Croydon’s police commander accused of ‘window-dressing’ as he fails to reply to community complaint over a convicted constable who has been allowed to continue to work
More charges: London’s police have dismissed dozens of officers in recent months. But Croydon has a constable with a conviction still working here
A serving Metropolitan Police officer has entered a guilty plea to charges of sexual assault.
Detective Constable Jose Poonsawat is attached to the Central South Command Unit, which covers the boroughs of Lambeth and Southwark.
He appeared at Croydon Magistrates’ Court on Friday over an incident which took place when Poonsawat was off-duty on December 16, 2022. Poonsawat has continued to work for the police, albeit on “restricted” duties, since the case was brought.
He has been released on court bail to appear for sentencing on August 23.
“Now that criminal proceedings have concluded, the misconduct process will commence,” Scotland Yard’s press office said in a statement.
Poonsawat was accused of sexually touching a woman without her consent and was investigated by the officers from Bromley and the Met’s Domestic Abuse and Sexual Offences team.
Commander Seb Adjei-Addoh, who leads policing in Lambeth and Southwark, said: “My thoughts are with the victim who has displayed courage in reporting this sexual assault.
“Officers are quite rightly held to account for wrongdoing by the courts.
“In this case DC Poonsawat has pleaded guilty and now awaits sentencing.”
Yet in a separate case in Croydon, the Met continues to employ a constable who has already been convicted of assault.
Guilty: Perry Lathwood was found guilty of assault. He continues to work as a police constable in Croydon
No misconduct action has yet been taken against PC Perry Lathwood, who in June was convicted of committing assault during the wrongful arrest of a woman bus passenger in Croydon last year.
Lathwood had indicated that he intends to appeal against the judgement.
An anonymous “concerned police colleague” started a crowdfunder on behalf of Lathwood in June to raise a target of £54,000 for “financial hardships of PC Perry Lathwood following his conviction for assault” (whatever they may be). After a month, the appeal for the convicted copper has raised less than £7,000.
Croydon community groups who have written to the Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley to say that they are “appalled” by the police’s attitude and the inaction since Lathwood’s guilty verdict last month.
“PC Lathwood’s conviction seems to have made no difference whatsoever – he is still on full pay and is not facing a fast track dismissal as is normal procedure following convictions,” the letter to the Commissioner stated.
In the letter, the community groups quoted Andy Brittain, Chief Superintendent of Croydon Police, as confirming that he intends to continue employing the convicted, violent officer in the force, “as punishing him will discourage new recruits”.
The letter stated: “Hundreds of police officers were dismissed last year – so why not Lathwood, who has been convicted of assault and whose actions are a clear example of the disproportionate use of force that black people often experience in interactions with the police?”
The Lathwood case was high-profile because the controversial bus stop arrest was video’d and widely shared on social media.
But the matter has never been raised by Croydon Council’s Safer Neighbourhood Board – which is supposed to offer councillors and the public an opportunity to question local police chiefs on their conduct – because the Board, chaired by a “community organiser” has not held a single meeting since November 2019.
One month on, the community groups say that they have received no response from the Commissioner or the Met Police, beyond an acknowledgement from Brittain
In a statement issued over the weekend, the campaigners said, “It is very disappointing to see the Metropolitan Police Service ignore the concerns of the community. It renders their latest window-dressing exercise – London Police Race Action Plan, ‘to win the trust of the black community’ – meaningless.”
Read more: CronxWatch returns asking: ‘Where are Croydon’s police?’
Read more: Community groups demand dismissal of convicted Met officer
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