Shoplifting cop who tried to steal £147 in goods from Meadowhall Marks & Spencer guilty of gross misconduct
”It is unacceptable for police officers, responsible for enforcing the law, to break the law themselves”
A serving South Yorkshire Police officer committed gross misconduct when he “deliberately and intentionally” attempted to steal almost £150-worth of goods from a Meadowhall store, a misconduct hearing has found.
Police Constable Christopher Eaman stole the items, worth £147, from Marks and Spencer at Meadowhall, on May 20, 2026, but they were subsequently recovered and returned to the store.
He admitted to the conduct in the criminal police interview which followed.
Consequently, the officer received a caution, and was made the subject of accelerated misconduct proceedings, with a hearing held July 14, 2026.
Mr Eaman resigned from South Yorkshire Police, with his last day of service on July 13, 2026, the day before the hearing.
The hearing panel, chaired by the chief constable Lauren Poultney, concluded gross misconduct had been proven and Mr Eaman would have been sacked, had he not already resigned.
“I have found that the former officer’s misconduct is criminal, and it is unacceptable for police officers, responsible for enforcing the law, to break the law themselves,” said Chf Con Poultney in hearing documents published by the force.
She continued: “The former officer’s actions significantly harm public trust and confidence.
“Any example of dishonesty and lack of integrity is extremely serious, and it is unacceptable for a serving officer to commit an offence of this nature...cumulatively, these breaches exceed the threshold of purely unacceptable or improper behaviour and reach the threshold of being so serious that they justify dismissal.
Following evidence heard during the hearing, Chf Con Poultney said she believes Mr Eaman “acted deliberately and intentionally.”
“He planned this conduct by taking a freezer bag with him to place items into which he did not intend to pay for.
“He removed security tags from items, hid those, moved clothing around to conceal what he had done and placed the items he intended to steal in the freezer bag, which shows he did indeed intend to steal them,” she said.
Mr Eaman did not attend the hearing, but accepted breaching the standards of professional behaviour and agreed his actions amounts to gross misconduct.
In assessing mitigating factors, Chf Con Poultney said she had seen positive comments about Mr Eaman in his service record, and noted he was a serving Constable for just over five years, and had passed his sergeant exam.
“Whilst I do not accept this was a “moment of madness” as the former officer said in his interview, it was offending for a short period,” Chf Con Poultney.
She concluded: “I have considered carefully all of the material about this former officer. However, in my view, because of the importance of maintaining public confidence in and respect for the police service, the potential of any mitigation is necessarily limited.
“This is a case which significantly threatens the public’s confidence in, and respect for, the police service.
“This is because the conduct was criminal and severely affects the public trust and confidence in the service...I am concerned to ensure that it is plain that such serious discreditable conduct by officers of South Yorkshire Police will not be tolerated, and to deter future misconduct by other officers.
“I consider that dismissal would help to prevent future misconduct. I need to send a very clear message that officers cannot commit offences. I cannot endorse this behaviour with anything less than the most serious sanction because it is such a serious breach of the Professional Standards.”
Chf Con Poultney also ordered that Mr Eaman’s details should be included within the Police Barred List.