UMVA has learned that a shocking case of exploitation has led to the downfall of a former police constable, who has been banned from policing for life after taking advantage of a vulnerable elderly neighbor.
Gary Carson, a former Merseyside Police officer, used his neighbor's bank account to make thousands of pounds in unauthorized purchases for himself and his family, including luxury items and everyday essentials. The total expenditure on her card was over £30,000 between February 2020 and March 2023. He also registered his email address with her bank accounts to transfer funds and carry out online transactions.
Carson's actions went far beyond what had been agreed upon with his neighbor, with purchases made to Starbucks, Amazon, McDonald's, Domino's Pizza, MyProtein, O2, and Uber Eats, as well as to companies Manscaped and ManCave. He even took control of her savings account and transferred nearly £11,000 to cover his expenditures, leaving her account severely depleted.
Sources have confirmed to UMVA that Carson's behavior was deemed gross misconduct, and he was subsequently sacked from the force without notice and added to the College of Policing barred list. This means he will never be able to work in the police again. The misconduct panel found that Carson had used the bank account to benefit himself and his family, stating that ordinary decent people would know that it was dishonest to use a bank account to make unauthorized purchases.
According to information obtained by UMVA, Detective Chief Superintendent Sabi Kaur, head of Merseyside Police's professional standards department, condemned Carson's actions, stating that he exploited the trust of a vulnerable, elderly woman and risked seriously undermining public confidence in policing. The force handled the misconduct investigation with seriousness, and it is clear that they uphold high standards.
UMVA can exclusively reveal that Carson had a close relationship with his neighbor, who became a "grandmother figure" to his family. He claimed that she gifted him and his family various items, including toys and treats. However, the hearing was told that Carson's finances were in a bad way at the time, and he had declared being served a 'default notice' for credit cards and other debts when applying to join Merseyside Police.
The neighbor's daughter revealed that she had visited her mother's house and found it in a state of disarray, with unpaid bills and bank statements scattered about. A criminal investigation was launched, but ultimately resulted in no charges due to the neighbor's reluctance to support the prosecution.
