A serving officer has been dismissed without notice at an accelerated misconduct hearing following his conviction for sexual assault.
Detective Constable Jose Poonsawat, attached to the Central South Command Unit, appeared at Croydon Magistrates’ Court on Friday, 12 July charged with sexual assault.
He pleaded guilty and was released on court bail to appear for sentencing on Friday, 23 August.
He was accused of sexually touching a woman without her consent during an off duty incident on 16 December 2022, and was investigated by the officers from Bromley, and the Met’s Domestic Abuse and Sexual Offences team. This sits within our Directorate of Professional Standards.
He was sentenced to a high level community order for six months, given a curfew for four months – while also tagged – and ordered to pay court costs of £199.
During the investigation DC Poonsawat was place on restricted duties before being suspended in July.
At the hearing on Tuesday, 20 August, the chair, Assistant Commissioner Pippa Mills, found that DC Poonsawat breached the standards of discreditable conduct at the level of gross misconduct and dismissed him without notice.
Detective Superintendent Vanessa Britton, acting commander for policing in Lambeth and Southwark, said: “My thoughts are with the victim who has displayed courage in reporting this sexual assault.
“Officers are quite rightly held to account for wrongdoing by the courts.
“In this case DC Poonsawat has been held to account both by the courts and the Met’s rigorous misconduct process.
“He has no place in the Met and has been rightly dismissed.”
Following the hearing DC Poonsawat will now be placed on the barred list held by the College of Policing. Those appearing on the list cannot be employed by police, local policing bodies (PCCs), the Independent Office for Police Conduct or His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services.
