A police officer who was supposed to be working from home ‘key-jammed’ his laptop so he could skive off to go to the gym and visit a golf course.
While former PC Ryan Lenton should have been busy in his role on the force’s Investigation Management Unit (IMU), he was in fact visiting Stonelees Golf Centre and Obsidion Gym in Kent.
It was said that the officer, who had been trusted to work from home, ‘intentionally exploited [a] lack of face-to-face supervision’ to take ‘extended periods away from his desk’.
A misconduct hearing ruled said that he ‘key-jammed’, weighing down a keyboard to make it appear as if you are active online, for 60 hours and 7 minutes across 14 shifts earlier this year.
Kent Police said this amounted to approximately 44 per cent of his total work time.
It was ruled that Lenton, whose remote role included handling initial crime reports and supporting investigations, would have been dismissed had he not already left the force.
The former officer claimed he was going to the gym to collect a water bottle and to the golf course to collect a club, and was contactable on his work phone at all times.
However, the hearing found that the hours he spent at each location did not match up with this reasoning, and that he failed to reply to messages.
Former PC Ryan Lenton ‘key-jammed’ his laptop, weighing down a keyboard to make it appear as if you are active online, for 60 hours and 7 minutes across 14 shifts (stock photo)
In the outcome statement, Chief Constable Tim Smith said: ‘Whatever former PC Lenton’s work ethic, it is inconceivable that the time he spent away from his desk and laptop could have been, or indeed was, made up later.
‘There is no evidence of former PC Lenton ever approaching his supervisors to seek permission to leave the workplace, take prolonged breaks from his desk or any attempt to secure additional flexible working arrangements to allow for such prolonged breaks from the workplace.’
The hearing was told that Pc Lenton’s ‘key-jamming’ took place between April and May this year.
Investigators also discovered that his work phone had been at Obsidian Gym on February 25, and he admitted going there while he was supposed to be on shift on another occasion.
On May 16, Lenton’s work phone was found to be active at Stonelees Golf Centre at 11.59am and 1.07pm.
He claimed that he only went to pick up a golf club, but CC Smith said the prolonged time away from his desk here also did not correlate with that story.
While Lenton claimed he only ‘key-jammed’ to keep his laptop active so he could receive communications and that he was ‘fully contactable’, the report found this was not the case.
Chief Contstable Smith addded: ‘For the vast majority of the time key-jamming takes place, he was not replying to messages or conversations with colleagues and was dearly [sic] not monitoring work communication.
‘I find former PC Lenton’s culpability for his actions as high. He is completely blameworthy for his actions; they were deliberate and planned throughout.
‘He was in a role where he was trusted to work for the hours scheduled and there was a clear expectation that he would do so.
‘He intentionally exploited the lack of face-to-face supervision to enable him to take these extended periods away from his desk.’
Another concern addressed in the hearing was security issues regarding leaving police systems open and vulnerable on multiple occasions and for many hours, in breach of force policy.
The former officer did not come up with a defence for this, and it was decided his actions fell under gross misconduct, placing him on the ‘barred list’.
Chief Contstable Smith added: ‘There is no evidence of this activity occurring when former PC Lenton was in previous roles and working in police premises.
‘This is not activity I have ever comes across in policing and nor would I expect to.
‘The fact it has occurred whilst he is working remotely and not directly supervised, indicates to me that he must have known what he was doing was wrong, and the key-jamming was conducted in order to make others believe he was at his desk and working.
‘Given these breaches are multiple and over a prolonged period and represent a complete lack of honesty, integrity and judgement on the part of former PC Lenton, I do not believe that a Final Written Warning is at all proportionate to the scale of the breaches, or appropriate in the circumstance of this case.
‘I do believe that the only proportionate, right and proper sanction is that of Dismissal Without Notice.’
Lenton was found to have breached the standards of professional behaviour relating to honesty and integrity, orders and instructions, and discreditable conduct.
The chief constable said the actions were ‘so serious’ that they amounted to misconduct, adding: ‘Had former PC Lenton still been serving today, I would have dismissed him without notice.
‘I further direct that he is to be placed on the ‘barred list’ forthwith.’
Detective Chief Superintendent Jon Armory, head of professional standards at the force, said: ‘All Kent Police officers and staff are expected to uphold the highest standards of professional behaviour, and anyone who falls short of these standards will be held to account for their actions.
‘Former Police Constable Lenton’s behaviour served only to undermine the professionalism, dedication and trustworthiness evidenced by the vast majority of Kent Police officers and staff.
‘We do not hesitate to take action when someone’s conduct fails to meet expectations, and it is entirely right that former PC Lenton would have been dismissed without notice had he not already resigned from the force.’
The case comes after Greater Manchester Police revoked working from home privileges earlier this month.
The force had discovered several staff members using ‘key-jamming’, with misconduct claims brought against 26 employees.
