Latest news with #WayneCouzens
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Daily Mail
Wayne Couzens' marital home - with hot-tub he built in the garden - hits the market: Three-bed house where killer cop lived with wife and kids is on sale for £280K
Wayne Couzens ' marital home has gone on the market for £280,000 - complete with a hot tub he built in the back garden, the Daily Mail can reveal. The shamed Met Police officer, 52, who is serving a whole life sentence for the kidnap, rape and murder of Sarah Everard in 2021, lived there with wife Olena for five years. The couple paid £200,000 for the three-bedroom terrace house in 2016, taking out a mortgage with Nat West Bank, records show. Couzens was arrested at the house in Deal, Kent, by police investigating the brutal killing of Sarah, 33, in a crime that shocked the nation – and left his wife and two children stunned. The disgraced former police officer had handcuffed and 'arrested' Sarah in fake Covid patrol in March 2021, as she walked home through Clapham Common after visiting a friend for dinner. He bundled her into a car, then raped and murdered her, eventually driving to remote woods near Ashford, where he burnt her body and dumped her remains in a pond, with police making the grim discovery six days later. The property is described by estate agents as an 'ideal terraced family house, spacious throughout with three double bedrooms and ample living space'. It goes on: 'The rear garden is a great size and overlooks fields behind. To the front there is a blocked paved driveway and garage. 'The property has been well cared for and has a modern kitchen bathroom and log burner.' The description makes no mention of the hot tub that Couzens built, but in pictures illustrating the house, the timber surround can clearly be seen in the back garden. Other images show a neat and tidy interior with books on shelves and a board game under the table, as well as magnets on the fridge door and a large telescope in the kitchen. The house was put up for sale earlier this year for £300,000 but the price was later reduced by £20,000 after failing to attract interest, despite being close to local amenities, schools and the train station. Ukrainian born Olena was often seen by neighbours walking the family's two pet French bulldogs Napoleon and Josephine and was described as 'warm and friendly' by locals, who added she 'kept a low profile'. Following Couzens arrest in 2021, Olena told the Daily Mail she had kept asking herself 'Why?' adding that it was 'not human behaviour'. She went on: 'If I had any idea what was going on in Wayne's head, then none of this would've happened but I didn't know anything. The kitchen shows magnets on the fridge door and a large telescope in the corner as well as family dining table 'He didn't appear to be acting strangely. I didn't notice anything was wrong. I'm working full time, most of the time I'm dropping the children off at school and picking them up, I have a really busy lifestyle. 'I can't comprehend it because he never once previously showed any glimpse of violence, he was never that way. I'm just as puzzled as everyone else. 'I saw nothing wrong. He had a beautiful family, a good house… what else did he need? I'm constantly asking myself "where I did miss the signs? How on earth could this have happened?' Couzens was jailed at the Old Baily in September 2021 and trial judge Lord Justice Fulford told him: 'Your wife and children, who on all the evidence, are entirely blameless, will have to live with the ignominy of your dreadful crimes for the rest of their lives.' Couzens drove to remote woods near Ashford (pictured), where he burnt her body and dumped her remains in a pond, with police making the grim discovery six days later Shortly after his arrest Olena visited him in prison where he was on remand and he cried and apologised to her and it is thought to be the last time she saw him, although it is not known if they have divorced. Couzens is serving his sentence at HMP Frankland and last month it emerged he had been taken to hospital for a back operation that cost tax payers £17,000.
Spectator
5 days ago
- Spectator
The real problem with Surrey's cat-calling crackdown
When I was young, the song 'The Laughing Policeman' always spooked me a bit; I've grown out of most fears, but this one if anything has grown over the decades. Because never before has it seemed more obvious that the police are amusing themselves with us – and the end results, far from beingamusing, are really quite scary. Never mind, ladies – there's going to be a crackdown on wolf-whistling, that'll keep you safe As taxpayers, we pay the police a lot of money to solve crimes and catch criminals. But it appears that we are not exactly getting bang for our buck, with criminal behaviour becoming ever more acceptable and the police response less reliable. The epidemic in shoplifting is often cited, culminating recently in a North Wales shopkeeper putting up a sign saying 'Due to scumbags shoplifting, please ask for assistance to open cabinets'. Only then did a policeman visit, having been alerted by a somewhat over-sensitive member of the public claiming that the sign was 'provocative and offensive'. There is a feeling that police are scared of actual criminals and far prefer to bully law-abiding citizens for stating obvious truths about the impossibility of a man becoming a woman or singing Christian songs in the street. The 'mind the grab – phone-snatching hotspot' tape which has recently appeared on the kerbs of Oxford Street as part of an initiative by the electronics shop Currys is the latest apparent surrender by the forces of law and order to the criminal fraternity. You'd think that it would be all hands on deck to catch these scumbags. But apparently we have so much spare police-power that LBC radio recently reported on an extraordinary phenomena whereby undercover female cops have been dressing up in skintight lycra and jogging through public parks in order to attract cat-callers – who then get a scolding by a nearby crack-team of nags, presumably concealed by bushes. A spokesperson for Surrey police tutted: 'These behaviours may not be criminal offences in themselves, but they need to be addressed.' The Free Speech Union quite rightly dubbed it a 'bizarre social-psychology experiment' but the rozzers in question insisted that the prank would help protect women and girls in public and that the trial, which lasted a month, led to 18 arrests for offences such as harassment, sexual assault, and theft. Inspector Jon Vale, of Surrey Police, told LBC that the aim was to deter offenders: 'One of our officers was honked at within ten minutes – then another vehicle slowed down, beeping and making gestures just 30 seconds later. Someone slowing down, staring, shouting – even if it's not always criminal, it can have a huge impact on people's everyday lives and stops women from doing something as simple as going for a run. We have to ask: is that person going to escalate? Are they a sexual offender? We want to manage that risk early.' What a shame none of his colleagues in the Met thought to deter PC Wayne Couzens on his 'escalation' on the way to the murder of Sarah Everard. (The fifteenth woman killed by a policeman – that we know of – in 12 years.)He exposed himself three times, with witnesses reporting registration details of vehicles he used, but police took no action, leaving him to continue as a serving police officer affectionately known as 'The Rapist' to his colleagues. As Ruth Davison of Refuge said at the time of his sentencing, 'Wayne Couzens pleaded guilty to three counts of indecent exposure. His car number plate was given to Met police officers, who should have carried out the correct checks to identify him as a serial sex offender and working within the force. He should have been immediately suspended from duty and investigated. Instead this didn't happen and he was free, just days later, to escalate his behaviour and murder Sarah Everard using his status as a police officer, utilising handcuffs and his warrant card to coerce Sarah into getting into a car with him.' The police have always been the most sexually sinister of the services which are ostensibly there to protect the public; their startling misogyny includes everything from using images of stalked, attacked and murdered women as their own private pornography stash to the brotherly solidarity they showed to the grooming gangs, ignoring the terrified children who summed up the courage to report their rape and torture, sometimes to the point of arresting the girls themselves for 'disorderly behaviour'. Does the police force attract nasty men in greater numbers than other professions? The paraphernalia which might attract sadists is there: uniforms, handcuffs, truncheons and tasers. One of the reasons why broad-minded people like me feel uneasy when we see photos of policeman happily appearing alongside men in extreme fetish-wear at Pride marches is that we are instinctively aware that if people find it OK to parade their sexual kinks in broad daylight, it tends to make civil society far less civil for women and children. So is Surrey Police's -alling project a kind of penance? Perhaps, but I think it's far more likely to be our old mate the 'wokescreen'. Pay lip service to protecting women and girls while simultaneously being an enthusiastic part of a legal system which seems increasingly to find actual violence against women and girls really rather trivial. Remember the embarrassing about-face Labour had to perform about enquiries into the Muslim rape gangs after Lucy Powell said they were a 'dog whistle'. She couldn't be sacked by Starmer as he'd already referred to people calling for a new inquiry into the gangs of jumping on a 'far-right bandwagon' back in January. The grooming gangs have gone quiet, though one would have to be a certified half-wit to believe they've shut up shop. The focus now is on freelance sex attackers. Witness the women of all hues who have been protesting outside the migrant hotels, which house charmers such as Aron Hadsh from Eritrea, who sexually assaulted a young woman with learning difficulties – and was handed a 14-month prison sentence. Never mind, ladies – there's going to be a crackdown on wolf-whistling, that'll keep you safe. Don't you worry your pretty heads about the fact that each day sees more men pouring into this country whose misogyny is easily as Medieval as that of their co-religionists in Rotherham. As Alex Phillips has pointed out, many of these men are brought up in segregated societies which see a woman who shows her legs on a sunny day as basically asking for it. Before it went wet, Private Eye ran a spoof headline on the increasing briefness of jail sentences for homicides: 'KILL NOW AND WIN A FORD FIESTA', I think it might have been, which might be updated to 'RAPE NOW AND WIN AN E-SCOOTER'. If I had to make a modest proposal, in the Swiftian style, to solve this country's cataclysmic crime problem, I'd suggest jailing those of us who don't break the law, and letting loose those who do. It's already started, with the government letting out woman-beating men to make room in prison for women who post things on social media disapproved of by the state. It's a dystopia worthy of Dick – where words are literally violence but actual violence is no big deal. The thought-police will police our minds while our mere bodies will be left to defend themselves. Regrettably, the philosophy of too many of those whose job it is the protect the public and punish the criminal appears to be the modish mantra 'Forgive and forget'. Forgive the criminal and forget the victim, that is – especially if the victim is female. Scolding a couple of honey-trapped cat-callers is going to do nothing to put this right.
Daily Mail
29-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Killer police officer Wayne Couzens is 'allowed to jump waiting list' for £17,000 back operation on the NHS
Disgraced police officer Wayne Couzens was admitted to hospital for a back operation, costing the taxpayer an estimated £17,000. Couzens, 52, who was found guilty of the kidnapping, rape and murder of Sarah Everard, was escorted from his cell in HMP Frankland in Durham to a nearby hospital for a lumbar procedure - more commonly known as a spinal tap. The cost of transporting him to and from the Category A prison is believed to have cost the taxpayer an estimated £10,000 as an intensive security team was required. Couzens, who was reportedly classed as a high-risk escort, had to be accompanied by a custody manager and around four prison officers in a bulletproof - not because he poses a danger to the public but because of the danger the public poses to him. Politicians from across the political spectrum have expressed concerns that Couzens may have been allowed to jump the waiting list for the spinal tap procedure which costs the NHS up to £7,000 and typically has an 18-week waiting list, according to The Sun. Luke Akehurst, Labour's North Durham MP, told the publication that the cost of security to take Couzens to hospital was 'an appalling waste of public money. He added: 'I would be disgusted if it turns out that this vile rapist and murderer was able to jump the queue in front of decent law-abiding people to get his treatment.' Despite sitting firmly on the opposition benches, Robert Jenrick, shadow Justice Minister, agreed with Mr Akehurst, and said: 'Wayne Couzens is one of the most despicable criminals in our jails and a traitor to the police uniform he wore. 'He should not be given any special treatment in jail,' Mr Jenrick added. 'He's in prison as punishment for his terrible crimes — nobody should forget that.' A spinal tap involves a needle being inserted into your lower back to drain fluid. It is performed 'to find out why you're having certain symptoms, to treat a condition, or to give an anaesthetic', according to the NHS. The University Hospital of North Durham is a short seven-minute drive away from HMP Frankland - and it is the nearest unit to provide spinal taps. A source told The Sun that Couzens was complaining of backpain whilst at HMP Frankland and although the operation was not an emergency, it was carried out to make him feel more comfortable. HMP Frankland is the same prison where Manchester Arena bomb plotter Hashem Abedi attacked prison officers with hot cooking oil and makeshift weapons in April. Abedi was known to be one of the most dangerous inmates in the UK, with a history of attacking officers. He was ordered to serve a record 55-year minimum term for helping his brother murder 22 people, many of them children, at the Manchester Arena in 2017. Ms Everard disappeared on the evening of March 3, 2021 after visiting a friend's house on the edge of Clapham Common in London. Leaving at 9pm, the 33-year-old set off on the 2.5 mile walk home during which she called her boyfriend for around 14 minutes. At around 9.30pm, two figures are caught by a bus camera on Poynders Road standing beside a white Vauxhall Astra parked on the pavement with hazard lights flashing. It later emerged that Couzens used his police-issued warrant card to stage a fake arrest. He then drove Ms Everard to a rural area near Ashford, Kent, where he raped and strangled her with his police belt before burning her body in a fridge and dumping her remains in a nearby pond. Her body was found a week later on March 10, 2021. In September that same year, Couzens was served a whole life order at the Old Bailey, and since been found guilty on three counts of indecent exposure which occurred prior to murdering Ms Everard. Vigils were held across the country to mark Ms Everard's death, including the event at Clapham Common which turned into chaos as Met police officers detained protestors for violating Covid restrictions. Onlookers claimed that officers shoved women, pinned protestors to the ground and 'elbowed people in the faces'. In September 2023, the Met Police paid compensation to Patsy Stevenson and Dania Al-Obeid who were arrested at the Clapham vigil, with Scotland Yard chiefs apologising to the two women. The Met said they 'tried to achieve a balance that recognised the rights of the public to protest and to express their grief and sadness, while also continuing to enforce the relevant Covid legislation.' 'We are working every day to make London a city where women and girls can feel and be safe,' they added.
The Irish Sun
28-06-2025
- The Irish Sun
Killer cop Wayne Couzens secretly whisked to NHS hospital for £17k back op sparking fury over ‘appalling waste of money'
KILLER cop Wayne Couzens was secretly whisked to an NHS hospital for a back op — costing taxpayers an estimated £17,000. The fiend, 52, who kidnapped, raped and murdered 7 Wayne Couzens was secretly whisked to an NHS hospital for a £17,000 back operation Credit: SWNS 7 The killer policeman was escorted from HMP Frankland in a bullet-proof van under a high-security escort Credit: PA 7 The revelation was slammed as a waste of public money amid concerns Couzens was allowed to jump the waiting list Credit: PA He underwent a lumbar procedure — also known as a spinal tap — which usually has an 18-week waiting time on the NHS. The cost of getting him in and out of HMP Frankland in Durham was estimated to be £10,000 alone - while the procedure can cost up to £7,000. The revelation was slammed as a waste of public money last night, amid concerns Couzens was allowed to jump the waiting list. Labour's North Durham MP Luke Akehurst said: 'I would be disgusted if it turns out that this vile rapist and murderer was able to jump the queue in front of decent law-abiding people to get his treatment. READ MORE ON WAYNE COUZENS He should not be given any special treatment in jail. He's in prison as punishment for his terrible crimes - nobody should forget that Robert Jenrick on Couzens 'The cost of the security surrounding his time in hospital is an appalling waste of public money.' Tory shadow Justice Minister 'He should not be given any special treatment in jail. He's in prison as punishment for his terrible crimes — nobody should forget that.' Couzens, who abused police powers to abduct Sarah, 33, in a fake Covid arrest before killing her in 2021, had the procedure this month. Most read in The Sun The nearest unit offering his op is the University Hospital of North Durham. A typical lumbar procedure sees medics sterilise the patient's back before delivering a local anaesthetic. Chilling moment Wayne Couzens moans 'I'm not in a good place' in shocking police interview after murdering Sarah Everard They then drain fluid with a syringe. Couzens is believed to have spent several days in hospital before being driven the three miles back to the Category A prison's healthcare unit. A source told how the operation was not an emergency and was carried out 'to make him comfortable'. They said: 'People are angry at how he was treated — and how much effort the authorities went to, as well as how much it cost. 'Couzens is constantly moaning in jail and had been complaining about back pain so was assessed in healthcare at the prison. 'The security operation to get him to and from the hospital would have easily run to more than £10,000. 'He was taken straight from his cell into a Category A van, which is bullet-proof with a custody manager and at least four prison officers. 'While he was at the hospital, armed police would have been on guard. Couzens was classed as a 'high-risk escort' — not because he poses a danger but because of the danger to him from the public. 7 Vile killer cop Couzens kidnapped, raped and murdered Sarah Everard in 2021 Credit: PA 'He is recognisable and reviled so they do not take chances. 'He would have been treated on a ward — but in his own room — to keep him away from people. The prison and NHS have a duty of care to him, like they do with everyone. 'But this was apparently not even an emergency procedure and was basically done to relieve pressure on him and make him comfortable.' Ex-prison governor Vanessa Frake, who ran London's notorious Wormwood Scrubs, said: 'Getting prisoners to operations like this is all down to risk. It would have taken a while to plan with the police and the hospital, assessing not only his safety, but the safety of prison staff, healthcare staff, other patients and the public. Couzens should be at the very bottom of the pecking order when it comes to NHS treatment Former Met detective Peter Bleksley 'It's not an unusual thing for prisoners to go out to hospital. This is more unusual because he is who he is, and that makes it much more difficult not only for the prison staff but the hospital staff as well. 'I understand people's concerns about it. But more than that, I think about Sarah Everard's family and how they must be feeling.' Sources said Couzens was 'reluctant' to move from the jail's hospital as he fears being attacked. 7 University Hospital of North Durham, where Couzens was treated Credit: Alamy We told in March 2022 how the former Met firearms officer had been allowed to buy an Xbox 360 as a reward for good behaviour. But he then moaned after being barred from playing violent games like Call of Duty and Gears of War. Couzens — handed a whole-life tariff because of his heinous crimes — is housed with other fiends including double child murderer Ian Huntley and morgue monster He has previously been on suicide watch and is regularly placed on ACCT — Assessment, Care in Custody, and Teamwork — programmes which involve close monitoring of vulnerable lags. Former Met detective Peter Bleksley said: 'Couzens should be at the very bottom of the pecking order when it comes to NHS treatment. 'It sticks in the craw when any killer like him is effectively whisked to the front of the queue. If anybody has had their procedures cancelled or even delayed so he can be treated, it is a scandal and an insult to the memory of Sarah.' The Prison Service would not comment on healthcare issues. 7 The vigil for Sarah Everard in 2021 Credit: Alamy 7 Kate Middleton seen here paying her respects as she turns up alone at the Sarah Everard memorial site on Clapham Common Credit: Enterprise CHANCES TO STOP KILLER By Sarah Ridley KILLER cop Wayne Couzens committed a catalogue of sex offences before murdering Sarah Everard in one of the most shocking crimes of the century. He should have been arrested as far back as 2015 — six years before killing Sarah in March 2021 — but Kent Police failed to investigate an indecent exposure incident, a watchdog ruled. It meant Couzens was able to join the Civil Nuclear Constabulary and then the Met in 2018. The rapist was then linked to two indecent exposures in November 2020 and February 2021, which police allegedly failed to investigate. He pleaded guilty to these charges in 2023. On the first occasion, he appeared naked in a rural lane in Deal, Kent, and exposed his genitals while on duty as a woman cycled past. The victim reported the incident to Kent Police. Couzens also exposed himself to staff at a McDonald's in Swanley, Kent, on February 14 and 27, 2021. He paid by card and was driving his own car, but it was not properly investigated. Just four days later, Couzens abducted Sarah before raping and strangling her. He was jailed for life at the Old Bailey in September 2021. In February last year, the Angiolini Inquiry ruled there were multiple missed chances to stop Couzens due to his history of offending.
Scottish Sun
28-06-2025
- Scottish Sun
Killer cop Wayne Couzens secretly whisked to NHS hospital for £17k back op sparking fury over ‘appalling waste of money'
Sources said Couzens was 'reluctant' to move from the jail's hospital as he fears being attacked BEAST'S VIP TREATMENT Killer cop Wayne Couzens secretly whisked to NHS hospital for £17k back op sparking fury over 'appalling waste of money' KILLER cop Wayne Couzens was secretly whisked to an NHS hospital for a back op — costing taxpayers an estimated £17,000. The fiend, 52, who kidnapped, raped and murdered Sarah Everard, required intensive security during his several days away from HMP Frankland, Durham. Advertisement 7 Wayne Couzens was secretly whisked to an NHS hospital for a £17,000 back operation Credit: SWNS 7 The killer policeman was escorted from HMP Frankland in a bullet-proof van under a high-security escort Credit: PA 7 The revelation was slammed as a waste of public money amid concerns Couzens was allowed to jump the waiting list Credit: PA He underwent a lumbar procedure — also known as a spinal tap — which usually has an 18-week waiting time on the NHS. The cost of getting him in and out of HMP Frankland in Durham was estimated to be £10,000 alone - while the procedure can cost up to £7,000. The revelation was slammed as a waste of public money last night, amid concerns Couzens was allowed to jump the waiting list. Labour's North Durham MP Luke Akehurst said: 'I would be disgusted if it turns out that this vile rapist and murderer was able to jump the queue in front of decent law-abiding people to get his treatment. Advertisement He should not be given any special treatment in jail. He's in prison as punishment for his terrible crimes - nobody should forget that Robert Jenrick on Couzens 'The cost of the security surrounding his time in hospital is an appalling waste of public money.' Tory shadow Justice Minister Robert Jenrick added: 'Wayne Couzens is one of the most despicable criminals in our jails and a traitor to the police uniform he wore. 'He should not be given any special treatment in jail. He's in prison as punishment for his terrible crimes — nobody should forget that.' Couzens, who abused police powers to abduct Sarah, 33, in a fake Covid arrest before killing her in 2021, had the procedure this month. Advertisement The nearest unit offering his op is the University Hospital of North Durham. A typical lumbar procedure sees medics sterilise the patient's back before delivering a local anaesthetic. Chilling moment Wayne Couzens moans 'I'm not in a good place' in shocking police interview after murdering Sarah Everard They then drain fluid with a syringe. Couzens is believed to have spent several days in hospital before being driven the three miles back to the Category A prison's healthcare unit. Advertisement A source told how the operation was not an emergency and was carried out 'to make him comfortable'. They said: 'People are angry at how he was treated — and how much effort the authorities went to, as well as how much it cost. 'Couzens is constantly moaning in jail and had been complaining about back pain so was assessed in healthcare at the prison. 'The security operation to get him to and from the hospital would have easily run to more than £10,000. Advertisement 'He was taken straight from his cell into a Category A van, which is bullet-proof with a custody manager and at least four prison officers. 'While he was at the hospital, armed police would have been on guard. Couzens was classed as a 'high-risk escort' — not because he poses a danger but because of the danger to him from the public. 7 Vile killer cop Couzens kidnapped, raped and murdered Sarah Everard in 2021 Credit: PA 'He is recognisable and reviled so they do not take chances. Advertisement 'He would have been treated on a ward — but in his own room — to keep him away from people. The prison and NHS have a duty of care to him, like they do with everyone. 'But this was apparently not even an emergency procedure and was basically done to relieve pressure on him and make him comfortable.' Ex-prison governor Vanessa Frake, who ran London's notorious Wormwood Scrubs, said: 'Getting prisoners to operations like this is all down to risk. It would have taken a while to plan with the police and the hospital, assessing not only his safety, but the safety of prison staff, healthcare staff, other patients and the public. Couzens should be at the very bottom of the pecking order when it comes to NHS treatment Former Met detective Peter Bleksley 'It's not an unusual thing for prisoners to go out to hospital. This is more unusual because he is who he is, and that makes it much more difficult not only for the prison staff but the hospital staff as well. Advertisement 'I understand people's concerns about it. But more than that, I think about Sarah Everard's family and how they must be feeling.' Sources said Couzens was 'reluctant' to move from the jail's hospital as he fears being attacked. 7 University Hospital of North Durham, where Couzens was treated Credit: Alamy We told in March 2022 how the former Met firearms officer had been allowed to buy an Xbox 360 as a reward for good behaviour. Advertisement But he then moaned after being barred from playing violent games like Call of Duty and Gears of War. Couzens — handed a whole-life tariff because of his heinous crimes — is housed with other fiends including double child murderer Ian Huntley and morgue monster David Fuller. He has previously been on suicide watch and is regularly placed on ACCT — Assessment, Care in Custody, and Teamwork — programmes which involve close monitoring of vulnerable lags. Former Met detective Peter Bleksley said: 'Couzens should be at the very bottom of the pecking order when it comes to NHS treatment. Advertisement 'It sticks in the craw when any killer like him is effectively whisked to the front of the queue. If anybody has had their procedures cancelled or even delayed so he can be treated, it is a scandal and an insult to the memory of Sarah.' The Prison Service would not comment on healthcare issues. 7 The vigil for Sarah Everard in 2021 Credit: Alamy 7 Kate Middleton seen here paying her respects as she turns up alone at the Sarah Everard memorial site on Clapham Common Credit: Enterprise Advertisement
