A Metropolitan Police officer who accessed police systems to discover the identity of Sarah Everard's killer after his arrest has been dismissed without notice. Former PC Clare Tett was found to have committed gross misconduct after a tribunal ruled she had no proper policing purpose for accessing Wayne Couzens' records.
The tribunal heard that on 4 March 2021, Sarah Everard, 33, was reported missing after being abducted, raped and murdered by serving Met officer Wayne Couzens. Five days later, Couzens was arrested on suspicion of kidnap, and his name was not made public until 12 March.
Two days before that, Tett used police systems to access the custody records of Couzens and his wife, as well as the crime report information system (CRIS) for Everard's case. She also accessed custody records for four other detainees held in London police stations on suspicion of serious offences, including murder and blackmail.
In her initial response, Tett admitted accessing the records but maintained she had a lawful policing purpose, saying she had used Everard's case to refresh her licence on one of the systems. The panel found the most likely explanation was that she was motivated by curiosity, given she had no obvious personal connection to the case. The tribunal concluded she breached standards of confidentiality and orders and instructions.
The appropriate authority (AA) noted Tett had more than 20 years of experience and would have known police data should only be accessed for official purposes. Tett is one of several officers identified as having accessed material related to the investigation without an apparent policing purpose; the high court previously ruled seven officers had done so.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- This case highlights ongoing concerns about police data misuse and confidentiality breaches within the Metropolitan Police.
- It shows the force's internal accountability processes in action, with dismissal for gross misconduct.
- The incident underscores the wider cultural issues within the Met, particularly after the Sarah Everard murder.
Background
The Sarah Everard case was a landmark case of murder by a serving police officer, leading to widespread public outcry and reviews of police culture and vetting. Former PC Clare Tett was an officer with over 20 years of experience. The Met has faced repeated scrutiny over data access violations.
Key Perspectives
- Metropolitan Police (via the tribunal): Found Tett had no proper policing purpose and was motivated by curiosity, breaching confidentiality standards.
- Clare Tett (initial response): Admitted accessing the records but maintained she had a lawful policing purpose for doing so.
What to Watch
- Whether the Met brings further disciplinary action against other officers identified in similar data breaches.
- Potential new policies or training on police data access following this and related cases.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 2 sources: 12 supported.
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- SupportedThe headline says a Met Police officer was dismissed for accessing Wayne Couzens’ files.The Independent UK: “A Metropolitan Police officer has been sacked for searching force databases to uncover the identity of Sarah Everard ’s murderer shortly after he was detained.”
- SupportedFormer PC Clare Tett was found to have committed gross misconduct after accessing custody records of Sarah Everard’s killer.BBC London: “Former PC Clare Tett had no "proper policing purpose" to access Wayne Couzens' record the day after he was detained, a tribunal ruled.”
- SupportedTett accessed police systems to discover the identity of Everard’s killer following his arrest.BBC London: “A Metropolitan Police officer who trawled through police systems to discover the identity of Sarah Everard's killer following his arrest has been dismissed.”
- SupportedTett was dismissed without notice.BBC London: “She was found to have committed gross misconduct and was dismissed without notice.”
- SupportedEverard, 33, was abducted, raped and murdered by serving Met officer Couzens and was reported missing on 4 March 2021.BBC London: “Everard, 33, was abducted, raped and murdered by serving Met police officer Couzens in south London on 3 March 2021. She was reported missing on 4 March, 2021.”
- SupportedCouzens was arrested five days after Everard was reported missing on suspicion of kidnap, and his name was not made public until 12 March.BBC London: “Five days later, Couzens was arrested on suspicion of kidnap and detained. His name was not in the public domain until 12 March, the judgement stated.”
- SupportedOn 10 March, Tett accessed custody records for Couzens and his wife, and the CRIS record for Everard’s case.BBC London: “The tribunal heard that two days earlier, Tett used police systems to access the custody records of Couzens and his wife, and the crime report information system (CRIS) for Everard's case.”
- SupportedTett also accessed custody records for four other detainees held in London police stations on suspicion of serious offences, including murder and blackmail.BBC London: “She had also accessed custody records for four other detainees held in London police stations on suspicion of serious offences, including murder and blackmail.”
- SupportedIn her initial response, Tett admitted accessing the records but maintained she had a lawful policing purpose, saying she used Everard’s case to refresh her licence on a system.BBC London: “In her initial response to the allegations, Tett admitted accessing the records but maintained she had a "a lawful policing purpose for doing so".”
- SupportedThe panel found curiosity was the most likely explanation for Tett’s access, given she had no obvious personal connection to the case.BBC London: “The panel found the "most likely explanation for accessing the records, given that PC Tett had no obvious personal connection to this case, was that she was motivated by curiosity to find the identity of the officer who had been arrested in connection to the Sarah Everard case".”
- SupportedThe tribunal concluded Tett breached standards of confidentiality and orders and instructions.BBC London: “"The panel, therefore, found that PC Tett's conduct had clearly breached the standards of confidentiality and orders and instructions."”
- SupportedThe appropriate authority said Tett had more than 20 years of experience and would have known police data should only be accessed for official purposes.BBC London: “The appropriate authority (AA) said Tett had more than 20 years of experience, had completed training and would have known that "police data should only be accessed for official purposes only".”