Former Derbyshire police officer jailed after suspended sentence appealed

A former police officer has been jailed, after the force appealed his suspended sentence for misconduct in a public office.

Matthew Longmate, 48, formerly of Derbyshire Constabulary, had been given a 12-month jail sentence, suspended for a year, after he was found guilty of a single count of misconduct in a public office in November, relating to sexual contact with a woman in his patrol car.

Following an appeal by the force who deemed the sentence unduly lenient, the Judge removed the suspended aspect of his conviction, with Longmate subsequently being jailed for 11 months (12 months minus unpaid work served).

He had been on duty on 4 October 2015 when he and a colleague offered to take a woman home from an incident at The Association bar in Chesterfield. The trial heard that PC Longmate and PC Daniel Nash parked their car, and the woman had sex with Nash and performed a sex act on Longmate.

In an accelerated misconduct hearing held in January this year, Longmate was dismissed from the force following his conviction.

DCC Simon Blatchly said “Matthew Longmate was found guilty of a horrendous crime, where in his role as a police officer he not only failed to protect, but actively sought to abuse his position while on patrol.

“As a force, we felt that a suspended sentence did not reflect the severity of the offence committed. We therefore appealed that decision, and I am pleased to see that today he is now in custody.

“The likes of Longmate have no place in policing and we will continue to do all we can to root out those who taint the hard work of the overwhelming majority of officers and staff in Derbyshire Constabulary.”