harthill-Harrison attended a two-day hearing at Nottinghamshire Police Headquarters, which concluded on Thursday 25 June.
The hearing was open to both the press and the public.
The hearing heard that, on 6 November 2024, PC Harthill-Harrison attended a report of a suspicious man looking at houses and back gardens.
He was then seen climbing over a gate with a suitcase.
PC Harthill-Harrison attended the location and spoke with a man fitting the description and carrying a suitcase.
He obtained the man’s name and address but failed to arrest him on suspicion of burglary or to seize and search the suitcase.
The man in question was a prolific offender.
When later asked about the incident, PC Harthill-Harrison stated that there was nothing in the suitcase and that the man was of no fixed abode.
The hearing heard that both accounts were false.
The man was later arrested by PC Harthill-Harrison on suspicion of burglary.
However, the suitcase was never located, which was a vital piece of evidence.
PC Harthill-Harrison said he had reflected on the incident and that “mistakes were made”.
Nottinghamshire Police’s Professional Standards Directorate carried out a thorough investigation.
The hearing found that PC Harthill-Harrison had breached the following Standards of Professional Behaviour: honesty and integrity, duties and responsibilities, and discreditable conduct.
Chair of the hearing, Assistant Chief Constable Gary Hooks, said:
“PC Harthill-Harrison failed to act upon the information provided to him, thereby jeopardising an opportunity to catch a criminal and keep the community safe from a prolific burglar.
“The situation was made worse by PC Harthill-Harrison’s deliberate dishonesty in his communications with colleagues about the actions he had taken and the information about the suspect of which he was aware.
“This conduct undermines public confidence in, and the reputation of, the police service, and therefore PC Harthill-Harrison will be dismissed from the force without notice and placed on the police barred list.”
