In a statement to PinkNews, an IOPC spokesperson said: “We issue summaries on most cases for the purpose of openness and transparency. “I felt as if I’d been erased from my own story worse, that I’d been shoved back into the closet.” Though he dropped his efforts because of the high costs involved. He alleged that the nation’s law enforcement is “ institutionally homophobic“. He successfully took his case to civil court, represented by Bolt Burdon Kemp, a law firm who specialises in representing survivors of sexual abuse in civil compensation claims, and then sought independently to launch a judicial review against the IOPC. It’s something Gareth says “continues to affect” him and he worries people to this day will read the report and misgender him. Its failure to do so makes him feel “that gay men matter”. He has been fighting since September 2019 for the IOPC to publish his gender. It was as if, Gareth said, “children finding out their father’s gay will harm them as if being gay is a terrible affliction”. He claims an IOPC official “emotionally blackmailed him”, saying that including Gareth’s gender in the report would “harm children”. The Crown Prosecution Service found there to be insufficient evidence to charge the officer with misconduct in public office and improper use of police powers and privileges.ĭuring hearings, Gareth noticed that neither Sussex Police officials nor the IOPC had not mentioned his gender in their reports. He was blacklisted and can no longer work for the police service. Patrick later admitted to contacting Gareth and sending him graphic pictures and sexual messages.Īccording to the IOPC report, while he accepted his conduct was inappropriate, he denied intending to meet Gareth for sex.Ī gross misconduct hearing sanctioned the officer with instant dismissal in August 2019.īut as he had already resigned over another, unrelated, case, no further action was taken. Patrick was arrested and interviewed on suspicion of misconduct in public office as well as improper use of police powers and privileges.įorensic analysis of the officer’s mobile phone found Grindr had been installed. “I just lived in this place of terror,” he said. He suffered panic attacks and feared the officer would “take revenge” against him. Gareth became consumed by guilt and worry. His grievance was turned over to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).
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Gareth reported Patrick for misconduct to the Sussex Police Professional Standards Department that same day.
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“I realised that we couldn’t go back to being PC Patrick and Gareth working on the case, because this conversation happened and he sent me pictures of his c**k.” ‘I’m not even allowed to take ownership of my own experience’ He was hesitant, wary of outing the officer. Gareth texted Patrick to ask that he did not attend their meeting, and sexual abuse support groups and friends urged Gareth to report him.
“As soon as the chat finished my head kind of exploded,” Gareth said. Gareth says that he suggested Patrick block him to erase the messages. He felt obliged to agree, given that Patrick was the investigating officer in his rape case.Įventually, the conversation ended after Patrick realised their exchanges might be picked up if other officers scanned his phone. He claims Patrick told him the sex would help him heal and regain his sex drive.
He encouraged him to send explicit photographs, and Gareth says the two agreed to meet for sex the following morning. (Getty)Īccording to Gareth, Patrick began telling him that every time he’d been to his house, “he’d fantasised about having sex with me”. “But in the space I was in, I was vulnerable. “Now if I was to have this interaction, it would say it was,” Gareth continued.