Riot squad chief hounded out by female boss on an anti-macho drive
Inspector wins £870,000 payout after tribunal rules against the Met’s deputy assistant commissioner
A CHIEF inspector has been awarded £870,000 by the Metropolitan Police after he was hounded out of his job by a female boss intent on ridding his squad of a perceived macho culture.
Adrian Denby, 49, ran a tactical unit in Paddington better known as the riot squad when he was singled out by Maxine de Brunner, the force’s deputy assistant commissioner.
The officer, who had won nine commendations and was seconded to Afghanistan to set up the police force there, was discriminated against on five separate occasions, an employment tribunal in 2016 ruled.
It followed a crackdown on a perceived macho culture in the Met, with Ms De Brunner given the role of driving out discrimination in the service. But after it was found Mr Denby himself was wrongly treated, the Met paid the compensation in a case that reportedly cost the force around £2 million.
Mr Denby claimed he had been punished while a female colleague in a similar position had not even been reprimanded. It is understood that as part of the settlement, the London force is helping Mr Denby set up a new business, according to The Sun.
It is thought to be the first case in which a male officer has sued his force over alleged sex discrimination by superiors. A Met Police spokesman told The Daily Telegraph: “We can confirm that we have reached a settlement in this case. As there is a confidentiality clause in place, we are not in a position to discuss the matter any further.”
The tribunal – held almost two years ago – heard that when the deputy assistant commissioner made a surprise visit to Paddington Green police station in London, she saw a male officer walk across the office from the shower in just a towel. It was alleged she was not happy about how Mr Denby, who was in charge of the Territorial Support Group unit at the station, handled the incident after he was said to have told her that the men had to walk from the shower rooms to get to their lockers.
Following the incident Mr Denby was placed under investigation. Other claims subsequently emerged against him, including an allegation that he was allowing an off licence to operate in the police station. It was said that beers were found in the staff fridge along with a price list.
The tribunal heard no action was taken against a female counterpart and that Mr Denby’s case was “striking for its unfairness”, according to The Times.
Mr Denby joined the Metropolitan Police in 1993, beginning his career at Stoke Newington police station.
Upon his promotion to inspector in 2002, he moved to Islington police station and was seconded to his first overseas mission in Jordan in 2004, where he led a training team delivering eightweek long basic police training courses for Iraqi police recruits.
He returned to work in London as an inspector in charge of an armed response team in 2005 and was in the position during the July 7 terror attacks in which 52 people died.
After being promoted to chief inspector in January 2008, he was seconded to the European Union Police Mission in Afghanistan as acting head of training. He went on to establish the Kabul City Police Project Team, before returning to the force in London again in 2009.
Mr Denby told the 2016 hearing he regretted not stopping his male colleagues from walking through the precinct in their towels, but blamed the poor design of the office. This issue was reportedly Ms de Brunner’s “pet hate”.
‘We can confirm that we have reached a settlement in this case’
The Telegraph understands Ms de Brunner has since retired, but her career has been marred by a string of controversies. In 2003, she led the inquiry into stolen items belonging to Diana, Princess of Wales, the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge, which collapsed in court. Ten years later she was criticised for spending £660 on a ceremonial headdress amid a £500 million cut in police budgets.