Serving police officer convicted of malicious communications

A serving police officer has been convicted of malicious communications offences following an internal Northamptonshire Police investigation.

PC Toby Mullen, aged 24, pleaded guilty to one count of sending a malicious communication with intent to cause alarm, harassment and distress, and one count of breaching the Data Protection Act, at a hearing at Northampton Crown Court on Thursday, January 11.

The charges relate to an incident on July 27, 2023, when PC Mullen, a response officer based in Northampton, sent three Snapchat messages to a female member of the public which contained inappropriate and unsolicited photos.

The woman involved contacted Northamptonshire Police and an investigation was launched by the Force’s Professional Standards Department.

During the investigation, PC Mullen’s personal phone was examined and found to contain 47 notes which held information that should not have been recorded outside of police systems.

After pleading guilty to the two offences at Northampton Crown Court last Thursday (January 11), PC Mullen was sentenced on the same day to 100 hours of unpaid work and fines and costs totalling £449.

Detective Superintendent Liz Wilcox, Head of Northamptonshire Police’s Professional Standards Department, said: “First of all, I want to thank the woman in this case for her courage in reporting PC Mullen’s offending to us.

“I do not underestimate how difficult it is to report this kind of behaviour to the police, nor how it’s made even harder if the offender involved is a serving police officer.

“I hope she can take some comfort from this conviction and move forward with the knowledge that police officers who act in this way have no place in our profession.

“Tackling violence against women and girls continues to be a matter of priority for Northamptonshire Police and I hope this case shows that it doesn’t matter who you are or who you work for, if you offend - we will do everything in our power to bring you to justice.”

PC Mullen was suspended from Northamptonshire Police on October 9, 2023.

The Force made an immediate referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), which decided that the matter should be subject to a local investigation.

A Misconduct Hearing will now take place on a date to be determined.