PC sacked for sending boss image of sex star ‘lookalike’
A POLICEMAN was sacked yesterday for sending a photograph of a porn actress to a senior female officer he said she resembled.
PC Mark Scruby showed the still from a porn film to police colleagues while on duty.
He told them the actress bore a remarkable likeness to his supervisor, Detective Sergeant Isobel Lee.
PC Scruby, 37, a police officer for 14 years, then took a still from the obscene film and sent it to DS Lee.
He faced five allegations of sharing pornographic images with colleagues when he appeared before a misconduct hearing.
The hearing was told DS Lee was left feeling “embarrassed and dirty” in front of her team of officers.
Giving evidence, she said: “To try and keep face in front of the rest of my team for the rest of the day was really difficult.”
The incident happened last February while PC Scruby was on duty in Crawley, West Sussex.
Over a two-day period he repeatedly viewed and shared the pornographic images with colleagues in the report writing room and canteen.
PC Scruby then told DS Lee she looked like one of the actresses in the film and sent her the image via social media.
The constable was first hauled before a police misconduct hearing last year, where he claimed the images were a joke.
He was dismissed from the force after his actions were found to be a major breach of standards.
However, he was reinstated by Sussex Police after he lodged an appeal against the ruling. He claimed that although his behaviour amounted to gross misconduct, the matter was dealt with by DS Lee at the time.
Yesterday’s hearing at Sussex Police HQ in Lewes heard the detective PC Mark Scruby at yesterday’s hearing sergeant had been left distraught by the incident.
PC Scruby, who broke down in tears, said in mitigation that he was desperately sorry for the lapse and apologised to DS Lee for his behaviour.
Panel chairwoman Victoria Goodfellow said that to prevent harming the image of the force it was left with no option but to dismiss him. “This was a very serious matter and one that flies in the face of what the policing community stands for.”