Serial sex offender guilty of double murder and rape

A serial sex offender who was being monitored by the Metropolitan Police has been found guilty of murdering two women and raping a third in London.

Simon Levy killed Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo, 53, in March 2025 and 39-year-old Sheryl Wilkins five months later.

The 40-year-old also raped a third woman in January 2025, before the murders, in the same Tottenham car park where Ms Wilkins was later found dead.

During his trial at the Old Bailey, jurors heard Levy had a string of convictions for attacking women dating back to July 2018, including one carried out against a prison officer in 2022.

The court heard how Levy, from Tottenham, targeted vulnerable women engaged in sex work on the streets.

He declined to give evidence during his trial but pleaded not guilty to the two murders, as well as two counts of rape, grievous bodily harm with intent, and non-fatal suffocation against the surviving woman.

The jury, which was given a majority direction in the trial, found him guilty of all charges after 13 hours of deliberation.

The Metropolitan Police confirmed to the BBC that it believed Wilkins' death could have been avoided had there not been multiple points of failure in the handling of Levy.

The Met failed to treat Valencia-Trujillo's death as a murder, despite arresting Levy soon afterwards and finding his DNA on her body, until after Levy killed again.

In February, Levy was convicted of sexually assaulting 10 women on London's Tubes and trains, as well as a female prison officer in HMP Brixton, with details of that trial now reportable for the first time.

Two Met officers are under investigation by the Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC) for their decision in August 2024 to downgrade Levy from a high-risk sex offender to a medium-risk.

Two British Transport Police (BTP) officers have been moved to other roles due to their "incompetence" in handling the case, BTP said.

Crime and Policing Minister, Sarah Jones, said: "The fact that Levy was able to inflict such devastating harm after being freed by police and the courts is deeply concerning.

"It raises serious questions that require urgent answers."

She said that failure must be identified so they are not repeated.

British Transport Police Assistant Chief Constable Charlie Doyle said: "It is clear that opportunities to expedite the investigation were missed and we have amended our procedures to address these issues to ensure that repeat offenders are dealt with expeditiously, and that linked offences are prioritised more effectively."

Doyle also said it was possible there are other victims of Levy who are not yet known and encouraged them to come forward.