Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more!
Former London Cop Sentenced For Rapes And Sexual Assaults Of A Dozen Women
David Carrick was charged with one rape in October of 2021, prompting Metropolitan Police to begin a longer investigation that ultimately uncovered two decades of abuse and sexual assault. He received 36 life sentences after pleading guilty to 49 charges.
A former Metropolitan Police Officer in London will serve at least three decades in prison for rape, sexual assault and false imprisonment of a dozen women.
David Carrick was sentenced to 36 life sentences in London’s Southwark Crown Court on Tuesday, after pleading guilty to 49 charges, including 24 counts of rape and of controlling and coercive behavior, according to Metropolitan police. As a result, he will have to spend at least 30 years behind bars.
He was also fired from the police service last month.
“On behalf of the Metropolitan Police, I want to apologize to the women who have suffered at the hands of David Carrick,” said Assistant Commissioner Barbara Gray in a statement. “I commend their outstanding bravery in coming forward and reporting the horrific crimes they were victims of.”
Carrick often met his victims through dating apps, according to the New York Post, and admitted to raping some of the women multiple times over the years. In one case, he held a gun to a woman’s head before repeatedly raping her and, in another, threatened to use his police baton on a woman, according to Sky News.
Several victims said in court that Carrick would lock them in a closet under the stairs in his home for hours without food. Others said they were forced to clean his home while naked. Carrick physically abused some of the victims, including whipping them with belts and urinating on them. He also sent a victim a photograph of himself with a work-issued gun, saying “Remember I am the boss.”
“I don’t trust the police anymore,” one of his victims said, according to Sky News. “If anything went wrong, I don’t know whether I would want to call the police, as I’d worry they would send a male officer like him. The thought of being alone with a male officer makes me very anxious.”
The 48-year-old showed no emotion as he was sentenced, sitting with his eyes closed and head bowed, according to Sky News.
“Carrick is a prolific, serial sex offender who preyed on women over a period of many years, abusing his position as a police officer, and committing the most horrific, degrading crimes,” Gray said. “He used the fact that he was a police officer to control and coerce his victims. We know they felt unable to come forward sooner because he told them they would not be believed. We are truly sorry Carrick was able to continue to use his role as a police officer to prolong the suffering of his victims.”
Carrick was charged with rape and arrested in October of 2021, and the Met began reviewing his background. The agency now says that for two decades he was a suspect in a long list of abuse and assault cases — both before and during his employment — but none resulted in any kind of arrest or punishment, and he continued to work as an officer. He first joined the force in 2001.
“We should have spotted his pattern of abusive behavior and because we didn’t, we missed opportunities to remove him from the organization,” Gray said.
The Met commissioner apologized for decades of the department missing warning signs.
“He exploited his position as a police officer in the most disgusting way,” Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said in a statement. “He should not have been a police officer. We weren’t rigorous enough in our approach and as a result we missed opportunities to identify the warning signs over decades. I recognize that as a result of this case and other prominent recent cases, there are women whose trust in the police is profoundly shaken. We have let down women across London, but we are more determined than ever to put it right.”
In 2000, the Met reported that Carrick was a suspect in two offenses involving a former partner. One allegation was “malicious communications” and the other was burglary. Metropolitan police said, “Carrick had refused to accept the end of their relationship.” He was never arrested.
Other allegations of harassment and assault against his former partners were investigated in 2002 and 2004, but Carrick was never arrested or charged.
A domestic violence incident involving Carrick was reported in 2009 and investigated by Hertfordshire Constabulary officers. The Met said, “records held by Hertfordshire in relation to this incident suggest Met supervisors were informed at the time, however no record of this has been found on Met systems.” He was also a harassment suspect in an incident in Hampshire in 2016, but never arrested.
Carrick allegedly assaulted a woman and grabbed her by the neck in 2019, but no further action was taken, the Met reported.
“The matter was referred to the Met and Carrick was given words of advice in relation to informing his chain of command about off-duty incidents. Following the decision to take no further action in relation to the criminal allegation, it was determined he had no case to answer in relation to misconduct," the Met said.
In July 2021, Carrick was accused of rape and placed on restricted duties. That victim decided not to proceed with the charges and dropped them in August. But after yet another woman came forward in October 2021, the Met began investigating Carrick again, and the rape of that first 2021 victim is among the charges to which Carrick eventually pleaded guilty in court.
“Were these incidents to have occurred today, we are more confident they would have been identified as forming a pattern of behavior requiring further investigation even in the event the individual allegations have been withdrawn,” the Met said in a statement. “Cases where no further action is taken in relation to criminal allegations are now more likely to be further interrogated to identify any underlying concerns.”
RELATED: California Teen's Boyfriend Allegedly Stabbed Her To Death, Then Ran Over Her Body
Carrick was vetted by the Met when he joined in 2001 and again in 2017.
“On both occasions his vetting was successful, but we know the vetting requirements (the types of checks undertaken) were not as robust for either of these clearances as they are now,” the Met said in a statement. “He should have been re-vetted after 10 years of service. We are confident that someone applying to join the Met today with the same pre-employment history would not receive vetting clearance.”
Carrick is not the first Metropolitan officer to be charged with sexual offenses.
In response to a new report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services, Metropolitan police are bringing in more than 400 additional officers and staff to identify and investigate offenses within the police service. A new “domestic abuse and sexual offending investigation team” is now set up, and any officers and staff who have previously been accused of sexual or domestic abuse are now under an ongoing review. An anti-corruption and abuse hotline has also been launched for the public to report officers and staff.
“Addressing systemic failures will take time, but we will be determined and relentless in rooting out the corrupt,” Rowley said. “Lifting the stone and confronting what we find beneath will result in more difficult cases coming to light.”
The Met will share more on the progress of its new policies and changes in an update on March 31.
After the sentencing, the Attorney General’s office said it had received multiple requests to review Carrick’s sentencing, and if it’s too “lenient” for the crimes committed, but it’s unclear if there will be a review, according to the New York Post.
