Thursday 4 August 2011

Five members of an elite police gun crime unit have been sacked for "inappropriate behaviour".




The photo was discovered during a professional standards investigation
An investigation into their conduct led to the discovery of a photograph which appeared to show the officers fooling around during a raid on a suspect's home.
The group were dismissed after being found guilty of gross misconduct.
All five constables worked within Merseyside Police's Matrix team which targets drug-related gang and gun crime in the region.
A sergeant who was part of the unit was fired in May as a result of the inquiry.
The sergeant and two constables are currently on police bail amid allegations that items removed during police searches appeared on eBay.
Deputy Chief Constable Bernard Lawson said: "We expect the highest standards from our officers and these officers fell far short of that expectation.
"As a force we believe it is important to take swift and decisive action when officers are found to have fallen short of the standards we expect and in this case we have done just that."
The Matrix unit helped target the gangs associated with the murder of schoolboy Rhys Jones who was shot dead in Croxteth in August 2007