Moment Wayne Couzens enters McDonald’s and flashes staff just days before Sarah Everard murder

This is the moment Wayne Couzens enters a McDonald’s Drive-thru and flashes staff just days before he murdered Sarah Everard – as his victims slam police over missed chances to catch him.

The disgraced Met officer, 50, was sentenced to 19 months in prison at the Old Bailey today after admitting three counts of indecent exposure.

Couzens twice exposed himself in front of horrified workers at a McDonald’s restaurant at the Swanley service station, Kent, in February 2021 – including one incident just days before Ms Everard’s death.

He also pleasured himself while ‘totally naked’ in front of a female cyclist in Deal on November 13, 2020, after approaching her on a narrow path ‘only a few miles’ from where he took Ms Everard. He was supposed to be working from home and was on duty at the time. 

CCTV has now been released showing Couzens making two trips to the McDonald’s Drive-thru, where he can be seen placing his order before queuing to collect it moments before he was seen by a female member of staff with his  ‘trousers pulled down to his knees’.

CCTV has now been released showing Couzens making two trips to the McDonald’s Drive-thru in Swanley, Kent

It comes as his victims today said he could have been stopped before he murdered Ms Everard.

In a victim impact statement read to the court today, the cyclist said: ‘I remember vividly being concerned that somebody who could expose themselves to a stranger in such an intimidating way could go on to commit much more serious acts. This is what happened.

‘Four months after you exposed yourself to me, you raped and murdered an innocent woman.

‘There were opportunities to identify you and they were not taken. I did not feel that, when I reported your crime, it was taken as seriously as I felt that it should have been.

‘The horror of what happened will remain with me for the rest of my life.’

One of the women who was flashed at by Couzens at the McDonald’s said she was left ‘scared’ after learning of what he went on to do.

She said: ‘I felt like that could have been me. I still think about this now. If he had been held accountable when we had reported the crime, we could have saved Sarah.’

Another victim wept in court as she described feelings of ‘survivor’s guilt’.

She said: ‘I could not help but feel relieved that it wasn’t me, or that it could have been me.’

On her view of police, she added: ‘I do not like to tar everyone with the same brush but it has been difficult not to do so after knowing what he did for a living and knowing I could have come across him in uniform and not known what he was capable of.’

Tom Little KC, prosecuting, earlier told the court Couzens drove from his home in Deal to Lillie Road in Fulham, south west London, on – where his Diplomatic Protection unit was based – in mid-February.

He was not working, but entered into its offices before leaving a short time later. The reasoning for his visit ‘remains entirely unexplained’.

Mr Little KC told the court: ‘His journey is not dissimilar to that taken on the night he kidnapped Sarah Everard.

Couzens is seen placing an order at the McDonald’s while driving back home following a 12-hour shift with the Met

Couzens’ car (blue arrow) queues behind another vehicle while waiting to pick up the order

As Couzens’ collected his food and drink, he exposed himself to members of staff at the restaurant

Murderer Wayne Couzens has been sentenced at the Old Bailey after admitting three counts of indecent exposure 

Court artist sketch of Wayne Couzens appearing at the Old Bailey today via video link from HMP Frankland

On his way back to Kent, Couzens visited a McDonald’s Drive-thu and ordered a white coffee and double cheeseburger.

But as he approached to collect his order, he exposed himself to a member of staff.

Days before he kidnapped Ms Everard, Couzens again visited the McDonald’s after working a 12-hour shift.

He ordered a large white coffee, a bottle of orange juice, two double cheeseburgers and a medium-sized portion of fries before he was handed the drinks by a member of staff, who saw he had ‘no pants on’.

Mr Little KC said Couzens had his ‘trousers pulled down to his knees’ and was ‘shaking as if nervous’.

Police were contacted about the incident the same day and were told details of the vehicle matched that of the car involved in Couzens’ visit 13 days earlier.

But the police officer was not spoken to about the incident.

He was interviewed under caution on August 5, 2021, and gave detectives a prepared statement.

Couzens admitted visiting the McDonald’s on several occasions, but denied ever having exposed himself.

The McDonald’s worker on the February 14 incident said she was left in shock and can remember everything about the ordeal, including what Couzens’ hands looked like.

The second offence is said to have taken place when Couzens stood completely naked before a female cyclist in Ringwould Road near Dover on November 13, 2020.

The prosecutor said the incident happened on an isolated narrow rural lane running inland between Deal and Dover.

It is only a few miles from where the defendant took Ms Everard, having kidnapped her and after he had moved her from one vehicle to another in Dover.

Couzens stepped out of the woods and stood on a bank above the female cyclist as she rode uphill towards him.

The McDonald’s drive-thru in Swanley, Kent, where Couzens flashed staff  in February 2021

Couzens – who is already serving a whole life term – will be sentenced for these offences in March

Mr Little said the defendant was ‘totally naked’ and masturbating as he looked at the woman.

He said: ‘She felt she had no choice but to continue cycling along that country lane.

‘There were no words exchanged between them. She had a clear view of him and clearly remembered what he looked like.’

Around 50 metres further on, she cycled past a parked black car which looked ‘old’ and ‘a little battered’ but she was unable to recall the full number plate.

As she rode on, the cyclist came across two women and told them what she had seen.

One of them said she was a police officer and would keep a look out, the court heard.

When she reached a crossroads, the cyclist rang her husband and later reported the incident online to Kent Police, providing a description saying he was ‘middle-aged with a slight paunch’.

At the time, Couzens had a black Seat car in poor condition but, in the absence of a number plate match, the investigation stalled.

After Couzen’s arrest over the disappearance of Ms Everard, the cyclist recognised him from his picture.

Mr Little said: ‘As a result, she contacted the police again. She felt instant shock at seeing the picture and said she was 90 per cent sure it was him who masturbated in front of her.

‘Further inquiries have confirmed that the defendant was due to be working from home in Deal on 13 November 2020 between 8am and 4pm. It follows that he was on duty at the time of the offence but was not at home.’

Traffic cameras and cell site data located Couzens in his Seat in that country area at that time.

It comes as a judge told Couzens he had a ‘dangerous belief in his invincibility’.

He is already serving a whole life order for Ms Everard’s murder, but appeared at the Old Bailey via video link from HMP Frankland today wearing a grey tracksuit top as he was sentenced for the three counts of indecent exposure.

Passing sentence, Mrs Justice May told Couzens he had ‘a dangerous belief in his invincibility, in his power sexually to dominate and abuse women without being stopped’.

Couzens was subsequently sentenced to 19 months’ imprisonment for the three incidents. The sentence will not impact his whole life order.

Mrs Justice May said the sentencing for indecent exposure also served as ‘public recognition’ of the fact of the offences and the impact on the victims, and ‘their courage and resilience’ in coming forward.

Couzens served as a Kent police officer before transferring to the Met Police elite unit where he was armed for his duties

Sarah Everard, 33, was abducted, raped and murdered by Couzens while he was a serving Metropolitan Police officer

She highlighted the victims’ statements which recounted the impact of Couzens’ ‘selfish, sexually aggressive acts’.

The judge said: ‘The fact that no police came to find him or his black car to question him about these incidents can only have served to confirm and strengthen in the defendant’s mind a dangerous belief in his invincibility, in his power sexually to dominate and abuse women without being stopped.’

Mrs Justice May praised the victims, telling the court: ‘All have spoken of their sense of freedom and security taken from them, of feeling vulnerable and fearful for themselves and others going about their ordinary lives.

‘One woman, after discovering who had done this and what he had gone on to do, speaks of a wholly understandable sense of survivor’s guilt.’

Couzens is currently serving a whole life term for the abduction, rape and murder of Ms Everard, 33, in March 2021.

It was the first time the sentence had been imposed for a single murder of an adult not committed in the course of a terror attack.

The depraved killer used Covid powers to conduct a fake arrest of the marketing executive as she walked home from a friend’s house in March 2021 before raping and murdering her.

The then serving officer, who used his warrant card and handcuffs to carry out the crime, had been planning for at least a month before abducting Ms Everard as she walked home from a friend’s house in Clapham, south London.

The Met earlier defended its decision to prosecute Couzens for indecent exposure even though he will never be released from prison for the murder of Ms Everard.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner for Professionalism Bas Javid said he hopes the decision to prosecute ‘goes some small way’ to show people the Met will be ‘ruthless’ in holding rogue officers to account.

Couzens is currently serving a whole life term for the abduction, rape and murder of Ms Everard, 33, in March 2021

Mr Javid said: ‘It’s every victim’s right to be listened to and to have their case investigated.

‘I know the homicide team were meticulous and committed in doing everything they could to get justice for them.

‘I hope this goes some small way to help the public understand that we will be ruthless in holding officers, even one serving a whole life order and who will never know freedom again, to account.

‘We know the public will, understandably, be sickened at yet more grotesque crimes by Couzens.

‘The process of flushing out the corrupt and the criminal from the Met will be slow and painful, but is necessary and we will continue to do so.

‘This is how we will reform, move forward and become an institution Londoners can have confidence in.’

But an officer from the Met and a second from Kent Police will face misconduct hearings over their handling of the flashing reports , the Independent Office for Police Conduct has said.

The Met was provided with the number plate of the car Couzens had driven since 2015 and details from his bank card – but failed to arrest him. The IOPC told the Met to begin gross misconduct proceedings against a police constable who investigated the case.

Separately, Kent Police will begin misconduct hearings for a sergeant who allegedly failed to properly investigate reports that a man – later identified as Couzens – had been seen driving with no trousers on in 2015.

The Met PC will face claims he failed to properly investigate the evidence identifying Couzens as the driver who flashed staff at McDonald’s before providing a dishonest account to IOPC inspectors.

Meanwhile, the Kent Police sergeant is accused of failing to follow all lines of inquiry before closing their investigation into the report of a man driving naked.

The IOPC said Couzens was never spoken to and it had ‘found no evidence’ that the investigators realised he was a police officer.