Met Police officer threatened to stab woman he raped, court told

Cliff Mitchell was an officer with the Metropolitan Police

A former Metropolitan Police officer, charged with 13 counts of rape, tied up one of his alleged victims, and threatened to stab her and slit her throat, a jury has been told.

Croydon Crown Court heard the woman got into a car with Cliff Mitchell who told her he would stab her if she tried to escape or was sick in his vehicle.

He allegedly told her: "I don't care about my life any more, you've met the devil".

Mr Mitchell, 24, denies the charges.

Prosecution barrister Catherine Farrelly told the court that Mr Mitchell responded with threats when the woman said she was feeling sick in the car.

She said: "The defendant told her, 'If you throw up in the car, I'm gonna slit your belly for every second you throw up'."

'I'm so scared'

The woman, whose hands were bound by cable ties, got out of the car to be sick and took the chance to run away, the court heard.

Mr Mitchell, from Wandsworth in south-west London, is charged with six counts of rape against a girl, including three when she was under 13 years old.

Three of those six charges state there were at least 30 other occasions where the girl may have been similarly assaulted.

The jury heard that the allegations came to light after a woman, who looked "distraught and scared", was seen running between traffic in September.

The court heard she was screaming: "He held a knife up to me, I'm so scared."

Ms Farrelly said the alleged victim was helped by a driver who allowed her to hide in her car and who spotted the cable ties.

The prosecution claims Mr Mitchell sexually abused his first alleged victim from 2014 to 2017, and the second alleged victim between 2020 and 2023.

Mr Mitchell, who says the allegations have been fabricated against him, is also charged with seven counts of rape against a woman between April 2020 and September 2023; with breaching a non-molestation order; and two counts of kidnapping.

The trial continues.

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