Lewisham anti-gangs mentor cleared of charges after wrongful raid at his home

A top anti-gangs mentor whose home was raided by Met officers – while he was working for the force – has been cleared of two charges after an 18-month legal battle, before his trial even began.

Gwenton Sloley, from Lewisham, had been charged at Woolwich Crown Court with perverting the course of justice by making a false allegation of burglary at his home.

He was also accused of acquiring, using or possessing criminal property – £1,985 in cash. Both charges were dismissed before a jury heard any evidence.

The charges followed two raids on his flat in three months – Mr Sloley believes looking for a man who had left the property five years before.

Mr Sloley had been away at the time – and initially reported it as a burglary – before police admitted they had carried out a search warrant.

Mr Sloley was arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the supply of class A drugs in January after the second raid, telling him he would be in danger if he returned to the flat.

He was re-bailed repeatedly before the two charges were eventually filed in July.

After the raids, the Met also called managers of work contracts Mr Sloley had with six public bodies – the NHS and five police forces in the South-east, including Lewisham.

Both allegations against Mr Sloley were dismissed five days into the hearing, before the trial, due to last three weeks, had even begun.

But Mr Sloley, who the Home Office has estimated has saved the Met millions of pounds with his work tackling violent crime among youths, is determined not to get in the way of his bid to build bridges between young people and the police.

“I am not going to slag anyone off – because that sets us back 50 years,” he said.

“I am still trying to put a balanced view. They made a mistake but instead of compensating me, they went on pursuing this case.

“There are some amazing police officers across the country who put their lives on the line.

“I don’t want that to get lost. The great work needs to continue to save and preserve life.

“I just want a retraction and apology to enable me to continue this crucial work.

“I would have no problem working with the police in future. At the end of the day this is bigger than me – it is about saving the lives of young people before they get involved in gangs and giving them a future.

“This is a sad episode, but I have a responsibility not to fall into the blaming trap.”

An investigation into the incident has been launched by the Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards.

“This has had a massive impact on my entire family,” said Mr Sloley.

Mr Sloley created Crying Sons, a campaign group trying to stop young people getting sucked into gangs. It trains police, NHS workers, faith groups and councils on how to spot and deter youngsters getting into crime. He also helped set up the London Gang Exit programme.

Mr Sloley’s lawyers, Imran Khan and Partners has not ruled out more legal action against the force.

A Met spokesman said: “A complaint in relation to damage of reputation and character was received on Tuesday, October 30, 2018. A subsequent complaint was received in July 2019.

“Matters remain under investigation by the Directorate of Professional Standards. As with any investigation complainants are kept up to date on progress.”