Palvinder Singh, 39, a police officer who had sexual relationships with 4 crime victims he was assigned to protect, has received a sentence of 14 months.
The Wednesbury-based police officer, who has been married for 16 years, spent a large amount of time last year (both on and off-duty and during annual and sick leave) using his police-issued phone to call escorts and build sexual relationships with 4 female victims, including a revenge porn victim he sent a nude shower selfie to.
He sent “hundreds and hundreds” of flirty messages to these women “on a daily basis”, some of which mentioned bondage and threesomes. He even sent a selfie beside his locker at Smethwick Police Station, where he was based. One of the women said in her statement that Singh treated his job “as a dating agency”, and Prosecutor Jennifer Josephs said that one of the victims claimed Singh treated her in a way that made her feel “undervalued”, “very low” and “miserable”. She claimed that “he very quickly turned any contact into one of a sexual nature.”
Out of the 4 women, Singh engaged in sexual activity with 2 of them. At least one of these occurrences happened at his family home while his wife was away. Singh also used police systems that belonged to West Midlands Police to search for local sex workers and visited an escort in a police uniform following an inquiry about a “Smethwick massage”. However, the court was told that there was no evidence to prove he actually engaged in sexual activity with any prostitutes.
He was first arrested in November 2018 after he was suspected of improperly using his police powers, which resulted in an allegation being made against him. In April of this year, he was suspended from policing duties, and on Wednesday 3rd July he attended a disciplinary hearing which resulted in him being dismissed from West Midlands Police a week before his court appearance. Yvonne Bruton, the force’s Professional Standards team’s Chief Inspector, said that there was “no place for officers like this in West Midlands Police.” He has pleaded guilty to 5 counts of improper exercise of police power and privileges between May and October 2018.
At Singh’s court appearance, Judge Roderick Henderson told him, “You have a fine record as a police officer over 14 years and you have thrown it away. Over five months you went off the rails and committed these offences.” He also stated that Singh’s behaviour will have made “people, women in particular, reluctant to call on police during a crisis,” due to his abuse of power.
In addition to his 14-month sentence, he has also been ordered to pay a victim surcharge.
By Charlie Murray
