Hearing for PCC over 'Putin-style' horse photo query

Leicestershire and Rutland's police and crime commissioner (PCC) is facing a complaint that he asked a police officer to help him organise an election campaign photo with a horse in reference to Vladimir Putin's famous topless photoshoot.

A report leaked to the BBC shows Rupert Matthews was subject to the complaint after he sent the "unsolicited" email to a serving officer.

The message was referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), which said it found no evidence to indicate a criminal offence may have been committed.

Matthews attended a behind-closed-doors police and crime panel meeting at Leicestershire County Council on Wednesday to answer questions about the complaint.

He declined to comment after the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Police and Crime Panel's complaints sub-committee session, but said it was "a disgrace" the report had been leaked.

Panel chairman Les Phillimore said the leak was "extremely disappointing" but said the panel would publish its determination within 10 days.

The report states the complaint was referred to the IOPC on 4 September 2025.

It said Matthews "sent an unsolicited email to a police officer within Leicestershire Police, asking her to organise for him to have a photo taken with a horse for his next election leaflet, referencing a photograph of Russian president Vladimir Putin posing shirtless on horseback".

The IOPC said the complaint related to "allegations of intentionally encouraging or assisting an offence and misconduct in public office".

"The offences were alleged to have happened when a request was made to a serving police officer to participate in promotional election material," a spokesperson said.

"Following a considered assessment of the referral, we returned the matter to the panel to be dealt with it as it deemed appropriate, as we did not find evidence to indicate a criminal offence may have been committed."

Matthews was elected to the role in 2021 and re-elected in 2024 before defecting from the Conservatives to Reform UK in 2025.

A spokesperson for his office in Leicestershire said: "We can confirm that a report was received relating to an email sent by the police and crime commissioner which was, in line with the requirements of the legislation, referred to the IOPC for assessment in September.

"The IOPC confirmed that it did not find evidence to indicate a criminal offence may have been committed and returned the matter to the police and crime panel.

"A very small sub-committee of the panel will now meet to discuss this with Mr Matthews.

"It is a fact that Mr Matthews has met the officer concerned several times for public engagement purposes.

"Mr Matthews has never made any secret of the fact he is extremely frightened of horses and this has been mentioned, with good humour, every time a horse or pony has been involved in the event. He would never seek to work with them out of choice."

Leicestershire Police declined to comment.

A spokesperson for Matthews said he had lodged a formal complaint to the police and crime panel about the leak and requested an investigation.

Plans to scrap PCCs in England and Wales were announced by the government in November last year.

At the time, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood described the system as a "failed experiment".

Additional reporting by Dan Martin

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