Police officers keep their jobs over failure of David Carrick investigation

Two police officers who failed to adequately investigate an allegation of abuse by serial rapist David Carrick five years before the ex-cop was first arrested have been given final written warnings for misconduct.

David Tippetts, who was a police sergeant at the time and is now an inspector, and PC Emma Fisher faced a disciplinary hearing following an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

The investigation began in July last year following a tip-off from Wiltshire Police.

The force reviewed its systems after Carrick’s conviction and found a report from 2016 that appeared not to have been properly investigated.

A woman called Wiltshire police in January 2016 to report that Carrick had abused another woman.

She wanted Carrick, an on-duty Metropolitan Police officer, to be investigated.

Pc Fisher was assigned to investigate the matter and after speaking in person to the woman who made the report, Pc Fisher asked that the case be closed and her supervisor, Sgt Tippetts, agreed.

The IOPC said Pc Fisher updated the force’s IT system, saying the woman said the issue had been investigated some time earlier.

In fact it had not been investigated and no record of a previous investigation could be found on Wiltshire’s systems.

No officer checked police systems or took further action to investigate the matter. The woman who was identified as the victim of the abuse was never contacted about the allegation.

If officers had looked up David Carrick’s name on Wiltshire Police’s crime registration system, they would have found that he was being investigated – in an unrelated case – for offenses against another woman which had been reported to Wiltshire three days earlier early.

Despite being told that Carrick was a serving police officer, the officers did not notify the Met’s Professional Standards Directorate of the serious allegation made against him, nor did they seek advice from their own Professional Standards Department with look at the next steps.

IOPC investigators sought the opinion of a senior detective from Wiltshire Police – who had no knowledge of the case – and said there would have been an expectation that these actions would have been completed.

They said CID would have been informed of the allegation so detectives could revisit the woman who made the allegation and also contact the alleged victim to see if they wanted to assist with an investigation.

In February 2023, Carrick was sentenced to a minimum term of 30 years in prison for 49 violent and sexual offences, including 24 counts of rape.

IOPC regional director Mel Palmer said: “There is no one to blame for David Carrick’s horrific spate of offending but himself.

“However, our investigation found that Wiltshire Police officers missed an opportunity to investigate him following the reporting of an allegation of serious abuse made years before he was eventually arrested.

“Pc Fisher took minimal investigative steps. She made no attempt to contact the victim of the reported crime, report to the Met a serious allegation against one of its officers or look up David Carrick’s name in Wiltshire Police’s systems.

“This would have shown that Carrick was already under investigation following another report of a serious offense three days earlier.

“Pc Fisher asked for the investigation to be closed after minimal work or effort and her supervisor, Sgt Tippetts, agreed and – contrary to force policy – did not raise any concerns with colleagues in the CID who specialize in investigating serious allegations.”

Both officers faced a gross misconduct hearing for possible breach of police standards of professional conduct.

The company determined that both officers violated standards of conduct related to duties and responsibilities and discreditable conduct and that their actions constituted misconduct.

They imposed final written warnings on both officers, which will last for two years.

Wiltshire Constable Craig Dibdin said: “This is a clear case of officers failing, in the most basic sense, to properly investigate the allegations brought against them.

“This failure in service was compounded by a lack of proper supervision and control by a supervisor.

“While it would be inappropriate to comment on the ongoing IOPC investigation, clearly the public will have questions about the impact this inaction may have had on Carrick’s heinous crime after 2016.

“Our communities must have the confidence and trust in us to listen to them, to investigate any allegations made against us without fear or favour, and to keep them fully informed of the actions we take.

“I would like to apologize unreservedly to the person whose report I did not initially investigate as I should have.

“We will ensure that, from an organizational perspective, we share all learnings arising from this case to improve the service we provide.”