Officers had denied it, blaming mistakes on being understaffed and lacking resources, with some acting up in senior positions. The victims’ loved one claimed failings stemmed from prejudice, because the victims were gay and their deaths were drug-related. 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. 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.
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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.
The coroner, Sarah Munro QC, said she would write a prevention of future deaths report, to be published in the new year, adding: “These inquests, on any view, have raised a number of serious concerns.”Īddressing the victims’ loved ones at the end of the 50-minute hearing, the coroner added: “May I also express the hope that you have finally been listened to, and you have the answers to, if not all then, some of your questions.”
The spots where bodies were dumped by Stephen Port during his 16-month killing spree (Metropolitan Police/PA)Īcknowledging the root-and-branch nature of the mistakes, which originated from the Walgate investigation, the jury said: “We believe there were fundamental failures in these investigations, which were at a basic level.” In written conclusions, the jury acknowledged officers’ “heavy workload” but said there were failures that “cannot be overlooked”.
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