Cambridgeshire police officer accused of messaging teenage girl
PC Neil Woodley, 47, is due in court charged with a data protection offence
A police officer is set to appear in court this week accused of a data protection offence following an investigation.
Police Constable Neil Woodley, 47, of Cambridgeshire Constabulary, has been charged under section 170 of the Data Protection Act 2018 for knowingly or recklessly retaining personal data without consent.
He is due to appear at Cambridge Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, 6 March.
The charge relates to an allegation that, between September 2022 and April 2023, he sent text and WhatsApp messages from his personal phone to an 18-year-old female.
She was in a vulnerable position when he met her in the course of his duties.
An investigation began in April 2023 after Cambridgeshire Constabulary made a mandatory conduct referral. Following the investigation, a file of evidence was referred to the Crown Prosecution Service, which decided to charge Woodley.