Drunken Met Police officer crashed into wall and told couple ‘I’m the police’

A Metropolitan Police officer who drunkedly crashed his car into a wall has been sacked for gross misconduct.

Pc Leo Steeden was driving when he lost control of his vehicle, hitting the boundary wall of a couple’s home in Newington, Kent, on August 8, 2022.

Steeden had worked with the force for more than two decades and received recognition for his ‘professionalism, courage and determination’ after the Westminster Bridge terror attack in 2017.

Then, not wearing shoes, he rang the couple’s doorbell, flashed his warrant card and promised to fix the damage.

When he was offered a cup of tea, the hearing heard that Steeden suggested grabbing a drink at a pub instead.

The couple suggested waiting for the police, to which Steeden said: ‘I am the police and it’s OK after an accident.’

After waiting at the scene for a while, Steeden went to a local shop to drink wine and beer, it was heard.

Steeden said he had only drunk a glass of wine before getting behind the wheel, and thought he may have fallen asleep or ‘been affected by a Covid-19 vaccination’ he had earlier in the day.

Chair of the panel, Christopher McKay, said: ‘To put members of the public at risk by driving with excess alcohol was grossly irresponsible.

‘The fact that only a wall was demolished when Pc Steeden crashed was relatively fortunate.

‘The outcome could have been much worse. He then compounded his misconduct by trying to cover up the fact that he had been drinking before the accident by showing his warrant card to members of the public and telling them he was a police officer to discourage them from calling the local police before drinking further alcohol to prevent it being proved that he was over the limit at the time of the accident.

A proven lack of integrity undermines a police officer’s reliability and credibility. In the panel’s judgment, the appropriate outcome for Pc Steeden is dismissal without notice.’

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