Met Police found guilty of racism as black officers more likely to have promotions cancelled

The Metropolitan Police is guilty of indirect race discrimination, a Watford Employment Tribunal has found.

It ruled that its blanket policy of halting or withdrawing promotions for officers facing misconduct proceedings has a disproportionate effect on black officers.

Employment Judge Lisa Wilson determined that the force's approach to automatically blocking career advancement for those under investigation will "inevitably bear more heavily" on black officers, placing them at a "particular disadvantage" compared to white colleagues.

The landmark judgment centres on the case of Sergeant Caroline Nku, a black officer who successfully claimed indirect race discrimination after "falling under suspicion for committing a fraud, of which she was herself the victim".

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Sgt Nku is now set to receive compensation following a remedy hearing.

The Cameroon-born officer joined the Met in 2007 and had passed her sergeants' examination but remained working as a police constable with the Safer Transport Team at Islington Police Station.

In September 2023, a fraudster gained access to her WhatsApp account and used it to send messages requesting money from her colleagues.

She had been moved early to Shoreditch Police Station on attachment that November to begin her new role as a sergeant.

However, when the Met's human resources department learned in December 2023 that she was the subject of a gross misconduct investigation stemming from the hacking incident, her promotion was immediately withdrawn.

Sgt Nku was sent back to Islington to resume her previous constable duties.

The tribunal heard that one colleague had tried to send £150 to the fraudster, though his bank returned the funds, while another reported the suspicious request to her line manager, Inspector Mark Ridgers.

Inspector Ridgers instructed the colleague to gather information and, as further officers came forward reporting similar scam messages from Sgt Nku's number, he began to question whether it was genuinely a hack, believing two people could not simultaneously use the same WhatsApp account.

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He referred the matter to the Professional Standards Unit for further investigation into the fraud allegations.

When Sgt Nku appeared before a promotion review panel in January 2024, it ruled her advancement must remain frozen until the misconduct case concluded.

She challenged that decision unsuccessfully on appeal, but was ultimately promoted after the misconduct hearing determined there was no case to answer.

Judge Wilson concluded that the Met's default position of barring promotions during investigations, without weighing individual circumstances, amounted to indirect discrimination.

She noted this approach was "inconsistent with the Police Promotion Standard Operating Procedure and the National Police Promotion Framework, both of which expressly require an assessment of the particular circumstances of the case".

The tribunal drew on the Baroness Casey review's finding that black officers are 81 per cent more likely to enter the misconduct system than white colleagues, meaning they face a greater likelihood of having promotions delayed or revoked.

Judge Wilson found the policy was "not a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim" of sustaining public confidence in policing, and that the Met had failed to demonstrate a fair balance between its operational needs and the discriminatory impact on black officers.

Sgt Nku's separate claims of direct race and sex discrimination, along with indirect sex discrimination, were dismissed.

A Met Police spokesman said: "We are aware of the finding of an employment tribunal that Sergeant Caroline Nku was indirectly racially discriminated against.

"We acknowledge there is disproportionality within the police misconduct system and are committed to understanding the reasons why and taking action to reduce it.

"This includes an enhanced fact-finding process at an earlier stage by officers responsible for assessing conduct allegations, to ensure investigations are launched only when it is proportionate to do so."

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