PC guarding Sarah Everard murder scene ‘sent inappropriate WhatsApp messages to colleagues’

A police officer guarding the Sarah Everard murder scene allegedly sent colleagues  inappropriate WhatsApp messages about her killing. 

The probationary Met constable, who had been deployed as a cordon officer supporting the search operation in Kent, is said to have shared a meme showing images of a uniformed officer abducting a woman. 

Horrified fellow officers reported the rookie officer’s actions because they were concerned by its content. The Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards was made aware on Friday.

The latest incident adds to the pressure faced by Met Commissioner Cressida Dick as she battles calls to resign over her force’s ‘heavy handed’ crackdown on a vigil for Ms Everard on Clapham Common on Saturday and the investigation into murder suspect Wayne Couzens. 

Couzens, a serving Metropolitan Police officer was charged with Ms Everard’s murder and kidnap after she disappeared as she walked home to Brixton from a friend’s house in Clapham, south London, on March 3.

The incident has now been referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct and the officer has been removed from frontline duties. 

He is believed to have been placed in a non-public facing role while enquiries continue. 

In a statement, the Met Police confirmed the graphic did not contain photographic images, images of Sarah, or any other material obtained from or related to the investigation into Sarah’s murder.

Sarah’s family have been made aware of the incident.

Assistant Commissioner Nick Ephgrave, said: ‘The Metropolitan Police Service expects its officers to behave professionally at all times and this includes how they use social media. 

‘I take allegations that any officer or officers have failed to observe these standards very seriously and have referred this matter to the IOPC.’

Ex-Met detective chief inspector Mick Neville told The Sun: ‘Being a frontline officer, dealing with crime and misery, often requires a gallows sense of humour to let off steam.

‘But any decent officer knows the limits. Joking about a horrific murder and kidnap, whilst the family is grieving, is completely unacceptable.

‘The last thing the Met needs is anything else to undermine the public’s trust in the force. This will do just that.’

It is the sixth referral of the Met to the IOPC regarding events surrounding the disappearance and murder of Ms Everard. 

The shocking development in the aftermath of Ms Everard’s murder comes as: 

• Hundreds of protestors gathered for a third night in Parliament Square to protest violence against women as the Met continues to receive backlash for its crackdown on Saturday’s vigil;
• Boris Johnson and Policing Minister Kit Malthouse have said they still have confidence in Cressida Dick to continue as Met commissioner;
• Home Secretary Priti Patel defended her new crime bill as critics said it would further restrict ability to peacefully protest;
• Police Federation chairman Ken Marsh defended officers’ actions at Saturday’s vigil, saying many of them were attacked by ‘infiltrators’; 
• A woman has claimed police ignored her when she tried to report a man indecent exposing himself to her as her walked home from Saturday’s vigil;
• Investigators in Sandwich, Kent found a piece of gold jewellery in a car park 35 miles from where Ms Everard’s body was discovered.

The news of the WhatsApp message came after Police Federation chairman Ken Marsh had spoken out to defend the actions of officers at the Clapham Common vigil on Saturday.

Mr Marsh said he and his members ‘absolutely welcomed’ the proposed review of tactics, saying: ‘We have no fears whatsoever.’

He claimed mourners paying respects at the vigil had been infiltrated by protesters from groups including Antifa, Black lives Matter and Extinction Rebellion.

‘Twenty-six of my colleagues were abused, spat at or punched,’ he said. ‘One black female officer was racially abused. This is unfortunately what happens with things like this; they get hijacked.’ 

The suspension of the officer for the Whatsapp message comes seven months after other Metropolitan Police officers were probed for misconduct when two constables were suspended for allegedly taking a selfie with the bodies of two sisters who had been murdered.

Nicole Smallman, 26, and her half-sister Bibaa Henry, 47, were found dead in Fryent Country Park in Wembley, north west London, in June – two days after they were reported missing.

Scotland Yard revealed two serving Metropolitan Police Constables were arrested on June 22 on suspicion of misconduct in a public office.

Wayne Couzens, a serving Metropolitan Police officer has been charged with Ms Everard’s murder and kidnap after she disappeared as she walked home to Brixton from a friend’s house in Clapham, south London, on March 3.

The 48-year-old, from Deal, appeared in court to confirm his name and address during a short hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court.  

The court heard Miss Everard’s body was found inside a builder’s bag in Kent and identified through the use of dental records.

Appearing in court wearing a grey tracksuit and bearing a red mark on his head, Couzens stood as the charges were put to him before being remanded in custody before his case is sent to the Old Bailey on March 16.

The Met Police revealed that Couzens joined the force two years ago in September 2018 when he worked for a response team covering the Bromley area.

He then moved to the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command in February last year.

The Met’s investigation has spread across Kent, with search areas set up in Dover and Sandwich following the discovery of Ms Everard’s body in woodland near Ashford.

After it was confirmed the body was that of Ms Everard, a vigil was organised for Clapham Common, south London, to remember the 33-year-old marketing executive. 

Groups of people attended throughout the day on Saturday, including the Duchess of Cambridge.

Later that night a crowd of around 1,500 people had gathered for a vigil, but scuffles broke out as police surrounded a bandstand demanding people disperse. Four attendees were arrested.

Officers have been blasted for using heavy-handed tactics which critics dubbed ‘quasi military’.

Horrifying footage taken on the night shows a row of mask-wearing police officers yelling ‘move back’ as they shove protesters away.

Other clips showed demonstrators being hauled off by officers as chilling screams ring out through the crowd.

Movement Reclaim These Streets had organised the vigil before being forced to cancel following consultation with the Metropolitan Police, which said it would be in breach in coronavirus restrictions.

Today protestors headed to Parliament Square for a third night of demonstrations over violence against women and the Met’s handling of the vigil. The crowd started with around 200 people attending, but numbers quickly grew to around 800.

People holding hundreds of placards moved to stage a sit down on Westminster Bridge, with police officers present limiting their interaction.

Facing the House of Commons today, Home Secretary Priti Patel told MPs that the scenes of officers manhandling women from the scene on Clapham Common in South London had been ‘upsetting’, and the murder had ‘rightly ignited anger’ about male violence.

But she also defended the police’s efforts during the pandemic and highlighted the death toll from coronavirus as she urged the public to stay off the streets in large groups. 

Her comments came after Boris Johnson said he has full confidence in Met chief Cressida Dick as she faces a huge backlash for defending the police operation on Saturday night.

Called to Westminster to answer an Urgent Question about the Ms Patel told MPs: ‘Over the past year during the coronavirus pandemic, the police have been faced with an unenviable and immediately difficult task. It is one for the most part that they have approached with skill and professionalism, helping to enforce regulations as determined by Parliament with one crucial objective in mind, to save lives.

‘This House approved those changes by 524 votes to 16 on January 6 this year. Sadly, as of Sunday March 14, more than 125,500 lives have been lost to this horrible virus.

‘It is for that reason that I continue to urge everyone for as long as these regulations are in place not to participate in large gatherings or attend protests.

‘The right to protest is the cornerstone of our democracy, but the Government’s duty remains to prevent more lives being lost during this pandemic.’

Striking a more personal tone, she also said women and girls must feel safe whilst walking on the street.  

 ‘Accounts shared online in the wake of Sarah’s disappearance are so powerful because every single one of us can relate to them,’ she said.

‘Too many of us have walked home from school or work alone only to hear footsteps uncomfortably close behind us. Too many of us have pretended to be on the phone to a friend to scare someone off.