David Carrick, a former Metropolitan Police officer who served in the same unit as PC Wayne Couzens, has been revealed as one of Britain's most prolific sex offenders after systematically abusing multiple women over nearly two decades while wearing the uniform.
The 48-year-old ex-PC exploited his position of authority to intimidate, control and sexually assault women in a disturbing pattern of offending that went unchecked despite multiple opportunities for the police to stop him.
A Web of Abuse and Control
Carrick's reign of terror saw him target women both during and outside his duties, using his status as a police officer to gain their trust before subjecting them to horrific sexual violence and psychological torment.
Southwark Crown Court heard how the predatory officer would:
- Lock victims in a small cupboard under his stairs for hours
- Control every aspect of their lives, including what they ate and when they slept
- Subject women to degrading sexual acts and rape
- Use his police-issue equipment to threaten and intimidate
Missed Opportunities and Systemic Failures
Most shockingly, Carrick's offending continued despite nine separate incidents coming to police attention between 2000 and 2021. The Met Police has since admitted multiple failures in handling complaints against him.
Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley described the case as a "spectacular failure" of policing, acknowledging that Carrick should have been rooted out much earlier.
The Final Reckoning
Carrick finally faced justice after a courageous victim came forward in 2021, leading to further victims finding the strength to report their own ordeals. The subsequent investigation uncovered a pattern of behaviour that prosecutors described as "brutal" and "controlling."
His sentencing marks another devastating blow to public confidence in the Metropolitan Police, coming just two years after the murder of Sarah Everard by serving officer Wayne Couzens.
The case has prompted urgent reviews of police vetting procedures and calls for fundamental reform within Britain's largest police force.
