The British Army’s first female Master Tailor has been cleared of allegations that she lavished gifts on a junior colleague and repeatedly pinched his backside.
Warrant Officer Emma Colton, 39, is a trained frontline soldier who also serves as a specialist military tailor, with responsibility for maintaining the Army’s uniform standards.
Prosecutors alleged that WO Colton followed a male sergeant around the Falkland Islands base and touched his bottom while he was working out in the gym, later laughing about the incident.
She was also accused of flirting with the younger serviceman and giving him Lindt chocolates, strawberries and a scented candle—gifts he described as inappropriate and “a bit weird”.
WO Colton denied two charges of disgraceful conduct of an indecent nature at Bulford Military Court in Wiltshire. Following a brief trial, she was acquitted today.
She made Army history as the first woman to become a Master Tailor in the Royal Horse Artillery, where she was responsible for dress standards within the prestigious ceremonial regiment.
The court heard that WO Colton later transferred to the 47 Regiment of the Royal Artillery and was posted to RAF Mount Pleasant in the Falkland Islands.
Her unnamed subordinate served with the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers and arrived at the regiment with WO Colton, who was his sergeant major and, as he put it, “his boss”.
During a police interview, he said they had initially formed a friendly relationship, explaining: “I met her last year and we were quite friendly. She was pretty friendly at the start.
“We might have even flirted, but it was just the way mates do, you know.”
He said WO Colton occasionally touched him, but that he did not initially attach any significance to it. He also claimed she began following him around the base.
“She grabbed my a*** a few times and pinched my a***,” he said. He added that junior personnel began assuming they were romantically involved, although he insisted they were not.
The sergeant said WO Colton gave him chocolates and a scented candle. While he accepted there was nothing inherently wrong with buying someone presents, he considered the candle unsuitable.
“I remember saying to another sergeant it was a bit weird,” he told police.
Warrant Officer Emma Colton, 39, was the British Army’s first female Master Tailor—a fully trained frontline soldier who also works as a senior bespoke tailoring specialist
In November 2024, another serviceman claimed he saw WO Colton pinch the sergeant’s bottom as the pair walked outside.
Later that month, the sergeant alleged that WO Colton went further during an incident at the gym. He said: “I was on the cable machine and she walked past and basically stuck her finger in my bum.
“I thought, ‘Who the f*** was that?’ I turned around and she was smiling as she walked away.”
He said he confronted her, telling her not to touch him. According to his account, she replied that he should have moved faster.
He told police that WO Colton attempted to treat the encounter as a joke, but that they largely stopped speaking afterwards and their relationship deteriorated.
‘After I basically told her off for touching me we had arguments a lot more in the mess and if I argued with anyone else she was very ready to back them up. The whole relationship changed.
‘I felt like it was massively inappropriate but I didn’t feel raped. Potentially violated a little bit but not raped.
‘I don’t want to ruin her career. She’s a nice person but she doesn’t know where the line is.’
He added: ‘I did have to pull my boxers out afterwards. There was quite a bit of force behind it.’
WO Colton was interviewed under caution about what had happened in June last year.
She said: ‘I got on with him at first, he was quite forward-leaning, but once he was promoted became quite abrasive.
‘I had a conversation to say he needed to change his attitude. He was very disgruntled.’
She added: ‘I absolutely don’t find him attractive. I’m in a ten-year relationship with my partner, we’ve got our own house and have plans to undergo IVF. The only physical contact we’ve made is when he’s spotted me at the gym.’
She claimed she had bought him the Lindt chocolate and strawberries for his birthday, saying that the sergeant had thanked her because everyone had forgotten his birthday.
‘I’m shocked because I’ve always got on with him personally and professionally. I feel like it’s been done viciously,’ she said.
It was not until months after, in February last year, that the sergeant mentioned it to his commanding officer from the UK who was visiting the Falklands base and decided to report it.
