It is also believed she waswearing green earphones and a white beanie hat. So in my view, something has to be done to rebuild that trust and confidence. 11.59pm: Met police officer Wayne Couzens arrested in Kent on suspicion of kidnap. To be accepted into the elite Westminster armed unit, officers must face rigorous tests and firearms training. However, these are only speculations till now and authorities have not confirmed anything. Police said they had received more than 120 calls from the public and visited 750 homes as part of their investigation into Miss Everard's disappearance. By Tania Ganguli. He was just normal, kept the place tidy and paid his rent on time.'. This has been a case of real legal and tactical difficulty, and the cooperation of the legal profession has been second to none. The hairbands were either for use in order to maintain an erection or as a means of restraint. It was not a frenzied attack in which a person loses self-control. eventAction: 'render' The final image of her, captured by a bus camera, also showed a white Vauxhall Astra with its hazard lights on and both front doors open. He said he could not envisage her getting into a car with someone she did not know 'unless by force or manipulation', said the prosecutor. He went on to visit a Tesco store in west London to buy a pack of 14 hairbands just an hour before Miss Everard was abducted on March 3, before making further trips to a B&Q two days after Miss Everard is believed to have been killed. Reading a statement at the Old Bailey, Susan Everard said: 'Sarah died in horrendous circumstances. Police watchdog the Independent Office for Police Conduct is investigating whether the allegations were properly dealt with. He lied to his family about working a night shift on 3 March and although he was in London that night, he avoided visiting the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command base in Lillie Road. she was raped and strangled to death. I have provisionally made an appointment with my GP to seek advice. 11:33, 11 Mar 2021 It is not possible for us to imagine what they are going through. Along with the other statements which Mr Little summarised in court, they starkly and movingly revealed the true human consequences of this warped, selfish and brutal offending, which was both sexual and homicidal. The defendant put considerable effort into trying to avoid detection, both before and after these offences. 'All of us in the CPS have been deeply affected by what happened to Sarah. 'But unfortunately the majority of people who in the police service are men, so it's put down to banter and it's put down to 'oh, you can't take a joke'. Police also revealed they are quizzing him on suspicion of indecent exposure against a second woman, unrelated to the missing 33-year-old. Their conversation lasted about 15 minutes, ending shortly before 9.30pm. At that point I had no option to try and find somebody. There were so many things I wanted to share with her - trips abroad, being each other's bridesmaid, meeting her babies and being an. A woman, 39, was arrested at the same address in Kent on suspicion of assisting an offender. Prof Wilson added: 'The detail that were released were all about behaviour and they were practiced and controlled. Couzens, 48, from Deal, also in Kent, will stand trial for her kidnap and murder at the end of October. The evidence against the defendant, painstakingly compiled by the police, was essentially unanswerable. They threatened to take my family away from me, so, at that point, I'm doing what I can to protect my family that's it. The devout Christian said she reported the alleged incident to police. When you put your hands around her neck and strangled her. Her husband was sentenced to a whole life order for kidnapping, raping and murdering Sarah Everard and will never be freed. Her personal circumstances and the circumstances of her untimely death, coupled inevitably with the impact of what occurred on her family and those who were close to her, are a critical consideration. ', He is then asked if he had had any 'personal interactions with her', but says: 'Why would I have personal interactions with her? Your casual demeanour on CCTV was very upsetting and shocking to see. On International Womens Day on March 8th this year, Josh reported Sarah missing via his Facebook profile and wrote at the time: Sarah is still missing. Is climate change killing Australian wine? March 10: Specialist police search team arrives in Kent. When he strangled her, for how long was she conscious, knowing she would die? The missing woman's stunned uncle Nicholas told MailOnline: 'It's shocking and very upsetting. 'So you have to be careful about which battles you fight, and I think that's why this monster got away with some of the comments and some of the actions that he did at this workplace, which is why they called him 'the rapist' at work. The reforms would also allow judges to hand out the maximum sentence to 18 to 20-year-olds in exceptional cases, such as for acts of terrorism leading to mass loss of life. We want to thank the media for all their help. The business closed in 2015. He joined the Metropolitan Police in September 2018 and since February 2020 he had worked for the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command, as an authorised Firearms Officer. Can't see her again to say goodbye. The defendant's preparations included taking some of his police kit with him and lying to his family about working on the night of the murder, the Old Bailey heard. Distressing details of the timeline suggest Miss Everard could have been alive for more than four hours in the back of Couzens' car. I spoke to my brother straight away and he was as shocked as me. The facts of this case, in all their painful detail, are essentially undisputed and they have been rehearsed most carefully and with great clarity by Mr Little Q.C., leading counsel for the Crown. } , updated This appears to have inspired his sickening plot. Huckle had been serving 22 life sentences for molesting up to 200 children. Depraved Couzens used his Metropolitan Police-issue warrant card and handcuffs to snatch Miss Everard as she walked home from a friend's house in Clapham, south London, on the evening of March 3. Sarah wanted to get married and have children, now all that has gone. I crave the familiarity and security of home; the wider world has lost its appeal. As to the third question, the significance of the account given by the defendant to Dr Latham, I accept this is not a verbatim account of what the defendant said, and it is only a summary for the purposes of the psychiatrist's consideration of the defendant's mental state. Mrs Everard devastatingly referred to how the wider world has now lost its appeal for her and, I would add, no doubt for many others who cared for your victim, and Sarah Everard's sister referred to the inescapable reality of the many lives you have ruined. She was always there to listen, to advise, or simply to share with the minutiae of the day. I would stress, therefore, that I have adopted the approach that a judge should only pass a whole life term in a case such as the present if he or she is confronted with a new category of exceptionally serious case that plainly calls to be treated in this way and the decision is, therefore, not a borderline one. I can never talk to her, never hold her again, and never more be a part of her life., Our lives will never be the same, she said. Couzens, who lied to his family about working a night shift that evening, then drove Miss Everard 80 miles to a remote stretch of road in his home county of Kent. 'The area they're searching has been empty for a couple of years. A source last night claimed detectives believe Couzens may have spotted Miss Everard on the street in Clapham and abducted her, using his Metropolitan Police warrant card to persuade her to walk towards his vehicle. I thought I was in a good place after returning from injury however, this is not the case and I feel more of a liability due to the current situation I find myself in. The defendant using his warrant card and handcuffs as well as his other police issue equipment to affect a false arrest.'. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), and Subsequently, he worked at WTG Events and Industry Dynamics, before joining MA Exhibitions. I can never forgive you for what you have done, for taking Sarah away from us. But experts say the confidence in which he carried out the abduction shows he had done it before. It used to be a golf complex and a leisure facility with paintballing. window.googletag.pubads().addEventListener('slotRenderEnded', function(event) { Couzens - who had prepared for the abduction by buying a rental car and a sheet of film from Amazon - hid her body inside a fridge in a patch of rubbish-strewn woodland before torching it. 'This evening detectives and search teams investigating Sarah's disappearance have very sadly discovered what we believe at this stage to be human remains.'. To discharge my function faithfully, it is vital, therefore, that I focus solely on the factors that are properly relevant to determining the correct sentence, and nothing else. She would have been able to describe the locations to where she had been driven, having seen the town and street signs en route. The court heard Ms Everard was described by a former long-term boyfriend as 'extremely intelligent, savvy and streetwise' and 'not a gullible person'. Giving evidence at the inquest opening, acting DI Lee Tullett gave a brief outline of Everards disappearance, noting that she had left a friends house in Clapham, south London, at 9pm on 3 March. Lowth has been working here since July 2017. I want to start by saying that my thoughts and prayers are with Sarah Everard's family and her friends at this very difficult and painful time. 'I speak on behalf of all my colleagues in the Met when I say we are utterly appalled at this dreadful news. The defendant using his warrant card and handcuffs as well as his other police issue equipment to effect a false arrest.'. The Old Bailey heard that Couzens and his wife had bought a plot of woodland by Ashford, Kent. Dan Sales CCTV footage showed Couzens raising his left arm holding a warrant card before handcuffing Miss Everard and putting her into the hire car. You find out no soot was found in her lungs which suggests she was burnt after you murdered her. Josh Lowth was born in Brixton, London, United Kingdom. if(document.querySelector("#google_image_div")){ 'Two of the dogs entered the water and indicated interest in the bag. As critics questioned how the Met failed to spot a killer in their midst, Scotland Yard insisted they couldn't have known. Couzens was arrested after a breakthrough from CCTV on a passing London bus. March 6: Met Police release an appeal, saying Sarah was thought to have walked through Clapham Common, heading towards Brixton home, a journey of 50 minutes. MailOnline has contacted the Met for comment. However, she was unable to confirm whether the remains found in woodland in Ashford, Kent, were those of the missing woman, adding identification may take 'considerable time.'. My only hope is that she was in a state of shock and that she wasn't aware of the disgusting things being done to her by a monster. Josh Lowth's girlfriend was Sarah Everard. She was a wonderful daughter. 'The whole family is obviously very worried about her and just wants her home safely. We laughed, we cried. And around 8- 10 seconds for them to lose consciousness. I think we cannot abide by the narrative that this was a one-off, that he was a bad'un, and I think every force now in the country must look to re-establish trust and legitimacy. Couzens is currently being held in Belmarsh Prison in south-east London but may be sent to spend the rest of his life on the 'Beast Wing' at HMP Full Sutton, where he would be kept with other killers including Jeremy Bamber and John Cannan as well as serial rapists and paedophiles being protected from the rest of the prison population. We did not know whether you had burnt her alive or dead. We could have looked after her and been with her. Couzens was arrested late on March 9 - six days after Miss Everardvanished 'into thin air' - whenmore than 20 officers raided his home on the Kent coast. document.querySelector("#google_image_div").addEventListener('click',function(){ Her gut-wrenching disappearance plunged her family into frantic worry. 'Our thoughts are with Sarah's family and her many friends. The policeman used his handcuffs and warrant card to snatch Miss Everard as she walked home from visiting a friend in Clapham, south London, on the evening of March 3. Ahead of the start of the two-day hearing, Scotland Yard released a statement which read: 'We are sickened, angered and devastated by this man's crimes which betray everything we stand for. 'I found out that a police officer had been arrested through the media last night. But it was suggested last night that plain clothes officers may have been secretly monitoring the suspect's movements for days. She said in the past few days, the couple had been getting their children ready to return to school after the lockdown was lifted. Please share this post to help us to find her. The investigation is being treated as a missing person's enquiry, but due to its complex nature it is being led by the Met's Specialist Crime Command. We weren't even halfway through our journey and you took it all away! She's got to decide what's the best for her. 'He then moved her body in green bags that he had purchased specifically for that task to a pond deeper into the woods but which was only about 130 metres from his plot,' said Mr Little. Miss Everard was last seen on CCTV at around 9.30pm last Wednesday. Prowling the streets for hours looking for his prey. The twisted Met Protection Officer can be seen producing his warrant card as he claimed Miss Everard had breached Covid restrictions. He suggested he merely rented a car because he had problems with his own vehicle. Dr Latham not only spoke to the defendant but also to his wife, who described the defendant's concerns over problems he was experiencing with his life, and particularly his financial difficulties. However, at the start of the video, Couzens suggests he has never met Miss Everard, who was the subject of a major missing persons enquiry at the time. It had Romanian plates on the van, white Mercedes Sprinter-type van. Each day dawns and I think, Sarah should be here, leading her life and embracing new experiences. A passing couple witnessed the kidnapping but mistook it for an arrest by an undercover officer, the court heard. Everards parents, brother and sister were present at the opening of an inquest into her death on Thursday, and heard that the body of the 33-year-old was found in woods just outside Ashford in Kent. 'We are instructing our officers, the policy going forward will be that they must facilitate a greater trust. Susan Everard said she was 'incandescent with rage' at what he had done, saying he disposed of her daughter 'as if she was rubbish'. hitType: 'event', Mr Little said it had been deliberately omitted. The Met is being investigated by the IOPC for allegedly failing to probe these two separate incidents, despite apparently being provided with CCTV. The IOPC is also looking into Kent Police - where Couzens used to work as a volunteer - after it was accused of not investigating reports in 2015 that a man had been spotted driving down a road with no trousers on. Yesterday relatives described their shock at his arrest, with one describing the 48-year-old officer as 'a fine upstanding man' and his mother-in-law declaring: 'He could not do anything like this. He took Sarah Everard's mobile telephone from her and removed the Sim card. wearing a green rain jacket, navy blue trousers with a white diamond pattern and turquoise and orange trainers. Sarah Everard was a daughter, sister, friend and colleague. Following which rumors began circulating that Couzens, a married father of two, had kidnapped, raped and murdered Everard. Mr Ephgrave added: 'The arrest this evening is a serious and significant development. After leaving home, he picked up a Vauxhall Crossland hire car that he had booked on February 28. Today, more than ever, we miss our strong, beautiful friend, along with the hashtags #internationalwomensday and #FindingSarahEverard. Dan Sales For Mailonline 'It may be his first killing but I would have thought he had toyed around with this and possibly have a long litany of encounters where he has used his ability to have power over others. The Met is already being investigated by the police watchdog for its alleged failure to investigate two flashings later attributed to Couzens at a McDonald's in south London three days before he kidnapped, raped and murdered Miss Everard.