A Metropolitan Police officer who purchased recordings depicting the sexual assault of infants has avoided imprisonment.
PC Darren Hourigan, aged 51, alleged that he may have been the victim of unauthorised access to his computer system when he was discovered browsing a platform containing 3,490 films and 295 static photos depicting minors.
The webpage had explicit films depicting the sexual assault of infants as young as one year old.
PC Hourigan, residing at Coteford Street in Tooting, was an active South Area Command Unit member, overseeing Bromley, Croydon, and Sutton. He was apprehended with the photos, as mentioned earlier.
In March 2020, the Met’s Online Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse division discovered that two email accounts associated with PC Hourigan had used the portal.
Upon his arrest at his residence in March 2020, he informed his colleagues that he was completely unaware of the existence of the photos.
The gateway contained four directories containing explicit photographs of child maltreatment, one of which was labelled ‘baby’ and another labelled ‘1 to 5’.
During a subsequent interrogation, PC Hourigan acknowledged utilising the file-sharing platform to get videos related to cycling and athletics.
He persistently denied ever accessing illicit photographs of minors but suggested that his account may have been compromised.
PC Hourigan ultimately confessed to his wrongdoing on April 26th when he entered a guilty plea for three charges of possessing indecent photos of children.
On Friday, July 7th, he attended Kingston upon Thames Crown Court, where Judge Barklem imposed a 10-month prison sentence, suspended for one year.
Consequently, he will only be incarcerated if he commits another offence within that timeframe.
He was suspended from his duties before being formally charged on September 21 of the previous year. Subsequently, he tendered his resignation from the police force.
Chief Superintendent Andy Brittain, responsible for law enforcement in the South Area, stated that the Metropolitan Police will take decisive measures against unsuitable personnel to continue their service within the organisation. Consequently, preparations will be started for a misconduct hearing.
“We are dedicated to delivering a Metropolitan Police Service that Londoners deserve, one that enforces the law both on the streets of the capital and within its personnel.”
“The overwhelming majority of the numerous police officers and staff are making great efforts to progress in this matter – those who refuse to do so are not deserving of staying.”