Police officer guilty of gross misconduct over car misuse
A“MONEY-OBSESSED” senior police officer who “dishonestly” used his force car for more than 900 miles of personal journeys, including one trip to transport a sofa on the vehicle’s roof, has been found to have committed gross misconduct.
Superintendent Michael Rogers, who retired from Dorset Police in May this year, was found to have made four breaches of professional standards between 2015 and 2019 by a disciplinary panel.
The hearing was told he used pool and hire vehicles for private journeys and other work journeys that he was not entitled to do, as well as underdeclaring the amount of private mileage he drove in force vehicles.
Mr Rogers was also accused at the tribunal, held at Dorset Police Headquarters in Winfrith, of claiming expenses “far more” than the cost of meals that he had taken.
The hearing panel found that Mr Rogers had breached the standards of professional behaviour and was guilty of gross misconduct and it was determined that, had he still been employed by Dorset Police, he would have been dismissed.
Following the hearing, Deputy Chief Constable Sam de Reya said: “It is hugely disappointing that a former superintendent has been found guilty of gross misconduct. Dorset Police expects everyone in the service to operate with honesty and integrity in everything they do.
“The former superintendent was in a position of authority where they should have acted as a role model to others and led professional standards across their teams and the wider organisation.”
Mark Ley-Morgan, the lawyer presenting the case against Mr Rogers, explained that Mr Rogers was given an essential user allowance to use his private car for work journeys, but he continued to use pool cars and hire cars.
He said these unauthorised journeys included a trip in a Skoda vehicle in which he carried a sofa on its roof as well as trips to recycling centres and to B&Q.
Mr Ley-Morgan said that in February 2017, Mr Rogers declared 487 miles of work mileage and 100 miles of personal mileage – which all occurred while he was actually on secondment to the Falklands.
He added that even though Mr Rogers’ partner had paid him £52 to cover the cost to be reimbursed to the force for the total of this mileage, he had only declared an amount of £9 worth of personal mileage.
Mr Ley-Morgan said: “He is a man obsessed with money, getting any advantage he can, even to the point he rips off his partner.”
Mr Rogers denied being dishonest and told the tribunal: “I do not dispute the use of the vehicles, I think I have sound operational reasons to use those specific vehicles.
Mr Rogers added: “I do not give a stuff about some travel policy, I am here to save lives and that’s what I did.”