Shamed fire chief in '£500k pay-out'

A former West Midlands fire chief who quit after being arrested on suspicion of making indecent images of children has been given a £500,000 pay-out, union leaders have claimed.

Frank Sheehan is to receive a lump sum of at least £500,000 as well as £6,000 a month for the rest of his life after being allowed to retire in the wake of a police investigation. Unions today branded the payout "immoral".

The ex-chief fire officer at West Midlands Fire Service left his £150,000-a-year post in November. The 55-year-old received a police caution after officers raided his £400,000 home in Sutton Coldfield and arrested him on suspicion of making indecent images of children.

He was not charged by the Crown Prosecution Service following inquiries, on the grounds it was "not in the public interest" to pursue a prosecution, but he was placed on the sex offenders register for two years.

The married father-of-one was allowed to retire from West Midlands Fire Service immediately and claim his pension in full after quitting a day after the police raid.

Some of the package will have been contributed by Mr Sheehan over his 34-year career, but at least 90 per cent of the £500,000 comes from the taxpayer.

The service today said it would not comment on the pension pay-out for "any member of staff", despite the organisation being funded by the public purse.

Spokesman Mike Fox said: "These matters were dealt with in accordance with appropriate procedures and the national regulations regarding firefighter pensions after the organisation sought legal advice."

Chris Downes, regional secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, said: "Every branch meeting we attend, the first question we ask is, how can he be allowed to take his pension? This was a man who was supposed to promote the core values of the fire service – it's hypocrisy of the highest level."

When the figures were put to Mr Sheehan, he said: "I'm not making any comment."