GUERNSEY’S police have been criticised for their investigation of a ‘mystery woman’ case.

‘This trial, which was complex, was made much more difficult by a mediocre police investigation,’ said Judge Russell Finch in sentencing in the Royal Court.

Pippa Harbour (pictured) was originally charged with four counts.

But Judge Finch dismissed the more serious charges of dishonestly obtaining employment by deceiving her employers at the end of the prosecution case.

He ruled there was clear evidence that her employment had been gained as a result of her previous industry experience and that the possession of academic qualifications had not influenced those decisions.

Of the case against Ms Harbour,  he said ‘there was little direction. This made [prosecuting counsel] Advocate Dunford’s case hard.

‘We [the court] would hope for a considerable improvement in the future.’

He added that the same lack of direction was equally onerous to the defence counsel, who should have expected to have all of the prosecution evidence before him at the outset of the trial given that it had taken 16 months for the case to be brought before the court.

Harbour, who was found guilty of uttering false documents after a 10-day trial in June, was sentenced to 240 hours’ community service as a direct alternative to a year in prison.

She got work at several local financial institutions by pretending she had a degree and an MBA from the London Business School.

Judge Finch was also critical of Harbour, who had maintained throughout the trial that she did gain the qualifications, but under a different name.

But she refused to give these details to the court.

Advocate Dunford told the court that they now knew her real name and date of birth.

Mr Finch said: ‘People who tell lies or live lies, like you, are to the detriment of the island and its reputation. You need to sort yourself out and come to terms with the truth.’

Advocate Peter Ferbrache, for Harbour, told the court that she had lost her job because of the conviction and would find it hard to get another in the island’s finance sector.

‘She is someone of previous good character,’ he said. ‘The two charges were the consolation prize for the prosecution.  This was a case without any victim or financial loss to anybody.’

A probation report said she had a low likelihood of reoffending.

He asked the court not to impose a prison sentence as her income was the only means of funding her son, who was at university.

Harbour declined to comment after the sentence. Guernsey police have yet to comment on the criticisms.