A MONSTER cop lured Sarah Everard into his car by handcuffing and arresting her on a fake Covid patrol before he raped and murdered her.
Wayne Couzens, 48, snatched the 33-year-old off the streets as she walked home from a friend's home in Clapham Common, South West London, on March 3.
Harrowing details of Sarah's murder were revealed for the first time today as the Met Police officer is sentenced for kidnap, rape and murder.
The Old Bailey heard how Couzens used his warrant card to lure Sarah into his car as she walked home by claiming he was on a Covid patrol.
Just five minutes later, terrified Sarah was driven for 80 miles from London to Kent at the start of a “lengthy ordeal” that was to lead “inexorably to her rape and murder".
Read our Wayne Couzens sentencing live blog for the latest updates...
Louis Allwood a minute ago
Couple saw Sarah Everard being kidnapped and assumed it was ‘undercover arrest’
A couple saw Sarah Everard being snatched from the streets by a monster cop but assumed he was making an undercover arrest.
Wayne Couzens, 48, had stalked the 33-year-old as she made her way home from a pal's house in Clapham, South West London, on March 3.
He then ambushed her on the street by making a fake arrest after claiming she had breached Covid rules.
The Old Bailey heard today how a couple were driving past when they witnessed Sarah being put in Couzen's car and driven to her death.
Prosecutor Tom Little QC said: "Sarah Everard was compliant, with her head down and did not appear to be arguing."
Louis Allwood 11 minutes ago
Couzens continued with life after horrific murder He then treated himself to a hot chocolate with coconut milk and bakewell tart from Costa just hours after the murder.
The next morning, Couzens returned the rental car and chucked Sarah's phone into a river in Sandwich, Kent.
He also bought petrol which he used to burn Sarah's body before calling his vet to make an appointment for the family dog about "possible medication for separation anxiety".
Sickeningly, Couzens even took his family to the woodland where he dumped Sarah's body just four days after murdering her.
Louis Allwood 21 minutes ago
WEB OF LIES Couzens spun a web of lies after he was arrested - meaning Sarah's heartbroken family and the police never found out the real reason why he snatched and strangled Sarah.
He was painted today as a sex mad fiend despite portraying the image of a married dad-of-two and even contacted escorts and used a Match.com dating profile.
Bizarrely, Couzens claimed he kidnapped Sarah, who was a stranger to him, for a "gang of Eastern Europeans".
He was in debt by about ￡29,000 with additional credit card debt at the time he murdered Sarah.
Louis Allwood 31 minutes ago
Police background Gun cop Couzens, who joined the Met Police in 2018, was charged with kidnap and murder more than a week after Sarah first vanished when police swooped on his home in Deal, Kent.
The cop, who worked on the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command unit, had finished a shift earlier on the morning of March 3 and was not on duty at the time of Sarah's disappearance.
Despite wiping his phone, data on the device linked Couzens to the abduction and eventually the area where Sarah was found.
While in custody, former mechanic Couzens was twice taken to hospital with head injuries.
Questions are now mounting over why Couzens was even still on the force following a wave of indecent exposure claims made against him.
Louis Allwood 41 minutes ago
Investigations under way still not in place MEASURES promised after the murder of Sarah Everard to try to stop further -violence against women have yet to be implemented — six months on.
Boris Johnson pledged “immediate steps” would be taken after Sarah, 33, was killed by an off-duty cop after being kidnapped while walking in South London in March.
Under Project Vigilant, bars and streets where sexual offences were reported were to be flooded with plain-clothes officers.
Yet the scheme — pioneered by Thames Valley Police — has yet to be rolled out in London or most of rest of the UK despite 77 murders of women since Sarah died.
Dorset and Wiltshire police are among those so far to adopt the policy.
Louis Allwood 47 minutes ago
What is Reclaim These Streets? A website says that Reclaim These Streets aims to use legislation, education and community action to ensure no woman has to be asked to "text me when you get home" again.
They began as a group who organised a vigil for Sarah Everard following her death.
They "wanted to channel the collective grief, outrage and sadness in our community".
Reclaim The Streets arose from all women who feel unsafe, who go missing from our streets and who face violence every day.
They organised a vigil on Clapham Common on March 13, 2021, to pay tribute to Sarah, who disappeared while walking home in London.
The vigil was seen as a way of publicly urging for women's safety in the UK's streets.
John Hall 51 minutes ago
'Bright and beautiful'
Sarah's family previously paid tribute to their "bright and beautiful daughter and sister".
In a statement, they said: “Sarah was bright and beautiful - a wonderful daughter and sister.
“She was kind and thoughtful, caring and dependable. She always put others first and had the most amazing sense of humour.
“She was strong and principled and a shining example to us all.
“We are very proud of her and she brought so much joy to our lives.”
John Hall Today, 15:50
Pure grief
Vigils were held across the country as outraged Brits paid tribute to Sarah.
Campaign group Reclaim These Streets was formed in the wake of Sarah's death.
Jamie Klingler, one of the founders, said: "It feels like a tidal wave of half of the population saying: 'This is your problem, you need to fix it and you need to fix it now - we're not taking it any more'."
Some of the vigils were mired by violence as heavy-handed cops arrested protesters.
A planned event due to be held in London on Clapham Common had been cancelled due to the pandemic but thousands still attended to pay their respects.
Kate Middelton was among those who came to look at a shrine made near where Sarah was last seen.
Louis Allwood Today, 15:43
Police missed three clues about Wayne Couzens Police missed three key clues about monster cop Wayne Couzens that could have seen him booted from the Met before he killed Sarah Everard.
He became the talk of his nick for only stopping female motorists — and would take their personal details so he could watch their homes, returning to one at least three times, it is claimed.
Vile Couzens, 48, also parked his patrol car by schools so he could leer at mums and sixth formers.
A source told The Sun on Sunday: “It is frightening when you think about what happened to poor Sarah. If someone had been doing their job properly three years ago then none of this would have happened.”
John Hall Today, 15:40
Outpouring of grief
SARAH'S tragic death caused global outrage and sparked a 'tidal wave' of grief.
The haunting words 'she was just walking home' screamed from social media platforms as women revealed their own horror stories.
Many told how they had been harassed on the street and public transport - with one even flashed at a vigil for Sarah.
The outpouring prompted the Home Office to reopen a public consultation on tackling violence against women and girls, which then received more than 160,000 responses.
Louis Allwood Today, 15:38
Couzens used his police belt to strangle Sarah Everard
The Met Police officer was wearing the belt when he handcuffed the 33-year-old and claimed she had breached Covid rules.
After driving Sarah for 50 miles from London to Dover, Couzens then strangled her with it.
The grim detail emerged as Couzens is sentenced for the kidnap, rape and murder of Sarah.
The Old Bailey heard how Couzens used his warrant card to lure Sarah into a rental car as she walked home by claiming he was on a Covid patrol.
He then raped her in his own vehicle and murdered her before burning her body in a fly-tipped fridge.
Louis Allwood Today, 15:38
Investigations under way (Continued...) A separate investigation is also ongoing into claims Kent Police failed to follow up on an allegation of indecent exposure in Dover in 2015.
The Met issued a statement today ahead of the hearing, saying they are "sickened, angered and devastated" by Couzens' actions.
Louis Allwood Today, 15:37
Investigations under way Shockingly, Couzens was not given enhanced vetting when he joined the Met’s Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Unit in February 2020.
This was despite colleagues in the Civil Nuclear Constabulary, where he worked before the Metropolitan Police, nicknaming him The Rapist.
Twelve police officers are being investigated by the Independent Office for Police Conduct for gross misconduct over matters relating to the case.
The watchdog is probing whether the Met failed to investigate two allegations of indecent exposure relating to Couzens just four days before he took Sarah.
Louis Allwood Today, 15:33
Family statement after her death Sarah's family previously paid tribute to their "bright and beautiful daughter and sister".
In a statement, they said: “Sarah was bright and beautiful - a wonderful daughter and sister.
“She was kind and thoughtful, caring and dependable. She always put others first and had the most amazing sense of humour.
“She was strong and principled and a shining example to us all.
“We are very proud of her and she brought so much joy to our lives.”
John Hall Today, 15:30
Police probe
Twelve police officers are being investigated by the Independent Office for Police Conduct for gross misconduct over matters relating to the case.
The watchdog is probing whether the Met failed to investigate two allegations of indecent exposure relating to Couzens just four days before he took Sarah.
A separate investigation is also ongoing into claims Kent Police failed to follow up on an allegation of indecent exposure in Dover in 2015.
The Met issued a statement today ahead of the hearing, saying they are "sickened, angered and devastated" by Couzens' actions.
Louis Allwood Today, 15:28
Vigils were held after her death Sarah's death sparked vigils across the country and demands for action to tackle violence against women.
Thousands of women shared stories on social media about how they had been harassed while on the street and public transport.
Campaign group Reclaim These Streets was formed in the wake of Sarah's death with a vigil in Clapham Common attended by Kate Middleton.
The movement has continued in recent weeks following the killing of 28-year-old teacher Sabina Nessa in Kidbrooke, South East London.
Louis Allwood Today, 15:23
Ghastly plot In the days leading up to the murder, Couzens hatched a ghastly plot to travel to London and abduct a woman.
On February 28 he rented the car used to snatch Sarah using his name, address and two different mobile phones.
Minutes later, he bought a 600mm by 100mm roll of self-adhesive film from Amazon to use in the attack.
On the night he took Sarah, the cop was seen on CCTV buying hairbands he used in the horror.
As part of his grim killing kit, the monster also purchased carpet protector, tarpaulin, and a cargo net on March 7.
John Hall Today, 15:20
Nicknamed 'The Rapist'
Questions are now mounting over why Couzens was even still on the force following a wave of indecent exposure claims made against him.
Shockingly, Couzens was not given enhanced vetting when he joined the Met’s Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Unit in February 2020.
This was despite colleagues in the Civil Nuclear Constabulary, where he worked before the Metropolitan Police, nicknaming him The Rapist.
John Hall Today, 15:17
Wiped phone
Despite wiping his phone, data on the device linked Couzens to the abduction and eventually the area where Sarah was found.
While in custody, former mechanic Couzens was twice taken to hospital with head injuries.
John Hall Today, 15:14
Snatched off the street
Sarah vanished after walking home from a friend's house in Clapham, South West London, on March 3.
The court was told she was "in good spirits" and spent around 14 minutes on the phone to her boyfriend.
Sarah was seen alone on CCTV at 9.15pm, again at 9.28pm and was later captured on the camera of a marked police car at 9.32pm.
Chilling footage taken at 9.38pm showed two figures standing by Couzens' rented white Vauxhall Crossland.
It is understood she was snatched by the fiend just seconds later.
Louis Allwood Today, 15:13
#shewasonlywalkinghome Prosecutor Tom Little QC said: "Sarah Everard's disappearance on the evening of 3rd March 2021 led to one of the most widely publicised missing person investigations this country has seen.
"What had taken place became widely summarised on social media as #shewasonlywalkinghome.
"That is true. Sarah Everard was only walking home when she was taken off the street from her family, friends and colleagues by the defendant on the evening of 3rd March 2021.
"However, those five words do not fairly or completely begin to describe what happened to her and her body at the hands of the defendant in the hours and days that followed her kidnap.
"Whilst it is impossible to summarise what the defendant did to Sarah Everard in just five words, if it had to be done then it would be appropriate to do so as deception, kidnap, rape, strangulation, fire".
John Hall Today, 15:11
Planned his kill
On the night he took Sarah, the cop was seen on CCTV buying hairbands he used in the horror.
As part of his grim killing kit, the monster also purchased carpet protector, tarpaulin, and a cargo net on March 7.
And Couzens was seen buying two large green rubble bags from B&Q on March 5 - the same day he called his work to say he was "suffering from stress" and was unable to work.
Louis Allwood Today, 15:08
Couzens continued with life after horrific murder He then treated himself to a hot chocolate with coconut milk and bakewell tart from Costa just hours after the murder.
The next morning, Couzens returned the rental car and chucked Sarah's phone into a river in Sandwich, Kent.
He also bought petrol which he used to burn Sarah's body before calling his vet to make an appointment for the family dog about "possible medication for separation anxiety".
Sickeningly, Couzens even took his family to the woodland where he dumped Sarah's body just four days after murdering her.
John Hall Today, 15:08
Killing kit
The dad-of-two then suggested the trio had murdered Sarah - even though her body was discovered on land he owned.
In the days leading up to the murder, Couzens hatched a ghastly plot to travel to London and abduct a woman.
On February 28 he rented the car used to snatch Sarah using his name, address and two different mobile phones.
Minutes later, he bought a 600mm by 100mm roll of self-adhesive film from Amazon to use in the attack.
John Hall Today, 15:05
Gang lies
Couzens previously claimed he was unable to pay for a prostitute he met in a Holiday Inn in Folkestone so was ordered to find "another girl" otherwise his family would be harmed.
The cop told officers he drove Sarah to a lay-by between Ashford and Maidstone where three men got out of a van and took the marketing executive.
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