Man fairly dismissed by employer after criminal convictions - Tribunal

Monday 04 January 2021

A 45-year-old who was found guilty of "inappropriately smacking" an underage girl at the beach last summer has failed to convince the Employment and Discrimination Tribunal that he was unfairly dismissed by his employer after they learned of his actions.

Joao Bruno De Abreu Gomes made headlines last year after being given a community service order for committing indecent assault at Bordeaux Harbour.

Gomes had become relatively well known in the island after a string of videos of him dancing in various places in Guernsey, including a Santa outfit. 

Pictured: It was deemed irrelevant that Gomes committed his crimes in his own time.

In July 2019, Gomes was found guilty of approaching a 16-year-old girl at Bordeaux Harbour before he smacked her inappropriately and pulling at her bikini to expose her bum. He was also found guilty of sending a pornographic video to another 16-year-old a few months later. 

His G4S work phone was seized during the investigation and he was fired by the company after a review of Gomes’ behaviour at and outside of the workplace.

Gomes failed to bring his arrest to his employer's attention, which was another aggravating factor. 

Pictured: The tribunal made their decision based on a number of facts.

The tribunal also heard of an alleged assault on a work colleague during Gomes’ employment.

The tribunal unanimously concluded that Gomes was fairly dismissed from his role. His actions could have brought G4S into disrepute and the disciplinary investigation conducted by the firm was fair.

Gomes was sentenced earlier this year to a total of 140 hours for his crimes.

Pictured top: No costs were paid to either party following the tribunal.