LIVERPOOL, UK — Choni Kenny, 27, a police officer with Greater Manchester Police (GMP), has been jailed for three years and nine months for leaking sensitive police information to two criminal associates with whom she had personal relationships.
At a sentencing hearing at Liverpool Crown Court, Judge Neil Flewitt KC condemned Kenny for betraying both her police force and the community she served. He described her actions as driven not by malice or financial gain, but by “naivety, immaturity,” and a desire to maintain her friendships with Josh Whelan and Rahim Mottley.
The court heard that Kenny had a casual sexual relationship with Whelan, 31, a convicted drug dealer who operated his drug business from inside prison using 20 mobile phones, many of which were paid for by Kenny. She also had a “physical but casual” relationship with Mottley, 28, a former schoolmate.
Kenny accessed GMP systems to share confidential information with both men, including details of investigations, victim statements, and planned police operations. She even promised to find out the identities of informants ahead of a firearms raid.
In November 2022, Kenny was seen dining with Whelan at Nando’s shortly after his release from prison. That same day, she searched the police database for information about newly released inmates. She later supported Whelan in supervising his criminal operations, fully aware of his background.
Whelan, of Purley Avenue in Wythenshawe, was sentenced to two years and eight months for possessing banned items in prison, as well as racist assault, knife possession, and other offenses.
Mottley, arrested in Spain and extradited to the UK, received two years and four months after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit misconduct in a public office.
Kenny, of Tennyson Road, Cheadle, had earlier pleaded guilty to four counts of misconduct in public office and one count of conspiracy to commit misconduct.
Judge Flewitt concluded, “You must have known what you were doing was wrong. You were exploited—but ultimately responsible.”
