A POLICE officer has been dismissed from the force for breaching standards of professional behaviour.

Detective Sergeant Mark Davis, based on East Sussex division, was charged with failing to stop at the scene of an accident and failing to provide a specimen under the Road Traffic Act following a single vehicle collision in Willingdon last year,

The 41-year-old was off duty at the time of the crash.

He previously pleaded guilty to the offences.

At a misconduct hearing, Davis faced an allegation of breaching standards of professional behaviour in respect of discreditable conduct in relation to being charged with criminal offences.

The allegation against Davis was found to be proven by Chief Constable Jo Shiner, with a decision that he be dismissed from the force without notice.

Chief Constable Shiner said: "We expect our officers to act with the utmost integrity, and in accordance with the force’s values, the Code of Ethics and the Standards of Professional Behaviour.

“The actions of this officer fell short of that, and there is no place in Sussex Police for such behaviour.”

Davis was the subject of an accelerated misconduct hearing chaired by the Chief Constable at Sussex Police Headquarters in Lewes on Monday, March 14.

According to police, an accelerated misconduct hearing is held when there is incontrovertible evidence and it is in the public interest to remove the officer from service as soon as possible, or in the case of an ex-officer, to have them placed on the barred list.