Wayne Couzens 'flashed' cyclist and drove through town with genitals exposed 6 months BEFORE Sarah Everard murder
DURHAM, UK: Wayne Couzens reportedly emerged out of the woods and exposed himself to a female cyclist five months before he murdered Sarah Everard. Couzens, 49, is currently serving a life sentence for the kidnap, rape, and murder of the 33-year-old marketing executive in March 2021.
At the time, he was still serving as a Metropolitan Police officer. The convict appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court via video link from HMP Frankland on Friday, September 2, to face two new charges of indecent exposure following a referral of evidence from the Met Police. The fresh charges stem from a November 13, 2020 incident when he allegedly emerged from a woodland completely in the nude and performed a sex act in front of a female cyclist.
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Couzens reportedly couldn't be found at the time of the incident and the woman in question only recognized him when the former officer's images circulated after the death of Everard. The 49-year-old is also accused of driving through Dover town center in Kent with the lower half of his body exposed on June 9, 2015. The former armed officer with the Met's Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command had previously denied four other counts of indecent exposure in connection with separate alleged incidents in Swanley, Kent, between January 22 and February 1, 2021, January 30 and February 6, and on February 14 and February 27.
Sarah Everard’s killer Wayne Couzens will appear in court charged with two new charges of indecent exposure.
— London Live (@LondonLive) September 2, 2022
They are alleged to have happened in June 2015 and November 2020.
He is serving a whole-life sentence for the kidnap, rape and murder of Ms Everard, 33, in March 2021. pic.twitter.com/o83griUhJH
Court records state that Couzens allegedly flashed McDonald’s workers just weeks before he murdered Everard. A woman who was employed at a drive-thru branch on the A20 near Swanley said on condition of anonymity that Couzens had pulled up to the order hatch with his trousers down on multiple occasions. "A member of the public rang the police providing the registration number of a VW Golf, which was registered to the defendant, saying he had just seen someone driving through the center of Dover with his erect penis exposed. He was so shocked he rang the police," prosecutor Jocelyn Ledward told the court. "The defendant was not spoken to and then there were some difficulties in locating the complainant. That may be why it did not progress."
Couzens reportedly gave no indication of a plea to the two charges of indecent exposure on Friday. He only spoke to confirm his name and date of birth, but otherwise remained nearly motionless during the nine-minute hearing.
Sarah Everard's killer Wayne Couzens has appeared in court charged with two counts of indecent exposure. He did not enter pleas. The case was sent to the Old Bailey on 3rd October.
— Simon Jones (@SimonJonesNews) September 2, 2022
"In November 2020 a lady was cycling along a country road a couple of miles away from the Kent coast," Ledward added. "Wayne Couzens stepped out of the woodland completely naked and masturbating. The suspect could not be traced at the time. It was not until images of Mr. Couzens were circulated that she recognized the defendant." The former officer was remanded in custody ahead of his next appearance at the Old Bailey scheduled on October 3.
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It's worth noting that Couzens has already appeared twice in court since being convicted of Everard's murder, after he was charged with four other incidents of indecent exposure said to have taken place in Swanley, Kent, before her death. Those charges accuse him of "intentionally exposing his genitals intending that someone would see them and be caused alarm and distress." That said, Couzens is serving a life sentence for the kidnap, rape, and murder of Everard, meaning he will spend the rest of his days in prison. The former Met officer became the first person to receive a life sentence for a single murder in the UK.