A FORMER police constable who left a vulnerable woman feeling “worthless” and unable to trust officers again after he carried out simulated rape with her has been barred from the profession.
PC Alexander Alderson, who was based in Weston-super-Mare, met the female online and went to her home to engage in sexual activity called consensual non-consent sex.
The woman, Miss L, a former domestic violence victim who suffers from a number of mental health issues including bipolar, borderline personality disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, told a police misconduct hearing that she agreed to play the part of a rape victim as a form of self-harm “a bit like if I used a knife to cut myself”.
In a powerful victim impact statement that she asked to be read out at the hearing at Avon & Somerset force headquarters in Portishead, she said she had “absolutely no confidence or trust” in the police, especially male officers who she called “perverts”, and became anxious whenever she heard a siren.
Miss L said she experienced huge mood swings, self-loathing and depression that left her in bed for days at a time because of her long-standing mental health issues, which PC Alderson was aware of but continued to use her for his own sexual desires instead of protecting her.
He also sent her three sexually explicit images of himself while on duty wearing a stab-proof vest at Weston Gateway police station in January 2023, along with “degrading and demeaning” messages about his other sexual encounters.
Chief Constable Sarah Crew, chairing the hearing on Tuesday, March 26, found gross misconduct proven and ruled that the officer would have been sacked without notice had he not resigned last May, three months after being suspended.
Solicitor Yolanda Pons, representing the constabulary, told the hearing that the pair agreed to sexual roleplay where he would act out a rape scenario while off-duty.
Ms Pons said the ex-constable, who did not attend and was not represented, admitted all the allegations, gross misconduct and breaching the standards of professional behaviour for police.
Chief Constable Crew said: “The conduct of former PC Alderson is so serious and so injurious to public confidence in the police service that if he was still serving, nothing less than dismissal without notice would suffice.
“The former officer could be in no doubt that she was vulnerable, from his training as a police officer but also from the disclosures she made to him. “
Assistant Chief Constable Joanne Hall said afterwards: “This former officer’s actions were disgraceful and abhorrent, exacerbated by the fact he knew the woman to be vulnerable and he failed to safeguard her.
“He’s grossly betrayed the values and standards of behaviour expected of him, and as a result he’s now barred from holding a position in policing and law enforcement again.”
The public can now contact a new Police Anti-Corruption and Abuse Reporting Service, run by Crimestoppers, where they can anonymously or confidentially report corruption, abuse or criminality within policing here: https://forms.theiline.co.uk/police-anti-corruption-and-abuse-reporting-service