Ex-poster girl for Met’s firearms unit is cleared of leaking after claiming she was exposing corruption and prejudice against ethnic minority officers at police watchdog
- Carol Rita Howard, 41, worked on short-term contract as an investigator for IPCC
- She sent 101 emails to a personal account which included sensitive information
- But she was today cleared of two data offences by Croydon Crown Court
A former poster girl for the Met’s firearms unit has been cleared of leaking confidential information after claiming she was exposing ‘corruption and prejudice’ against ethnic minority officers.
Carol Rita Howard, 41, worked on a short-term contract as an investigator for the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) which she later took to an employment tribunal.
She sent 101 emails from her work account to her personal account which included sensitive information from various investigations while employed by the police watchdog organisation, Croydon Crown Court heard.
But Howard has today been cleared of leaking the confidential data after insisting that this was to assist her ‘whistleblower’ case against the IPCC.
Carol Rita Howard, 41, (pictured) has been cleared of leaking confidential information after claiming she was exposing ‘corruption and prejudice’ against ethnic minority officers
Howard, of Coulsdon, London, served in the Metropolitan Police between 2001 and 2014 and her gun-toting image was even used on security posters at the 2012 London Olympics.
But after she left the force in 2014 she successfully won a £37,000 pay-out from her former employer after it was ruled she was ‘bullied, harassed and victimised’ as one of only two black officers in the 700-strong Diplomatic Protection Group.
She was then hired by the IPCC in October 2016 where she was employed for approximately five months.
But Howard later brought 33 allegations against the IPCC over claims the organisation discriminated against Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) staff.
She lost the £144,000 case after her claims were ruled to be groundless when the tribunal heard she frequently complained of victimisation whenever she was unhappy at work.
The IPCC then reported Howard to the Information Commissioners Office about the leaked confidential information.
It prosecuted the case and interviewed her under caution in September 2018.
She did not deny accessing the information and sending it to her solicitor, which included a probe of a serving police officer accused of sexual offences.
Howard, of Coulsdon, London, (pictured) served in the Metropolitan Police between 2001 and 2014 and her gun-toting image was even used on security posters at the 2012 London Olympics
Prosecutor Eva Niculiu spoke to the jury and said: ‘She admitted forwarding the emails to herself and sending them to her solicitor.
‘Her reasons for sending them out was to get legal advice for her “whistle-blowing” employment tribunal claims of corruption and prejudice at the IPCC against BAME staff.
‘Her employment ended on the basis of suspected security breaches.
‘In the days up to April 6, 2017, 101 emails had been sent from the defendant’s IPCC email address to her personal hotmail address and all of these contained personal data.
‘She also retained a copy of her “blue book”, which was used to report on her work at the IPCC during investigations.
‘When she was questioned she said: “I clicked on the emails. I didn’t go through every document.”
Ms Niculiu added: ‘She had daily access to personal information.
‘The IPCC is a public body overseeing complaints made against the police in England and Wales.
‘On her first day at work at the IPCC the defendant signed a security procedure form, agreeing not to disclose information.’
The jury took around thirty minutes to unanimously acquit her of one count of unlawfully obtaining personal information including victims, witnesses and service users.
They also found her not guilty of a second count of unlawfully disclosing the same personal information to her solicitor.