Neil Wilby Media

A former Greater Manchester Police detective has been jailed for 26 years afer a jury found he had subjected a child to “sickening sexual abuse” from the age of 12, including raping them.

Stephen Hardy, 46, was convicted following a four-week trial at Liverpool Crown Court of six counts of rape, sexual assault and causing a child to engage in sexual activity.

He had denied carrying out the offences between December 2012 and June 2020.

His Honour Judge Robert Trevor-Jones told Hardy he had treated his victim “like a puppet or sex object” and had held a spell over them.

He ruled Hardy, who was deployed in the Stockport area, was a dangerous offender and imposed an extended six year licence.

The jury heard that he had begun sexually abusing his victim at the age of 12 and the judge said this had increased in seriousness until the age of 19.

“The indictment reflects a highly calculated and cynical course of grooming behaviour.”

The Women’s Equality Party says: “Stephen Hardy used his police status to protect himself and enable nearly a decade of child sexual abuse. Policing is broken. He thrived as a police officer in that time precisely because the culture in policing permits and enables rank misogyny”.

The question now is how many Greater Manchester Police colleagues, working alongside Hardy for almost three decades, knew of his offending? An urgent, King’s Counsel-led, external inquiry needs to be commissioned by the Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham, who has political oversight of the force, to establish who knew what, if anything.

Hardy’s previous complaints and disciplinary record should also be scrutinised, in order to establish if there were missed opportunities to apprehend Hardy earlier.

Public confidence and trust in the police service, particularly in Greater Manchester, will not be restored until every single ‘bad apple’ is scraped out of an uncomfortably large barrel.

For the moment, this is the statement released by GMP shortly after the sentencing:

“A GMP detective convicted of 20 offences including rape and child sexual offences has been jailed today for 26 years.

“Detective Constable Stephen Hardy had been posted within GMP’s Stockport District and had been on remand following his conviction in July.

“He was found guilty at Liverpool Crown Court of committing several serious sexual offences whilst off duty  following a brave victim disclosure and meticulous investigation by DS Abigail Thomas and Tameside CID.

“The 26 years sentence includes an additional six years on extended licence. As Hardy has been classed as a dangerous offender, he will not be automatically released after two-thirds of his sentence. He has also been issued with a restraining order and will be on the sex offender’s register for life.

“Now criminal proceedings have concluded, gross misconduct proceedings will take place”.