"He was dishonest about his absence from work"
An award-winning cop who travelled to Turkey on the day he phoned in sick has been found guilty of gross misconduct.
A misconduct panel ruled that Raja Khan would have been dismissed had he not already resigned from Leicestershire Police.
The disciplinary hearing was also told Khan allowed a member of the public to access his work laptop, instructing that person to complete a sickness form on his behalf.
Suspicions were raised when PC Khan reported sick on October 5, 2023, while on a rest day, two days before his next shift.
An investigation was subsequently launched.
Evidence suggested that he flew out to Istanbul that same evening for a holiday.
On October 8, he was contacted by his line manager and replied by text, saying he was too ill to work.
PC Khan received the out-of-hours number to call the sickness line and sent guidance on filling out a sickness form.
He got a member of the public to go on his police laptop at home, submit the sickness form on his behalf and send an email from his work address to the line manager confirming this had been done.
Police were waiting when PC Khan returned to the UK at Stansted Airport on October 11.
The cop confirmed he had been on holiday for a week.
Khan was arrested five days later and interviewed under caution. However, it was decided that a referral not be made to the Crown Prosecution Service concerning criminal charges.
Khan had won a neighbourhood policing team of the year award in 2022.
In February 2024, he resigned from the force.
Following a Leicestershire Police investigation, directed by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), Khan was found guilty of gross misconduct.
It was concluded that he had breached the standards of police professional behaviour for honesty and integrity, confidentiality, orders and instructions, and discreditable conduct.
IOPC Director of Operations Steve Noonan said:
“PC Khan’s behaviour fell well below the standards expected of a police officer.”
“He was dishonest about his absence from work and compounded that by allowing an unauthorised person to access his police laptop.
“In doing so he failed to treat confidential information with respect.
“Such conduct has no place in policing and he will now be placed on the barred list preventing him from future employment with the service.”
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