Chief Constable asked to resign after misconduct verdict

Chief of Avon and Somerset Police, Nick Gargan, is defiantly refusing to stand down from his position with the constabulary.

The private hearing into allegations he made inappropriate advances to female colleagues and leaked internal emails took place last month.

Sue Mountstevens, the area’s PCC, met with Mr Gargan, 48, yesterday and told him to quit his post, declaring that he had lost the confidence of the police force and the public.

However, having been found not guilty of any gross misconduct, he will not be dismissed.

Chair Dorian Lovell-Pank QC wrote a report of the panel’s findings and recommended a sanction of eight final written warnings to Mr Gargan.

Following the misconduct hearing, Mr Gargan said: “I accept the findings of the panel and apologise that my actions have fallen below the standards expected of a chief constable”.

Ms Mountstevens said: “Chief Constable Nick Gargan has let down the colleagues he led and the communities he was there to protect, “.

A disgraced chief constable has been told to resign after it was revealed he swapped “intimate images” using his police phone.

However, he was found guilty of misconduct by receiving and sending four intimate images on his police-issued iPhone and sending one image.

Mr Gargan has said he understands people have questions and said he would address them.

“I believe that there is now a detrimental impact on the efficiency and effectiveness of him leading Avon and Somerset Constabulary, which is why I have today initiated the process to require him to resign”.

But a defiant Mr Gargan – appointed in 2013 – has refused to resign.

A total of 134 texts were found on Mr Gargan’s phone between him and the woman but he later denied he had attempted to have a sexual relationship with her.

Following the misconduct hearing last month Mr Gargan’s suspension was lifted but instead of returning to the force he has been working with the National Police Chiefs Council.

Ms Mountstevens did not comment on the potential costs of that for the force, stating it was a decision for Mr Gargan to make, but did confirm he was on a fixed term contract until 2018 – leaving a possible buy-out figure of around £500,000.

Investigators found a “large number” of personal and in some cases “very intimate” text exchanges between him and “various women”.

“He has complied with every requirement of the protracted misconduct investigation and subsequent hearing”.

In a statement it said “He placed his fate in the hands of an expert professional panel, which made a clear recommendation that he should go back to work”.

‘This is a separate process from the misconduct procedure and I will be writing to Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Constabulary Sir Thomas Winsor to seek his views’.