Police officer who quit to avoid misconduct hearing ‘cannot be barred'
A senior Metropolitan Police counterterrorism officer accused of inappropriate behaviour towards a female officer at an International Women's Day event in the Maldives was allowed to resign before a gross misconduct hearing.
Detective Superintendent Jim Knowles was heralded in the event brochure as a 'strong advocate' for gender equality and a 'HeForShe ally' before he allegedly caused distress to a Maldivian police officer, the local liaison for the Met contingent.
It is understood that the complaint lodged with the Met alleged that Knowles texted the woman inappropriately after meeting her at the conference in March 2023. He was said to have turned up unannounced at her hotel room after dinner and, although he left when asked, the encounter left her feeling distressed and uncomfortable.
An investigation found that Knowles, who has worked in royalty protection and intelligence, had a case to answer for gross misconduct. He faced the sack if found guilty but resigned before proceedings were brought. He now works for a private security company.
The case is another test of the Met's commitment to addressing misconduct within its ranks, a key pledge of Sir Mark Rowley, the Met commissioner, after a series of scandals involving police predators.
Gross misconduct hearings, which can be carried out in the absence of former officers, also have the power to bar individuals from working in policing again. That was no longer an option in relation to Knowles once the hearing was cancelled. The Met said that his conduct would be part of his file and come up if he applied for jobs that required vetting in the future.
Officers from the Met's counterterror squad are regularly sent overseas to engage and advise local police forces, including in the Maldives, which had one of the highest rates per capita of fighters joining Islamic State. Since the collapse of the Islamist caliphate, there is an enhanced threat from fighters who have returned home.
In March 2023 Knowles, then the deputy national co-ordinator for Protect and Prepare, a key element of the UK's counterterror strategy, travelled to the Maldives with two colleagues.
The Foreign Office arranged an event, at which Knowles was a speaker, with more than 130 female officers to mark International Women's Day, celebrate women in policing and improve co-ordination between law enforcement agencies involved in the Maldives.
The morning after the incident, Knowles's colleagues saw the Maldivian officer in distress. A complaint was made about his alleged inappropriate behaviour on their return to the UK.
A disciplinary board was convened 20 months later in November last year, but the force confirmed that it was cancelled when Knowles resigned.
The Met would not say who took that decision but cited the need to bring the alleged victim from overseas to give evidence and claimed that she was by then living in a country that did not allow video evidence.
A Met spokeswoman said: 'We investigated a complaint of inappropriate behaviour by a Met officer seconded to Counter Terrorism Policing towards a woman in the Maldives on March 8, 2023.
'While our investigation determined the officer should face a misconduct hearing, this was reviewed following his resignation from the force and the hearing was cancelled. The matter remains on the former officer's conduct file and would need to be disclosed during any future vetting process.
'There is no place in the Met for anyone who cannot be trusted to work with women or is a risk to the public.'
The Met declined to comment on whether Knowles had to get permission from anyone to resign, and if so who. The Times has attempted to contact Knowles.
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