Six former Metropolitan Police officers have been sentenced for sending offensive and racist WhatsApp messages.
The group, who retired between 2001 and 2015, were convicted following an investigation by officers from the Met’s professional standards team.
Commander James Harman, who leads the Met’s Anti-Corruption and Abuse Command, said: “The racist and discriminatory content of these messages is absolutely appalling and, given the defendants once served as police officers, we recognise that this case may further damage confidence in policing. Colleagues across the Met will also be disgusted and will be pleased to see the outcome today.
“The messages were brought to our attention by the BBC’s Newsnight programme in October 2022, and we made our first arrest soon after we were notified. I hope this case also demonstrates our commitment to take all allegations of criminality and misconduct seriously, investigate those reports thoroughly and, where we have evidence of discrimination and abuse, to bring criminal charges against individuals.
“The messaging in this case took place on WhatsApp – but it could have been on any other platform, or communicated verbally. It is less about the technology – it is the underlying mind-set and the conduct that is so important for us to deal with.”
The six former officers were sentenced at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, 7 December:
Michael Chadwell, 62, of Liss, Hampshire, was found guilty of sending by public communication a grossly offensive racist message, at City of London Magistrates Court on Monday, 6 November. He was sentenced to 10 weeks’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months and 100 hours of unpaid work. He retired from the Met in 2015.
The five other officers appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in September, where they pleaded guilty to 19 offences under Section 127(1) (a) of the Communications Act 2003.
Peter Booth, 66, of Llandeilo, Carmarthenshire, pleaded guilty to four counts of sending by public communication grossly offensive racist messages. He was sentenced to eight weeks’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months and 140 hours unpaid work. He retired from the Met in April 2001.
Robert Lewis, 62, of Camberley, Surrey, pleaded guilty to eight counts of sending by public communication grossly offensive racist messages. He was sentenced to 14 weeks’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months and 200 hours of unpaid work. He retired from the Met in May 2015.
Anthony Elsom, 67, of Bournemouth, Dorset, pleaded guilty to three counts of sending by public communication grossly offensive racist messages. He was sentenced to eight weeks’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months and 140 hours of unpaid work. He retired from the Met in May 2012.
Alan Hall, 65, of Stowmarket, Suffolk, pleaded guilty to three counts of sending by public communication grossly offensive racist messages. He was sentenced to eight weeks’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months and 40 hours of unpaid work. He retired from the Met in June 2015.
Trevor Lewton, 65, of Swansea, pleaded guilty to one count of sending by public communication grossly offensive racist messages. He was sentenced to six weeks’ imprisonment, suspended for 12 months and 65 hours of unpaid work. He retired from the Met in August 2009.
They served in various parts of the Met throughout their careers but all spent time in the Diplomatic Protection Group, which is now known as the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command.
