A police officer is being investigated for allegedly using AI to 'create evidential material' – the first known case of its kind in UK criminal justice.

Derbyshire Police said the officer had been removed from frontline duties while it worked with the Crown Prosecution Service in an inquiry into allegations of perverting the course of justice.

The CPS said it was 'engaging with' defence lawyers and the courts over affected cases.

The force declined to say whether the alleged use of artificial intelligence had led to the collapse of any criminal cases.

It did not name the officer, give his or her role or reveal the exact nature of suspected misconduct.

A force spokeswoman said: 'A criminal investigation has been launched into an allegation of perverting the course of justice after the alleged use of AI by an officer to create evidential material in a number of cases.

'We are working closely with the Crown Prosecution Service in relation to any potentially impacted cases. The investigation is in its early stages, so no further details are available.

'The officer has been removed from frontline duties, pending the outcome of the investigation. No arrests have been made.'

The force declined to give more detail about the evidential material referred to in the allegations. The term can be used to describe witness statements. 

The CPS said: 'We are working with Derbyshire Police as it conducts inquiries into the alleged use of artificial intelligence by an officer. We are engaging with defence teams and the courts in appropriate cases.'

This comes in the week that a national centre for AI in policing, called PoliceAI, was launched.

At the launch on Wednesday, PoliceAI interim director Alex Murray said: 'Crime and technology are evolving rapidly. Policing must keep pace by adopting AI responsibly to catch criminals and keep people safe.'

He also revealed he had told some police forces to stop using AI systems to prepare court statements and other tasks because they might not be reliable enough.

While the Derbyshire case is the first known allegation of AI misuse by police in a criminal case in Britain, AI mishandling earlier this year contributed to West Midlands Chief Constable Craig Guildford's decision to retire early. 

He announced this in January after Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said she had lost confidence in him over his force's handling of a decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans from attending a Europa League clash against Aston Villa, in Birmingham.

The force's evidence supporting the ban included incorrect references to trouble at a previous Maccabi match against West Ham. This game did not take place but was 'imagined' by Microsoft's Copilot AI program.