A police officer doesn’t accept mapping data which he says puts him miles from his actual location, after he was accused of failing to tell a family of their son’s death.

The officer says he was outside the McGann family’s home when he was asked to tell them of their son Martin’s death, but the data places him elsewhere.

It is claimed PC Philip Aiston lied and said he visited their home, but got no answer.

Read more: Cop 'failed to tell family of their son's death then lied saying he'd tried to'

The 39-year-old officer said he did not accept data which placed him nowhere near the McGanns home on July 20, 2021 when he says he attempted to deliver the tragic news.

He says he drove to the family’s address in Whitley Bay, North Tyneside arriving at about 1.30am, but according to telematics data on the cop car he used that night he did not visit the area.

PC Aiston told a misconduct panel on Tuesday (September 12): “When it was first brought to my attention that the appropriate authority were using vehicle GPS and telematics to show my location during the specific night and that neither system showed where I was, I was in a state of disbelief.”

His legal representative Mr Ponte summarised: “You simply don’t accept that either the telematics or GPS is accurate as you went on the morning of the 20th of July.”

Probing further, Mr Ponte asked: “Do you accept that they are accurate?”, to which Aiston replied “No”.

Data shows the cop car parked up in North Shields at 1.30am, while his colleague PC Patton left Aiston in the car as he dealt with an incident.

But Aiston says he took the car to deliver the death notification notice.

“With me being alone in the car, away from Nick and not required to do anything at the scene it seemed I was surplus to requirements. I took the opportunity to deliver the death message myself” he said.

“I went in the police vehicle. I parked just slightly past the driveway.

“I got out and knocked on the door – I didn’t ring the doorbell. There were no lights on in the property at all, I got back in the car and went back to [North Shields].”

He did not mention his journey to PC Patton on his return.

Christine McGann yesterday said she heard no knock on the door or ring on the doorbell of her home that night.

A week later on July 27 when questions started to be asked telematics captured Aiston driving past the McGanns.

“I felt it important to make sure there was an opportunity to see CCTV, then it would be irrefutable that I was in the street – you would see for yourself,” the former joiner-turned-copper said.

But Aiston says data from that journey is also wrong and that he was called away to an incident before he could driving up their street. He says he simply used the entrance junction to make a U-turn but telematics shows him passing the McGanns' address.

“There was a particularly unusual and severe grade one [incident] that came in which request. I was always going to go through and do my absolute best to get there fast.

“The junction is quite a wide opening and I have done quite a fast 180.”

Earlier in the day the hearing heard from telematics expert Brenda Shanahan, from firm Radius Telematics, who said its data was accurate to within two meters.

“The most it could be out is 3.5 meters,” she said.

The hearing heard PC Aiston clocked off leaving an email for the next shift asking someone to call the McGanns, saying “cops attended and didn’t get an answer”.

Read next:

Get more from The Northern Echo with a Premium Plus digital subscription from as little as only £1.50 a week. Click here.

PC Philip Aiston is accused of gross misconduct and failing to notify the McGanns of their son’s death and falsely claiming he tried to tell them when he had not.

He is also accused of visiting their address with no legitimate reason.

The misconduct hearing at Houghton-le-Spring police station continues with an outcome expected by the end of the week.