Seven police officers are facing a gross misconduct investigation over a scandal which saw the phones of regional journalists, among others, being monitored.

Five former Cleveland Police officers, and two who are still serving, are to be investigated after being served notices of gross misconduct along with another member of the force’s staff.

West Midlands Police is carrying out an inquiry on behalf of the Independent Office for Police Conduct regarding the misuse of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA), under which officers can access call records to detect serious crime or terrorism.

A hearing by High Court judges two years ago found the force had acted unlawfully when it monitored the phones of journalists from the Northern Echo to track down the source of several news stories, including one which found that the Chief Constable at the time Jacqui Cheer had admitted there were institutional racism issues at Cleveland Police.

Journalists from the Press Association were also targeted, while two officers and a Police Federation solicitor had their phone records searched by the force in a bid to track down the source.

An IOPC spokesman said: “The use of RIPA was the subject of a 2017 Investigatory Powers Tribunal ruling, which found that Cleveland Police had in some cases used these powers unlawfully.

“We can confirm that earlier this week (13 and 15 May 2019), following detailed assessments, notices of gross misconduct were served to seven Cleveland Police officers (five are now retired) and one member of staff.

“This is not currently a criminal investigation. The serving of a notice is not a finding of guilt but to inform an officer, or member of staff, that they are under investigation and the level of severity.”

A spokesman for Cleveland Police said: “We note the IOPC’s update and continue to recognise the importance to communities, complainants and our staff of reaching a timely conclusion.”

He added: “We have a commitment to learning and improving and we will continue to assist the IOPC as it is important that these investigations are resolved.”