A police officer was captured on camera running up to a Formula 1 car and kicking it ‘like she was taking a penalty’, a hearing was told.

PC Demi Love had been drinking cocktails in a bar at a Hilton ahead of a Spice Girls concert at Wembley Satdium.

The bright orange car, which was driven by double world champion Fernando Alonso for McLaren in 2018, was on display in the hotel reception.

Manager Ross Blezard saw her running up to the car then kicking it with a ‘loud bang’. It later emerged she caused £2,076 worth of damage in the June 2019 incident.

She claimed she had tripped and the damage was accidental but after viewing the incident from four different cameras, a misconduct hearing found the kick was deliberate.

She denied criminal damage at magistrates’ court, but the Crown Prosecution service later dropped the case when she paid for the damage.

However, she still faced a misconduct hearing at Hampshire Constabulary and was found to have shown ‘discreditable conduct’ and lied to Met Police during an interview.

She was told that she would have been fired if she had not already resigned.

Barrister Stephen Morley, prosecuting on behalf of the Professional Standards Department, said: ‘PC Love said in interview she had about four cocktails but denied she was drunk.

‘CCTV footage captures PC Love and her friends coming out of the lift, turning left and stopping momentarily. It looks like a group of young ladies who had had a few drinks.

‘The footage shows PC Love stopping momentarily a few feet away from the vehicle then quickly moving towards it, kicking it, turning around and going back to her friends.’

Mr Morley said Love could first be seen glancing to her left ‘to see who was looking’ before ‘running for three steps at speed before kicking it hard enough to cause a loud bang, like she was taking a penalty. She started laughing and giggling.’

Mr Morley said: ‘PC Love says this was all a complete accident. She says she was moving towards her friends… she says she tripped or slipped and fell on to the vehicle.

‘The footage and Mr Blezard’s account… makes it clear that she didn’t slip or fall, she was walking with purpose towards the vehicle.

‘We say that the footage and PC Love’s account simply do not tally.’

Sergeant Anderson Moray, representing Love, read out a short statement to the panel which said: ‘PC Love has consistently denied that she deliberately damaged the car.

‘She accepts having drinks with her friends, she accepts having contact with the car and she accepts that she caused the damage.

‘She regrets her actions but remained adamant that the damage was accidental.

‘She has taken responsibility for causing the damage and taken steps to put it right.’

Harry Ireland, the legally qualified chair of the police misconduct panel, said: ‘In the first 15 seconds [of the footage] the former officer can be seen to make a deliberate movement with her right foot in to the car body.

‘There was no fall or trip, it was a deliberate action.’

Hilton describes itself as a ‘proud sponsor’ of the McLaren Formula 1 team.

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