Met officers who took photos of murdered Wembley sisters Nicole Smallman and Bibaa Henry sacked

Two police officers who took “shameful” crime scene photos and described murdered sisters Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman as “dead birds” on social media have been sacked following a tribunal.

Pc Jamie Lewis, 33, and former officer Deniz Jaffer, 47, used the offensive term when sharing messages on WhatsApp groups after straying from their cordons to take pictures of the two women, who were found dead in bushes in Fryent Country Park, Wembley.

They also used a racially derogatory term for Pakistanis in messages about other, unrelated police matters.

Assistant Commissioner Helen Ball, chairing an accelerated tribunal in west London on Wednesday, decided both men committed gross misconduct.

She said: “This was hurtful, dishonest and unprofessional behaviour of the utmost seriousness.

“I am sorry that our officers behaved in such a hurtful, disrespectful and criminal way. Their actions are shameful.”

Lewis will be dismissed from the Metropolitan Police immediately, and Jaffer, who has already quit the force, would have been dismissed without notice if he was still a serving officer.

The pair have already been warned they face “lengthy” jail terms when they are sentenced next month for misconduct in a public office.

Neither Lewis nor Jaffer attended the misconduct hearing, and neither disputed the evidence.

The tribunal ruled that the two officers breached six established police standards, including confidentiality, and honesty and integrity, as well as authority, respect and courtesy.

Pc Helen Tierney, outlining the case against the men, said the pair were placed at a cordon to protect the crime scene in the early hours of June 8 2020.

But both left their posts to take unauthorised pictures of the bodies on their phones, and shared them with colleagues, while Jaffer also sent them to members of the public.

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