A senior detective accused of illegally accessing police computer records to pass information to a friend, telling him ‘I have my uses’, has denied any wrongdoing, a court heard. 

Detective Inspector Emma Gardner, 46, joined North Wales Police in 2000, where she worked across various roles, including in the Protecting Vulnerable People Unit. 

Gardner told jurors at Caernarfon Crown Court on Tuesday that every time she accessed police systems was for a legitimate policing purpose, adding she devoted her life to policing. 

She said: ‘I care about the cases I investigate. I genuinely care and will go the extra mile for people. I have dedicated my life to being a police officer.’ 

The defendant also revealed the emotional toll of her career, telling the jury she had attended child tragedies and had later been diagnosed with complex post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), for which she received counselling.

Giving evidence, she said she first met Simon Acton while he was working as a nightclub bouncer and she was a uniformed officer in Rhyl in Denbighshire, Wales.

The pair became Facebook friends and had sex on two occasions but were never in a relationship, she said, describing their relationship as ‘platonic’. 

She told the court they had not seen each other since December 2019, but that Mr Acton contacted her around two years later seeking advice over what he described as a ‘controlling’ relationship and claiming he had not been treated fairly by police. 

Detective Inspector Emma Gardner, 46, joined North Wales Police in 2000, where she worked across various roles, including in the Protecting Vulnerable People Unit

Gardner denies unauthorised access to computer material during 2022.

She told the jury her relationship with Mr Acton had ‘escalated’ through messages and that he became a source of emotional support.

‘It was purely messages we sent each other. He was a source of support,’ she said. 

But prosecutor Andrew Scott alleged the senior detective had accessed police logs relating to ‘a relatively minor complaint’ involving ‘tittle-tattle’ between former partners that was already being dealt with by uniformed officers. 

He alleged she then passed information to a suspect. 

Gardner denied any wrongdoing, insisting: ‘I believe the information I passed to Mr Acton hasn’t prejudiced or interfered with the investigation.’ 

The jury heard she had messaged Mr Acton saying: ‘I have my uses.’

But the detective insisted the remark had been a ‘self-deprecating’ response to a compliment rather than a reference to accessing police records. 

Gardner told jurors at Caernarfon Crown Court on Tuesday that every time she accessed police systems was for a legitimate policing purpose, adding she devoted her life to policing

She said she had always felt ‘uncomfortable’ receiving compliments. 

Mr Scott also suggested Mr Acton had at one stage been arrested and challenged the detective over claims she deleted messages between them. 

Gardner denied deleting the messages and also rejected allegations that she concealed the nature of their friendship from the force’s anti-corruption unit. 

The prosecution further alleges she accessed police logs relating to Mr Acton and three women. 

But Gardner insisted she had not viewed any records out of personal curiosity. 

She told the jury: ‘I believe every access was for a policing purpose.’

Asked by Mr Scott whether it was appropriate for a police officer of any rank to become involved in an investigation concerning a close friend, Gardner replied: ‘Yes.’ 

She added: ‘I believe I have remained impartial. If Simon Acton had admitted any offences to me I would have arrested him or arranged for his arrest.’

The trial continues.