Fury over rapist cop David Carrick's £22k-a-year pension as calls grow for it to be forfeited
18 January 2023, 09:10 | Updated: 18 January 2023, 10:38
The Home Secretary and the mayor of London have both called for the serial rapist police officer David Carrick to be stripped of his pension.
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Carrick, 48, pleaded guilty to 49 charges, including 24 of rape, nine of sexual assault and three of false imprisonment on Monday. He was fired from the police on Tuesday.
But he is likely to continue to receive £22,000 per year under Home Office rules once he comes out of prison, the Met said.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has vowed to seek the forfeiture of the state-funded pension because his crimes were committed in connection with his job, with Home Secretary Suella Braverman reportedly backing the call.
A spokesman for the Mayor of London said: "The Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (Mopac) will pursue pension forfeiture in this case as it is clear that Pc Carrick committed offences in connection with his service as a member of a police force."
It is unclear whether Mr Khan has the powers to strip Carrick of all of his pension or whether the disgraced officer could still keep at least 35% that he contributed himself.
Home Office guidance says that pension forfeiture can only be applied for when an officer has a conviction "committed in connection with their service as a member of a police force" and the offence has been certified by the Home Secretary as "liable to lead to a serious loss of confidence in the public service" or "gravely injurious to the interests of the state".
Such applications are usually made after a police officer has committed a crime while on duty.
Scotland Yard is expected to submit a report to Mopac setting out Carrick's conviction and service with the force following his sentencing next month before an application is made to Ms Braverman.
However, court decisions have in the past determined an officer's pension can only be forfeited by up to 65% - the contributions that have been made by the police force, and not their own contributions.
Meanwhile Carrick is likely to have been paid at least around £60,000 while in police custody, following his arrest for rape in October 2021.
Due to the process around police misconduct hearings, he has continued to receive a full salary, despite being held in custody for more than a year. His pay was only stopped when he entered his first guilty pleas in December 2022.
On Monday the Met admitted failings in missing multiple opportunities to suspend Carrick, saying he was involved in nine separate police investigations before being detained in 2021.
The Met apologised to victims after it came out that Carrick's attacks had come to their attention over nine incidents including allegations of rape, domestic violence, and harassment between 2000 and 2021.
Read more: Met police paid rapist cop David Carrick at least £60k while he was in custody
Carrick, who was an armed PC in the parliamentary and diplomatic protection unit of the Met, used his position to lure women and then bully them into keeping quiet about his attacks over a 17-year period, police and prosecutors said.
In the wake of Carrick's guilty plea, Met commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said the force would be 'ruthless' in review of 1,000 sexual and domestic abuse claims involving its officers, after cop admits multiple rapes.
The Metropolitan Police said 1,633 cases of alleged sexual offences or domestic violence involving 1,071 officers and other staff are being reviewed to ensure the appropriate decisions were made.
