A Former West Mercia police officer has appeared before a misconduct panel after allegations she lied on a witness statement and failed to tell the force about a sexual relationship she had with a man under investigation for a crime.
Former PC Ellie McNamara faced a hearing chaired by Chief Constable Richard Cooper at Hindlip Hall following allegations she had repeatedly lied about being in a relationship with a man who was being investigated but had not been charged with a criminal offence.
It was alleged that McNamara lied on a witness statement from June 2025, where she said she was not in a relationship with the man, whose name was not disclosed by the force
In his report, Chief Constable Cooper said: “Lying in formal statements undermines justice. Police officers lying in statements undermines it even further and diminishes the trust that society can place in those who are themselves entrusted with gathering evidence.
“This is operational dishonesty and is at the most serious end of the scale because of the formal witness statement setting.
“She was not put on the spot regarding the completion of the statement, but had time to consider the content.”
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It was also alleged that the man and McNamara had been in a relationship for several months while he was subject to bail conditions which prohibited him from contacting witnesses to his alleged crime, which included McNamara, and failed to disclose the relationship despite having multiple opportunities to.
McNamara’s failure to disclose the relationship despite the man being on bail for four months was described by the chief constable as ‘a sustained failure to do the right thing’ and treated as an aggravating factor in her case.
The panel found that McNamara’s actions were gross misconduct.
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Chief constable Cooper said: “The conduct in allegation 1 in particular is an egregious breach of the high standards expected. Police officers cannot lie in statements.
“Therefore, I am of the view that the purposes of the misconduct regime are only satisfactorily fulfilled by dismissal without notice.”
Had McNamara not already left the force before the hearing, she would have been sacked immediately.
She will also be included on the college of policing’s barred list, which will prevent her from working in law enforcement for life.