A scandal-hit police force has begged for emergency Government funding to cover the salaries of three chief constables at the same time.
Two Devon and Cornwall Police chiefs have been suspended in as many years, and the force wrote to the Home Office last month asking for extra cash.
The beleaguered force saw its chief constable Will Kerr suspended last July when an investigation was opened into ‘serious allegations of sexual offences’ in Northern Ireland, which Mr Kerr denies.
Another disaster struck when his replacement, acting chief constable Jim Colwell, was suspended last month amid a probe from the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).
The watchdog is investigating potential gross misconduct ‘in respect of his use of a work issue mobile phone to exchange messages of a personal nature without a policing purpose’ and ‘alleged conduct concerning a force disciplinary matter’.
Both officers remain on a full annual salary of about £180,000 while under investigation.
Former Dorset Police chief James Vaughan has been appointed as new acting chief constable of Devon and Cornwall, so the force is now effectively paying more than half a million pounds a year for its leader.
Devon and Cornwall’s police and crime commissioner, Alison Hernandez, has asked for a special grant to cover the costs.
Acting chief constable Jim Colwell (pictured) was suspended last month amid a probe from the Independent Office for Police Conduct
Chief constable Will Kerr (pictured) was suspended last July when an investigation was opened into ‘serious allegations of sexual offences’ in Northern Ireland, which Mr Kerr denies
Exeter’s MP, Steve Race, said the area was in ‘a bit of a mess at the moment’.
‘We’ve got a police force that’s failing on at least four out of eight measures,’ he said.
‘We’re now on our second acting chief constable – that means we’re paying for three chief constables all at the same time, which is not great value for money.
‘I’ve had real questions about both the operational leadership and the political leadership of Devon and Cornwall Police.
‘We’ve got to get it right this time because people across Devon and Cornwall rely on the police.’
Ms Hernandez has defended her decision to suspend Mr Colwell.
‘One of the things I have to consider before I suspend is a public interest test in terms of, does this affect the confidence of policing, is there an element that would make it untenable for the chief constable to continue, these are all considerations I have to make,’ she told the BBC.
‘It was an extremely difficult decision. It was something I didn’t take lightly.’
Former Dorset Police chief James Vaughan has been appointed as new acting chief constable of Devon and Cornwall
The PCC added that she had been sent a lot of correspondence stating she was the issue and should resign.
‘I’m not quite sure when a man’s had allegations made about them why it becomes a woman’s problem,’ she said.
‘If I get allegations brought before me with evidence I have to make a decision on that.
‘I’m doing my job.’
Mr Kerr was brought into the force in 2022 when it was placed in special measures.
The highly experienced officer, who was awarded an OBE in 2015 and received the Kings Policing medal last year, spent 27 years in the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), rising to assistant chief constable.
It is understood a female alleged victim has accused Kerr of serious sexual offences said to have taken place in 2015 and 2016.
