Female Cop and Colleague Secretly Changed Her Ex-Husband’s Sexuality to “Homosexual” on Official Police Records – As a “Juvenile Prank”
Two serving police officers on the Isle of Man have been fined after admitting they altered the official police records of one officer’s former husband, changing his recorded sexuality from “no entry” to “homosexual.” They described the act as a juvenile prank.
Sergeant Sophie Watterson-Jones, 36, and Constable Mark Hempsall, 58, accessed the force’s Connect computer system and made the change. The alteration was discovered when messages on Watterson-Jones’s phone were examined. In the exchange from June 2023, Hempsall sent a message saying “You like this.” She replied, “That made me giggle.” He then wrote “I’m doing this,” and she responded “Love it.”
Both officers initially denied the charge of unauthorised modification of police computer data but changed their pleas to guilty shortly before trial. Magistrates fined each of them £2,000 and ordered them to pay £500 in prosecution costs. In sentencing, the court stated: “As police officers you should have known better. While this may be looked at by some as a juvenile prank you were both serving police officers. The real damage here is the impact which these offences have on the public’s trust and confidence in the Isle of Man Constabulary.”
The court heard that Hempsall had initiated the change, but as the senior officer, Watterson-Jones should have stopped him. Defence lawyers described the incident as a childish or spur-of-the-moment prank and argued it had caused no practical harm to the complainant. However, the former husband, who is Muslim, submitted a victim impact statement in which he said it would be highly embarrassing if information appeared claiming he was gay. He stated he would have to explain to people that he is heterosexual and added: “This worries me. I should not be in this position.”
An internal investigation by the Isle of Man Constabulary is continuing. Both officers have been suspended, and the force has indicated it is considering the implications of the court’s findings for their careers. Defence counsel told the court that the offence could well end their professional service with the Constabulary.
The case raises clear questions about data integrity and professional standards. Police computer systems hold sensitive personal information that can affect individuals’ lives far beyond the moment an entry is made. Altering a record of sexuality, even if intended as private amusement between colleagues, creates a permanent official entry that the person concerned never authorised and may never have known about. In this instance the victim highlighted the particular cultural and personal difficulties the false information could cause him as a Muslim man.
Unauthorised changes to official records also undermine public confidence. Citizens must be able to trust that police databases accurately reflect verified information rather than the private jokes of officers. When those entrusted with maintaining the integrity of such systems treat them as a vehicle for personal amusement, the damage extends beyond the individual affected to the reputation of the force itself.
The officers’ guilty pleas and the financial penalties imposed by the court reflect the seriousness with which the law treats unauthorised modification of police data. Whether the internal disciplinary process results in further sanctions, including dismissal, remains to be determined. What is already clear is that a moment of apparent levity between two colleagues has produced lasting professional and personal consequences.
