Jailed: Ex-Leicestershire Police Special Constable who took photos and shared images of dying man

William Heggs, 23, stored images of now deceased victim William Harty on his Snapchat account and showed the photographs to another officer.

Heggs had previously attended the scene in Bedale Drive, Leicester, on October 25, 2021, when Mr Harty was found seriously injured and had assisted with CPR before paramedics arrived. Mr Harty was later pronounced dead and the man responsible was subsequently convicted of his manslaughter.

In November 2021, while on duty with a police constable, he showed the image to the officer, adding: “I know I shouldn’t have”. The officer reported Heggs to his line manager and police seized Heggs’ mobile phone and downloaded the contents.

Photographs and video clips of body-worn footage of incidents Heggs had attended on duty were discovered, and these involved a knife seizure, use of baton and pepper spray, and a man with an injured hand receiving first aid.

The faces of the individuals concerned were clearly visible in a number of the video clips and photographs. Heggs stored them in a Snapchat folder, entitled “My eyes only”.

Heggs also disclosed graphic details – most of which were not in the public domain – about the injuries to a woman who was killed in a road traffic collision he had attended to a friend on Snapchat.

He also took 12 photographs of a police computer screen on his personal mobile phone, which showed details of crimes and suspects, without consent.

Heggs, who remained suspended from the force from November 2021 until his resignation in October 2024, pleaded guilty to 11 computer misuse and data protection offences at Leicester Crown Court on March 19.

He was sentenced today (May 8) to 12 months in jail at the same court.

The prosecution followed an initial investigation by Leicestershire Police followed by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

IOPC director Derrick Campbell said: “The court heard that ex-special constable Heggs has neurodiversity issues and he told our investigators he had taken the photos to help him process his feelings about the incidents.

“However he would have known from his training that his actions breached data protection rules, and in an apparent bid to hide images of a crime scene body he transferred them to a password protected file on his phone as police arrived at his home to interview him. Sharing confidential and sensitive police information in the way that he did was a clear abuse of the power and trust placed in him, and his conviction sends a strong message that this kind of behaviour will not be tolerated.”

Malcolm McHaffie, head of the Crown Prosecution Service’s Special Crime Division, said: “William Heggs abused the public’s trust in the office he held as a special police constable. He violated the dignity of the deceased victims for no apparent reason other than what could be considered personal fascination and to gain credibility among his peers.

“He repeatedly misused his authority to access police computers and flagrantly breached data protection law in disclosing personal data to members of the public.

“He was not authorised to take photographs of body-worn footage on his personal mobile phone nor share that footage with third parties. His actions were insensitive and illegal.

“The CPS will always seek to prosecute this type of offending, and it is only right that William Heggs is punished for his actions.”