‘An absolutely stupid thing to do!’ Jail for Lincolnshire Police call handler who tipped off ‘drug-dealing’ friend after receiving complaint
A police call handler who admitted passing on information to a suspect has been jailed.
Stuart Wells, 31, who was working at Lincolnshire Police headquarters in Nettleham, pleaded guilty to a charge of misconduct in public office.
Lincoln Crown Court was told Wells was at work on October 14, 2023 when he received an incoming call.
A female reported that a party was going on where she suspected drugs were being used and gave the name of a woman who she believed was dealing.
The court heard Wells knew the woman named in the call and sent a text message to his friend informing her about the call.
Within a short period of time a second handler received another call from the original complainant telling them that she had been threatened by the woman she had named in the first call.
The court was told Wells approached a manager and made admissions about his conduct at around the same time as the second call was received by the control room.
An impact statement from the victim was read out in court.
She described being worried and extra vigilant, and making extra checks on her CCTV.
The court heard Wells, of Westfield Drive, North Greetwell, had no previous convictions.
Terry Boston, mitigating for Wells, accepted he should have known better but argued that in his case he did not receive the best training from Lincolnshire Police.
"It was an absolutely stupid thing to do," Mr Boston told the court.
"Despite his no comment interview he went to his control room Inspector and made admissions straight away."
Mr Boston said Wells was under stress at the time due to a number of family bereavements.
"It hasn't been done for malice or personal gain, it was to get his friend away from the scene," Mr Boston added.
The court heard Wells had lost his job with the police and was now working as a postman.
Passing sentence Judge Simon Hirst told Wells his actions had a significant impact on his victim and continues to do so.
Judge Hirst said: "Members of the public must be able to ring the police and provide information.Your actions may deter them, that is why this is so serious."
Wells was today (January 16) jailed for six months.