The police officer who led the investigation into the serial rapist John Worboys has warned that similar crimes could still be happening today, as the criminal justice system is “close to exploding”. Tim Grattan-Kane, the senior investigating officer who arrested Worboys in 2008, said the system is overstretched and underfunded, leaving young officers frustrated by delays and a lack of support workers.
Grattan-Kane, now retired, spoke exclusively ahead of the broadcast of a new ITV drama, Believe Me, which focuses on the women whose testimony convicted Worboys. He highlighted the rise of drink spiking and said there remains a “real problem” with men using drugs to facilitate sexual assault. He pointed to recent cases, including that of Gisèle Pelicot in France and Vikas Nath, a Knightsbridge restaurateur facing trial for rape and sexual assault of a drugged woman, which he denies.
Grattan-Kane said drink spiking has become “far more common”, either due to increased awareness, more men having “a bad approach to women”, or more women reporting incidents. He also credited his team for solving the case after previous Metropolitan police mistakes, including missed evidence and blood tests. By re-examining CCTV footage and speaking to a trainee black-cab driver, they predicted the attacker’s routes.
Grattan-Kane emphasized the importance of believing victims, which led to the drama’s title. He said the police must “think the unthinkable” about people in positions of trust, as Worboys was not suspected because he was a black-cab driver who dropped victims home after attacks. He cited the murder of Sarah Everard by off-duty Met officer Wayne Couzens as a similar case of abuse of trust.
While acknowledging past police mistakes, Grattan-Kane said the response is now “far more centred” on survivors. However, he warned that target-driven systems, like those introduced under Tony Blair, can create problems by measuring performance by numbers rather than quality. “There’s always a balance to be struck in a process where you want something that is victim-focused,” he said.
Believe Me airs on ITV on Sunday.
