West Mercia Police Dismisses Officer Over Unpaid Carrier Bags

West Mercia Police dismissed special constable Luke Hodgson after a misconduct hearing found he committed theft by deliberately failing to pay for three carrier bags from his supermarket employer Sainsbury's, according to findings by Chief Constable Richard Cooper. The unpaid bags were worth £1.20 in total.

Hodgson, who worked as a volunteer special constable and had the same powers as a regular constable, was dismissed by Sainsbury's in December 2025 before facing police misconduct proceedings in July.

The hearing found Hodgson had failed to pay for the bags on three occasions while using self-service tills. According to the findings, he had previously paid for bags correctly and was required to confirm that no unpaid bag had been taken during each transaction.

A misconduct hearing chaired by Chief Constable Richard Cooper concluded that Hodgson's actions breached professional standards on honesty and integrity and damaged public confidence in policing.

"I have found SC Hodgson to have acted dishonestly and to have committed theft, which fundamentally undermines his ability to function as a police officer. This is not compatible with the high standards of integrity required of the service. There are no other recorded matters of concern in SC Hodgson's brief service before this episode, but I do not believe exceptional circumstances exist that would lead to deviation from the presumption of dismissal.

Indeed, dismissal is the necessary outcome. Having arrived at the conclusion of deliberate dishonesty amounting to theft, public confidence cannot be maintained by SC Hodgson retaining the office of constable. He will therefore be dismissed without notice," said Richard Cooper, Chief Constable.

Cooper said the financial value of the bags was small, but the hearing considered the issue significant because police officers are expected to maintain high standards of honesty. Hodgson had repaid the money and cooperated with the investigation.

"An ordinary person would consider this action, to avoid payment when it was obviously required, to be dishonest," said Richard Cooper, Chief Constable.

The chief constable rejected Hodgson's explanation that he had taken the bags inadvertently, finding that he understood payment was required and chose not to complete it.

"I have found SC Hodgson to have acted dishonestly and to have committed theft, which fundamentally undermines his ability to function as a police officer," said Richard Cooper, Chief Constable.

Hodgson was dismissed without notice and will be placed on the College of Policing's barred list, preventing him from serving as a police officer in the future.