A female police chief told a junior colleague she was “silly, vain and frivolous” for getting a “boob job”, before exposing her own breasts and saying “look at these” during a Women in Policing conference.
Assistant Chief Constable Rebekah Sutcliffe, 47, had been drinking wine at the event in Manchester’s Hilton Hotel when she confronted Superintendent Sarah Jackson and condemned her for having a “tit job”.
A misconduct hearing heard twice-married, mother-of-three Ms Sutcliffe exposed her breasts after claiming Supt Jackson was not being taken seriously due to the cosmetic procedure.
She said Ms Jackson’s credibility was “zero”, warned she would miss out on promotion and claimed the officer was a “laughing stock” amongst senior male colleagues, the panel sitting at Greater Manchester Police HQ heard.
To prove her point, Ms Sutcliffe opened the front of her dress and said: “Look at these - look at these. These are the breasts of someone who has had three children. I know they’re ugly but I don’t feel the need to pump myself with silicone to get self-esteem.”
In the hour-long exchange, Ms Sutcliffe went on to say: “Sarah, it doesn’t matter how hard you work now because you will always just be known as the girl who had the tit job.”
The haranguing concluded when Ms Sutcliffe told her colleague she was no longer going to support a further promotion for her.
The hearing was told the incident took place while the two women were attending a three-day conference, which had the theme “Profile and Perception”.
It included 300 guests, senior female police chiefs from around the UK, plus former MI5 chief, Baroness Eliza Manningham-Bull.
Ms Sutcliffe, who earned £96,500 a year in her post and was the highest-ranking female GMP officer at the time, had opened the conference and also delivered an opening address at the gala dinner.
The dispute then broke out when the group moved to the public mezzanine bar.
In her statement to the hearing which she did not attend, Supt Jackson said Ms Sutcliffe had appeared “quite drunk”, was slurring her words and demanding cigarettes and alcohol.
Supt Jackson said she recalled the Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police, Ian Hopkins, telling her: “Sarah, please don’t leave me on my own with Rebekah. She is drunk, she is driving me mad.”
It was after 2am that Supt Jackson said Ms Sutcliffe called her a “laughing stock”.
She said: “I was shocked, really shocked and struggling to process at first what she said to me. I was mortified, embarrassed and ashamed to think that is how I was perceived. At this time I had no reason to disbelieve what she had said and began to cry.”
She said she was “acutely aware” of Ms Sutcliffe’s superior rank and said she felt obliged to listen to her.
Ms Jackson, who is now a Superintendent with Cumbria Constabulary, said she suffered “great anxiety from the night itself and since” and added: “It has been the most distressing and hurtful experience of my life”.
Counsel for the hearing Fiona Barton QC, said Ms Sutcliffe’s conduct at the conference was so serious that dismissal would be justified.
Ms Barton said: “ACC Sutcliffe opened up the police service and Greater Manchester Police to ridicule. She was a critical role model and was supposed to lead by example.”
The day after the incident, Ms Sutcliffe made repeated attempts to apologise Ms Jackson by email and text message, saying: “Too much wine, v sorry. I think you are a fab and brilliant professional."
Later, in an interview with senior colleagues, she said: “I deeply regret what happened and in particular the upset I caused to someone I hold in very high regard.
“I am determined to learn from my mistakes and I am committed to serving the public as a police officer. I hope I may be able to return to duty as soon as possible.”
Ms Sutcliffe, a serving officer with GMP for 23 years, also claimed she had been using alcohol as an “unhelpful coping mechanism” due to being under “intense stress due to prodigious hours and work”.
John Beggs QC, representing Ms Sutcliffe said her misconduct over a short period of time when in drink was to be contrasted against her "many years of distinguished and impressive public service".
The police officer, who is currently suspended, admits misconduct but denies gross misconduct, which could lead to dismissal.
She faces two alleged breaches of standards of professional behaviour in that her conduct was discreditable and she failed to treat Ms Jackson with respect or courtesy and abused her position and authority.
The hearing continues.
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