A Metropolitan Police detective sergeant has been found guilty of gross misconduct for keeping crime scene photographs of a raped and murdered teenager for 20 years and showing them to colleagues for no policing reason. The employment tribunal ruled that Jason Grafham's actions compounded the emotional harm and grief suffered by the family of Sally Anne Bowman, who was 18 when she was killed in 2005.
Grafham, who retired from the force one day before the tribunal began, was permanently barred from serving in the police. The tribunal, sitting at Palestra House in south London, found there was no policing purpose for him to retain the photographs, which were discovered after a search of his desk in December 2024.
Gross misconduct findings
The tribunal chairman, Commander Paul Trevers, stated that Grafham would have been dismissed had he not already retired. He cannot have his pension docked as he has not been convicted of a criminal offence. The panel found that Grafham retained papers and photographs of the Sally Anne Bowman case without any policing reason, and showed them to other officers without a policing purpose. Grafham admitted possessing and showing the photographs but claimed they were for policing purposes, a claim the panel did not accept.
Commander Trevers said: "Displaying (the photos) without any policing purpose was profoundly inappropriate and failed to treat the victim with dignity. Even after 20 years, the emotional harm, grief and disruption to (the Bowman family's) lives remains significant and the officer's actions compounded this." He added that the behavior was "wholly inconsistent with locally recognised practice" and had "significant potential to undermine confidence in policing standards."
Witness accounts
One witness, known as Miss B, said she believed Grafham kept the photographs for "entertainment and bragging purposes" and found it "highly inappropriate" and "disturbing" when she saw him show them to a colleague. Another witness, Miss C, said Grafham's frequent references to his work on the Sally Anne Bowman case had become a "running joke" in the office.
In his defense, Grafham's representative Mark Scrutton claimed he had kept the photographs for "policing purposes" and that Grafham was "incredibly proud" of his role as an exhibits officer in the case that led to the conviction of Mark Dixie. Dixie was jailed for life with a minimum term of 34 years for the rape and murder of Sally Anne Bowman in 2008.
Additional misconduct allegations
Separately, Grafham was accused of making five sexually inappropriate remarks to colleagues and three discriminatory and/or derogatory remarks between March and December 2024. The tribunal found that, on the balance of probabilities, all sexually inappropriate remarks and all but one discriminatory and/or derogatory comment were proven, based on evidence from four colleagues.
Apology from Met Police
Detective Chief Superintendent Angela Craggs, who leads the central specialist crime command at the Met, said: "The actions of former DS Grafham were despicable, incomprehensible and deeply disrespectful. I am profoundly sorry to the family and loved ones of Sally Anne Bowman for the additional pain and distress caused to them by what he did. Grafham's comments to colleagues were also incredibly offensive and inappropriate. There is no place in the organisation for those who think such behaviour and language is acceptable. We are all appalled by his conduct and grateful to colleagues who had the confidence to come forward and report their concerns, which we were able to swiftly act on."
