A senior constable in the Victorian police force will likely face criminal charges after he allegedly took photographs of former AFL player and coach Dean Laidley following his arrest and then illegally forwarded the images to “about six” others.
On Monday deputy police commissioner Shane Patton said the senior constable had been suspended with pay after what he described as “unacceptable” and “appalling” conduct.
“I’m appalled that an employee of Victoria police has taken these photographs,” Patton said.
“It’s unacceptable conduct, it’s appalling conduct and that type of conduct has no place in our organisation. It breaches a person’s privacy, it breaches their human rights and we’re taking this matter extremely seriously. It’s a breach of trust with the community. It’s a breach of our values. It’s unlawful and criminal conduct and that’s the way we’re treating it.”
The two leaked photographs of Laidley, a former premiership-winning player and then coach at North Melbourne, were taken inside the custody area of a Melbourne police station following his arrest on Saturday. The 53-year-old was arrested outside a home in St Kilda on Saturday night and later charged with stalking and a series of other offences.
The two photos include one from Laidley’s official police file and another of him wearing a long blonde wig and a dress inside a police station. The images subsequently appeared on the front page of the West Australian and Herald Sun newspapers on Monday.
Patton apologised to Laidley on behalf of the Victorian police, saying he had been “let down” by the police. He also urged people in possession of the images to “have some respect, have some decency” and delete them.
Victoria police launched an internal investigation into how the photos were leaked over the weekend, and on Monday Patton said that a senior constable from the southern metro region of Melbourne had been suspended.
The deputy commissioner said he was still unsure whether the same officer had taken both photos but it was believed the images were forwarded to “about six” other people including other police officers via the messaging platform Whatsapp.
He said it was possible other officers could face charges.
“I’m not ruling anything in or out,” he said. “It’s possible, if other members have, if you like, disseminated unauthorised information, well then they will be potentially facing exactly the same charges as this senior constable is,” he said.
“Our professional standards command will seize whatever information they need to and if there is other members [who] have accessed the material we will be interrogating those [phones] as well.”
The officer was expected to be formally charged under section 227 of the Victorian Police Act, which punishes the unauthorised access to, use or disclosure of police information by officers. The offence carries a penalty of up to two years in prison or a fine of up to $39,652.
Patton said the officer would also be subject to internal disciplinary action, which could include being fired.
The leak has been denounced by lawyers acting for Laidley, as well as Victorian civil liberties groups.
One of his lawyers, Bill Doogue, tweeted: “Disgraceful. Taking photos unlawfully and sharing them. And these were sneaky photos while in police interview in police station by a police officer. Police should investigate and those involved pull down immediately.”
Defence lawyer Dee Giannopoulos said it was “outrageous”.
“Outraged that pictures of my client, taken by some police officer, on the sly, when in custody in interview have hit the media. Typical #grossbreachofprivacy,” she tweeted.
The Victorian Council for Civil Liberties also tweeted that the release of the photos was “egregious” and a “deplorable breach of privacy” with “transphobic overtones”.
LGBTIQ Legal, a branch of the community law service group St Kilda Legal Service, said the leaking of the images “peaks to deep transphobia that still exists within some elements” of the Victorian police.
“Our trans and gender-diverse clients routinely report a lack of trust in Victoria police and this incident serves to show why,” the group wrote on Twitter.
“It’s simply not good enough. This incident requires an independent investigation as the first in many steps that are required for the police to do better for trans and gender non-conforming Victorians.”
Laidley, a 1996 premiership winner and later coach with the Kangaroos, faced Melbourne magistrates court on Sunday and will remain in custody until 11 May after not applying for bail.