Former Essex Police officer guilty of filming sexual assault after night out

A former Essex Police officer has been convicted of sexually assaulting a woman after a night out and filming it.

Steven Tissier, 37, thought the woman was asleep on a sofa when he touched her leg, thigh and bottom. Later, after she woke up and was waiting for a taxi to take her home, he sexually assaulted her again, by groping her breast under her top.

The following day she told a friend about what had happened, and shortly afterwards reported it to the police.

The attack happened in Chelmsford in the early hours of 10 March 2022 after Tissier and the victim had been on a night out in London with other people.

During the investigation five short videos were found on Tissier’s phone showing him assaulting the victim while he thought she was asleep. He sent them to a friend a few hours after the victim went home.

Jane Foster from the CPS said:

“A big focus for the prosecution was the evidence recovered from Steven Tissier’s mobile phone which showed him sharing evidence of his assault with two friends.

“It included WhatsApp messages and a photo, sent while the victim was asleep before the attack, and video clips of the assault sent to another friend.

“This also revealed a Snapchat conversation he had with the victim some days before the attack when he suggested ‘a threesome’, a suggestion that the victim rejected, which demonstrated that his sexual interest in her was not reciprocated.

“When he thought the victim was asleep Tissier acted on those feelings despite there being no indication that the victim was consenting to sexual activity with him and no reasonable belief on his part that she was.”

Giving evidence at Chelmsford CC, the victim said she had woken up when Tissier first touched her but pretended to be asleep because she was frightened and hoped he would stop.

Tissier will be sentenced on 8 March.