Despite investigation failure in the case of serial rapist David Carrick, police officers keep their jobs

Two police officers who failed to adequately investigate an abuse allegation five years before former police officer David Carrick was first arrested have been given final written warnings for misconduct. David Tippetts, then a police sergeant and now an inspector, and police inspector Emma Fisher were due to face a disciplinary hearing following an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

The investigation began in July last year on the advice of Wiltshire Police, who had reviewed their systems following Carrick’s conviction and found a report from 2016 that appeared not to have been adequately investigated.

In January 2016, a woman called Wiltshire Police to report that Carrick had abused another woman. She wanted Carrick, a serving officer in the Metropolitan Police Service, to be investigated. PC Fisher was assigned to investigate the case and after personally speaking to the woman who made the complaint, PC Fisher requested that the case be dropped and her superior, Sergeant Tippetts, agreed.

READ MORE: 73-year-old man from North London is accused of sexually abusing two boys and having sex with a dog

The IOPC said PC Fisher updated the police computer system and said the woman had said the case had been investigated some time ago, but in fact it had not been investigated and no record of a previous investigation could be found in Wiltshire’s systems.

None of the officers checked police systems or took any further steps to investigate the case. The woman identified as the victim of the abuse was never contacted about the allegation.

Had officers searched for David Carrick’s name in Wiltshire Police’s crime records system, they would have found that he was under investigation in another case for offences against another woman which had been reported to Wiltshire Police three days earlier.

Despite being told that Carrick was a serving Metropolitan Police officer, officers did not inform the Metropolitan Police Professional Standards Directorate of the serious allegations made against him, nor did they seek advice from their own Professional Standards Department on next steps.

IOPC investigators sought the opinion of a senior detective at Wiltshire Police who had no knowledge of the case, who said it was expected that these measures would be completed.

They said the CID had been informed of the allegation so detectives could re-visit the woman who made the allegation and also contact the alleged victim to see if she was willing to cooperate with the 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: “No one is responsible for David Carrick’s horrific series of offences but himself.”

“However, our investigation revealed that Wiltshire Police officers had missed an opportunity to investigate him following a report of serious allegations of abuse years before his arrest.”

“PC Fisher took minimal investigative action. She made no attempt to contact the victim of the reported crime, failed to inform the police of any serious allegations against any of their officers or searched for David Carrick’s name in Wiltshire Police’s systems.”

“This would have shown that Carrick had already been investigated following a complaint of serious crime three days earlier.”

“PC Fisher requested that the investigation be closed after minimal effort and without significant exertion and her superior, Sergeant Tippetts, agreed and, contrary to police policy, failed to raise any concerns with colleagues in CID who specialise in investigating serious allegations.” Both officers faced a hearing for gross misconduct, having potentially breached police standards of professional conduct.

The panel concluded that both officers had breached the standards of conduct relating to duties and responsibilities and had behaved dishonourably and that their actions constituted misconduct. They issued both officers with final written warnings, which will be valid for two years.

Craig Dibdin, Wiltshire’s deputy chief constable, said: “This is a clear case of officers failing, in the most fundamental sense, to properly investigate the allegations made against them.”

“This failure of service was compounded by a lack of appropriate supervision and control by a superior officer. While it would be inappropriate to comment on the ongoing IOPC investigation, the public will naturally wonder what impact this inaction may have had on Carrick’s heinous offences after 2016.”

“Our communities must have confidence in us that we will listen to them, investigate every allegation made against us without fear or favor, and keep them fully informed of our actions.”

“I would like to unreservedly apologise to the individual whose report we did not initially investigate as intended. We will ensure that we share all findings from this case organisationally to improve our service.”

Our London Court & Crime newsletter brings you the latest important court updates and breaking news straight to your inbox. You can register here.