OO cleared of police deception

A Manchester optometrist who admitted writing his own reference in an application to join the police was cleared in December of attempting to obtain pecuniary advantage by deception.

Harrow Crown Court heard that Julian Cohen, who worked at Manchester General Hospital, had responded to a Jewish newspaper's interview with Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair calling for more Jewish recruits to the force.

He was vetted for security by MI5 and was informed he had passed all the necessary tests, only to be told that his application had been rejected. He was then charged with attempting to obtain a pecuniary advantage.