A shocking review has revealed that two serial rapists were among 131 Metropolitan Police officers and staff who committed crimes without proper vetting. The officers, including David Carrick and Cliff Mitchell, were implicated in serious offences due to lapses in vetting procedures over the past decade. Crimes committed by these individuals include drug use, violent attacks, and affray, according to the findings.

The review, covering ten years up to March 2023, highlighted that Carrick was not adequately vetted in 2017, with missed allegations of domestic abuse, while Mitchell was allowed to join in 2020 despite a previous accusation of child rape. These errors were part of a wider failure, where thousands of recruits underwent insufficient vetting amid a national push to add over 20,000 officers, driven by the Police Uplift Program. The failure led to shortcuts in processes as the Met struggled to meet stringent recruitment targets.

Assistant Commissioner Rachel Williams admitted the lapses have undoubtedly rattled public trust in the force's ability to keep London safe. She stated that the revealed vetting failures are part of ongoing efforts to uphold the Met's standards. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood condemned the inadequate vetting as a "dereliction of duty" and called for an inspection to restore public confidence.

Further details reveal that roughly 5,073 officers and staff were not properly vetted, many lacking Special Branch or Ministry of Defence checks. The review estimated that around 1,200 recruits might have faced vetting rejections under typical circumstances. In a four-year period, about 17,355 officers had incomplete reference checks, with around 250 potentially unfit for the force.

The report criticised the focus on rapidly meeting hiring goals, sacrificing essential scrutiny. The revelations starkly point to compromised integrity in recruitment practices, despite recent reforms and dismissals led by Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley. Paula Dodds of the Metropolitan Police Federation slammed the situation as "farcical," indicating that target-driven recruitment overshadowed critical vetting processes.

Assistant Commissioner Williams reassured that they have since implemented new vetting standards to prevent the recurrence of such failings. She underscored the commitment of most recruits to public safety and their exemplary character, reported the BBC.

Key Takeaways

• Two serial rapists were found among Met Police staff due to vetting failures.

• Thousands faced improper vetting amid a national recruitment surge.

• Reforms are underway to restore public trust and enhance recruitment standards.

  

Adapted by ASEAN Now from BBC 2026-01-08

 

 

Its one thing to overlook someone with a parking ticket not paid, but two convicted serial rapists among 131 officers and staff who committed crimes or serious misconduct after failing to undergo proper vetting, is a complete clown show!

Is it any wonder that The Met are such a shower when you have little Sadiq Khan as Police and Crime Commissioner for London?

The UK has totally lost the plot.

3 minutes ago, JonnyF said:

Is it any wonder that The Met are such a shower when you have little Sadiq Khan as Police and Crime Commissioner for London?

The UK has totally lost the plot.

Yeah, Sadiq Khan took office in May 2016 so this happened under his watch. I see this as a political failure rather than the fault of the Met Police, I doubt they had enough resource to vet properly, and those doing the vetting likely got bullied to 'hurry up'. Actually the OP indicated this was a national recruitment surge, maybe this was the failure of national governments of either colour rather than just Sadiq (no chance I'm defending him by the way!). What an omnishambles.

I could also ask why the Police needed a recruitment surge, might there have been funding cuts that led to a recruitment freeze or slow-down? I'd also have thought that a simple computer search would've highlighted the criminals applying to join the police? Seems governments maybe didn't invest is such advanced technology as a simple database... A bit like the current UK prison system, still relying on pieces of paper that all too often don't get shared or get lost "by mistake".

Just another piece of the jigsaw puzzle that shows just how broken the UK is. Caused by previous Labour/Tory/coalition Governments, and not getting fixed by the current Labour Government.

23 hours ago, webfact said:

driven by the Police Uplift Program

definitely did not uplift the police...

23 hours ago, webfact said:

ongoing efforts to uphold the Met's standards

maybe those standards shouldn't be upheld but improved...

I guess this could go some way to explaining the reluctance of The Met police to look into the London rape gangs.

Not only a London issue, and not only a police issue. Sadly the UK is in a mess all over due to many, many years of poor government.

...O...M...G...