Disgraced police officer shared images of dead man on WhatsApp

Despite his family's advice, Wood recorded and took photos of bodycam footage and statements to showcase his police work to family and close friends. The most serious cases saw Wood share material about a reported child rape and additionally, take photos of Paul Wells, who was found stabbed to death in his Highbridge home garden on June 25, 2020.

Wood's disclosure of private and sensitive information from police investigations was eventually discovered in October 2020 when officers requested to see his mobile phones for an unrelated matter. His victims were identified and shocked by Wood's conduct, leaving Paul Wells' family particularly hurt and angry.

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Woods used his personal mobile phone to capture images and video of bodycam footage from his work laptop at his Bridgwater home. He would share the material with various WhatsApp groups and contacts in a bid to show off his actions.

The prosecutor Richard Posner conveyed to Exeter Crown Court the gravity of the situation: "The seriousness of the defendant's action would not be lost on him because he knew he should not be sharing such information. He had undertaken training on August 31, 2018, reminding him about the need to protect personal data and there are clear reminders of his legal obligations when accessing Avon and Somerset Police computer systems.", reports Somerset Live.

"But the defendant's actions were very serious because they constituted a significant breach of the protected rights and freedoms of those individuals' sensitive data, including images. These were knowingly and intentionally shared with recipients who weren't authorised to know about or see them."

Wood was found to have shared the material with his close contacts, instructing them: "You need to delete this as soon as you've watched it" or "You must delete after watching it". In one instance, following a domestic incident where a man refused to leave a woman's home, Wood casually remarked: "An average day. Video on its way. Don't share".

In the most egregious case, Wood attended the scene of Paul Wells' death at a property in Highbridge on June 25, 2020. Tasked with photographing Wells' body for police records, Wood later used his personal phone to illicitly distribute some of the legitimate photos he took to family and friends in August 2020.

Wood, from Bridgwater, was persuaded by his family to remove the images, responding to one member's suggestion: "You should delete it off your phone". This offered a chance for Wood to express how his job in law enforcement was affecting him.

His family had prior concerns about Wood spreading confidential content and had confronted him about it before. In another incident, Wood disseminated information regarding an episode where a man attacked a boy and his girlfriend on December 31, 2019.

Responding to this, a worried relative advised him: "Don't send any more, I'm always worried that they will be intercepted or you send them to someone else by mistake". To which Wood replied: "WhatsApp is scrambled and impossible to intercept but ok! ".

The court discovered Wood's offences when his personal mobile phone, work phone, and laptop were seized by the police for an unrelated issue on October 9, 2020. Anticipating that the police would likely stumble upon his old messages, Wood later took to Google to find out about police misconduct, what police could retrieve from mobile gadgets and if they can access deleted social media messages.

On November 6, 2020, the police informed Wood that they had found images of Wells' body on his devices and issued him with a formal notice stating he was being investigated under suspicion of misconduct in a public office. Although he voluntarily attended two police interviews, he made no comment to the force.

He left the force in 2021. Wood admitted to three charges of misconduct in a public office between December 13, 2018, through August 31, 2020.

Simon Burns, mitigating, referred to a psychiatric report which suggested Wood was "unsuited" to his role as a police officer. The report highlighted Wood's "limited ability" to cope with stress and his struggles with alcohol dependency, anxiety, depression, and a past suicide attempt.

Burns explained that Wood shared the sensitive material in an attempt to show those he knew that he could handle the pressures of policing while dealing with his own mental health issues.

In a heartfelt letter to the court, Wood expressed his deep remorse: "I am writing to express my sincere apologies and regret regarding my actions whilst a police officer with Avon and Somerset Police force, sharing images of individuals who are involved or are victims of crime. This was totally wrong and I'm left with deep feelings of shame, remorse and regret."

Wood admitted to not realising the extent of his trauma from various incidents he encountered during his service, lamenting, "I did not fully understand at the time how badly affected I was by many of the incidents that I've attended during my short period of service and only wish that I had sought professional help."

In a separate heartfelt apology to Paul Well's family, Wood wrote: "The reason why I'm contacting you is to sincerely and unconditionally apologise for the extra suffering my thoughtless and inconsiderate actions have caused your family and also to try and explain my unexpected, unacceptable conditions."

Judge James Adkin stated that the frequency of incidents indicated this was a habit for Wood and "not a one-off and described sharing images of Mr Wells as ", describing the sharing of images of Mr Wells as "abhorrent" and the impact as "grossly distressing", adding to the family's suffering. He noted that while there may have been instances where Wood sought support by sharing details with family and friends, at other times he was merely seeking personal validation.

His Honour told Wood: "My view is that the defendant's actions were extremely serious - not only because you are in breach of the trust reposed in you by the police and by society, to safeguard confidential sensitive material, but you also shared that material to members of the public."

Wood received a 22-month prison sentence and is expected to serve half his term in prison, with the remainder on licence.

Following the sentencing, Assistant Chief Constable Joanne Hall described Wood's actions as "horrific" and reiterated a public apology to those affected for the distress caused. ACC Hall said: "Lewis Wood's horrific actions will rightly shock and disgust members of the public who place their trust with the police, as well as his former colleagues. It has meant the devastated family of Paul Wells have had to endure further pain.

"We are truly sorry for what has happened. We appreciate no words we can offer can make up for the distress this will have unquestionably caused them. From the moment these offences were discovered we have taken them extremely seriously and have sought to bring Wood to account believing his actions were not just misconduct, but indeed criminal and warranted the most robust action possible.

"There is absolutely no place for such criminal misconduct in policing, and we are determined to relentlessly root out anyone who wilfully disregards that. Failure to tackle poor conduct or drive positive cultural change would be to let down the public, plus the overwhelming majority of people serving in Avon and Somerset who are dedicated professionals who work every day to make their communities safer."