Man accused of raping Gaia Pope was already under police investigation, say family

Relatives of Dorset teenager call for Gaia Principle' so officers must check if rape suspects are facing other allegations

The man accused of raping the Dorset teenager Gaia Pope the year before she disappeared in 2017 was under investigation before she went to police and should have been more closely monitored, the teenager's family said on Wednesday.

Following a long-running inquest into the teenager's death, which found that multiple agencies including the police and health trusts missed chances to help her when it concluded in July, her family vowed to keep fighting for structural change in the services they say failed their loved one.