Hundreds of police officers are being investigated in the wake of Sarah Everard’s murder – with nine staff facing criminal probes.
A total of 461 officers and police staff who slipped through the net are being criminally investigated, revetted or facing disciplinary proceedings after being identified in a mass screening of police employees across the country.
Nine – including five police officers and four members of police staff – are facing criminal charges, including over alleged sexual offences, theft, drugs offences and fraud.
Meanwhile, some 88 are facing disciplinary investigations and have been referred to the police watchdog or a professional standards body. One officer is being probed over allegations about their sexual conduct, while one police staff member is being investigated over discriminatory conduct.
A further 139 have been re-submitted for vetting in light of information found in the background checks.
The screening comes after Ms Everard, 33, was kidnapped and murdered by serving Met officer Wayne Couzens, part of the elite parliamentary and diplomatic protection unit, in 2021 – the first in a string of shocking crimes linked to rogue police.
A subsequent review of the Met by Baroness Louise Casey found the force was institutionally racist, misogynistic and homophobic.
Campaigner Anna Birley, of Reclaim These Streets, said it is “shocking” that these officers are only being identified almost three years after Ms Everard was kidnapped and murdered by serving Metropolitan Police Officer Wayne Couzens.
“That means there have been hundreds of officers at the end of the phone at people’s most terrifying moments who can’t be trusted,” she told The Independent.
“The number of officers shows it isn’t just a few bad apples. Staff who commit a crime or behave in a discriminatory or predatory way is only the tip of the iceberg – the bit we don’t see and the bit these numbers don’t tell us is how many of their colleagues knew there was a problem.
“And that is a cultural problem that can’t be fixed by screening a database. It requires institutional reform.”
The 461 officers were flagged in the nationwide checks of 307,452 officers, the largest ever integrity screening exercise undertaken by police, led by the National Police Chiefs’ Council.
Forces’ said “management intervention” was needed for 128 officers and staff flagged in the screening – which could mean the use of existing professional standards practices such as requiring officers to submit business interests for further consideration. A total of 97 required no further action.
Other cases deemed less serious were reviewed internally by forces but they were not required to provide the numbers to the NPCC.
Last year PC David Carrick, 48, was unmasked as one of Britain’s worst sex offenders and jailed for 32 years for raping and abusing multiple women over a 17-years while working as a police firearms officer.
Former officer Adam Provan was also jailed for 16 years for multiple rapes while serving at the Met.
There was widespread condemnation of the police response to a vigil for Ms Everard organised by Reclaim These Streets in the weeks after her death. However campaign group founder Ms Birley does not feel there has been significant progress on police misogyny.
Calling for urgent reform, she said: “I don’t think that the situation for women is any better than it was three years ago, five years ago or 10 years ago. There are still institutional issues with misogyny with the police.”
NPCC chair Chief Constable Gavin Stephens said: “The cross-checking of records on such a large scale was a significant task which shows our commitment right across policing to identify those who do not meet the high standards expected.
“Police forces responded with urgency, enabling us to carry out the largest integrity screening project that policing has ever seen. Despite the comparatively low numbers of returns the exercise was important in ensuring we have a strong foundation on which to build an automated process.
“We look forward to working with our colleagues across Government and policing to make this a reality.
“I hope that it gives further reassurance to communities, and to colleagues in policing, that the overwhelming majority of the workforce can be trusted, and that if you are involved in wrongdoing, there is no place to hide.”
The review also unearthed 400 cases where officers, staff or volunteers had been a victim of or witness to a crime, that were not previously known about by their employer.
Chief Constable Serena Kennedy, NPCC lead for the data wash, said: “While the historical data wash has resulted in some cases which require criminal or disciplinary investigation, this low number, together with the fact these people have now been identified and appropriate action taken, should provide reassurance that we are committed to the highest standards of integrity and will continue to deal robustly with those who fall below these standards.
“In addition to the cases referred to an appropriate authority, we know significant action has been taken by local forces to address all information identified in the historical data wash through stringent processes and procedures.
“We also identified a number of people who required welfare support from their force and it is positive that we can now give them the care they require. These could be individuals who have been a victim or witness to a crime but have not received specialist support which they need and rightly deserve.”
The Met, the country’s largest police force, said no criminal investigations were triggered as a result of the screening – although 58 disciplinary investigations into misconduct or gross misconduct were launched.
Commander James Harman said: “The Met was one of the first forces to carry out a data wash of our entire 50,000 employee workforce, finding a comparatively small amount of information needing further investigation, and nothing of a criminal nature.
“The task of checking every employee against the national database was a critical one and aligns to our significant steps to root out those who have no place in the Met.”
Plans are under way to set up regular PND screening for all police service employees.
Donna Jones, chair of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, said individuals identified by the screening exercise will be dealt with “swiftly”.
She added: “Where individuals of concern have been identified, PCCs will hold their force Chiefs to account locally to ensure that they are dealt with appropriately and swiftly.
“PCCs also support Chief Constables’ call for a permanent and ongoing system for the monitoring of police and staff and will work with policing partners and government to identify and implement the most effective solution as quickly as possible.”