Detective raped by colleague says Met handling of case 'like being raped again'

A Metropolitan Police detective who was raped by a fellow officer has told the BBC that the force's handling of her case was "like being raped all over again," in an unprecedented public call for the Met commissioner to resign.

Detective Constable Linda Williams, who has waived her legal right to anonymity, was attacked in 2004 by PC David Carrick, a serial abuser jailed for life in 2023 for sexual offences against her and 11 other women.

Williams, who has post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of the attack, brought a civil case against the Met, arguing the force failed to protect her. She says the lengthy legal battle left her feeling suicidal, and that the "worst thing" was lawyers for the commissioner challenging the severity of her PTSD on the basis that she had been raped only once. The Met told the BBC it had tried to handle her claim "as quickly and compassionately as possible" and to reduce further distress.

Williams says she reported the rape in 2021 after seeing media coverage of Carrick being charged with raping another woman, and that she would not report a rape to the Met today because she does not trust the force to deal with it properly.

She says Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley has failed to change police culture as promised. "I would like him to resign. I don't think he's fit for the job," she said. The Met said Rowley has repeatedly acknowledged her courage and has asked to meet her again.

The force has settled the civil case and paid her compensation without acceptance of liability.