This week, an officer in London’s Metropolitan Police appeared in court and pleaded guilty to 49 offenses, including 24 counts of rape over an 18-year period. 

London detectives say that “he lured victims to his home before imprisoning them, depriving them of food, and subjecting them to the most depraved acts of violence and cruelty”. 

This news came less than a year after Wayne Couzens, the former Metropolitan Police officer who used his position to kidnap, rape, and murder Sarah Everard, lost his appeal to overturn his life sentence because of the horrific nature of the crime.

 Like Carrick, Couzens had held an elite role as an officer with the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command, a unit protecting the Palace of Westminster and the government ministers. Carrick and Couzens gained access to one of the most trusted positions in public service due to errors in vetting.

 In the same month when Couzens pleaded guilty to Everard’s murder, an allegation of rape was made against David Carrick that eventually led to his arrest. 

Assistant Commissioner Barbara Gray admitted that Law enforcement overlooked major transgressions that would have stopped Couzens and Carrick. “We should have spotted his pattern of abusive behavior and because we didn’t, we missed opportunities to remove him from the organization.” 

Since both of their arrests, around 1,000 current Metropolitan Police officers and staff who have been accused of sexual offenses or domestic abuse are now under review. However, the responsibility for the horrible crimes Carrick and Counzens committed doesn’t just fall on them. It also falls on everyone who failed to notice warning sign after warning sign that they were evil people.