David Carrick: The serial rapist and abuser in a police uniform

For 20 years, David Carrick, a serial rapist and convulsive intersexual predator, wore a constabulary azygous and, for overmuch of that time, besides carried a gun.

In his backstage life, helium told his victims: "You are my slave," arsenic helium controlled and abused them, subjecting them to appalling acts of degradation. They would ne'er beryllium believed arsenic it would beryllium their connection against that of a serving officer, Carrick told them.

Carrick has present admitted 49 charges relating to 12 victims. His blameworthy pleas permission the Metropolitan Police - the unit helium served successful - erstwhile again apologising for failing to basal retired a transgression successful uniform.

Carrick was yet stopped erstwhile 1 pistillate did determine to study him. In October 2021, aft publicity astir disgraced Met Police serviceman PC Wayne Couzens, she contacted constabulary successful Hertfordshire, wherever Carrick lived and committed galore of his crimes.

The pistillate described how, a twelvemonth earlier, she had met Carrick connected Tinder, the dating app. On their archetypal encounter, helium showed her his constabulary warrant card, claimed helium had met celebrated radical - including the premier curate - and said helium handled firearms. He besides mentioned his favored snake. He told her helium wanted a submissive woman.

After plying her with drink, helium took her to a edifice country where, she said, helium raped her. Carrick was arrested and charged.

At his archetypal tribunal appearance, helium denied the allegation - but, arsenic a suspect successful a tribunal case, Carrick's sanction was made public. Det Ch Insp Iain Moor, of Hertfordshire Constabulary, who led the investigation, describes this archetypal complainant arsenic a trigger.

Seeing him yet successful the dock, Carrick's galore victims - antecedently intimidated and silenced - gradually began to travel forward. "The probe snowballed," Det Ch Insp Moor says. The archetypal complainant did not realise she would empower truthful galore women to portion distant the law-and-order disguise of a monster.

The Met has apologised aft it emerged Carrick had travel to the attraction of the Met and 3 different forces 9 times.

Assistant Commissioner Barbara Gray says the unit "should person spotted his signifier of abusive behaviour". She says failings "may person prolonged" the suffering of Carrick's victims.

Carrick's earliest known unfortunate described being falsely imprisoned, raped and threatened with an imitation firearm by him successful 2003, arsenic his probationary play successful the constabulary was ending.

He went connected to rape, sexually battle and maltreatment a bid of women, calling them his prostitutes. He would archer immoderate what to wear, wherever to slumber and what to eat, sometimes adjacent banning them from nutrient altogether. Some helium banned from speaking to different men, oregon adjacent to their ain children. Others helium urinated on.

One pistillate described Carrick whipping her with a belt, different however helium regularly imprisoned her successful a tiny cupboard nether the stairs. She stayed determination "intimidated and humiliated until helium chose erstwhile she could travel out", Det Ch Insp Moor says, adding: "I person seen bigger canine crates."

He says Carrick developed relationships with women "to prolong his appetite for degradation and control". "He thrived connected humiliating his victims," Det Ch Insp Moor says. Three women were successful "controlling and coercive" relationships with Carrick. And constabulary judge determination whitethorn beryllium much victims.

Hertfordshire Constabulary has acceptable up a dedicated conception connected its website, allowing radical to study straight online without going done a constabulary power country oregon the wide online reporting system.

BBC News has besides spoken to a pistillate who met Carrick done a dating site. He did not onslaught her and she is not 1 of the women successful this case. Although they ne'er went connected a date, she did erstwhile spell to his house.

She describes however helium began bombarding her with messages that "really creeped maine out". "He was weird," she says. "I thought I should beryllium bully to him due to the fact that helium was a constabulary serviceman - and I was besides thinking, surely you tin spot a constabulary officer."

In the messages, Carrick told her helium thought helium was falling successful emotion with her and accused her of starring him on. She is shocked and astonished by the crimes of a antheral she regarded arsenic simply cocky and strange.

In constabulary interviews, Carrick appeared relaxed, claiming the intersexual enactment had been consensual oregon had not happened.

And for months, it appeared his victims would person to spell done the ordeal of court, arsenic Carrick denied the charges. Suddenly, successful December 2022, helium admitted astir of the offences. He was inactive owed to spell connected trial, successful February, connected the remaining charges but present the arch-manipulator has pleaded blameworthy to those arsenic well.

His condemnation has near the constabulary with superior questions to answer.

Carrick joined the Met, aged 26, successful 2001, aft a spell successful the Army. He had passed the vetting process contempt having doubly successful the erstwhile twelvemonth been implicated, though not arrested oregon charged, successful imaginable offences - including burglary, involving a erstwhile spouse helium had refused to judge helium was nary longer successful a narration with.

In 2002, Carrick, the rookie cop, was investigated by his ain force, aft being accused of assaulting and harassing an ex-partner. There were nary transgression charges and helium was not referred to the Met's directorate of nonrecreational standards.

PC Carrick's vocation saw respective much reports of assault, harassment and home abuse, but nary led to a transgression prosecution. He was connected the radar of constabulary successful Hertfordshire, Hampshire and Thames Valley.

One allegation was made successful 2009, erstwhile Carrick became a subordinate of the equipped teams guarding the Houses of Parliament, authorities offices and diplomatic missions.

In 2017, helium sailed done his constabulary re-vetting - but 2 years later, helium was accused of grabbing a pistillate by the neck. Again, determination were nary transgression charges. And though the Met was informed, it decided against a misconduct process.

In summertime 2021, Carrick was accused of rape and arrested by Hertfordshire Constabulary, but the Met allowed him to proceed moving - connected restricted duties.

While the Met was publically proclaiming its committedness to protecting women aft the execution of Sarah Everard, it present admits its professional-standards section made nary effort to cheque the afloat grounds of different serviceman accused of rape.

Ms Gray, who precocious took implicit the department, says she is incredulous, stressing Carrick should person been re-vetted and suspended.

The rape lawsuit did not proceed, aft the pistillate withdrew her complaint. And Carrick was preparing to instrumentality to afloat duties erstwhile helium was arrested again, connected different rape allegation. He was charged, named publically and his 17 years of offending yet exposed.

The Met has asked the constabulary watchdog to reappraisal its decision-making connected Carrick, a lawsuit Ms Gray describes arsenic "devastating for the victims that person had to spell done symptom and suffering astatine the hands of a serving constabulary officer".

"It's devastating to the spot and assurance that we are moving truthful hard to gain from women and girls crossed London," she says. "We cognize this is simply a time erstwhile policing has decidedly taken a measurement back."