24 May 2023 , 19:33
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Police missed the chance to stop Wayne Couzens after identifying him as a suspected sex offender six years before he murdered Sarah Everard, a report has found.
A police sergeant who had worked in the same station as Couzens, and knew his brother, shut the case without speaking to him, the Independent Office for Police Conduct said. The officer named as PS X was cleared of misconduct by his force last month.
Couzens was reported to Kent Police driving naked from the waist down in 2015. Days later PS X accessed police records for Couzens, which gave details of his past service on the force.
He concluded the witness did not want to support the probe, and said the suspect had not been identified, the IOPC said.
Sarah was kidnapped and killed by Couzens in 2020 (PA)There was no evidence he knew Couzens or read of his work for Kent Police. Couzens later passed Met vetting and was with the force when he killed Sarah, 33, in 2021.
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The IOPC said: “PS X’s alleged failure...could have had implications in relation to Couzens’ vetting to join the [Met].”
A misconduct meeting, where the maximum penalty was a final written warning, last month found the sergeant breached police standard for duties and responsibilities but that it did not amount to misconduct.
It was decided that he would undergo "reflective practice", including training on sexual offences and input on investigative processes.
The news comes after ex-Met PC Samantha Lee, 29, was barred from policing on Tuesday for lying over her botched probe into Couzens on the day he murdered Sarah.
Speaking after the hearing, Ms Lee said she had been made into a "scapegoat" for the Met's shortcomings.
"I am a young female PC and I am the only person who has faced any disciplinary action in relation to this," she said.