Ex Police Officer loses claim at Employment Tribunal

A former police officer who was dismissed from the force for gross misconduct has lost his claim at a recent employment tribunal.

Mohammed Lachiri was found not guilty of theft from Debenhams in the Crown Court at Caernarfon in 2017, but subsequently faced misconduct proceedings for providing a false name and address when initially challenged by security staff and failing to inform the force that he had been served with an exclusion notice by the department store.

Mr Lachiri, who had been an officer for 18 years claimed that the misconduct proceedings were based on discrimination, on the grounds of his race, his religion as well as being subject to harassment by his line managers and senior officers because of his race and religion.

The claims were dismissed in full. The tribunal found no evidence to suggest that an employee from a different ethnic background or who held different religious beliefs would have been treated differently in the same circumstances.

The tribunal preferred the evidence of the force to that of Mr Lachiri. It found that he was not untruthful in the way he gave his evidence, and that he genuinely believed that matters had developed in the way he had advanced them. However, His Honour Judge S Jenkins found there was little basis for his beliefs and that the claimant was unwilling to accept that matters were not as he perceived them.

Speaking after the judgment was delivered, Detective Chief Inspector Sion Williams of the force’s Professional Standards Department (PSD) said: ‘The facts in this case showed that Mr Lachiri’s line managers, as well as officers from PSD acted with honesty and integrity throughout.

‘It is vital in retaining public confidence that the force investigates all instances of misconduct in a fair and transparent manner, and the Judge found that in every instance, Mr Lachiri was dealt with in such a way. Neither his race, nor his religion were ever a factor in the disciplinary process.’