Criminal police

How was it possible for David Carrick, a firearms officer with the Metropolitan Police, to commit a string of rapes and other sex offences without his colleagues and senior management being aware of his behaviour?

Clearly, he was a criminal who sought to cover up what he was doing but the Met was not entirely ignorant of his activities, even if it did not know their seriousness. Carrick was flagged on police systems in relation to a number of off-duty incidents both before and after his employment as a police officer. None of these incidents resulted in his suspension let alone any criminal sanction until his arrest in October 2021.

Carrick was vetted on joining the Met in 2001 and again in 2017. On both occasions his vetting was successful, though the force says the types of checks undertaken then were not as robust as they are now. But he should have been re-vetted after 10 years of service. Who was responsible for the failure to do so and will they be held accountable?

Sir Mark Rowley, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, has been in the post just six months and is determined to clear out predators like Carrick, who follows Wayne Couzens, the killer of Sarah Everard. He, too, had been allowed to carry on working despite serious concerns about his sexual behaviour.

After Ms Everard’s murder, the Met set out to end the culture of misogyny and cover-ups. Suella Braverman, the Home Secretary, has now set up yet another review into the force’s dismissal processes. But there have been enough reviews, reports and inquiries into these matters. What the public – and women, in particular – want to see is some action.