Corrupt senior detective, 47, who accessed police records to give ‘tittle tattle’ to her nightclub bouncer lover is jailed for eight months

Former Detective Inspector Emma Gardner was jailed for eight months after a jury found she had repeatedly accessed confidential police records and passed information to her nightclub bouncer lover. The case matters because the judge said the sentence should make clear that senior officers are not above the law.

Gardner accessed police logs 47 times between January and September 2022, including records relating to a complaint involving a male friend and three women. She said the searches had a policing purpose, but the jury rejected her account; the judge also cited thousands of messages between her and Simon Acton. Gardner resigned, would have been dismissed for gross misconduct and has been barred from serving in policing in England and Wales.