Wayne Couzens pleads guilty to the kidnap and rape of Sarah Everard
Breaking news.
Wayne Couzens has pleaded guilty to the kidnap and rape of Sarah Everard after appearing at the Old Bailey this morning.
The news was broken by Channel 4 correspondent, Minnie Stephenson.
The 48-year-old appeared at The Old Bailey today. The court heard Couzens accepted responsibility for the killing of Ms Everard but was not asked to enter a plea to a charge of murder.
— Minnie Stephenson (@MinnieStephC4) June 8, 2021
The UK Metropolitan Police officer is believed to have admitted to kidnapping and raping Ms Everard after he was arrested back in March this year.
Couzens accepted responsibility for Everard's killing but was not asked to enter a plea regarding a murder charge. A provisional date for Couzens' trial has been set for October.
33-year-old Everard disappeared after she walked home from a friend's house in Clapham, south London, on 3 March. Her body was found a week later in woodland near Ashford, Kent.
A recent post-mortem found that Everard died from a compression of the neck.
A statement read: "A post-mortem examination into the death of Sarah Everard held at the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford has given cause of death as compression of the neck.
"Sarah's family have been informed and are being supported by specialist officers."
