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LONDON (AP) — A London police officer on Monday admitted raping and sexually assaulting a dozen girls over a 17-year interval, in what prosecutors described as one of the crucial surprising instances involving a serving police officer.
David Carrick, 48, pleaded responsible to 49 offenses, together with 24 counts of rape and expenses that included assault, tried rape and false imprisonment. The officer, who joined London’s Metropolitan Police drive in 2001, had served with the parliamentary and diplomatic safety command.
The police division apologized to victims after it emerged that 9 allegations of rape and different crimes have been made towards Carrick between 2000 and 2021. He was solely suspended from the drive after his arrest for a rape grievance in 2021.
Assistant Commissioner Barbara Grey mentioned the case was “devastating” and apologized for not eradicating Carrick from the drive earlier.
“He has had a devastating affect on the belief and confidence of girls and women that we're working so laborious to earn. He has devastated colleagues,” Grey mentioned in a press release.
“He used the very fact he was a police officer to manage and coerce his victims,” she added. “We should always have noticed his sample of abusive conduct, and since we didn’t, we missed alternatives to take away him from the group.”
Police mentioned Carrick met among the girls by means of on-line courting websites or on social events, utilizing his place as a police officer to achieve their belief. The victims didn't really feel in a position to come ahead sooner as a result of Carrick advised them they'd not be believed, Grey mentioned.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan mentioned he was “completely sickened and appalled” by the revelations.
“Londoners will likely be rightly shocked that this man was in a position to work for the Met for therefore lengthy, and severe questions should be answered about how he was in a position to abuse his place as an officer on this horrendous method,” Khan mentioned.
Khan has put heavy strain on the Metropolitan Police, the U.Okay.’s largest police drive, to reform its tradition and requirements after a string of controversies and allegations of misogyny and racism inside police ranks.
Authorities mentioned belief in police has been undermined since a serving officer, Wayne Couzens, was convicted of kidnapping, raping and murdering a stranger, Sarah Everard, whereas she was strolling residence at night time in London in 2021.
Lawmaker Yvette Cooper, from the opposition Labour Social gathering, mentioned Carrick’s case was “additional proof of appalling failures within the police vetting and misconduct processes, nonetheless not addressed by authorities.”
A decide is anticipated to condemn Carrick in February.