Sarah Everard: 1,500 Met staff removed in ‘reset’

Five years after the murder of Sarah Everard, Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley has detailed the force’s ‘integrity reset’, noting that 1,500 Met officers and staff have been removed in three years.

Wayne Couzens, who was a serving Met Police officer at the time of Sarah’s murder, was given a whole life sentence for the kidnap, rape and murder of the 33-year-old.

Sarah went missing in Clapham, south-west London, on Wednesday 3rd March 2021. It was revealed in court that Couzens had abused his powers and falsely ‘arrested’ Sarah, most likely, the court heard, under the pretense of Covid-19 rules at the time. Couzens was later sentenced to additional prison time for three counts of indecent exposure that took place in the months leading up to the murder, incidents that have since become a focal point of criticisms regarding the Met’s historical vetting failures.
Rowley said: ‘‘Sarah Everard should still be here. Five years have passed since her senseless and devastating murder. What happened to her was a profound betrayal: of her, of her family and loved ones, and of every person who places their trust in policing.

‘‘Sarah was murdered by a serving Metropolitan Police officer, Wayne Couzens. That fact is as devastating today as it was in 2021. It was an unthinkable abuse of power and a total violation of the values that the Met, and policing stands for.

‘‘On the day I heard what he had done, I felt devastated for the immense harm his actions caused to the trust that underpins our relationship with the communities we serve. What he did shook policing to its core. It made decent, dedicated officers and staff across the country furious that one of our own could commit such a monstrous crime.

‘‘We will always be deeply sorry: for the unimaginable harm done to Sarah, for the trauma endured by her family – who have shown extraordinary dignity in the face of unbearable grief – and for the profound damage inflicted on the trust Londoners should be able to place in their police service.’’

He added: ‘‘We have undertaken the biggest integrity reset UK policing has ever seen, doubling vetting failure rates and removed 1500 officers and staff in three years. To tackle those who risk corrupting our integrity we have toughened our vetting processes and standards, and we have re‑examined a decade’s worth of allegations of sexual and domestic abuse involving Met officers and staff and forced a change in the law to enable us to remove them.

‘‘This tragic case also brought into sharp focus the need for a national reset in how policing, and society more widely, prioritises tackling violence against women and girls, as starkly illustrated by the Angiolini Review. With the painful reality that far too many remain victim‑survivors and still do not feel safe, this anniversary is more than symbolic. It is a reminder of our duty to the millions of women and girls who move through London every day with a right to feel protected, not fearful; respected, not dismissed; believed, not doubted.

‘‘We know we have not always lived up to that responsibility and must continue to repair the damage inflicted on the trust of women and girls in policing. I don’t just see this as an operational priority – it is also a moral one, and one I am fiercely committed to.’’