A Greater Manchester Police officer, Paedophile PC Lee Ashcroft, has been included in the College of Policing Barred List for possessing an obscene film of minors.
PC Lee Ashcroft (12/06/1983) admitted guilt on 24 October 2022 for producing an indecent photograph/pseudo-photograph of a minor.
On 19 December 2022, he received a 10-month prison term, suspended for two years, at Liverpool Crown Court.
Lee Ashcroft received a 30-day rehabilitation order, a 10-year sexual harm prevention order, and was mandated to register as a sex offender for 10 years.
A Rapid Misconduct The hearing today (Tuesday, June 27, 2023) determined that Lee Ashcroft’s conduct constituted gross misconduct.
The inquiry at Force HQ was presided over by Chief Constable Stephen Watson, who stated that Lee Ashcroft’s conduct violated the professional standards anticipated of a police officer.
The hearing revealed that Lee Ashcroft, a police constable in GMP’s Special Operations, would have faced dismissal had he remained in service. Ashcroft departed from the police force on 21 October 2022.
CC Watson stated that Lee Ashcroft’s guilt was deemed ‘severe’ because of his ‘intentional actions undertaken with full awareness that his behaviour was egregiously illegal and ethically indefensible’.
CC Watson stated: “Lee Ashcroft’s behaviour and conviction inevitably tarnish the organization’s reputation and undoubtedly undermine the public’s confidence in their police officers.”
“It is abhorrent that Lee Ashcroft seems to have derived some twisted sexual gratification from the exploitation and suffering imposed on a child.”
“His behaviour is utterly incompatible with the expectations of a police officer.” He is now justly convicted as a sex offender, his career is in jeopardy, and he has entirely lost the trust of the public he was pledged to serve.
The Professional Standards Branch of GMP is reachable through the force’s website: https://www.gmp.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/c/af/complaints/ Anonymous reports may also be submitted through Crimestoppers at www.crimestoppers-uk.org or by calling 0800 555 111.
If you or anyone you know have been affected by the people highlighted in this article, then please report those individuals to the Police on 101 (999 if an emergency) or visit their online resources for further details of the options for reporting a crime. You can also make a report at Crimestoppers should you wish to be completely anonymous. There is help available on our support links page.