A Metropolitan Police officer caught with an indecent video of a child and extreme pornography on his phone would have been sacked had he not resigned.
PC Anthony Moore, based in south London, was a member of two WhatsApp groups between 2018 and 2022.
In one called “Laura’s Dirt Box”, Moore sent three laughing emojis in response to an inappropriate message another user made about the child abuse clip.
He forwarded the same video to a second social media group called “Night shifters” in December 2019.
During a criminal investigation into his conduct in 2022, they were found on his handset along with a 22 second clip depicting acts of mutilation and another three minutes long showing extreme violence.
Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor found Moore breached standards of professional behaviour in relation to discreditable conduct.
He would have been dismissed without notice for gross misconduct had he still been a serving officer in the South East Command Unit, covering Bexley, Greenwich and Lewisham.
AC Taylor said Moore’s conduct was “intentional and deliberate” and brought “profound discredit” upon the Met, adding: “He engaged in WhatsApp chats with members of the public that contained obscene images.
“These images were retained on his phone handset, and he did not delete them.
“He was fully aware that retaining such imagery would be unacceptable as a serving police officer.
“Such actions can only have the effect of damaging public confidence in policing.”
Sending laughing emojis had the appearance of condoning contents of a child abuse video, the panel concluded.
No mitigating factors were submitted on behalf of Moore, who did not attend the disciplinary in central London last month.
Anyone with information about a police officer or member of staff working for the Met who is corrupt, abusing their position and power, can call the Anti-Corruption and Abuse Hotline, run by the independent charity Crimestoppers, on 0800 085 0000 or complete the online form at www.crimestoppers-org.uk.
