Former Warwickshire Police special constable jailed for possessing more than 1,000 indecent images of children

The court heard he had 1,033 images including 372 rated category A, the most serious type.

A former Warwickshire Police special constable, who was based at Nuneaton Police Station, has been jailed for possessing more than 1,000 indecent images of children.

Darren O’Connor stored the images on two mobile phones.

Detectives from West Midlands Police found the images after seizing equipment when they executed a warrant in January 2023.

The court heard he had 1,033 images including 372 rated category A, the most serious type. 

Warwickshire Police said that following his arrest O’Connor refused to comment in the interview but when reinterviewed in November 2023 he admitted being responsible for downloading the content.

O’Connor resigned from his position following his arrest.

He pleaded guilty to three counts of making an indecent photograph of a child and two counts of distributing an indecent photograph of a child. The offences occurred between August 2021 and January 2023.

At Warwick Crown Court, O’Connor was jailed for 26 months, ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register for 10 years and made subject to a 10-year Sexual Harm Prevention Order.

An accelerated gross misconduct hearing held by the force in May found that O’Connor would have been dismissed had he not previously resigned having breached standards of professional behaviour, specifically discreditable conduct.

Detective Superintendent Paul Thompson, Head of Professional Standards at Warwickshire Police, said: “This wasn’t a one-off event, he was downloading and distributing images over a sustained period. As a serving special constable, O’Connor would have understood what he was doing was wrong. He has committed a very serious criminal offences. His acts were deliberate, unlawful, and morally reprehensible. O’Connor brings the profession into disrepute and damages the confidence the public has in police officers. We welcome this conviction and hope the public can take confidence from this investigation and the commitment of police to bring these types of offenders to justice.”