A victim of serial rapist police officer David Carrick says her life was ruined because his colleagues missed opportunities to catch him – as the police watchdog launches multiple investigations into Met officers.
It is alleged that eight officers and one staff member did not properly investigate allegations of rape, harassment and stalking against Carrick, nicknamed “Bastard Dave” by his colleagues.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is investigating four “potentially missed opportunities” ranging from 2002 to 2021.
“I’m absolutely disgusted, shocked and so angry,” one of his victims told Sky News.
“If his friends did their job properly then I wouldn’t have been a victim. He wouldn’t have destroyed my life like he did.”
They added: “Every one of them should lose their job and face the consequences of what they’ve done. It could have been prevented and it makes me sick.
“I still look at police officers and sometimes I see his face. It’s like he’s haunting me. But then I have to tell myself that he’s in jail and can’t get to me.
“The police just protect each other. Maybe they think all women are whores and that it’s fine for us to be treated like this. How can they have ignored all these allegations? Sometimes I think maybe they are abusers themselves.”
Former PC Carrick, who was a firearms officer in the Metropolitan Police’s Parliamentary and Diplomatic Command, was found to be one of Britain’s most prolific sex offenders after he pleaded guilty to dozens of rapes and sexual offences against 12 women over 18 years.
The 48-year-old, who used his status as a police officer to coerce his victims into silence, was handed 36 life sentences in February 2023.
Mel Palmer, IOPC regional director, said: “These were potentially missed opportunities to pursue gross misconduct investigations against Carrick, which may have led to his dismissal years before he was eventually arrested.
“We will now be investigating the conduct of the officers involved in these cases, and at the end of our investigations we will determine whether they should face disciplinary proceedings.”
Read more:
Two of Carrick’s police colleagues ‘sent victim sexually suggestive messages’
Police officer raped by Carrick says colleagues would have ‘laughed’ if she reported it
In one case, a former partner made an allegation of harassment against Carrick in 2002, during which time he was a probationary constable.
In three other cases in 2016, 2019 and 2021, separate police forces investigated Carrick over allegations of stalking, harassment and rape, but decided to take no further action.
The officers being investigated range in rank from PC to chief inspector. The Met said five of them were still serving, while two had retired and one was working for another force.
Meanwhile, the police watchdog has launched four investigations over concerns Met Police officers failed to take proper action when serious criminal allegations were made against Carrick, in an “unusual step”.
