Ex-Leicestershire officer took photos of dying man from footage

BBC News

09-05-2025

A grieving widow said a special constable who took photos of footage of her husband as he lay dying "took his dignity" when he was at his most vulnerable. William Heggs, a volunteer officer with Leicestershire Police, stored images of manslaughter victim William Harty on his Snapchat account then showed them to another officer, saying: "I know I shouldn't have".Heggs, 23, of Copeland Drive in Leicester, had attended the scene of the killing in October 2021, and gave Mr Harty CPR before paramedics arrived.On Friday, he was jailed for a year after he had previously admitted 11 computer misuse and data protection offences at Leicester Crown Court.
Mr Harty, 28, died in hospital the next day having suffered head injuries, the court heard. Mr Harty's brother-in-law Martin Casey was convicted of his manslaughter in May 2022.Heggs was said to have been an "exemplary" officer until it was discovered he had taken photographs on his personal phone from body-worn footage of Mr Harty as he lay fatally injured in Bedale Drive, Leicester.Among the charges he admitted was one that he "accessed body-worn footage covering a crime scene".Mr Harty's widow Mandy Casey was in court and said in a victim impact statement she had lost trust in the police and remained scared that she might see photographs of her husband's body on social media.She added: "You don't take someone's dignity and pride from them on their deathbed."He took my husband's dignity when he was most vulnerable. When I found out special constable Heggs had done this, I just wanted to ask 'why'."He has traumatised me. I feel I will never know if he showed them to others."
The court heard Heggs had also taken photographs and videos of a knife seizure, use of baton and pepper spray, and a man with an injured hand receiving first aid.He also took a photograph showing details of a man who had been convicted of a sexual offence, including his date of birth, and 12 pictures of a police computer screen, which showed details of crimes and suspects.Heggs had stored the images in a folder on Snapchat named "My eyes only". Investigations by both Leicestershire Police and the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) found Heggs had also shared graphic details, most of which were not in the public domain, about injuries a woman killed in a road accident to a friend on Snapchat.
'You lacked maturity'
Heggs was suspended from the force from November 2021 until he resigned in October 2024. He pleaded guilty to 11 computer misuse and data protection offences at Leicester Crown Court on 19 March 2025.Judge Timothy Spencer KC said Heggs was "probably too immature to be working as a police officer".He said: "It is clear you did not lack enthusiasm and your policing was, at times, of an exemplary standard, but you lacked maturity."You had received extensive training, you knew the importance of data protection and knew you should only share materials for a genuine policing purpose."You knew the lines were drawn and the lines were very clear."He accepted that Heggs' actions were not out of "wickedness", but said the defendant's claims that he accessed the material so he could learn from the experience and become a better officer were "far-fetched".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."