Merrick welcomed the public apology and said she had “mixed” emotions.

She said that while the apology was “very validating,” it was “very late”.

“I won the tribunal in 2023, so it beggars belief that it has taken almost three and a half years for the chief constable to finally issue this apology and recognition.”

Speaking on BBC Radio Ulster’s Evening Extra programme, Merrick said it was a very difficult time for her and her family.

“I was absolutely horrified and humiliated that he (Supt Ian Campbell) had done his very best to try to smear me and ruin my professional reputation,” she said.

“It never leaves you, the fact that this has gone on for so long and has been hanging over my head.”

In a statement she said: “The Tribunal’s judgment used stark language. The treatment I suffered at the hands of Superintendent Ian Campbell was described as ‘malicious,’ ‘scurrilous,’ and going ‘to the heart of my integrity and professionalism.’

“These are not minor failings. They represent serious corruption and a fundamental breach of the values the PSNI should embody.”

She also said she was subjected to “relentless patterns of “unwarranted, misogynistic behaviour” from a senior male officer.