A former Merseyside police constable has been jailed for 15 months after accessing sensitive logs about the Woodchurch organised crime group (OCG) and engaging in misconduct while on duty. Carl Edwards, 37, appeared at Chester Crown Court this week where he was sentenced for misconduct in a public office.
Edwards, who lived in a new build house on the Wirral estate, accessed an occurrence log and a briefing document about the OCG in October 2022 despite having no lawful basis to undertake the personal searches. He claimed he carried out the searches because of fears over his and his family's safety, but he was told that if there was a genuine police interest then he should have sent his enquiry up the chain.
Threats from criminals
The court heard Edwards had received threats from criminals in the Woodchurch area who had threatened to burn down his home. As part of the threats, he was told by Woodchurch's criminal faction that people would be waiting for him if he goes to prison. This had led Edwards and his family to move away from their house.
Henry Hughes, Edwards' barrister, told the court that Edwards had come under "sustained attack and abuse simply because he was a police officer...where he lived". He added: "No individual police officer should have to face the treatment in that area. They have been forced to build a new life in a completely different place. They will have to build a life from the ground up."
Offences while on duty
The court heard Edwards became a police officer in February 2020 and was initially based in Wirral West before transferring in May 2021 to Edge Lane station. Between June 2022 and December 2023, Edwards visited the Sheil Road area of Kensington, with sex workers reporting a man called "Carl" regularly attended the area. He told one particularly vulnerable woman that he wanted to do "business" and arranged to attend at her home, before getting cold feet due to concerns over CCTV and that a card payment could be traced.
Edwards was also deployed in the Rice Lane area and was flagged down by two women who claimed one of them had been strangled. Instead of taking statements from the victims and suspect, Edwards negotiated a threesome. However, one of the women had left the area by the time he returned at the end of his shift.
Vulnerable teenager
Responding to a call that an "exceptionally vulnerable" girl in her late teens had returned home after going missing overnight, Edwards was tasked with carrying out an assessment. Instead he sat on the girl's bed, offered her his vape and told her he wanted to see her wearing a corset and naked. He also told her he was aroused and rubbed her leg through the duvet, before telling her she was his Christmas present. The teenager was said to have been in hysterics and, in a victim impact statement, told the court she no longer felt safe leaving home and would forever struggle to trust the police in the future.
Edwards was arrested in December 2023 and was immediately suspended from duty. Over the course of three interviews he denied any wrongdoing, instead accusing all the victims of lying. But the former police officer, of Sunflower Close in Upton, was unanimously convicted of three counts of misconduct in a public office and two data protection offences following a trial in July.
Sentencing and consequences
Sentencing, Judge Michael Leeming said: "You arranged and sought to exploit an interest in sex workers and with a third vulnerable member of the public, in duty and in uniform. The harm is obvious. The police relationship with the public depends on trust and confidence. You were aware of this."
The court heard in a reference Edwards' brother said the convicted man's ambition since a teenager was to be a police officer. The judge said references provided to the court presented a different side to the character in the dock. But he added: "Those who know you well don't know the darker side to your character, which is approaching vulnerable sex workers and engaging in this behaviour."
Edwards appeared before a Merseyside misconduct hearing where it was determined he would have been dismissed from the force had he not already resigned. He was also placed on the College of Policing barred list.
Detective Chief Superintendent Sarbjit Kaur, head of the force's professional standards unit, said: "Edwards' behaviour was nothing short of abhorrent, and it is right that he will never be able to work as a police officer again anywhere in the country." She added: "We are wholly committed to protecting women and girls who are faced with violence, sexual abuse and inappropriate behaviour, working alongside partners including local authorities, support agencies and the third sector to ensure Merseyside is a safe place for women and girls to live."
Amanda Rowe, director of engagement at the Independent Office for Police Conduct, said: "The offending by PC Edwards was a deliberate and prolonged pattern of criminal behaviour which seemed to only escalate over time and culminated with his abhorrent actions when visiting a vulnerable girl who would have undoubtedly placed trust in him at the time. When a police officer abuses their position for a sexual purpose, this is a form of corruption - and it has absolutely no place in policing. This was a profound breach of the trust placed in him by both the public and the force."
