A senior police officer who lost his job with the Metropolitan Police won his dismissal appeal after being convicted of possessing a child abuse video on his phone.
A court heard that Novlett Robyn Williams, 56, received the video on WhatsApp by her sister, co-accused Jennifer Hodge, but she did not see the material.
Jurors in her trial were not, however, convinced by her claim that she was unaware of her presence on her phone and she was sentenced in November 2019 to 200 hours of community service.
In March 2020, she was removed from her post with immediate effect after a special disciplinary hearing found her conviction amounted to “serious misconduct”.
Williams appealed the decision to fire her on Wednesday and it was upheld by a panel that ruled that she should have received a final written warning rather than being fired.
The Association of Police Superintendents said the independent panel found his dismissal from the Met to be “unfair” and “unreasonable” and that, therefore, his appeal against the loss of his job was successful.
The trial at the Old Bailey learned that Williams received the video from her sister Hodge, 57, who initially received the clip from her longtime boyfriend Dido Massivi, 63.
Williams (center) pictured arriving at the Old Bailey in London in 2019, where she was convicted of possession of an indecent video of a child
Jurors learned that Williams had an exemplary disciplinary record and was highly regarded for her work at successive Notting Hill Carnivals and was praised for her work after the Grenfell Tower disaster.
Among the commendations she received was the Queen’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service in 2003.
Williams said after the verdict on appeal: “I am extremely satisfied with today’s result and would like to thank the panel members …
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Source: news.sky.com
This notice was published: 2021-06-17 07:03:00
