Married police constable, 38, who sexually assaulted two female colleagues at a Christmas party is sacked from the force
- Gareth Duggan had blamed PTSD for sexually assaulting two female colleagues
- He grabbed the bottom of one officer and put his hand under another’s dress
- The 38-year-old, who had been a policeman for 15 years, avoided a jail sentence
- He has now been sacked by North Wales Police for his ‘degrading behaviour’
A married police constable who sexually assaulted two female colleagues at a Christmas part has been sacked.
PC Gareth Duggan had blamed PTSD from front-line policing for grabbing the bottom of one colleague and putting his hand under the dress of another at a nightclub in Chester in December 2021.
The 38-year-old had avoided prison after being given a suspended sentence for the offences after the court was told time behind bars would impact his family, including his wife Clare who stood by him.
But he has now been sacked by North Wales Police after a misconduct hearing found his behaviour had been ‘degrading’ and left his victims ‘disgusted’.
Gareth Duggan, 38, was sentenced to a 32-week suspended sentence last month after admitting two counts of sexual assault against two female police officers
Duggan has now been sacked by North Wales Police after a misconduct hearing found his behaviour had been ‘degrading’ and left his victims ‘disgusted’
Duggan did not appear at the hearing at the force’s Colwyn Bay headquarters on Thursday, which was told he had resigned last week after being suspended from Christmas 2021.
Mel Jones, of the Police Federation, said Duggan had accepted he would be sacked from his job after pleading guilty at court last month.
‘His decision to plead guilty was because he had no direct recollection due to excess alcohol consumption,’ he said.
Announcing that Duggan would be sacked for gross misconduct the Chief Constable declared : ‘Police officers are here to uphold the law, not to break it. Behaviour like this undermines the good work North Wales Police is doing.’
Last month he admitted two counts of sexual assault at Warrington Magistrates’ Court, for which he was given a 32-week suspended sentence.
He was also ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work, 35 days of rehabilitative activity, sign the Sex Offender Register for seven years and pay each victim £1,000 in compensation.
The court had heard that despite Duggan having a reputation for being a rumoured ‘sexual predator’, his victims were accused of making the up the allegations to get a promotion.
Alex Morgan, prosecuting, said the Christmas party had brought police officers from a number of areas together.
‘During the time in the bar the defendant touched the bottom of one of the complainants and the touching was deemed to be sexual. Prior to that the defendant had put his arm around her waist which made her feel uncomfortable.
‘A short while after the defendant stood between her and another female.
Duggan, who had been a police officer for 15 years, told a court he was suffering from PTSD as a result of his experiences at work
‘The defendant’s arm was placed around her waist prior to going around her bottom. It was deliberate. She could feel his fingers go into the crack of her bottom. She was able to feel the pressure of his fingers through her clothes and through her underwear.
‘She was shocked as a result of the incident and kicked out at his ankle with her foot to get him to stop.
Mr Morgan also described a second attack on another colleague that happened during the party.
‘Her colleague also recalled a sexual assault from the same night out. He held onto her for what seemed like a long time and squeezed her waist making her feel very uncomfortable.
‘She told him to stop on a number of occasions. She made it very clear she was not joking.
‘As he had his hand around her waist he put his face up to her neck and made kissing noises. His hand then went between her legs and underneath her dress and touched her vagina over clothing,’ the prosecutor said.
Duggan admitted two counts of sexual assault at Warrington Magistrates’ Court, for which he was given a 32-week suspended sentence
‘His hand brushed across the cheek of her bottom in the area of her vagina. She was not wearing any tights or leggings at the time but did have underwear on.
‘It made her extremely upset and uncomfortable.’
His wife and the two victims were watching from the public gallery.
District Judge Jack McGarva told him: ‘You are a police officer and the public and your colleagues are entitled to look at you as an example and someone they can trust. You completely failed them. Any punishment must reflect that police officers should be beyond reproach.
The judge emphasised the case of PC Wayne Couzens as an example of some of the ‘pretty bad things’ police officers have done over the past years.
‘It undermines the position of every other police officer. Every other police officer is devalued by what you do.
Judge McGarva highlighted the impact of the assault on the victims and said Duggan’s drunkenness did not provide an excuse.
‘I have to bear in mind this conviction will have a big impact on you and your family. But let’s not forget that other people were hurt by you. This was not a fleeting kind of touch. It was quite significant in both cases. It’s more than brushing against someone in a sexual way.
‘It was very significant contact which will probably live with them for the rest of their lives. They will never forget how horrible the horrible feeling was.’
‘It is right that you have experienced some pretty awful things in life as a police officer but how many thousands of police officers in Wales have been through these sorts of things and have not behaved like this? It does not make you behave like this.
‘Something very wrong has made you behave like this,’ the judge concluded.
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