"Having sex on duty is similar to a tea-break" according to police appeals panel
An armed policeman was not sacked for having sex on duty with his trousers around his ankle and his gun in its holster - because an appeals panel said it was similar to "a tea break".
It was the sort of delay that will occur if an officer goes to the toilet or into a café to buy a cup of tea
Pc Shaun Jenkins, 36, was on patrol when he met a married woman and took her to a flat for a 40-minute sex romp.
The award-winning officer was dismissed by Gwent Police for gross misconduct but was later reinstated by an appeals tribunal.
An appeals tribunal report into the incident concluded that: "It was the sort of delay that will occur if an officer goes to the toilet or into a café to buy a cup of tea".
The tribunal ruled that Pc Jenkins could still reach his gun because it was in its holder attached to the belt of his trousers which were around his ankles.
A report into his conduct found the act did not pose a risk to public safety because he could have been back on duty "within a minute or two".
The details of his successful appeal were revealed under the Freedom of Information legislation.
Pc Jenkins was on duty in Caerphilly in April 2010 when he invited the woman to his home for sex while a police colleague waited outside.
The whistle was blown by the woman's furious husband when he discovered the afternoon sex session.
The officer has twice been commended for bravery including clinging onto a woman for 75-minutes as she threatened to jump off a railway bridge.
Pc Jenkins is now a neighbourhood beat officer after he was stripped of his firearms licence.
The Independent Police Complaints Commission questioned his reinstatement last month saying the case had undermined public confidence in the police discipline system.
Head of the IPCC in Wales, Tom Davies, said he was "bemused" by the findings of the appeals tribunal.
He said: "The finding that the gun was never out of PC Jenkins's direct and immediate control because it was in a holster, attached to his trousers, which were attached to him, albeit around his ankles, is surprising.'
"I am also bemused by the panel's conclusion that his conduct did not significantly downgrade the protection to the public because there was nothing to suggest he could not have been back in the police vehicle within a minute or two.
"These findings can only undermine public confidence in the credibility of the police discipline system.
"Any officer having sex on duty is unacceptable behaviour that falls well below what is expected of all police officers."
