Officers took 20 hours to visit home of missing student nurse Owami Davies, Police review finds

30 September 2022, 17:18

A review into the police's handling the disappearance of Owami Davies has found officer's didn't visit the student nurse's family home until 20 hours after she'd been reported missing.

The 24-year-old's family reported her missing to Essex Police at 12.50pm on July 6, but cops didn't arrive at her home in Grays, Essex, until around 8.20am the following day.

The delay has been picked up in a probe into Essex Police and the Met Police’s handling of the case, with the report revealing “important learning points” for the respective forces.

An attempted murder in the same district as well as two other high-risk missing persons cases were cited in the review as reasons for the delay in officers reaching her home.

Read more: Met police defend handling of Owami Davies missing person case despite accusations of racial bias

Read more: Owami Davies found alive and well in Hampshire nearly 50 days after going missing

Owami went missing from her hometown in Essex for almost 50 days, sparking a major police search in London.

During the investigation, it was revealed that Met officers had spoken to the then-missing Owami after her disappearance was reported.

This was reported to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), but it no further action would be taken after she was found “safe and well” in Hampshire on August 23.

The joint Essex and Metropolitan Police Service report found that officers from both forces were in frequent contact with her family and that Met officers demonstrated “compassion and care” when they encountered Owami in Croydon on Wednesday, July 6.

But a Met spokesperson said: “The review also identified several learning points” which will be used to improve our response to future missing person investigations.”

Commander Paul Brogden said: “This was the biggest missing person investigation conducted by the Met this year and officers worked tirelessly over several weeks to ensure Owami was found safe and well.

“As with any large policing operation, we have worked with our advisory groups to review our actions. I’m pleased that their feedback was largely positive, both about the officers involved and our handling of the investigation.

“The review did identify some important learning points, including how a missing person enquiry is transferred from one force to another to ensure work isn’t duplicated and any urgent enquiries are carried out as swiftly as possible.”