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When lawkeepers turn lawbreakers: The dark underbelly of UK police

Multiple probe reports say hundreds of police officers were found guilty of crimes, including sexual offences and violence.

Reuters Archive

London’s Metropolitan Police has been rocked by scandals in recent years.

Hundreds of police personnel in London are expected to be fired following investigations into sexual and domestic abuse offences, the head of the Metropolitan Police has said, after one officer admitted to rape and sexual assault of two dozen women over a 17-year period.

London’s Metropolitan Police, rocked by scandals in recent years, was plunged into further crisis after David Carrick, 48, was suspended following he was arrest in October 2021. He has admitted to carrying out 24 counts of rape over almost two decades while serving as a police officer.

London Police Commissioner Mark Rowley, brought in four months ago to lead the clean-up of the police force, said on January 17 that investigations were underway into about 800 officers over 1,000 sexual and domestic abuse claims.

“I’ve got tens of thousands of fantastic men and women, but I’ve (also) got hundreds who shouldn’t be here. I’m going to sort it out,” Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mark Rowley told the BBC.

Reputation of UK's biggest police force is once again under spotlight after officer admits to being serial rapist pic.twitter.com/5gpaB0jqii
— TRT World Now (@TRTWorldNow) January 16, 2023

Many other scandals

Carrick is not the only case in London police as many other scandals have shed light on what the UK police watchdog called a culture of misogyny and racism in the force.

In September 2021, Metropolitan Police officer Wayne Couzens was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the abduction, rape, and murder of Sarah Everard, a case that horrified the nation and sparked debate about violence against women.

Former Police Commissioner Cressida Dick resigned in February last year amid criticism of her leadership following a series of scandals that dented public confidence in Britain’s largest police force.

Her resignation followed the publication of a damning report by the Independent Office for Police Conduct which revealed widespread racism and misogyny force.

The dark side

The Guardian, citing the Home Office, reports that more than 90 police officers and staff were found guilty of crimes after complaints or conduct investigations last year, including for sexual offenses, corruption, and violence.

Data released by the Home Office show the outcomes of criminal proceedings against police officers and staff in the year 2021 to April 2022. It revealed 68 police officers were found guilty, as well as 25 police staff.

Another report by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said there were 75,020 complaint cases made by the public against police officers in the financial year 2021-22, and at least 7,216 of them against metropolitan police, which means 155 complaints per 1000 employees.

According to an IOPC statement, abuse of position for sexual purposes is a form of serious corruption which is now the most common form of corruption the IOPC deals with, accounting for approximately 25 percent of corruption referrals and almost 60 percent of corruption investigations in 2020.