A London Metropolitan Police officer was arrested Tuesday night in connection to a missing woman, police said.
Metropolitan Police said they arrested one of their own officers in connection to the case of Sarah Everard, a 33-year-old marketing executive that went missing March 3, according to BBC.
The unidentified officer was arrested in Kent and was taken into custody. A woman found at the location was also arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender, police said.
“This is a significant development in our inquiry,” Detective Chief Inspector Katherine Goodwin said. “This is a fast moving investigation and we are doing everything we can to find Sarah.” (RELATED: Sheriff Rescues Missing 13-Year-Old Girl From Motel Room)
“We have seen an overwhelming response from the public and I repeat my request for anyone with information that may be relevant to come forward, no matter how insignificant it may seem,” she added.
Assistant Commissioner Nick Ephgrave said it was “deeply disturbing” that a fellow officer was arrested.
“The arrest this evening is a serious and significant development. We will continue to work with all speed on this investigation but the fact that the arrested man is a serving Metropolitan Police officer is both shocking and deeply disturbing.”
Police did not disclose what led them to arrest the officer.
Everard left a friend’s home in Clapham on March 3 and is thought to have walked through Clapham Common toward her home, which should have taken her only 50 minutes, according to the BBC.
Two days after her disappearance, Lambeth Police tweeted that they were “increasingly concerned” for Everard.
We are increasingly concerned for the #missing Sarah Everard, 33, form #Brixton. She was last seen on 3rd March in the area of Clapham Common. She was wearing the green jacket and black and white trousers as on the photo. Please RT and call 999 with any info, ref 21MIS006196 pic.twitter.com/G58cyArDnA
— Lambeth Police | Central South BCU (@LambethMPS) March 5, 2021
Everard’s family said it was uncharacteristic for her not to be in contact, according to BBC.
“With every day that goes by we are getting more worried about Sarah,” the family reportedly said. “She is always in regular contact with us and her friends and it is totally out of character for her to disappear like this.”
Video footage taken from a doorbell camera showed Everard walking alone the night of her disappearance, although it is unclear whether she reached her home, according to BBC.
“We’ve spoken to over 750 different people and addresses have been visited,” Goodwin said, according to BBC.
The investigation remains ongoing.
