Lincolnshire officer blamed positive cocaine test on contact with drug users
He faces being dismissed after being found guilty of gross misconduct
A Lincolnshire Police special constable who took cocaine tried to blame it on coming into contact with drug dealers and users.
SC Samuel Toynbee told a misconduct hearing he “never has and never will take cocaine”, but was found guilty of gross misconduct.
He submitted to a drugs test when applying to become a regular constable in July 2025, following two years as a volunteer during which he served over 2,000 hours.
Although the reading for the Class A drug was just under the threshold, he was over for the substance which forms when cocaine breaks down in the body.
SC Toynbee claimed he was contaminated during his work, although a toxicologist said it was most plausible he had ingested the drug.
The hearing was held at Grantham Police Station on Monday, September 28.
The volunteer, who has been suspended since the test, told the hearing: “I dedicated vast amounts of time and effort to my dream job. Why would I jeopardise that by taking drugs?
“I was absolutely devastated by the test results, I have 100 per cent never taken any illicit drugs.”
He said the results must have come from “coming into contact with drug users and dealers on a daily basis”.
However Liz Briggs, for Lincolnshire Police, pointed out that he could only think of a single instance when he hadn’t worn gloves while touching drugs.
On this occasion – stopping a car on the A46 dual carriageway – the white powder was later identified as ketamine.
Kirsty Watson, an independent toxicologist, said she believed “ingestion was more likely than exposure” due to the levels.
The hair tested had come from SC Toynbee’s underarm, meaning it was unlikely to be exposed while working, and had tested positive twice.
A second sample had been available to test and potentially contradict the first, however he refused to pay for this.
“It was not up to me to fund the Professional Standard Department’s investigation,” he told the hearing.
“I gave up a full time job, losing tens of thousands of pounds. I wasn’t quoted how much testing would be, but the PSD was trying to prove I was a cocaine user.”
SC Toynbee’s test for cocaine showed 0.48 nanograms per milligram of blood – just below the cut-off of 0.5 nanograms.
However benzoylecgonine – which appears when cocaine has broken down – tested at a higher rate of 0.052 nanograms per mg, above the cut-off 0.05 nanograms.
Ms Briggs said: “Officers expect to undergo routine drug testing. If occasionally coming into contact with drugs would make them test positive, it would make drug testing completely redundant.”
The panel chair Charley Rimmer said evidence pointed towards the special constable having taken cocaine, breaching the police standards for discreditable conduct.
“You have behaved in a manner which discredits the police service and undermines public confidence,” she said.
The panel will return on Tuesday (September 29) to determine whether he should lose his job.