Another senior officer has been suspended by Greater Manchester Police - the second in nine months.
In a statement issued today, Deputy Chief Constable, Terry Woods, said: “Following an internal allegation of misconduct, a Superintendent has been suspended from duty and referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) - who are carrying out an initial assessment to determine whether an independent investigation is required."
An IOPC spokesperson said: “We have carefully assessed a referral from Greater Manchester Police regarding allegations of inappropriate conduct by an officer of Superintendent rank.
“We have informed GMP the nature of the allegations mean an investigation is required. We determined GMP should carry out the investigation and have made recommendations of matters for the investigating officer to consider.”
GMP have not revealed the nature of the allegations against the Superintendent.
In October the Manchester Evening News reported that a different senior GMP officer is facing allegations of sexual harassment. That cop, who has not been named, was suspended following allegations of misconduct, GMP confirmed. He remains suspended.
In relation to that case an IOPC spokesperson said in October: "We have received a conduct referral from Greater Manchester Police in relation to allegations of sexual harassment by a senior officer. We will now assess the available information to determine if any further action is required from us."
GMP has not released any information about the nature of the complaint. In a statement issued on Thursday, Deputy Chief Constable Terry Woods, said: "Following an allegation of misconduct, a senior officer has been suspended from duty and referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) for investigation into their standards of professional behaviour."
The police watchdog will now conduct an assessment of the case and decide whether the case merits an independent investigation.
GMP was put in special measures in December 2020 following an inspection by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Service. It was removed from them in October 2022.
The force was deemed to have made sufficient improvements in its performance and did not need “enhanced” monitoring, His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) said.
The force was put into special measures after a scathing report on its performance in recording crimes found that it did not record one in five crimes between July 2019 and June 2020. It was estimated that around 80,000 crimes had not been dealt with properly including a high proportion of violent offences.
Stephen Watson became Chief Constable of GMP in May 2021, tasked with the brief of turning things around at the force.
In January the Manchester Evening News revealed that almost 100 police officers in Greater Manchester are under investigation for sexual misconduct. At the time GMP was investigating 82 officers for sexual offences or misconduct with investigations for a further 16 concluded and the officers currently awaiting a misconduct panel hearing.
