THE biggest investigation into a police WhatsApp group has allegedly uncovered racist comments about white people.
In one, a Met officer is said to have made remarks about “white trash’’ at .
Other messages are claimed to have been offensive about domestic violence victims and vulnerable people, and celebrate using excessive force on prisoners.
A source told The Sun: “It was ill-judged banter but some of the comments apparently crossed the line.
“In terms of the scale of the , there has never been anything like it.”
So far, 22 officers based in the Met’s East Area command have been served with disciplinary notices. Up to 30 could end up facing action. They are said to range from PC to inspector rank.
About 40,000 messages from the group have been seized by the Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards.
It is understood that the investigation snowballed after a Muslim officer sent a sexist remark to a female colleague.
The officer is said to deny intending to cause offence or to being racist.
Last night, the Met said the 22 officers have been placed on restricted duties.
It added: “The messages are reported to include unprofessional and insensitive language, potential data breaches and breaches of confidentiality. At this stage, there is no indication that any activity meets the criminal threshold.”
Chief Superintendent Dan Card, in charge of in East London, said: “No one in this organisation can be in any doubt as to the standards we’ve set.”
