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A former officer for Derbyshire Police who abused their position when dealing with a vulnerable victim while on duty has been sacked at a secret misconduct hearing.

This is the third time an officer from the force has been dismissed in a hearing held behind closed doors this year.

Derbyshire Police have refused to name them, going against Government policy, on all occasions.

Guidelines published in 2015 by Theresa May, the then Home Secretary,said police misconduct hearings should be held in public.

Hearings should also be chaired by individuals with legal expertise.

The police do have the power to hold the hearings in private but the name of the officer and the allegations against them have been made public after hearings in previous cases.

The latest Derbyshire Police officer to be sacked for misconduct was a special constable who was no longer serving at the time of their dismissal.

The decision was taken in May but details of the case have only recently been published on the Derbyshire police website.

It says: "The former officer answered allegations that (while serving as an officer), their conduct breached the standards of professional behaviour of 'discreditable conduct' and 'authority, respect and courtesy', in that; whilst on duty, the officer abused their position when dealing with a vulnerable victim."

The website said the hearing was held in private and was described as a special case hearing. It said the decision to sack the officer would have been made had they still been serving.

In May, it was revealed how two constables had been sacked since the start of the year in hearings held in private. One was for shoplifting twice and another constable was dismissed over a relationship issue.

It means four Derbyshire officers have been sacked this year. Another officer, who was also no longer serving in the force, was dismissed for kicking out at a member of the public who was restrained at the time.

The incident happened while he was off duty. The hearing was held in public.

(Image: Getty)

The media was allowed in to a misconduct hearing last year when an officer faced being sacked after failing to arrest a homeless petty thief who had stolen £2 of biscuits.

The constable instead pointed him in the direction of a soup kitchen. He openly told colleagues what he had done but wrote on the report that the homeless man had found £2 to pay for the biscuits and no crime had been committed.

In this latest case, Derbyshire Live asked Derbyshire Police who the officer was, whether the force requested the hearing to be held in private or not and how the officer abused their position.

The force did not answer the questions.

A spokesman said: "We strictly adhere to police conduct regulations throughout any disciplinary proceedings.

"Some hearings are held in private for a variety of reasons, including the circumstances of the officer and the circumstances of witnesses."