Cleveland Police Officer Ian Coverdale Sacked After Sexual Misconduct Proven at Misconduct Hearing...

Cleveland Police Van

PC Ian Coverdale, who reportedly worked at Hartlepool Police Station was dismissed without notice at the misconduct panel hearing which was held this week...

20th June 2025

A police officer who was accused of "biting a woman's breast" has been ousted from the force after yet another misconduct scandal rocks Teesside's most disgraced institutions....

Cleveland Police have today confirmed that PC Ian Coverdale has been dismissed with immediate effect following a misconduct hearing that took place between 16th and 19th June 2025.

Coverdale, who had been with the force of no public confidence since 2009 and was based at Hartlepool Police Station, was found to have breached multiple standards of professional behaviour, including discreditable conduct, lack of integrity, and failure to treat others with respect and courtesy. The panel concluded that his actions amounted to gross misconduct, and as a result, he has been permanently removed from the force.

The misconduct relates to events which were said to have occurred on the night of the 15th December 2023, when Coverdale sexually assaulted a woman during a Christmas night out. He reportedly bit her breast with such force it caused injury, and later exposed himself in the back of a car, inviting the same woman to touch his genitals. The woman, known only as Witness A, gave what the force described as “very compelling evidence” during the hearing.

In a formal statement following the verdict, Detective Superintendent Karen Naunton, Head of Cleveland Police’s Directorate of Standards and Ethics, condemned Coverdale’s actions:

“The behaviour of PC Coverdale on the evening of the 15th December 2023 was totally unacceptable. The victim of this behaviour provided very compelling evidence to the panel, and I would like to thank her for coming forward."

“Any officer who does not uphold the standards of behaviour that are expected of them, and brings the police service into disrepute, can expect that they will be held to account for their actions. Where necessary, those officers will also be removed from policing and placed on the barred list.”

This hearing marks at least the fourth misconduct case in just six months involving Cleveland Police officers – raising further concerns regarding the culture and conduct within a force already plagued by decades of scandal.

Whilst the dismissal of Coverdale will be welcomed by some as a sign of accountability, for others, it underscores a deeper systemic failure at Teessides publicly funded organised criminal gang.

Cleveland Police has long struggled with public confidence, with this case only adding to the perception that the force is failing to police its own ranks.

Coverdale’s name will now be added to the national Barred List, preventing him from ever working in policing again. However, serious questions remain: how many more officers are still serving while facing allegations? And how long will the public be expected to place trust in a force that keeps making headlines for all the wrong reasons?