South Yorkshire Police officer sent 'sexualised messages' to crime victim

A former South Yorkshire Police officer has pleaded guilty to sending inappropriate messages to a vulnerable victim of crime.

Stuart Trentham, 40, who was based in Doncaster, admitted sending increasingly flirtatious and sexualised messages to a victim when he was investigating her case.

The victim reported the messages in August 2022 after she noticed a shift in the tone of the conversation, which had initially been about her case.

Officers in the force's Professional Standards Department launched an immediate investigation and arrested Trentham on 23 August 2022.

He was suspended from duties on the same day.

In a police interview, Trentham answer 'no comment' to all questions but investigators were able to charge him after finding crucial evidence of messages sent from his devices between July and August 2022.

He resigned from the force on 2 December, 2023.

Trentham pleaded guilty to one count of wilful misconduct and wilfully neglecting to perform his duty as a holder of a public office at Sheffield Crown Court on Wednesday 9 October.

The hearing found that the allegations constituted gross misconduct and that Trentham would have been dismissed from the force without notice, had he not already resigned.

He was released on bail until his sentencing hearing which is due at Sheffield Crown Court on Monday 6 January 2025.

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