A police officer has been sacked for allegedly ‘turning a blind eye’ to signs that her husband was responsible for stealing loads of money from a criminal gang, Scotland Yard says.
The Met Police dismissed Pc Inga Gherghel without notice after a misconduct hearing concluded on June 30, finding gross misconduct proven.
It comes after her husband Ioan Gergel, 36, from Stratford, east London, was jailed for six years in May 2021 after pleading guilty to conspiracy to acquire criminal property.
Ioan Gergel was jailed for six years (Met Police)
(PA Media)
He was one of six people – including former Met police officer Kashif Mahmood – who were convicted after admitting a range of offenses following a wider Met investigation.
The misconduct panel, chaired by an independent legally qualified chair, heard evidence relating to the arrest of Pc Gherghel’s husband on 28 April 2020.
A search of the couple’s home turned up an MPS MetVest – compulsory body armor – in a cupboard, but it had not been issued to Pc Gherghel.
A shoebox containing more than £10,000 in cash was also found in a bedroom wardrobe.
The hearing found that Pc Gherghel was aware of these items and “deliberately failed to investigate further the origin or purpose of the items and what she might be doing in her flat”, the Met said.
Commander Marcus Barnett, in charge of policing at Central East Command, said: “It is the duty of every police officer to report crime to the police and Pc Gherghel turned a blind eye to her husband’s actions.
“This was made worse by the fact that a MetVest was found in her home that had not been issued to her.
“As the investigation shows, we are determined to root out officers in the Met who do not demonstrate the right qualities and will pursue and remove them from our force.”
Pc Gherghel will now be added to the banned list maintained by the College of Policing, the professional body for policing in England and Wales.
Those on the list cannot be employed by the police, local police authorities (PCCs), the Independent Police Conduct Authority or HM Inspectorate of Police and Fire and Rescue Services.
Disgraced former police officer Mahmoud, of Woodcroft, Harlow, Essex, was 32 when he was jailed for eight years in May after admitting conspiracy to acquire criminal property and misconduct in a public office.
He used his position in the police force to help an organized gang extort money from other criminals, the court was told.
He dressed in his uniform and used marked and unmarked police cars to travel to locations where the gang knew “significant amounts of cash from criminal activity” would be exchanged and took them himself while pretending to carry out their duties, jurors were told.
The court heard he was a member of the “highly lucrative” operation which extorted at least £850,000 from criminal couriers under the pretext of “legitimately exercising his powers”.
There is no suggestion that Pc Gherghel committed any offences.
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