Seven serving and former Metropolitan Police officers accessed confidential information related to the murder of Sarah Everard, including her X-rays, a disciplinary hearing has heard. The officers are accused of viewing sensitive data out of personal curiosity after learning that a fellow officer, Wayne Couzens, had been arrested for the crime.
The hearing, held in central London, was told that following Couzens' arrest on March 9, 2021, there was a 'flurry of access' to police systems. Paul Ozin KC, representing the Met, said the surge in searches was 'not a coincidence' and that the officers were motivated by personal curiosity rather than any policing purpose.
The officers involved are PCs Myles McHugh and Clare Tett, Detective Constable Tyrone Ward, Detective Sergeant Robert Butters, Sergeant Mark Harper, trainee Detective Constable Hannah Rebbeck, and Inspector Akinwale Ajose-Adeogun. All have denied gross misconduct, though they accept they accessed some information.
Trainee DC Rebbeck told the hearing she viewed the files because she 'felt curious, anxious and invested' in the investigation. She downloaded X-rays between March 10 and 15, 2021. Inspector Ajose-Adeogun, who once met the Prince of Wales, is accused of accessing Couzens' record between March 10 and 12. He resigned earlier this year.
The Met is seeking the dismissal of all seven officers, arguing their conduct was 'inconsistent with the values and standards of 21st century policing'. Some officers also accessed custody information relating to Couzens' wife, who was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender but later released without charge.
