A POLICE OFFICER was dismissed without notice from policing after conduct amounting to gross misconduct was proven at a public hearing.

The hearing was led by a legally qualified chair independent of policing and ran from Monday October 30, to Wednesday, November 1, with the final outcome revealed on Thursday, November 9.  

The panel found PC 1605 Calum Powell had breached three standards of professional behaviour, namely authority, respect and courtesy, use of force and discreditable conduct.

The incident happened on the evening of Thursday, July 1, 2021.

The panel said he used force that was excessive, and deemed “unnecessary, disproportionate and unreasonable”.

He was deemed to have acted in “an aggressive manner” towards prisoner Fathal Moshen when he had forced his arm up while he was handcuffed to the rear and struck him in the torso with his knee three times.

PC Powell was ruled to have “lost his temper and got frustrated” when Moshen refused to wear the spit guard, which was also deemed unnecessary with other options available, including locking the door and keeping him under strict observation.

The panel deemed that Powell had not been under significant enough threat from Moshen during the incident to have justified his “violent, reactive behaviour”.

When considering the outcome, the panel paid particular attention to the level of seriousness and physical harm suffered by the complainant, and the level of reputational harm faced by the police force.

The panel said Powell had acted “deliberately” and “abused his position of power” when he assaulted Moshen.

Powell had breached three professional standards in a “substantial departure of what is appropriate” for a police officer.

Deputy Chief Constable Rachel Williams, said: “The behaviour of Calum Powell fell significantly below the high standards that we require of all our officers and staff, and today he has been held to account for his actions.

“The level of force he used was excessive and completely unacceptable. There is no place for this type of behaviour in Gwent Police.

"Behaviour such as this only serves to undermine the committed work of the vast majority of police officers and staff who work tirelessly to protect the public with dignity and courage every day.

“At Gwent Police, we are fully committed to ensuring inappropriate behaviour is rooted out and we will continue to robustly investigate those whose behaviour falls below the high standards that we and our communities expect.”

The former officer will now be placed on the College of Policing’s barred list.