Failings by Met police investigating London serial killer 'probably' led to more deaths

Police mistakes "probably" contributed to the deaths of Stephen Port's victims, an inquest jury has found.

Officers in Barking, east London, missed repeated opportunities to catch sexual predator Port after he plied first victim Anthony Walgate with a fatal dose of date-rape drug GHB and dumped his body.

Port struck three more times before he was caught, killing each of his young, gay, male victims in near-identical circumstances, with police failing to link him to the deaths despite detective work carried out by the victims' family and friends that would lead them to the culprit.

Jurors at the inquests into the deaths of Mr Walgate, 23, Gabriel Kovari, 22, Daniel Whitworth, 21, and 25-year-old Jack Taylor, concluded that police failings "probably" contributed to the deaths of victims, all of whom were unlawfully killed.

In written conclusions, jury acknowledged officers' "heavy workload" but said there were failures that "cannot be overlooked".

It followed weeks of hearings at Barking Town Hall in which police admitted failing to carry out basic checks, send evidence to be forensically examined, and exercise professional curiosity during the 16-month killing spree, from June 2014 to September 2015.

Port, 46, a bus depot chef, will die in prison after being handed a whole life sentence at the Old Bailey for the murders and a string of sex assaults.

Since the inquests began, a new alleged victim has come forward to say they believe they were drugged and sexually assaulted by Port in the same period.

The victims' loved one claimed failings stemmed from prejudice, because the victims were gay and their deaths were drug-related.

Officers had denied it, blaming mistakes on being understaffed and lacking resources, with some acting up in senior positions.

Coroner Sarah Munro QC barred jurors from deciding on the issue of homophobia for legal reasons.

Jurors deliberated for a week before returning their conclusions, after hearing that none of the victims was from the area, and was either anti-drugs or had no known use of GHB.

Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, who raised his concern about a serial killer after the first three deaths in 2014, criticised the police for failing to engage with the LGBT community and follow their own guidance.

He said

"Evidence given at the Stephen Port inquest revealed the police to be incompetent, negligent, unprofessional and homophobic.

"Every gay person who expressed concerns about the deaths was ignored, dismissed and treated with contempt, even the partner of one of the victims. That's institutional homophobia. The officers involved must face disciplinary action."

Assistant Commissioner Helen Ball apologised on behalf of the Met but denied the force was homophobic.

She said:

"We don't see institutional homophobia. We don't see homophobia on the part of our officers. We do see all sorts of errors in the investigation, which came together in a truly dreadful way."

Port's killing spree began when he hired fashion student Mr Walgate, from Hull, as an escort.

Instead, Port killed him, dragged his body outside and called 999 anonymously, claiming to have found him collapsed as he was passing.

Requests were rejected for a specialist homicide team to take over the case, which was instead left in the hands of borough officers.

Port was swiftly identified as the caller but in a police interview concocted another web of lies.

A basic check on the police national database would have flagged up Port as a suspected rapist and his involvement in a suspicious incident at Barking station days before.

Port's laptop computer, which would have revealed his obsession with rape pornography, was not examined for many months.

Port was charged with perverting the course of justice and given bail.

It meant he was free to lure Slovakian Mr Kovari to his flat on the false promise of a room to rent.

Port dumped his body in St Margaret's churchyard, where a dog walker made the grim discovery in August 2014.

Three weeks later, the same dog walker found Kent chef Mr Whitworth in almost exactly the same spot.

Port planted a fake suicide note on his body suggesting Mr Whitworth had accidentally killed Mr Kovari.

Port was later jailed for perverting the course of justice, but was freed to kill Mr Taylor. Mr Taylor's sisters launched their own investigation and pushed officers to do more.

The coroner, Sarah Munro QC, told inquest jurors she intended to write a prevention of future deaths report.

She said:

"These inquests, on any view, have raised a number of serious concerns and I have invited submissions from legal representatives."

The report will be published in the new year, she said.