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| Nottinghamshire PC Peter Surgay sacked for 'affair with murderer's lawyer' | Nottinghamshire PC Peter Surgay sacked for 'affair with murderer's lawyer' |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| A police officer who supported the family of a murder victim while having an affair with a solicitor of one of the accused has been sacked. | A police officer who supported the family of a murder victim while having an affair with a solicitor of one of the accused has been sacked. |
| Det Con Peter Surgay was a family liaison officer following the murder of Clifford Collinge in Nottinghamshire in October 2011. | |
| A misconduct panel was told he had a "volatile" on-off relationship with solicitor Deborah Bell since 2009. | A misconduct panel was told he had a "volatile" on-off relationship with solicitor Deborah Bell since 2009. |
| Surgay claimed it was a mostly platonic relationship. | Surgay claimed it was a mostly platonic relationship. |
| Ms Bell went on to act as a solicitor for Stephen Shreeves, who is now serving a life sentence for the murder of Mr Collinge after being found guilty in 2012. | Ms Bell went on to act as a solicitor for Stephen Shreeves, who is now serving a life sentence for the murder of Mr Collinge after being found guilty in 2012. |
| Det Con Surgay, 42, failed to report the nature of the relationship, which "could have potentially compromised a major investigation", the panel heard. | Det Con Surgay, 42, failed to report the nature of the relationship, which "could have potentially compromised a major investigation", the panel heard. |
| Det Con Surgay sought to downplay the relationship, which saw him and Ms Bell travel abroad to California, Dublin and Germany, and claimed it was "platonic" except for a "drunken fumble" early on. | Det Con Surgay sought to downplay the relationship, which saw him and Ms Bell travel abroad to California, Dublin and Germany, and claimed it was "platonic" except for a "drunken fumble" early on. |
| Chairman of the panel Delroy Henry said: "Det Con Surgay knew there was potential compromise or conflict of interest." | Chairman of the panel Delroy Henry said: "Det Con Surgay knew there was potential compromise or conflict of interest." |
| Richard Wormald, representing Det Con Surgay, argued the offences were at the lower end of the spectrum and said the offences had caused "no harm". | Richard Wormald, representing Det Con Surgay, argued the offences were at the lower end of the spectrum and said the offences had caused "no harm". |
| Det Con Surgay was also accused of misusing police computers, including accessing records of an incident where a car registered in his name was reported for making off from a petrol station without paying - known as bilking. | Det Con Surgay was also accused of misusing police computers, including accessing records of an incident where a car registered in his name was reported for making off from a petrol station without paying - known as bilking. |
| The panel ruled that both allegations of gross misconduct were proven. | The panel ruled that both allegations of gross misconduct were proven. |
| "We are not looking at a single allegation but two, and what we are looking at here was a course of conduct not for one day, for one week, but years," Mr Henry said. | "We are not looking at a single allegation but two, and what we are looking at here was a course of conduct not for one day, for one week, but years," Mr Henry said. |