Gloucestershire Police officer sentenced for stealing cash out of lost property wallet

A police offer who stole money from a lost wallet handed into him has been handed a suspended jail sentence.

Matthew Rollason, 38, who served with Gloucestershire Police, was on duty and in uniform when he was given the wallet with two wads of cash inside by a member of the public at Cheltenham races in March 2019.

Rollason took out around £100 in cash before handing it into lost property.

Two days later, undercover officers from his force's anti-corruption unit carried out an "integrity test" on Rollason, handing him a purse containing £200 in cash.

CCTV footage revealed Rollason removed the notes, which had been marked, before bringing the purse to the event's lost property area.

Rollason was later arrested and resigned from the force after admitting he had stolen the money on both occasions.

The court heard how Rollason had no financial reason to take the money.

Judge Michael Longman sentenced Rollason, who pleaded guilty to two counts of theft, to 12 months in prison suspended for two years and ordered him to pay £300 of compensation and £300 in prosecution costs.

The judge also ordered Rollason to carry out a rehabilitation activity for 18 months and adhere to a curfew between 11pm and 7am for six months.

Following the sentencing, Deputy Chief Constable Jon Stratford said: "The public must be able to trust the honesty and integrity of all police officers that they come into contact with.

"This officer abused that trust."

"The Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) has the capacity and capability to conduct covert operations where we suspect staff are acting in a corrupt fashion."

"This case demonstrates our determination to identify and prosecute dishonest members of staff and exit them from the organisation."