Former West Mercia Police Federation treasurer convicted of fraud

Harrison, aged 55 and from Droitwich, was secretary and treasurer of the West Mercia Police Federation between 2010 and 2018: a position of trust in which he was responsible for safeguarding the financial interests of his fellow officers.

Harrison abused this position by repeatedly dipping into the Federation’s petty cash, over which he had sole control, in order to fund personal expenditure on food, alcohol and entertainment. He kept his claims just under £100 to avoid scrutiny. Over 100 fraudulent claims were identified.

Harrison also received salary payments for days when he was not at work. Text messages proved that he took days off to watch rugby abroad, including trips to Italy and Ireland, and also spent time working on his allotment, while his timesheets falsely recorded him as working full shifts.

Most egregiously, Harrison used his attendance at National Police Memorial Days – solemn occasions honouring officers who’ve lost their lives in the line of duty – as opportunities to take his wife and children on family holidays at the Federation’s expense. The family stayed in four-star and five-star hotels in York, Cardiff, Edinburgh and London, with Harrison claiming the cost of accommodation, meals and day trips from his fellow officers’ funds.

Jamie Harrison was convicted of 15 counts of fraud by abuse of position at Hereford Crown Court. The total value of the fraud was approximately £13,500. Harrison resigned from West Mercia Police in February 2022.

Exploitation of control

Victoria Norman, unit head for the Serious Economic Organised Crime and International Directorate at the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “As a police officer and Federation treasurer, Jamie Harrison was in a position of considerable trust and expected to act with honesty and integrity. Instead, he exploited his control over West Mercia Police Federation’s finances for personal gain and behaved in a thoroughly dishonest way during the entire eight years of his tenure.”

Norman continued: “Harrison displayed an extremely cavalier attitude towards being caught, dipping into petty cash at will and claiming expenses far beyond what was reasonable as well as falsifying timesheets.”

Further, Norman noted: “His entitled and dishonest behaviour ran counter to everything he should have stood for as a public servant and was total betrayal of the colleagues whose subscriptions funded the Police Federation and who trusted that their money would be used appropriately.”

In conclusion, Norman observed: “The Crown Prosecution Service is determined to bring to justice those public servants who commit fraud and abuse positions of trust.”

Betrayal of trust 

Detective Superintendent Tony Garner from West Mercia Police stated: “Jamie Harrison chose to act for himself. He took advantage of the position as treasurer and secretary within the Police Federation to use members’ funds for his own gain. This was a betrayal of the trust placed in him by both the public and his colleagues.”

Garner also commented: “Harrison’s actions amounted to criminal behaviour and an investigation was carried out, without fear or favour, as members of the public would rightly expect.”