One of the country’s most senior Muslim police officers has admitted gross misconduct after instructing a member of staff to pass topics to a candidate ahead of a promotion interview.
Naveed Malik, who is Assistant Chief Constable of Cambridgeshire Police, admitted gross misconduct by breaching the Standards of Professional Behaviour through Discreditable Conduct.
Mr Malik, whose father was one of the first Muslim police officers in the UK having been appointed as a constable in 1967, told a misconduct hearing at Wyboston Lakes Conference Centre in Wyboston, Bedfordshire, that he accepted the charge.
Chief Inspector of Constabulary Sir Tom Winsor (left) and Dorian Lovell-Pank QC, two of the three panel members to oversee the hearing (Joe Giddens/PA)
John Beggs QC, for the appropriate authority, said this plea was acceptable and that charges relating to honesty and integrity would not be pursued.
A panel of three will decide what happens to Mr Malik after hearing further evidence.
Its options range from management advice through to dismissal without notice.
Mr Malik admitted instructing a member of staff to pass topics to a candidate ahead of a promotion interview (Joe Giddens/PA(
Mr Malik joined the police service in 1989 and spent 27 years with Warwickshire Constabulary. He was transferred, on promotion to Assistant Chief Constable, to Cambridgeshire Police in 2016.
He is, jointly with two others, the most senior serving BME (black and minority ethnic) police officer in the country.
A misconduct hearing on Monday heard details about what Mr Malik is alleged to have done. It was told that a tri-force promotion process, covering inspector to chief inspector, was arranged for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire in February 2017.
Elizabeth McEwen (right) is the third member of the panel (Joe Giddens/PA)
The process comprised two stages: first, a presentation by the candidates to a panel and then an interview conducted by a second panel. Mr Malik chaired the second panel.
Ahead of this process Mr Malik had provided informal mentoring to the officer referred to as Inspector A.
The hearing was told Mr Malik met with his interview panel members on the first day of the three-day process and his panel agreed to change the wording of one question.
He also instructed police staff member B to call Inspector A on a mobile phone and tell the inspector the four areas to concentrate on for the interview for the promotion process.
Mr Malik could be dismissed without notice ( Joe Giddens/PA)
Police staff member B called Inspector A and began to list the topics for the interview process, saying “Nav has just asked me to give you the topics”.
Inspector A stopped police staff member B, saying it did not seem right and that he/she wanted to be promoted on merit.
Inspector A told police staff member B to “go back and tell (ACC Malik) that I didn’t want to listen”.
The promotion process was terminated the following day.
The misconduct hearing, which is expected to last two days, continues.
It is presided over by a panel of three, consisting of chairman Dorian Lovell-Pank, Sir Tom Winsor, HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary, and Elizabeth McEwen.