West Midlands Police officer cleared of misconduct in public office

9 Apr 2019 03:30 PM

A serving West Midlands Police officer was yesterday (Tuesday 9 April) cleared of misconduct in public office by a jury at Birmingham Crown Court.  

PC Colin Noble had denied an allegation that while on duty he neglected legitimate police work in an attempt to pursue a sexual relationship with a complainant. The jury found him not guilty after a seven-day trial.

It follows an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct. The allegation stemmed from visits PC Noble made to the home of a woman while he was working in the force’s Public Protection Unit.

The woman made a complaint and we began our investigation following a referral from West Midlands Police in August 2017. The Crown Prosecution Service authorised the charge after we submitted a file in June last year (2018).

Our investigation, completed in April last year, found that PC Noble had a case to answer for gross misconduct. This was accepted by the force, which is expected to organise a hearing in due course.