Anger as ‘sex pest’ coroner to be allowed back in court
A DISGRACED coroner who sent sexually explicit texts to a colleague is at the centre of a positive discrimination row after being cleared to return to work.
Chinyere Inyama, who was Britain’s first black coroner, was suspended on full pay from his £120,000 post as Senior West London Coroner in October 2016 following complaints about his behaviour.
After a 14-month inquiry, he was reinstated in December 2017 by the coroners’ watchdog, the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office ( JCIO), and ordered to undergo retraining.
The inquiry found he had ‘bullied a member of coronial staff and that this behaviour, together with texts and remarks to a second member of coronial staff, amounted to seri- ous misconduct’. But last month – nine months after receiving his reprimand – Mr Inyama returned to work, prompting anger among his colleagues. He has yet to return to the courtroom.
Five sitting coroners, none of whom are permitted to speak publicly, have told The Mail on Sunday that they believe Mr Inyama’s Nigerian heritage lies behind the decision not to dismiss him.
‘It’s no secret Inyama got the West London job because of positive discrimination. Others were better suited,’ claimed one. ‘But there was a feeling in the coronial service that more should be done to boost diversity ... Diversity now seems the reason it’s proving impossible to get rid of him.’
Mr Inyama, 57, made headlines in 2014 when he lost a 30-page Metropolitan police file into the death of teenager Alice Gross, who was murdered in a sex attack. In 2016, the JCIO found him guilty of misconduct over the blunder.
Former chief coroner Sir Peter Thornton was said to have been an observer when Inyama was interviewed for the West London post.
‘ He knew about Inyama’s past,’ said the source. ‘But neither he nor Inyama mentioned it. There was a reasonable expectation Thornton would be frank about Inyama’s history. He doesn’t seem to have been.’
After qualifying as a solicitor, Mr Inyama worked as a mental health lawyer. He was appointed senior coroner in East London in 2011 and moved to West London in 2013.
A council source claimed the I nyama s candal has cost hi s employer, Hammersmith and Fulham Council, almost £500,000.
Hammersmith and Fulham Council, which pays his salary on behalf of the five boroughs in his jurisdiction, declined to comment.
Last night Mr Inyama declined to comment.