A Paedophile police constable, Matthew Hunt, from Northamptonshire has been terminated for transmitting sexual messages to a vulnerable 14-year-old girl he encountered while performing his duty.
A misconduct panel determined that Police Constable Matthew Hunt had “predatory sexual intent” by dispatching texts that alluded to sexual activities and were “personal in tone.”
The discussions occurred over a week and arose when the child’s school recognised a purported intention to convene for “something to eat,” according to the panel.
The officer “would have pursued direct interaction” with the individual referred to as Child A.
Ivan Balhatchet, Chief Constable of Northamptonshire, presided over the panel and stated in the written decision: “This case involves a police officer engaged in child sexual exploitation, which I determine was intended to result in sexual abuse.”
This is calculated, strategic, targeted, and entails intentional or predatory actions.
This instance exposes both a pedophilic inclination and the hubris of a police officer, Matthew Hunt, believing he could evade consequences.
Hunt aimed to transition communication to private channels “to diminish the likelihood of detection,” stated Mr. Balhatchet.
He stated that the girl was susceptible “due to her age and additional factors.”
“As the chief constable of Northamptonshire Police, I am appalled. Matthew Hunt is a disgrace to the force and the wider police service,” he added.
Matthew Hunt was dismissed without notice after being found to have committed gross misconduct.
He did not attend the remote proceedings and Mr Balhatchet said Matthew Hunt had “chosen to disengage from the process”, with no character evidence or other personal mitigation submitted to the panel.
The officer had previously admitted his actions, that they amounted to gross misconduct by discreditable conduct, and had offered his resignation.
He was still a serving officer at the time of the Friday’s hearing and was subject to an interim protective Sexual Risk Order, the panel said.
Matthew Hunt was found to have breached the Standards of Professional Behaviour in respect of discreditable conduct, authority respect and courtesy, and honesty and integrity.
Mr Balhatchet said: “The priority of the police service is to protect the most vulnerable in society.
“This officer has done the exact opposite and done so deliberately for his own perverted reasons.
“Child A and her family may need the assistance of the police in the future. Granted the evidence in the bundle that seems to me a realistic possibility.
“There is a significant risk here that the family, and others in similar positions, might be slow to trust police officers, or unable to trust them fully, due to PC Hunt’s actions.
“There is also the question of their trust in professionals more widely, which is likely to be undermined by PC Hunt’s predatory behaviour.”
He added: “I would like to say that I am so sorry to the victim, her family and the public of Northamptonshire.”
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