Chief constable had trysts with lover while on critical incident duty and told mistress not to attend police bashes when his wife was in attendance, tribunal hears

A chief constable had sex with a colleague while on critical incident duty and told another mistress not to attend police events when his wife was there, a tribunal heard.Scott Chilton, 53, was 'deliberately dishonest on multiple occasions' and 'abused his position for his own sexual gratification', a police standards panel ruled.Finding him guilty of four counts of misconduct relating to the affairs with two colleagues on Thursday, the panel said he he would have been dismissed without notice and placed on a barred list had he not already retired from the top role at Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary. Mr Chilton was a superintendent with 'force silver' status when he had sex at the home of the first woman, meaning he was responsible for any critical incidents in the county at the time.The police standards panel said a member of the public would find it 'wholly unacceptable' that whilst on duty in a command position he was engaging in sexual activity. Panel chair Michelle Skeer said if there was a serious incident he may have been unable to respond.Ms Skeer said Mr Chilton was driven by his own sense of 'entitlement' and was also 'domineering and abusive' to his colleagues during a meeting he set up to try to block an investigation into his conduct. Former Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary's Chief Constable Scott Chilton failed to attend the misconduct hearing citing ill health Mr Chilton, who received a £55,000 pay-off after he stood down last year, was married when he began seeing the first woman, who was then a sergeant he was supposed to be mentoring.The officer, who cannot be named, said they 'had intercourse on a number of occasions' but he ended things at her police station in 2012.Mr Chilton began a relationship with a second colleague just weeks after being handed the top job in February 2023, the tribunal heard.He would visit her at home 'once or twice a week' and told her he was divorced despite still being remarried. She said the attention Mr Chilton gave her was 'what the doctor ordered'.The panel said there was 'overwhelming evidence' that he engaged in a sexual relationship with Officer A while on duty and failed to disclose the relationship.They said she was a consistent witness and her accounts were not embellished or exaggerated.They said Mr Chilton was 'deliberately dishonest' on multiple occasions by not disclosing the sexual relationship and continuing to deny it.When allegations of the affair emerged in 2023 Mr Chilton called a meeting to try to stop an investigation into his conduct where he was 'domineering and abusive to his colleagues'.He then sought to 'control the narrative' of the press inquiries by influencing the Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones to change her statement.Mr Chilton even tried to paint Officer A 'in a negative light, irrespective of the potential reputational impact that this may have on her,' the panel said.'He continued to dishonestly deny the relationship. FCC Chilton's conduct showed a persistent dishonesty and lack of integrity,' it added.Mr Chilton 'abused his position for a sexual purpose by having a sexual relationship' with the second woman, Officer B.The panel said she was a subordinate ranking officer and Mr Chilton instigated the private messaging and further instigated the visit to her home address where the sexual relationship started.In her evidence, Officer B said she felt like she had 'woman imposter syndrome' and found Mr Chilton to be very 'empowering'.The panel said it was 'clear the relationship came about as a result of his position' and the power imbalance was evidenced by Officer B acquiescing to Mr Chilton's requests not to attend force events when his wife was in attendance.One witness told how she had invited Officer B as her guest to a Police Federation event in October 2023 but she had declined as she knew that Mr Chilton and his wife were going to be in attendance.The panel said: 'This shows that Officer B was changing her behaviour at FCC Chilton behest.'The tribunal heard that once Mr Chilton realised the relationship with Officer A was going to come to light, he 'sought to exert pressure over Officer B' to 'coerce her' to keep their relationship quiet, the panel said.He had 'bombarded' her with calls and messages and told her to 'delete and double delete' any communication between them.The panel said he had shown a complete disregard throughout for his responsibilities to the public.Ms Skeer said: 'He was in the highest position of trust as the most senior officer in the constabulary and ought to have known the foreseeable risk of harm by having a covert relationship.'He repeatedly lied by act and omission about both his relationships with Officer A and Officer B and he knew that this was wrong.'His conduct was a serious, deliberate and sustained attempt to mislead the PCC and colleagues to subvert any negative impact on himself.She added: 'All police officers are in a position of trust, however FCC Chilton was in the highest position of trust, he would have been privy to confidential and sensitive information on colleagues, security and national policing matters.'There was evidence that he was discussing issues which he shouldn't have been discussing with Officer B during WhatsApp message exchanges.'It emerged earlier this year that Mr Chilton was paid £55,154 as 'compensation for loss of employment' after he resigned with immediate effect in April last year.The payment is understood to relate to a payment in lieu of working his notice period.Mr Chilton did not attend the hearing citing ill health. He issued a statement admitting his actions 'fell short' of expectations but denied gross misconduct.