Former Northamptonshire special constable jailed for 22 years for multiple sex offences against adults and children

At a trial beginning in February of this year, Bonafia pleaded guilty to five counts of taking an indecent photograph/pseudo-photograph of a child and one count of assaulting a person thereby occasioning them actual bodily harm.

As the trial progressed, he pleaded guilty to four more counts of assault.

The trial ended on March 30, where Bonafia was found guilty of a further 12 offences and on June 26, Bonafia returned to court where he was sentenced to 22 years in prison.

Detective Inspector Lee Jones said Bonafia is ‘a disgrace to the uniform he once wore.’

He said: “This has been a really complex investigation with a lot of moving parts and I am grateful to DC Knight for her diligence, victim care and unwavering determination to bring Wissem Bonafia to justice.

“Bonafia’s crimes are a disgrace to the uniform he once wore and I hope this investigation and subsequent result at court reassures the wider public that we will do all we can to root out individuals like him.

“We have a lot of brilliant special constables in this force who continue to uphold the highest standards of integrity and professionalism, and for them and their work, we are really grateful.”

Police arrested Bonafia in August 2020 after receiving intelligence regarding potential illegal images of children and later finding electronic devices which contained numerous indecent images and videos of girls.

Police say Bonafia had taken many of the photos himself between 2014 and 2019.

While at his home in Barton Seagrave, police arrested Bonafia, then aged 48.

Bonafia was then arrested in 2022 for a second time, charged with six counts of raping a woman aged 16 or over, one count of assault by penetration of an object/thing, six counts of assaulting a person thereby occasioning them actual bodily harm, five counts of taking an indecent photograph/pseudo-photograph of a child, four counts of making an indecent photograph/pseudo-photograph of a child, one count of causing/inciting a girl aged 13 to 15 to engage in sexual activity, one count of engaging in sexual communication with a child and one count of committing an act/series of acts with intent to pervert the course of public justice.

At the trial which ended on March 30, Bonafia was found guilty of 22 offences, however the jury ruled he was not guilty of three counts of rape, one of engaging in sexual communication with a child and one of taking an indecent photograph/pseudo-photograph of a child.

Bonafia had resigned from special constable duties on November 9, 2021, and an accelerated gross misconduct hearing was held by Northamptonshire Police on February 16, 2023, months after his second arrest. It was ruled that, had Bonafia still been a serving police officer at the time of his arrest, he would have been dismissed without notice.

Lead investigator Detective Constable Caroline Knight said: “Bonafia’s actions represent a gross abuse of trust and a clear violation of the standards expected of anyone in a position of responsibility.

"His offending caused significant harm to his victims, and I want to commend their bravery in coming forward and supporting this investigation.

“This sentence reflects the seriousness of his crimes and ensures he will be held accountable for his actions. Northamptonshire Police remains committed to protecting vulnerable people and will continue to pursue those who seek to exploit or harm others.

“Finally, I’d like to once again thank the survivors in this case for their courage and for believing in me and the process. This result would not have been possible without them.”