The Leader of Hounslow Council has condemned the "toxic culture" within Metropolitan police ranks in which officers joked about raping women and referenced Hounslow as they exchanged racial slurs on a WhatsApp group with PC Wayne Couzens before he abducted, raped and murdered Sarah Everard.

Westminster magistrates' court was told yesterday that PC Jonathan Cobban, 35, PC William Neville, 34, and Joel Borders, 45, who has left the force, shared derogatory and violent comments about women, joked about tasering children and referred to people with Down's syndrome as target practice.

They are accused of sending "grossly racist, sexist, misogynistic" messages in material found on an old phone belonging to Couzens in March 2020. The following year he abducted, raped and murdered Everard, 33.

Cobban, who was a race and diversity custodian for his firearms unit at the Civil Nuclear Constabulary (CNC), described walking through Hounslow as "walking along a Dulux colour code" and a "Somali shithole".

Borders responded that "Feltham is worse! I went there the other week and felt like a spot on a domino!"

Cllr Shantanu Rajawat called the messages "grossly offensive" as he acknowledged the references to Hounslow and its communities.

"Racism, and misogyny have no place anywhere in a civilised society, let alone within the ranks of those sworn to protect and serve.  

"We are urgently engaging with senior police officers around emerging details to understand the steps being taken to root out this sort of toxic culture from within police ranks.  

"Misconduct by police officers is completely unacceptable. I know communities across the borough will be rightly concerned about this latest set of revelations.  

"I also feel sure that the vast majority of police officers in Hounslow are hard-working, decent people who will be deeply offended by the alleged conduct of these officers". 

Read Cllr Shantanu Rajawat's full statement here.