Police officer who pretended to be working banned
BBCA former officer who "manipulated her keyboard" on 12 occasions to make it look like she was working when she was not has been banned from policing.
PC Lauren Fairley was working for Wiltshire Police's Domestic Abuse Support Team in 2025 when she used an object on her keyboard to prevent her laptop showing as inactive.
A misconduct hearing at the force's headquarters in Devizes found her actions had amounted to gross misconduct and she would have been dismissed had she not already left the force in February.
Fairley apologised for her actions and offered to repay Wiltshire Police in time or money for the lost hours.
Fairley did not attend the misconduct hearing in person due to ill health. Through her representative she had been studying for a National Investigators' Exam when the incidents took place, tests which are part of the detective pathway for officers.
The hearing was told the former officer made the "poor decision" to use time during the working day to study.
On one occasion, the hearing was told, Fairley pressed the T and 7 keys on her keyboard over 100,000 times on one day.
Another day, between 10:28-11:27 BST, she pressed multiple keys over 200,000 times.
The misconduct hearing said she had manipulated her keyboard on 12 different occasions.
It was also told Fairley covertly recorded a one-to-one meeting with her supervisor during which "sensitive information" was discussed around "ongoing investigations".
An excerpt from Wiltshire Police's hearing outcome reads: "Your behaviour in manipulating your keyboard to make it appear as though you were actively working on your computer when you were not is behaviour that discredits the police service and undermines confidence in it."
Fairley was placed on the 'barred list' which shows all officers, special constables and staff members who have been dismissed from policing after investigations.
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