A firefighter who took sick images of a man killed in a car crash and shared them on WhatsApp has been jailed.
Cameron Hancel poked fun at the victim, calling him a ‘fat corpse‘ as he sent the sickening snaps to friends.
The dad-of-two ‘made light’ of the fatal two-car smash after he was dispatched to the scene with West Midlands Fire Service, taking the twisted images of the body lying in the street after being pulled from the car ruins and given CPR.
The 34-year-old – who is now working in construction – then shamelessly shared the distasteful images on WhatsApp, asking friends ‘wanna see?’. He even told his mates how it was ‘hard work dragging’ the victim from the wreckage before agreeing that the man was a ‘fat b******’.
However, Hancel claimed he only took the ‘disrespectful’ pictures as a coping mechanism due to the highly pressured job.
Wolverhampton Crown Court heard how there was a fatal crash in Himley at around 6.50am on March 13 last year. Electrician Kevin Doughty, 38, was driving to work on the first day of his new job when he was killed in the smash.
Prosecutor Robert Price said Hancel, from Rowley Regis, in the West Midlands, was dispatched to the collision, adding: “While at the scene, the defendant took photographs of Mr Doughty’s body on his personal mobile phone. He proceeded to share three of these images with personal contact on WhatsApp.”
One photograph taken by Hancel displayed the victim lying on his back in the road, with his shirt cut off and his stomach exposed. Another revealed ‘much-loved’ Mr Doughty’s body covered but one limb was hanging out. The third captured the victim’s body from a different angle, while blood on an airbag could be seen, reported BirminghamLive.
The court heard Hancel first sent a photograph with the word “job” at 7.38am to his partner, who replied ‘sarcastically’ with “lovely”. Just one minute later, he sent a message to a female friend and said: “Had a dead guy in a car crash this morning. Wanna see? x.” He then sent the same woman a message which read: “I thought I should at least ask permission before sending you a picture of a fat corpse.” A smiling emoji followed the message.
Hancel then sent the sick pic to a friend with the message “he’s dead”. When asked if the victim had been ‘thrown from the car’, Hancel replied: “No. We dragged him out and did CPR. Yeah he is dead lol.” The defendant also told friends that they would be able to see blood if they ‘zoomed in’. When one person replied with the message “fat b****** x”, Hancel said: “He f****** was! Hard work dragging him out x.”
He then said: “Anyway, that’s what I did for breakfast, how’s your day going”. One friend replied to Hancel with the message: “Seems like a dangerous place to take a nap.” Hancel said: “That’s what I told him but he wasn’t very talkative.” He then said he ‘did not even get to have his morning coffee‘.
When the former firefighter told a friend that Mr Doughty had a cardiac arrest while driving, his friend replied: “Fat f*****”. The court heard how Hancel’s partner warned against the dangers of taking and sharing photographs, telling him: “Some poor family gonna get that news today. It’s a horrible thought.”
The dad said “no one knows I’m sharing them” before saying “I do whatever the f*** I want to do”. Seconds later, he followed his message with “no one tells me s***”. A friend also told Hancel “make sure you don’t share, mate”, with the defendant replying “I’m definitely not sharing them”. The offence came to light ‘by chance’ after West Midlands Police found images on the mobile phone of Hancel’s friend after he had died.
Throughout his interview with officers, Hancel admitted taking the photographs but claimed he left his mobile in the fire engine when he went to the scene. He blamed colleagues for sharing the pictures, saying they may have done it as a ‘prank’. He also said a passer-by could have been responsible for sharing the images.
The defendant claimed he would not have taken a picture of a dead person ‘deliberately’ and only took photographs to help him write up reports following incidents. Despite his pleas of innocence, Hancel later admitted misconduct in a public office. The court heard how he joined West Midlands Fire Service in May 2020 before he was posted to Brierley Hill Fire Station.
An area manager for the fire service said: “I can confirm there is no reason for a firefighter to be taking photographs of an incident with their own personal mobile phone and in particular, an image of a deceased person.” They went on to say that a firefighter might have to take photographs of a scene if requested by a senior officer or specialist team but they should be deleted after.
Mr Price said Hancel’s ‘misconduct caused serious harm’ and denied Mr Doughty’s loved ones the ‘dignity they deserved’. Mr Price added that his actions also breached the fire service’s code of conduct and corporate communications policy Jane Osborne, defending, said Hancel had dealt with a number of ‘traumatic incidents’ during his time with the fire service and took photographs as an ‘ill-advised way of coping with the difficult collision.
She said: “This was a man who was making light of a situation. I don’t seek to suggest, in any way, appropriately. But with initially his partner, and then friends he was close to [he shared the photographs] in order to relieve this pressure. This was at a time when he was in fact actively seeking other employment, feeling that he could not longer cope with the pressure the fire service was putting him under.” His actions were ‘out of character’ and he had no previous convictions, Ms Osborne added.
The dad now has a job in construction in Somerset, where he works weekdays. Ms Osborne said the defendant is remorseful, adding: “He has accepted that the actions that he undertook had significant consequences.” Sentencing, Judge Michael Chambers KC branded Hancel’s ‘derogatory’ WhatsApp messages as ‘unattractive’. He slammed the convict for his ‘humiliating’ remarks and said the ‘most aggravating’ feature of the case was his ‘mocking commentary’.
The judge said: “Members of the public expect to be able to place their trust in members of the emergency services, whether that is police officers or in this case, a fire officer such as yourself. They trust members of the emergency services to rescue and protect them from danger and at times when they are at their greatest vulnerability, they are entitled to be treated with integrity and respect.
“As a fire officer, you committed a gross breach of trust by attending the scene of a fatal road traffic accident and photographing the deceased in situ, taking these photographs on your personal mobile phone. Then, disseminating these to others and then, in the course of doing so, you deliberately mocked and spoke of the deceased in offensive terms for the clear amusement of yourself. Your conduct was appalling and inexplicable.”
The judge added: “The public is entitled to be treated with respect and integrity. The offence has stripped Mr Doughty of dignity in death. You had attended the road traffic accident in order to rescue and protect him.” Hancel was jailed for 20 months.
West Midlands Fire Service dismissed Hancel in August 2023. In a statement, a spokesman for the fire service previously said: “There is no place in our service for people who undertake such actions. His conduct compounded the grief of the victim’s family and loved ones, and they remain in our thoughts.”
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