Police overtime e-mails attacked

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E-mails encouraging police working on a major anti-terrorism investigation to work overtime to pay for expensive luxuries have been criticised.

E-mails suggesting overtime shifts could buy a week in Spain, three flying lessons or a large plasma TV were sent by an officer in Thames Valley Police.

They were sent to colleagues in 2006 during the inquiry into an alleged plot to blow up transatlantic airliners.

The police authority said the e-mails were in poor taste and unacceptable.

The e-mails seeking volunteers were sent by Sergeant David Bald to colleagues in Bletchley, Milton Keynes, Wolverton and Newport Pagnell, during a search of woods near High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.

One of the e-mails, sent on 24 August 2006, suggested one night in the woods would pay for a "new fridge", while two nights would buy "four tyres for your Beemer" and three nights "Disneyland Florida".

It was signed off with "as they say in the trade, come on down".

'Poor taste'

Thames Valley Police's involvement in the inquiry Operation Overt cost nearly £8 million, including £4.9m in overtime.

They were misguided and written in poor taste and recalled as soon as senior officers became aware of them Thames Valley Police The search of the woods - which took several months - was successful. Police found a suitcase full of explosives and several large bottles of hydrogen peroxide, which can be used to make liquid bombs.

Three men were found guilty of a massive terrorist conspiracy to murder involving home-made bombs on 8 September.

Thames Valley Police Authority said the e-mails were "unacceptable" but did not reflect the attitude of police officers as a whole.

"They were misguided and written in poor taste and recalled as soon as senior officers became aware of them," a spokesman said.

Overtime was used because deploying officers from their usual Thames Valley postings put a strain on the policing of local communities, he added.

Simon Reed of the Police Federation said: "These officers were working their rest days, they were not doing their normal duty time... many of them would have preferred to have been somewhere else, so the money was compensation for doing that."