Police officer who had sex with suspect jailed

A police officer who had a sexual relationship with a woman he was investigating has been jailed.

Matthew Lynch, 37, worked for Thames Valley Police (TVP) in Slough, Berkshire, when the woman was arrested on suspicion of stalking in February 2021.

Lynch, of Bracknell, led the investigation into her, even as they were involved in a relationship between March and October 2021.

The former police constable admitted one count of misconduct in a public office in June 2024, days before a trial was due to start.

Judge Nicholas Ainley told St Albans Crown Court it was "obviously and criminally wrong" for Lynch to have a relationship with a suspect and jailed him for 17 months.

Lynch sent a file relating to the woman's case to prosecutors in June 2021 and it was formally discontinued later.

The woman, who has lifelong anonymity, said in a statement read out in court that she felt "disgust, confusion and sadness" about what happened.

She said it had left her as someone who "just wants to hide away".

The woman told Lynch's partner and TVP about the relationship when he ended it in October 2021 and he was arrested.

The court was told that Lynch was under extreme stress, in part due to the Covid pandemic, when the relationship happened.

But Sasha Barton, a specialist civil liberties solicitor from Hodge Jones & Allen, who represents the victim, said: "This man abused his position as a police officer by entering into a relationship with my vulnerable client which has left her with deep-seated emotional scars.

"She is relieved that he is no longer a police officer and that he has been held to account for his outrageous behaviour. She hopes to be able to move on with her life now he has been brought to justice."

Lynch joined TVP as a police community support officer (PCSO) in 2007 and he became a police constable in May 2017. He formally quit TVP in September 2024.

The investigation into his conduct was led by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

Its regional director Charmaine Arbouin said: "The police are there to help the people they serve, not exploit them. Abuse of position for a sexual purpose is serious corruption and has absolutely no place in policing.

"Matthew Lynch took advantage of a woman he knew was in a vulnerable position, which included welfare concerns, and in doing so damaged her – and the public's - trust in the police."

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