PARAMEDIC David Oliver has been struck off for sending sexually explicit online messages to a person he believed to be 15 years old.

A panel of the Health Professionals Council Register’s Conduct and Competence Committee heard the allegation arose from a series of exchanges between Oliver and a boy he believed to be 15. Oliver worked in Swindon for the Great Western Ambulance Service NHS Trust.

The panel heard it was not relevant Oliver was messaging an adult, something he was unaware of.

Panel chairwoman Nicola Bastin said: “The panel concluded the evidence showed Mr Oliver’s actions were sexually motivated. The registrant’s conduct fell short of the standards expected of a health professional.”

The panel decided to strike Oliver from the Register, with an Interim Suspension Order in place to cover the appeal period. A spokesman for GWAS said Oliver was dismissed from the trust for gross misconduct last May.