The UK's Independent Office for Police Conduct has confirmed that a senior detective chief inspector from Derbyshire Police is under investigation for suspected misuse of artificial intelligence technology. This individual is believed to be the highest-ranking UK police officer known to face an inquiry over alleged AI-related gross misconduct.
The case was voluntarily referred by Derbyshire Police to the Independent Office for Police Conduct on June 23, following an internal review of the force's AI usage. The agency has decided to proceed with an investigation, and the officer has been formally notified of the inquiry into gross misconduct allegations.
According to sources familiar with the matter, the senior detective chief inspector is accused of using AI to maintain a "decision log"—a document in which senior investigators record the rationale for each decision made during an investigation. This log can be reviewed by defense lawyers during court proceedings.
Separately, a staff member from Gloucestershire Police was formally dismissed several weeks ago for repeatedly bypassing security protocols to use an AI chatbot for police work. This marks the first known case of a UK police employee being dismissed for such conduct. Misconduct charges allege that the staff member had been using AI for police work regularly since October 2024, and continued to do so after Gloucestershire Police introduced a system to block access to OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot on December 3, 2024. In March 2025, the force discovered the individual had been circumventing system restrictions to continue using the tool, leading to their suspension. One misconduct charge claims the staff member entered confidential information into the chatbot, compromising the integrity of the data. However, subsequent investigation revealed that all information entered was publicly available.
Earlier this year, in June, Derbyshire Police launched a criminal investigation into a lower-ranking detective for allegedly using an AI chatbot to prepare court materials, which could constitute perverting the course of justice. Official restrictions aim to protect court evidence from inaccurate "hallucinations" produced by many AI systems, and to safeguard the confidentiality of police information.
Police forces in England and Wales have previously been instructed to suspend the use of AI in court statements. An official from the Crown Prosecution Service stated that defense lawyers have been notified of cases potentially affected by the officer's conduct. Derbyshire Police confirmed that the officer has been referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct, noting that the investigation is independently led by that body, and the force cannot provide further comment. The officer in question has not responded to requests for comment.
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