Criminal Cases

My role at Merseyside Police consists of various different responsibilities, ranging from taking biometric data from detained persons, to saving people’s lives. I have to be able to deal with many different people, from volatile people to thoser who are feeling suicidal. My role can be full on, and stress levels can be, and very often are, high. I am responsible for collecting the important data required (DNA, fingerprints, photograph, drug testing) but I also like to ensure people leave custody (in many cases) better than when they arrived, both mentally and physically.

The thing that I enjoy most about my role is being able to help people. Not everyone that comes into custody is guilty, but it is unfortunately a process that needs to happen to investigate crimes.

I enjoy speaking to people and sometimes reading between the lines and getting the right help to the people that need it, even if they sometimes don't realise it themselves.

I applied for this role and have worked as a detention officer for 14 years. 

I am proud of a few things within my career. I am proud that I have recognised people in the cells that have been very poorly and alerted health care providers, even when they have denied feeling unwell. I am proud that I prevented colleagues from being injured/assaulted. I am proud that I have identified victims that have found themselves in custody and have directed them to get help. I am proud of being part of team of the year. I am proud of training numerous new recruits to become detention officers over the years, and I am proud of being trained and having the confidence to perform CPR (outside of work).

[This information was submitted by a colleague of Alex at Avon and Somerset Police]

Alex Klaar has worked in custody for many years as a detention officer. 

Alex is passionate about reading, and identified that the provision of books for detainees in our custody units was very poor. Detainees often spend many hours in the cells with little to distract them. This leads to frustration, anxiety, has a negative impact on mental health and can negatively affect behaviour. 

Alex developed a relationship with his local charity shop and explained the situation to them. He then started purchasing books out of his own pocket for the benefit of detainees at Patchway Custody Suite, obtaining significant numbers of books suitable for all ages and tastes. 

This idea has now developed into a project where bookshelves have been installed in the custody units, and books are widely distributed. Detainees are encouraged to take a book to read and are given the opportunity to take them with them when they are released from the unit. 

This has been very positively received and has benefitted hundreds of detainees whose experience in custody has been made more bearable as a result.  

Alex has now taken on the role of Custody Librarian ensuring the provision of reading material throughout the custody units. 

This is a great initiative for the following reasons: 

• It improves the mental health and wellbeing of our detainees.  
• It is a low-cost project. The donations to the charity, now found from the custody budget, are very modest and have resulted in the provision of hundreds of books. 
• The provision of reading material is a distraction technique and recognised as good practise. 
• It reduces stress and anxiety. Calm detainees are less likely to assault and abuse our staff. 
• It promotes adult literacy. This benefits society in general. 
• It enhances the reputation of the force. 
• DO Klaar has negotiated with the charity shop and bought the books in his own time. This enthusiasm and caring attitude demonstrate his altruist nature which is to his credit and should be recognised. 

[This information was submitted by a colleague of Dominika's at Cheshire Constabulary]

Dominika Klos currently works at Runcorn Custody as a detention officer, prior to this she was a cleaner in the suite.

It was her experiences here that made her strive to become a detention officer. Dominika is of Polish origin but can speak several different languages. Dominika regularly assists with communicating with foreign nationals within the suite and builds rapport to reassure the detainees. Having this communication face to face is much more reassuring than having the difficulties of using an interpreter over the phone. Dominika has good communication skills with all detainees, quickly identifies vulnerabilities and caters for all needs of the detainees.

Dominika is always willing to go above and beyond within her job role. Along with her colleagues, she works tirelessly to ensure the safety and progression of detainees is paramount. Dominika’s successful interventions have been documented and can be detailed as follows.

2 x incidents in Sept 2022 – A gentleman was in custody for an immigration matter and had been for a few days, there were no previous indications of self-harm. The detainee was allowed access to the yard. Whilst in the back office, Dominika was observing him whilst on CCTV and witnessed him remove clothing, tie them together and tie them round his neck. Dominika alerted staff, who entered the yard immediately and removed the clothing from the detainee’s neck. Fortunately, this observation and quick intervention meant no harm had come to the detainee and the relevant support was offered. Given no prior indication of self-harm, not all staff would have kept an eye on the detainee in the yard to the extent Dominika did.

Whilst observing the CCTV, Dominika had seen a female go under her blanket in the cell and was moving about. Dominika entered the cell immediately to investigate, the female detainee refused to engage and refused to remove the blanket from her face. Dominika removed the blanket from the detainee’s face and could see she had tied her bra round her neck, causing reddening. Again, due to Dominika’s prompt intervention, the health care professional was able to assess the detainee and there was no requirement for further medical assistance.

April 2023 – Dominika attended a cell with a male detainee in. For safety reasons, best practice is to observe through the hatch first before opening the cell door, she could see the male under his blanket and she believed he was rubbing his nose, concerned he had concealed items. Dominika entered the cell immediately and pulled the blanket away, revealing an empty pouch next to him and white powder on the bench. Dominika placed her hands on the male’s arms to prevent him taking any more. Sergeant Kendrick was called and placed the male in handcuffs before a strip search was carried out. The male was now slurring his words and eyes were glazed indicating that he had ingested the white powder. The male was arrested for possession of Class A, moved cells, seen by the health care professional, and was placed on constant observations. Dominika’s observations and gut instinct here meant the male received quick intervention from the HCP and was monitored to ensure his health did not deteriorate.

On 30 June 2023, there were two sergeants, and a constant stream of detainees waiting in the hold and van dock (five at one point). It had been an incredibly busy shift and Dominika didn’t have a break from the suite. Towards the end of the shift, we were down to two detention officers due to sickness and abstractions. Unfortunately, one of Dominika’s colleagues was assaulted and was sent home, leaving Dominika on her own, with over 20 detainees, some of whom were incredibly challenging due to their aggressive behaviour and others actively self-harming which needed interventions. Dominika carried on with her duties to the best of her ability without complaining and returned the following day with a smile on her face and full of positivity.

Dominika is a trustworthy member of staff, a pleasure to work with and brings so much positivity and morale into the suite, despite the demands within the suite.

Dominika’s searches are always thorough. She is always on duty, even when she is sat in the back office, she monitors the CCTV to ensure detainees are safe and will always be the first to inform others and get to the cell and act promptly and safely without hesitation, especially considering the custody environment can be incredibly volatile with dangerous detainees and detention officers have no PPE and basic safety training. Through Dominika’s experience as a cleaner, she takes on the additional responsibility to ensure the suite is clean and tidy after handover from other shifts that don’t meet Dominika’s standards.

Without Dominika’s observations of the CCTV, rapid response to incidents, thorough searches, some of these incidents could have ended up catastrophic and ended in a fatality.

Despite the struggles she may face daily with staffing, Dominika balances long tiring shifts, home life and juggles taking her children to sport competitions after limited sleep / rest before returning to a shift. Dominika continues to come into work with a positive work ethic, a friendly smile and brings so much energy and fun into the work environment.  

I am in charge of a team of healthcare professionals providing healthcare to detainees in police custody at Gwent Police. Every day brings me variety and a challenge.

Having worked alongside police officers in a busy Acute Mental Health Unit I was made aware that the role for a nurse existed within the police force. I applied 17 years ago and have been enjoying it ever since.

My greatest achievement was when I implemented Naloxone take home kits for detainees that were being released from custody alongside one of our drug workers. I am proud to be the first force in England and Wales to do so.

[This information was submitted by a colleague at City of London Police]

Andy Shorrock is a member of support staff who works in our IT department. He is passionate about addiction support, so he is also a custody volunteer. With funding provided by the Home Office regarding Drug Testing on Arrest, he is with us on a six-month secondment.

1. Since joining custody management on secondment as an addiction support worker in August 2023, Andy has seen as of today 134 persons who have a range of addiction problems. The care he has shown people and the bespoke support he gives, has been commented on by custody staff with a hope that he will be able to continue in role. With the loss of our drug treatment provider in a number of key areas, Andy has been able to fill a huge void at a time when this could have caused us reputational damage as a force following our selection by the Home Office to be part of the Governments 10 year drug strategy. Andy now has implemented alternative options that will afford an addict the best chances of recovery.
2. Andy will take time to review custody records to see if anyone might be overlooked by custody staff and drawing upon his own knowledge and experience of addiction is able to advise what a person might be hiding or saying in an attempt to mislead staff. Andy will challenge addicts directly with his “tough love” approach making sure they don’t attempt to cause harm to themselves through the incorrect issuing of prescription medication. This contributes so much to our safer detention responsibilities. He has provided training to staff on addiction, is a regular contributor to the custody newsletter and will input where he can to individual officers.
3. Andy joined as a volunteer and was later appointed to a full-time role on secondment. He is an addict in recovery himself with 10 years clean time. He is an active member of the 12 step fellowships outside of work, where he has been able to use his contacts to set up collaborative working arrangements. We are now a leading example after our police and Alcoholic’s Anonymous collaboration gained NPCC approval for national roll out. He has got us as a force invites to the Parliamentary offices and other influential meetings where he has been able to highlight his work to others, with an objective to gain more support for addicts who are ready and willing to change.
4. Addicts will find it hard to face up to or admit an addiction. They are known to try and manipulate others in order to cover up a highly destructive lifestyle. Andy had a fantastic success where a person in custody joined Narcotics Anonymous, through Andy’s intervention, the person recognised they had a problem seeking help through the fellowship and went to court changing their plea to guilty recognising that dishonesty and failure to take responsibility was feeding their addiction. This person could have been overlooked in society but instead took steps to make a positive contribution to their own health.

My duties at Greater Manchester Police include:

• Facilitating mandatory drug testing, Livescan fingerprinting, photographing, VIPER captures, mandatory and elimination DNA swabbing, Smart Room operation, Intoxyliser procedures, and utilising Interpol for foreign nationals.
• Preparing, completing and administering all documentation, information and computer records/systems relating to persons in custody, putting on charging.
• Liaising with authorised contracts such as solicitors, health care professionals, Independent Custody Visitors, appropriate adults, interpreters and relatives of detainees, other divisions, outside forces and external agencies e.g. GeoAmey, prisoners and immigration authorities.
• Visiting detainees ensuring that their welfare is being maintained to ascertain if there is any change in the condition/demeanour of a prisoner, particularly with vulnerable, at-risk detainees or children.
• Handing over detainees to other custody officers after visits/shifts and to external agencies
• Arranging and accompanying visits from healthcare professionals, solicitors, appropriate adults, interpreters and Independent custody visitors.
• Undertaking Officer safety training and training in the management of violent detainees in order that they can be controlled and restrained and maintain training in the safe application and removal of handcuffs and limb restraints.
• Monitoring both the internal and external security of the custody office via the use and operation of all CCTV cameras, intercom systems and any other appropriate mechanical, electrical or technological systems
• Providing a witness statement and attend court in order to give evidence, when required
• Being flexible in working and moving to other custody suites where the requirement is in demand.

I undertook additional training for Interpol I-24/7, PINS (Prisoner Intelligence Notification System) and more recently attended a five day Course for the PND (Police National Database).

I am the first and only Custody Detention Officer in the history of Greater Manchester Police to be accredited as a Police National Database user.

I best enjoy being in a position to help other people. Detainees that are in our care can be particularly vulnerable, due to health conditions, at risk of withdrawing from alcohol or drugs, or in fact be under the age of 18 whereby classed as a child.

Identifying needs where appropriate is essential and could be something as simple as early intervention on a detainee self-harming, arranging immediate care for someone withdrawing from alcohol, signposting a detainee arrested for shoplifting in need of counselling for gambling addiction (when our Liaison & Diversion Service isn't available), or calming a distressed child in order to make the custody process easier, when an appropriate adult isn't present.

I originally joined GMP in August 2012 as a Special Constable at Bootle Street, moving to the Town Hall extension and then on the North at North Manchester. Within two years I was interested in becoming a Custody Detention Officer and spent a further five years doing both roles. I am no longer a Special Constable, but I am now approaching my ninth year in custody.

Using DID (Digital Image Database) daily in additional to my normal daily duties I identified a female that had come into custody and decided to take the matter further. By matching her custody image and DID Image I confirmed the same female had been circulated from a CCTV still who is the suspect for a theft in dwelling crime in Stockport. It came to light that she has entered an address with a place to stay for the night but then stolen a vulnerable 81-year-old males wallet containing £250 cash, a large bag of coins amounting to £2,000, a bank card, ID card and then later had £800 stolen from his bank account. There are countless times where I have intervened with self-harming detainees, consoled someone during their time in custody or signposted people to seek help once they have been released. These are responsibilities that I consider part of the job.

I work as a ViSOR (Violent and Sex Offender Register) Central Point of Contact (CPC) for Devon and Cornwall Police. CPC and ultimately responsible for the quality and appropriate record management of over 2700 Registered Sex Offenders on ViSOR.

I am responsible for the timely, detailed and accurate recording and intelligence development and risk assessment of over 600 Child Sexual Abuse Material referrals received into DCP each year. I have involvement and advisory roles in investigations that locate and arrest wanted missing registered sex offenders and multi-agency public protection arrangement level 2/3 cases.

I work closely with our Management of Sexual or Violent Offender DCI and DI's to deliver, to identify, and implement the force MOSOVO improvement plan. Specifically when last inspected by His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services, I was a key party in developing new ways of working, identifying and implementing efficiencies and leading change via better and more effective use of force systems.

I am first line manager of 12 staff, ensuring their ongoing performance, development and welfare needs are identified and maintained.

I am an accredited Financial Investigator and deploy this skill to locate and arrest high risk missing sex offenders, and to develop complex child sexual abuse materia investigations where financial investigation is key.

I chair the South West ViSOR Regional User and Group, and represent the South West at the National ViSOR User Group and National ViSOR Change Management Group.

I have a role in developing and assisting in the ongoing review & audit of ViSOR records, and police internal management views when a sex offender reoffends, leading to recommendations of how to improve our practice when required and the sharing of best practice when identified.

Every single day the actions of myself and my team protect and safeguard the most vulnerable people in our society. My role has a great deal of variety and I carry a lot of risk on behalf of the organisation in terms of Sex Offender Management and Child Sexual Abuse Material referrals.

I enjoy seeing my team perform well and succeed in their roles in supporting MOSOVO and Paedophile Online I nvestigation Team (POLIT) officers identify, arrest and manage some of the most dangerous people in our society. I enjoy continuing to identify and implement how we can do better, and do our absolute best as a team to protect the public from sexual offenders. My role is extremely varied and requires me to prioritise continually but I enjoy working under a reasonable amount of pressure.

I left university and took on an administration role in Devon and Cornwall Police as a short term job in 2008. I really enjoyed working within policing and found my morals and what mattered to me was reflected within the police force so applied for a permanent role as MAPPA Administrator. This was my entry point into public protection and in time I applied and was successful for a role as a Public Protection Unit Intelligence Officer, being local point of contact for all Cornwall registerd sexual offenders and completing intelligence development on CSAM referrals.

During this time I was supported by my department to undertake some professional development and qualified initially as a Financial Intelligence Officer and then subsequently an Accredited Financial Investigator. I remained happily in this post for over five years until the role of managing the team was civilianised. I initially took this role on a secondment basis and was permanently appointed in 2019 after a competitive recruitment process.

I feel really lucky to have so many reasons to be proud of the work I do. I am proud every day to lead an exceptional team that regularly makes significant contributions to safeguarding and is regularly recognised internally and externally as high performing. I am also proud to be working hard to raise and develop the profile & investigation of Child Sexual abuse Live streaming, also for leading & pushing the robust response and intervention made by Devon and Cornwall Police to prevent Sex Offenders from travelling to high risk CSE destinations.

I have two Financial Intelligence stand out moments. One being the identification and development of a CSAM case where a suspect in our area has sent £33,000 to child sexual abuse facilitators in the Philippines. I worked closely with the OIC and the NCA to identify a network of abusers abroad who ended up subject of law enforcement action in the Philippines and led to the identification and protection of dozens of children. This was back in 2017 and remains one of my career highlights to this day. The judge stated the evidence of the amount of money transferred was an escalating factor when sentencing and the suspect received 18 years imprisonment.

A more recent but significant achievement was supporting the location & arrest of a wanted missing sex offender who had absconded, upon police intervention it was clear he was a physical threat to foreign dignitaries and embassies, but also a huge sexual threat to all females. Working closely with one of my intelligence officers we combined her IPA abilities and my Financial Investigation access and by the end of the day he was located by police officers before any harm had come to members of the public.

I manage a cohort of registered sex offenders that live in the community for Greater Manchester Police. It is my role to ensure I risk assess these nominals and ensure we protect the public. In order to protect the public I work closely with other agencies mainly probation and social services. I disclose offences to members of the public who maybe at risk and I utilise police tactics to get a better understand of their behaviour and investigate crimes.

My role is very varied, one day I could be doing visits and looking through their phones, the next applying for a warrant and then also taking witness statements.

I use tools provided to the Sexual Offender Management Unit including ADF kits and polygraphs to ensure the offenders are being honest with police and for intel purposes.

It gives me great satisfaction that I am able to protect the public by monitoring these nominals, in particular safeguarding children. Whilst it is a demanding and stressful role, when I get a conviction and a custodial sentence this brings great job satisfaction. When I safeguard a child this makes every moment worth while.

I love how varied the role is and that I am able to make such a difference to the community. This work goes unnoticed by the public (rightly so if they are not re-offending), however, I and my team know everyday we are keeping the public safe by our robust management and tools. That is very rewarding.

I use to work in Dispatch for GMP and whilst I loved this role, I saw the SOMU role and realised it appealed to a lot of my previous skill set and would give me an opportunity to get more hands on in a policing role.

I made enquires with people who worked in the unit and this developed my interest more in the job. In dispatch I was doing a job that helped the public, however, it was only a small part and the work was then passed over to response, I never got to see a job through. The SOMU role was one where I could be operational and protect the public and have the responsibility to see a piece of work all the through, including getting them convicted.

I am proud everyday to be in this unit and make a difference, how can I not be when we safeguard constantly, I work with a brilliant team also and I love we have built such a strong ethos together.

However, one particular offender took up a lot of time in 2023: he is a prolific offender who has no regard for police, probation, the court system, his orders and his previous child victim.

I was able to utilise several tools at my disposal including warrants, arrests, polygraphs and CYCOMS. He was arrested three times within the space of three months, including the final time 10 days after being in custody. He was finally sentenced to three years in December 2023. During sentencing the judge commended the robust management by police, and I felt immensely proud that all the effort and hard work, from me and my team had been worth it.

As a Witness Care Officer it is your role to look after the Victims and Witnesses in cases dealt with by the Lancashire Constabulary. Being a WCO is a very rewarding job. No two days are the same and you never know what to expect when you answer the phone. The main responsibilities are advising people that they are needed to attend court, arranging the support to help them get to court and guiding people through the Criminal Justice System.

The job can be quite daunting at first because you are dealing with people who have experienced or have witnessed a traumatic event. It can be challenging but the job satisfaction is excellent. At times it is very fast paced and time-critical actions need to be taken. You have to be able to keep several plates spinning at the same time!

I work at Greater Manchester Police and run police checks for partner agencies and oversee Rochdale public protection inbox. I manage police and safeguarding referrals, arrange professional/STRAT meetings, take meeting minutes, research for professional meetings, assist with Claire and Sarah’s Law, and help team apprentices.

It is rewarding knowing I’m helping to safeguard the public. I went to university to study sociology with criminology. I applied for this role after I graduated. My greatest achievements are my university degree, my GMP career, and owning my own house.

My role is a Case Manager within the Serious Injury Prosecution Team at the Metropolitan Police. My responsibilities are completing a full and thorough investigation into Serious Personal Injury Road Traffic Collision. This includes witness, victim and suspect care during the investigation. Following all lines of enquiries and ensuring National File Standards, as per the DPP Guidelines are followed.

I enjoy the investigative side of the role and the satisfaction of holding drivers to account where poor standards of driving have been evidenced. Thus bringing Justice to the victim

In my previous Role as a Schools Panel Co-ordinator, our Met Schools Officer, now a Training Sgt suggested my skills in assessing and finding information regarding associations and past issues with Students who were presented to the Pupil Referral Unit, would be a good skill if I was to apply to Police Staff roles within the Met.

My greatest achievement was finding a Fail to Stop Driver, who had caused Serious personal Injury to a Cyclist. I used ANPR and trawled through CCTV and PNC to match a partial registration of the vehicle involved, to the Company , whose Logo was displayed on the vehicle, resulting in a driver being identified.

This case was then used as the first case to go through as the higher either way offence of, Causing Serious Injury by Careless/Inconsiderate driving for our Team. The evidence that I obtained was so great that the Suspect entered a Guilty plea and resulted in a sentence of 18 weeks Suspended Prison Sentence, 18 month Disqualification, 200 hours of Community Service and £4000 compensation to the victim.

As a Case Builder at Lancashire Constabulary, I work closely with officers and CPS to make sure the prosecution case is in the best order it can be to ensure that offenders are brought to justice. I have to review the case thoroughly by interrogating all of the evidence and all of the unused material that is collected by the investigating officer. This includes statements, forensic submissions and results, photographs, CCTV, Body Worn Video, 999 calls, interview notes and more. I have to be proactive and think about what CPS will need to prove the case, so if I see there are any potential lines of enquiry that the officer may have missed, I ask them to follow it up.

I have been a Case Builder for two years and I love the variety of work I do each day. It is very fast paced and can feel like a pressure cooker at times especially when the date of trial is looming, but I am passionate about providing the very best service to victims of crime. The driving force for me is that there is a very real person at the end of this who is waiting patiently for justice to be served, and above all else, this is what motivates me every day to do my best.