'Charged PSNI/RUC officer would lose his job if convicted', his solicitor tells court

A serving police officer, currently suspended from duty over allegations of 'Misconduct in Public Office', "would lose his job if convicted", his solicitor has admitted. 

   The officer was charged with a single       offence on dates between September          19, 2019, and December 18, 2020. 

During a brief mention of the case against PSNI Constable William Mallett, his defence solicitor told Lisburn Magistrates Court there was still no legal aid in place so he was still "trying to sort out funding". 

"He is a serving police officer, still employed, albeit he is suspended lending these matters," he told District Judge Rosie Watters, "but I would say that, if convicted, he would lose his job." 

Mallett, with an address given as c/o Lisburn PSNI station, is on bail, charged with a single offence of misconduct in public office in that on dates between September 19, 2019, and December 18, 2020 "you willfully misconducted yourself to such a degree as to amount to an abuse of the public's trust in you". 

The particulars of the offence allege that, in order to gain sexual thrills, Mallett "accessed certain occurrences and other such records on the police computer system, which were linked to incidents of a sexual nature, including those variously reported as rape, sexual assault, sexual exploitation, child sexual exploitation, child abuse and harassment of a pedophile, for your own benefit or sexual satisfaction, without reasonable excuse or justification, knowing that it was wrong for you to access such occurrences and other such records." 

District Judge Rosie Watters adjourned the case for two weeks. The solicitor, regarding funding, told the judge: "I will put pressure [on] that I need a decision." 

With many thanks to the: Sunday Life and Paul Higgins for the original publication. 

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   Any form of sexual abuse is very wrong 

                    July 26th, 2022. 

A Co Antrim man accused of secretly filming his teenage stepdaughter in the shower claimed he set up recordings to deal with his own body issues, the High Court heard.

The 37-year-old defendant, who cannot be named, also allegedly subjected her friend to sexual assaults while she was unconscious and in a hot tub.

Prosecutors said police are trying to identify another young boy whose image was discovered on the man’s phone.

He is charged with multiple counts of voyeurism, making and possessing indecent photographs, and sexual assault on dates between January 2020 and April 2022.

Police were contacted after his ex-partner’s daughter discovered pictures of her naked and in underwear on an old phone belonging to him, the court heard.

It then emerged that a mobile had been placed in a bathroom basket to covertly record the girl while she was having a shower, Crown lawyer Fiona O’Kane claimed.

During police interviews he admitted setting the phone up to record, but insisted it was due to his own personal body issues.

“He said he did it to look at himself, that he had forgotten to remove it and wasn’t aware the 16-year-old daughter would be using the shower next,” Mrs O’Kane said.

Separate footage allegedly shows the man touching one of her friends while she was naked.

“It’s quite evident the teenage girl was intoxicated and effectively unconscious and he has taken advantage of that to move her top out of the way, expose her breasts and then touch them,” counsel submitted.

Another charge involving the same girl relates to an incident at a house party.

The man tried to pull her towards his groin after she joined him in a hot tub without realising he was naked, the court heard.

Lady Chief Justice Dame Siobhan Keegan was told inquiries into the alleged offending are continuing.

“There is an ongoing attempt to identify a teenage boy in one of the photographs,” Mrs O’Kane confirmed.

Earlier this year the man was granted bail, but breached conditions by travelling to Australia.

Before leaving the UK he allegedly told his ex-partner that he was going to end his life.

Police believe this was an attempt to have him classified as missing presumed dead.

Opposing the man’s bid to be re-released from custody, Mrs O’Kane contended: “The concern is obviously there is a level of deception involved.”

Defence barrister Peter Coiley argued that a friend of his client had been invited him out to Australia at a time when he was expressing suicidal thoughts.

“He would deny he was fleeing from anything, he was simply trying to get away to get his head cleared for that period of time, but he was going to have to come back at some stage,” Mr Coiley insisted.

Refusing bail, however, Dame Siobhan said: “My issue is the risk of absconding in the light of the seriousness of the alleged offences.”

With many thanks to the: Belfast Telegraph and Alan Erwin for the original publication. 

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