Skiving police officer key-jammed his laptop to make it look like he was working from home so he could go to the gym and play golf

A police officer who needed to work from home ‘zipped the key’ to his laptop to hit the gym and visit the golf course.

While former PC Ryan Lenton was supposed to be busy with his job at the force’s Investigations Management Unit (IMU), he was actually visiting Stonelees Golf Center and Obsidion Gym in Kent.

Civil servant trusted to work from home said to have ‘deliberately exploited’ [a] Lack of face-to-face supervision that would leave you “away from his desk for long periods of time.”

A fraud hearing ruled there was ‘key jamming’ by making the keyboard heavier to make it look like you were active online for 60 hours and 7 minutes over 14 shifts earlier this year.

Kent Police said this equated to approximately 44 per cent of total working time.

It was decided that Lenton, whose remote job was to manage initial crime reports and support investigations, would be dismissed if he had not already left the force.

The former officer claimed that he would go to the gym to get a water bottle, to the golf course to get clubs, and that he could always be reached on his work phone.

However, at the hearing, it was determined that the hours he spent in each location did not correspond to this reason and that he did not respond to messages.

In his concluding statement, Chief Constable Tim Smith said: ‘Regardless of PC Lenton’s former work ethic, it is inconceivable that he would have subsequently been compensated, or indeed compensated, for the time he spent away from his desk and laptop.

‘There is no evidence that former PC Lenton approached his superiors about leaving the workplace, took long breaks from his desk or attempted to secure additional flexible working arrangements that would allow such long breaks from the workplace.’

The hearing was told that Pc Lenton’s ‘key shuffling incident’ took place between April and May this year.

Investigators also discovered his work phone was at the Obsidian Gym on Feb. 25, and he admitted to going there when he was supposed to be on shift on another shift.

On May 16, Lenton’s work phone was found to be active at Stonelees Golf Center at 11.59am and 1.07pm.

He claimed he was just going to pick up his golf clubs, but CC Smith said the extended time he spent away from his desk there was also irrelevant to that story.

While Lenton claimed he was only experiencing a ‘key jam’ to keep his laptop active in order to receive communications and that he was ‘fully contactable’, the report found this was not the case.

Chief Constable Smith added: ‘For the vast majority of the time the key-scrambling took place he was unresponsive to messages or conversations with colleagues and was very friendly. [sic] not monitoring business communications.

‘I consider former PC Lenton’s culpability for his actions to be high. He is completely culpable for his actions; They were deliberate and planned from start to finish.

‘He was in a role where he was trusted to work the hours scheduled and there was a clear expectation that he would do so.

‘He deliberately took advantage of the lack of face-to-face supervision to enable him to spend these long periods away from his desk.’

Another concern addressed at the hearing was security issues regarding police systems being left open and vulnerable on multiple occasions and for hours in violation of force policy.

The former police officer did not offer a defense for this and it was decided that his actions amounted to gross misconduct, placing him on the ‘prohibited list’.

Chief Constable Smith added: ‘There is no evidence that this activity occurred while former PC Lenton was in previous roles and worked at the police station.

‘This is not an activity I have ever encountered in the police profession and I do not expect to encounter it.

‘The fact that this occurred while he was working remotely and without direct supervision suggests to me that he knew what he was doing was wrong and that the key shuffling was done to deceive others into believing he was at his desk and working.

‘Given that these breaches were multiple and spanned a long period of time and represented a complete lack of honesty, integrity and judgment on the part of former PC Lenton, I do not believe that the Final Written Warning was in any way proportionate to the extent of the breaches or appropriate in the circumstances of this case.

‘I believe that the only proportionate, correct and appropriate sanction is Dismissal Without Notice.’

Lenton was found to have breached standards of professional conduct relating to honesty and integrity, orders and instructions, and discreditable conduct.

The chief constable said the actions were ‘so serious’ they amounted to misconduct, adding: ‘If former PC Lenton were still in office today I would sack him without notice.

‘I also order that he be placed on the ‘prohibited list’ immediately.’

Detective Superintendent Jon Armory, head of professional standards at the force, said: ‘All Kent Police officers and staff are expected to uphold the highest standards of professional conduct and anyone who falls below these standards will be held accountable for their actions.

‘Former Constable Lenton’s behavior only served to undermine the professionalism, commitment and reliability demonstrated by the vast majority of Kent Police officers and staff.

‘We do not hesitate to take action when someone’s behavior does not meet expectations and it is entirely true that former PC Lenton would have been dismissed without notice if he had not resigned from office.’

The case comes after Greater Manchester Police revoked work-from-home privileges earlier this month.

Police found that many staff members were using ‘key shuffling’ and allegations of misconduct were made against 26 employees.