How one woman’s act of bravery exposed Met officer’s abuse and police failures

Complaint revealed campaign of terror by David Carrick and repeated police inaction likely to further erode public trust

When the Metropolitan police constable David Carrick was arrested for rape in October 2021 by detectives from the Hertfordshire force, his demeanour during the interview was unusual for a suspect facing a serious criminal accusation.

He was quite charming, as if he was talking to his friends who were police officers; just having a chat. It did not seem like he was concerned," recalls Shilpa Shah, a lawyer from the Crown Prosecution Service, who built the case against him.