Ex-police sergeant Paul Street jailed for four years over toxic WhatsApp culture
Paul Street, a former Cambridgeshire police sergeant, has been sentenced to four years in prison for misconduct in public office, including bullying a teen suspect and sharing an intimate video.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
A former police sergeant who presented himself as a hero on TV crime shows has been jailed for four years for misconduct in public office. Paul Street, 41, was sentenced at the Old Bailey after being found guilty in June of two charges of misconduct in public office. He led a team at Cambridgeshire Constabulary that dealt with drug dealing and organised crime, and had appeared on BBC and Channel 4 crime programmes.
The court heard how Street created a toxic culture within his unit, largely through messages in WhatsApp groups with colleagues. He used degrading language, encouraged the bullying of suspects, and asked a colleague to send him an intimate video of a female suspect. In one incident, he urged officers to use violence against a 17-year-old detainee, using the phrase "smash his little head in". He also filmed a threatening video intended for that teenager, saying: "We meet again. Well, we know who you are now. We're going to go to your mum's house and rip it apart."
In another case, Street asked a colleague who was handling the phone of a female suspect if there were any nudes on it. PC Josh Williams, 38, shared a screenshot of the phone showing photos of the woman in her underwear, and later sent her an intimate video at Street's request. Williams pleaded guilty to one count of misconduct in a public office and was sentenced to 16 months in prison.
In a victim impact statement read in court, the woman at the centre of the intimate video said she was left feeling exposed, degraded and powerless. "Who can we trust if not the ones who are meant to protect us?" she asked. The judge, Mark Loucroft Casey, said Street's conduct amounted to "a culture of bragging and intolerance towards suspects" and that thousands of officers would be "utterly horrified" by his actions. He added: "It is both appalling and inexplicable."
The Independent Office for Police Conduct praised the victim for her bravery. Cambridgeshire's chief constable said the officers' conduct was entirely unacceptable and did not reflect the values of the force. Street's lawyer said he expressed genuine remorse for the damage caused to the victim.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, mapped by channel. Ordered by how many channels carried each claim.
| Claim | Channel 5 | BBC One | ITV |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joshua Williams pleaded guilty to misconduct in a public office and received a 16-month prison sentence. | · | ||
| Paul Street had appeared on crime shows on BBC and Channel 4. | · | ||
| Street encouraged colleagues to use violence against a 17-year-old boy in custody. | · | ||
| Street was sentenced to four years in prison for misconduct in a public office. | · | ||
| In October 2020, Street asked a colleague to send him an explicit video of a female suspect. | · | · |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
The BBC focused on the powerful victim impact statement and the judge's strong rebuke. It highlighted the emotional harm to the woman and the horror within the police force, while also reporting the sentence for the other officer.
- “She said that the actions of Street and his colleagues had left her feeling exposed, distressed and powerless.”
- “I am sure there will be many thousands of officers and police forces in this country and abroad utterly horrified by your actions and by the attitude you have displayed here. It is both appalling and inexplicable.”
The ITV Lunchtime News focused on the breach of public trust and the victim's bravery, including the IOPC's praise. It also noted Street's TV appearances and the reputational damage to policing.
- “The public should expect to be able to trust police officers to act fairly in the execution of their powers to prevent, detect and solve crime. Anything less does great harm to public faith in police forces and in individual police officers.”
- “Who can we trust, she said, if not the ones who are meant to protect us?”
The ITV Evening News reported similar facts but added the actual threatening video and the chief constable's response. It emphasised the contrast between Street's TV image and his real behaviour.
- “We meet again. Well, we know who you are now. We're going to go to your mum's house and rip it apart.”
- “He was found to have fostered a toxic culture through aggressive and derogatory messages he sent in WhatsApp groups that he made with colleagues.”
5 News emphasised the stark contrast between Street's public persona as a heroic TV cop and his actual behaviour as a bullying leader. It included his own TV soundbites and the victim's statement, with a strongly critical tone.
- “Our role currently is to cause as much disruption and trying to get as many drugs and weapons off the streets as possible.”
- “For his appalling and despicable behaviour, he's been sentenced to four years in prison.”
- “If you can't trust the ones who protect us, she said, who can you trust?”
Broadcast Timeline
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