Police emergency call operator jailed after passing information to organised gangs | UK news

A former police emergency call operator who, together with her brother, passed confidential information to organized drug gangs has been sentenced to prison.

Catherine Arrol, 29, and her brother John Arrol, 39, both admitted after investigations to being involved in the criminal activities of an organized crime gang.

Catherine, who worked for Thames Valley Police (TVP), also pleaded guilty to abuse of office.

Police said Catherine accessed information from police systems between March and June 2020 while working as a call handler.

Catherine, who was working with John, then passed her findings on to organized crime groups via an encrypted device called the “Paidlizard.”

According to TVP, John often acted as an intermediary between Catherine and the OCGs responsible for the import and distribution of Class A drugs.

An investigation was launched and Catherine, from Maidenhead, Berkshire, and John, from Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, were both arrested.

An EncroChat phone and Class A and B drugs were seized from Catherine.

TVP said she also allowed her then-partner to secretly listen in on a phone conversation while she was talking to a crime victim.

Catherine later admitted three offences relating to participating in the criminal activities of an organised crime gang and four counts of abuse of office at Reading Crown Court in November last year.

John pleaded guilty in the same court in February this year to three counts of participating in the criminal activities of an organised criminal group.

Yesterday, Catherine was sentenced to two years and ten months in prison, while John was sentenced to two years in prison.

DC Joshua Pitts of TVP's corruption unit said: “Catherine Arrol held a position of trust and abused it by accessing data and passing it on to organised crime gangs.”

“She went further and allowed a citizen to listen in on a confidential conversation in which a crime was being reported. This was a clear breach of the public's trust in the police.

“It is vital to the trust of our communities and our workforce that all employees are honest and trustworthy. Catherine Arrol's conduct was far below what was expected and she was condemned accordingly.”

Contact our news team by emailing [email protected].

For more stories like this, visit Visit our news page.

MORE: BBC star John Hunt returns to work with poignant message after family murdered in crossbow killings

MORE: Patient found dead in hospital kitchen oven

MORE: Lucy Letby compared to Harold Shipman after surgery 'in full view'

This website is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.