A former Metropolitan Police PCSO called himself a “weirdo” as he posted pictures he had secretly taken of a semi-naked young woman on the internet, a court heard.
Lee Wildey, 45, used an account on social media site Badoo to share “upskirt” images and photographs of the victim partially-clothed, calling them “sneaky ones” and promising to take more to distribute.
Croydon magistrates court heard the woman in the images told police she was “shocked, upset, and disgusted” when she realised what Wildey had done. She said: “It has caused lots of stress and sleepless nights.”
Wildey was last week sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for two years, and ordered to complete 40 days of sexual offending rehabilitation as well as 100 hours of community service.
District Judge Nigel McLean said Wildey had “violated” the woman’s privacy, but took into account his remorse and previous service when agreeing to suspend the prison term. “You recognised the offending behaviour at a very early point, making full admissions to the police, and I believe there’s a realistic prospect of rehabilitation,” he added.
The court heard messages were recovered between Wildey and other people online, in which he had discussed using a spy camera to take voyeuristic pictures, passed on images calling them “a few sneaky ones”, and at one point said: “You probably think I’m a weirdo.”
“A police investigation revealed a Badoo account associated with a phone number and email address which Mr Wildey used to engage in conversation with others,” said Jack Williams, prosecuting.
Afsheen Chowdhry, for Wildey, told the court he worked as a PCSO in the Met between 2012 and 2017, receiving a commendation for bravery after saving two people from a burning building. The father-of-four left policing to earn more money, she said, working as a painter and decorator, but harboured ambitions to return to the police.
“He knows he can’t do this now,” she said. “He expressed to me how disappointed and upset he is with himself.”
Wildey, who lives in Richmond, pleaded guilty to voyeurism between May and August 2022.
He is now under a sexual harm prevention order for the next five years, and must abide by sexual offender notifications for seven years.
