Cop Sacked for Running Personal Errand Mid-Emergency Call
PC Hankins Caught Out
In June 2020, PC Tristan Hankins went off duty while still on the clock. He used his police car to run a personal errand – collecting a missing hot tub mat from Homebase. The hot tub was for his wife, who was dealing with a medical issue.
Ignored Urgent Suicide Call
Despite accepting an immediate deployment via his Airwave radio, Hankins left his patrol area without permission. A call came through about a young woman threatening suicide. He told control he’d attend “very shortly” but detoured to Homebase first, arriving 5 to 10 minutes late. Thankfully, no harm came from the delay.
Dismissed Without Notice
Until this incident, Hankins had a clean service record. But a misconduct panel ruled his behaviour amounted to gross misconduct. On Monday, he was dismissed without notice.
Detective Superintendent Paul Kessell said: “We expect our officers to uphold the standards of professional behaviour at all times and the actions of the officer fell below these standards on this occasion.”
“He did not fulfil his duties and responsibilities and his behaviour brought discredit upon the police service and could undermine public confidence.”
“Such behaviour will not be tolerated within policing and the decision made by the panel was that the officer should be dismissed without notice.”
