Met Police Officer Sacked for Discriminatory Remarks in BBC Investigation
Summary
PC Charlie Cano of the Metropolitan Police was dismissed following an accelerated misconduct hearing for making discriminatory and disrespectful remarks about women during an undercover BBC Panorama investigation at Charing Cross police station. The officer was found in breach of standards for discreditable conduct, authority, respect and courtesy, and equality and diversity. This is the 10th officer found guilty of gross misconduct from the Panorama investigation, with an ongoing IOPC criminal investigation into other officers at the station.
What changed
PC Charlie Cano was dismissed from the Metropolitan Police following an accelerated misconduct hearing after undercover BBC footage captured him making discriminatory and disrespectful remarks about women and boasting about using force against a teenage female detainee. The hearing found he breached professional conduct standards relating to discreditable conduct, authority, respect and courtesy, and equality and diversity.
Affected parties include serving and former Metropolitan Police officers subject to the ongoing BBC Panorama investigation. The IOPC continues to conduct criminal investigations into other officers at Charing Cross police station. Law enforcement agencies should monitor these proceedings as they may indicate broader patterns of misconduct and increased regulatory scrutiny of police conduct standards.
What to do next
- Monitor for updates on ongoing IOPC investigation into other officers at the station
Archived snapshot
Apr 14, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
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The officer was identified from undercover footage
- 10 April 2026
A police officer who was caught making inappropriate and discriminatory comments about two women during an undercover Panorama investigation has been sacked.
An accelerated misconduct hearing found that PC Charlie Cano, who worked at Charing Cross police station, made disrespectful remarks and boasted about using force against a teenage female detainee.
He was attached to the Central West Command Unit and his behaviour, branded "appalling" by a senior officer, came to light after the BBC investigation into conduct at the central London police station in October 2025.
Unaired footage captured his words and he was immediately suspended from duty, the Metropolitan Police said.
'Discreditable conduct'
Cdr Simon Messinger said Cano's behaviour recorded by an undercover journalist working covertly in the custody suite was "appalling".
The hearing found PC Cano breached the standards of professional behaviour relating to discreditable conduct, authority, respect and courtesy, and equality and diversity.
PC Charlie Cano is the 10th serving or former officer to be found guilty of gross misconduct on the back of Panorama's undercover investigation at station.
Messinger said the Met was supporting an ongoing Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) investigation into the behaviour of "a number of officers" at the police station.
The police are working "tirelessly" to raise standards and improve its culture in London, he said.
In February, the IOPC said criminal investigations into a former Met police constable and a sergeant who were based at the station were ongoing, while another sergeant was being investigated for potential gross misconduct.
Undercover in the Police
Watch Panorama on BBC iPlayer
Watch on iPlayer Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook , X and Instagram . Send your story ideas to hello.bbclondon@bbc.co.uk
Related topics
Unmasked: Secret BBC filming exposes hidden culture of misogyny and racism inside Met Police
- 1 October 2025
Why BBC sent undercover reporter into a busy London police station
- 1 October 2025
Met officers face fast-track hearings after Panorama investigation
- 9 October 2025
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