Former Met police officer who carried out 13 rapes and told one victim he was "the devil" jailed for life
1 May 2024, 13:11 | Updated: 1 May 2024, 13:51
A former serving Met Police officer who carried out 13 rapes and told his victim "you've met the devil" as he tied her up and kidnapped her in a car has been jailed for life
Cliff Mitchell was sentenced to life with a minimum of 14 years for 10 counts of rape, three counts of rape of a child under 13, one count of kidnap and breach of a non-molestation order.
Mitchell, 24, approached one of his victims with a knife in September 2023 before telling her to put her arms behind her back and tying her arms up with cables. He also put tape over her mouth.
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The 24-year-old, of Wandsworth, was a serving as an officer in Hounslow when a number of the offences occurred. He was later dismissed from the Met in December 2023 following an accelerated misconduct hearing.
On September 5 2023, Mitchell had attended the address of a woman who he raped at knifepoint before blindfolding her, tying her hands with cables and forcing her into his car.
The woman managed to escape the vehicle in Hackbridge, south London, where a member of the public let her into their car so she could call 999.
Police put out an alert for the officer and he was arrested in Putney.
He had joined the force in August 2021, despite being investigated for six counts of rape against a child four years earlier - and was not re-vetted as part of Operation Onyx, the force's plan to review allegations of sexual abuse from the past 10 years.
He was suspended after the allegations came to light and has since been dismissed.
The Met confirmed that all serving officers and staff identified as having being arrested for rape before joining are now being dealt with under Operation Onyx - a change that was a direct consequence of Mitchell's arrest.
However, questions have been raised about whether their investigations will include officers accused of rape and sexual assault prior to their employment, a point which the Met refused to comment on.
The PC, who worked in Hounslow, West London, told his victim nobody would believe her because he was a police officer, as he blindfolded her and bundled her into his car.
LBC revealed Mitchell started his officer training in August 2021.
That was after the Met decided to take no further action against him for allegations of rape in 2017.
Following his arrest in September 2023, that investigation was reopened and he was charged with six counts of raping a child - including three when she was under 13.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stuart Cundy said after the verdict: “This is a truly shocking case and I am sickened by Mitchell’s abhorrent behaviour and the pain he has caused the victims, who have shown enormous bravery by coming forward and giving evidence in court.
“It is down to their courage that he has been convicted and faces a significant custodial sentence. I would also like to recognise the brave member of the public who came to the aid of one of the victims as she ran from Mitchell’s car.
“Mitchell not only carried out a sustained campaign of abuse against both of his victims, but he told one of them she would never be believed due to the fact he was a police officer. This brazen abuse of power makes Mitchell’s actions all the more deplorable.
“I know this is another case which will impact the confidence people have in us. We are doing more than we have done in decades to rid the Met of those who corrupt our integrity, including investing millions of pounds into our professional standards team and bringing in additional officers and staff with specialist skills and experience to investigate criminality and misconduct.
“Part of that is dismissing officers who should not be here at the earliest opportunity. Mitchell was dismissed from the Met in December 2023 - we did not wait for his conviction today.”