A London court sentenced an Indian-origin former police constable for sexually assaulting a colleague. The decision was passed by a North London courthouse, three months after he was convicted of sexual assault at the same court.

Sentenced to 16 months imprisonment, Archit Sharma will be on the sex offenders register for a decade. He was also served with a restraining order, preventing him from contacting the victim for a decade, and was ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £156 (US$ 197.77).

Sharma was investigated following an allegation received on December 7, 2020, that he had assaulted a colleague while they were on duty. He was officially charged on July 28, 2021, and convicted on March 6, 2023. He submitted his resignation to the Metropolitan Police’s North Area Command Unit on March 10.

During a misconduct hearing Sharma was accused of  having “breached standards of professional behavior in relation to authority, respect and courtesy, and discreditable conduct.” The judging panel found the allegations to be true and mentioned that he would have been dismissed from duty had he still been employed with the police force.

Detective Chief Superintendent Caroline Haines, responsible for local policing in London Borough of Haringey, said, “Former PC Sharma’s behaviour was abhorrent. His actions were a betrayal of our policing values. I hope that this outcome highlights how seriously we take reports of sexual offences, no matter who the perpetrator. Following his conviction, we began proceedings for an accelerated case hearing which has upheld the allegations of misconduct.”

Sharma is barred from being employed by the police or local policing bodies for life. He was added to the Barred List held by the College of Policing which ensures to keep people on the list from holding police jobs.