A former student police officer who abused his position of trust by pursuing an inappropriate sexual relationship with a vulnerable victim of crime has been handed a suspended prison sentence.
Robert Veza, 45, was serving on a neighbourhood policing team in Sheffield in 2023 when he first contacted the woman to discuss a crime she had reported.
Over the following months, Veza began sending increasingly familiar messages to the victim, who had mental health problems and was considered vulnerable.
In early 2024, he visited her home late in the evening, while her children were upstairs, under the guise of helping her with another crime report.
Before leaving, he kissed the woman and exposed himself to her.
Veza continued contacting and visiting the victim, instigating an inappropriate sexual relationship which continued into the summer of 2024.
His offending came to light when the woman wrote to a senior South Yorkshire Police officer, revealing that a serving officer had visited her home several times and that their relationship had become sexual.
The letter was passed to the force's Professional Standards Department, which immediately launched an investigation.
Veza was identified, arrested and suspended from duty in September 2024.
He was summonsed to court in February 2026 to face a charge of misconduct in a public office.
Although he initially denied the offence, Veza pleaded guilty to one count of misconduct in a public office on September 28, the day his trial was due to begin at Sheffield Crown Court.
On Wednesday (Oct 14), he was sentenced to 16 months in prison, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to pay costs and surcharges.
Veza was still serving his probationary period with South Yorkshire Police when the offending took place and resigned from the force in January 2026.
An internal misconduct investigation has been running alongside the criminal proceedings and will now progress following his conviction, despite his resignation.
DC Gary Godwin, the officer in the case, said: "Veza's offending is inexcusable. There is no place in South Yorkshire Police for people like him - he took advantage of a vulnerable member of our community who should have been able to place her trust in him.
"I'd like to praise the victim for her dignity during this investigation and thank her for supporting us to bring Veza to justice. I know this must have been particularly difficult in the knowledge the perpetrator was a serving police officer at the time and it was brave of her to reach out to another officer to tell us what had happened.
"Colleagues across the force are as shocked by Veza's actions as members of the public will be, and we will always investigate such cases without fear or favour."