LONDON (Reuters) Jan,16 – A London police officer has become one of Britain’s most prolific sex offenders after admitting to committing 24 rapes in a campaign that spanned nearly two decades.
London’s Metropolitan Police and prosecutors say David Carrick, 48, used his seat of power to control and intimidate his victims, telling them that no one could disagree with the officers on duty.
The Metropolitan Police have already suffered a loss of public trust following a string of scandals and have apologized for not recognizing the pattern of abuse sooner.
A spokesman for British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called the incident “horrific” and London Mayor Sadiq Khan said Carrick had been charged with 49 charges against 12 victims between 2003 and 2020. After admitting, he said he needed to answer serious questions.
“This is a horrific incident and the Prime Minister’s thoughts are with all victims,” said a spokesman for Sunak. “Police must root out these officers in order to restore public confidence shaken by such a high-profile event.”
Metropolitan Deputy Commissioner Barbara Gray said patterns of abuse should have been discovered sooner.
“By not doing that, I missed the opportunity to remove him from the organization,” she said. “We sincerely apologize that Carrick continued to use his role as a police officer to prolong the suffering of his victims.”
Carrick, who joined the Met in 2001, has socially and economically isolated women, often holding them against their will and controlling what they wear and when they sleep.
London’s Metropolitan Police were embroiled in ‘special measures’ last year after a culture of bullying, racism and misogyny emerged among some officers.
“Serious questions need to be answered about how he abused his position as an officer in this appalling manner,” Mayor Khan said. Carrick will be sentenced on February 6.
London’s Metropolitan Police issued an apology on Monday and praised the victims for their courage to move forward.
Mets Gray said work to identify and eliminate corrupt police forces was “determined”, “focused” and underway.
Mark Lawrie, who was appointed chief of London’s police force last July, vowed to wipe them out and fire all police officers found to be corrupt, racist and breaking the law. An independent London Police investigation in October said “fundamental” reform is needed in how to deal with allegations of misconduct facing hundreds of staff and officers.
This review was commissioned in 2021 after a cop was sentenced to life in prison for the rape and murder of Sarah Everard.
