Nottinghamshire Police inspector sacked after lying about injuries

A police inspector who lied about the severity of her injuries and her recovery after a car crash in order to retire on medical grounds has been sacked.

Zoe Hallam told doctors and colleagues at Nottinghamshire Police she could not drive for more than 15 minutes following injuries sustained in a crash in 2011.

But she was then covertly filmed enjoying a family holiday in a motorhome to France, where she was seen rowing a dinghy and cycling, a misconduct hearing was told.

Speaking about the surveillance of her holiday, Assistant Chief Constable Simon Torr said Ms Hallam was not as injured as she had made out. "She looked like a mother enjoying a family holiday," he said.

Ms Hallam was said to have exaggerated the severity of her injuries in order to get medical retirement and receive an enhanced pension.

The allegations of gross misconduct were proven and she was dismissed from the force.

Debra Powell, representing the force's professional standards department, said: "We are talking about taxpayers' money and it's the most flagrant and outrageous abuse of position."

In mitigation, Nicolas Yeo said Ms Hallam was a "high-calibre officer" and was given a commendation by the chief constable for her service during riots in Nottingham in 2011.

Mr Torr, who chaired the misconduct panel, said it was clear Ms Hallam had "provided excellent service to the public", but "following the accident, that all changed".

He said it was a "sustained effort to deliberately mislead and exaggerate".

He added: "The public of Nottinghamshire expect officers to maintain the highest standards, and inspectors must be at the heart.

"The only appropriate outcome is dismissal without notice."