Cachella Smith
Live reporter

Image source, Met Police

A registered sex offender, who had already been imprisoned for multiple sexual assaults, has been given a whole life order for the murders of two women and the violent rape of a third.

Simon Levy was found guilty last week of murdering Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo and Sheryl Wilkins in 2025, as well as the violent rape of a third woman.

He spoke only to confirm his name at the start of the sentencing hearing at the Old Bailey this morning, otherwise sitting quietly in the dock as the judge detailed the horrific nature of his crimes.

Called a "monster" by his surviving victim and told to "rot in prison" by victim Sheryl Wilkins' sister Lindsey Hicks, Levy sat through emotional statements about the impact his crimes have had - but himself showed no visible reaction.

Families members of the murder victims described being "completely broken" and spoke of the emptiness left behind after their loved ones' deaths.

They sat together near the entrance to the courtroom and could be seen at points comforting one another, holding hands and passing tissues.

Following his convictions on Friday, restrictions on reporting Levy's previous crimes were lifted - and the full extent of his previous offending became clear.

As my colleague Daniel De Simone writes, there was a series of disastrous decisions by authorities that left him free to roam the streets.

Today, Judge Mark Lucraft KC described Levy as "someone who ruthlessly exploits others for your own personal satisfaction".

The judge told him: "You will be in prison for life and there will be a whole life order".

That brings an end to our live coverage - you can read more in our news story here.

Image source, Met Police

More reaction now following Levy's sentencing.

Deniz Ugur, deputy director of the End Violence Against Women Coalition, describes the case a "deeply upsetting", saying it highlights "failings across the justice system".

"[The case] calls into question why clear patterns of offending appear to have been minimised or missed entirely by criminal justice agencies", Ugur says.

Ugur adds that five years on from the murders of Sarah Everard, Nicole Smallman and Bibaa Henry, it is "hard to believe" that the police and justice agencies made "such catastrophic decisions".

Meanwhile, Harriet Wistrich of the Centre for Women's Justice says the UK's criminal justice "is in a state of collapse".

She says it is "time to disband" the police force, and wants policing restructured to restore "some semblance of trust and confidence".

Shadow justice secretary Nick Timothy says Simon Levy "should never have been allowed back on the streets", calling it a "serious institutional failure".

Timothy shares a letter he has written to the director of public prosecutions in a post on X. In it, he says that the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) was complicit in the failure and it must be held to account.

He says Levy was free to murder Sheryl Wilkins partly due to the CPS failing to make the case for him to be put back behind bars, despite warnings from the police.

The CPS, Metropolitan Police and British Transport Police have all previously admitted failings around the case.

The CPS said its actions "fell short" of its standards - and in particular "we could and should have taken a more robust approach to representations about bail, based on the information available"

Timothy calls on the director to provide a full account of what happened and what actions is he taking to prevent such an occurrence from happening again.

Image source, PA Media

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan says Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo, Sheryl Wilkins and Levy's other victims "deserved a system that believed and protected them".

"Time and time again, opportunities to stop him were missed," Khan says. "I am appalled by his crimes and the failures across multiple agencies that could have prevented him from harming, and ultimately killing, more women."

Khan adds these "multi-agency failings need a multi-agency review" and that he will continue to work with the Metropolitan Police, the government and partner agencies to "understand, learn from and act on lessons learned to ensure this never happens again".

"No woman or girl should be, or feel, unsafe in London," he says.

What a whole life order means for Levypublished at 14:15 BST

14:15 BST

Daniel De Simone
Investigations correspondent, reporting from court

Whole life orders are rare, there are fewer than 100 murderers in prison who are serving whole life orders, but the judge here passed that sentence on Levy for each murder.

He did so because he said the murders took place in the course of sexual conduct by Levy, meaning a whole life term was therefore the appropriate sentence.

He said Levy was ruthless, he was seeking his own sexual satisfaction and Levy therefore was given a whole life order.

What this means is there will never be a chance of parole for him.

When a person gets a life sentence with a minimum term, they can apply for parole once that minimum term has expired and, if successful, be released from prison on licence.

That won't happen for Levy. He will die in prison. He will be in prison for the rest of his life.

The Metropolitan Police could have fundamentally done better in the case of Simon Levy, commissioner Mark Rowley tells the BBC.

Rowley says the force has apologised for its part in the case, which has had "really tragic consequences".

The commissioner describes it is a "whole system failing", criticising the decision of the courts and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to bail Levy.

He adds: "We are seeing far too many cases day in and day out, knife carrier sex offenders who have been bailed when a few years ago they have been remanded in custody."

• For context, the CPS, Metropolitan Police and British Transport Police have all previously admitted failings around the case. The CPS said its actions "fell short" of its standards - and in particular "we could and should have taken a more robust approach to representations about bail, based on the information available"

Image source, PA Media

Former safeguarding minister Jess Phillips tells the BBC there has been a "litany of failures" against women and girls in this case.

Reacting to Simon Levy's sentencing, Phillips tells BBC Radio 4's World at One programme that at least the second murder could have been avoided.

• For context, Levy was arrested on suspicion of murder after killing Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo. He was released under investigation. He is then arrested again for a series of sexual assaults on London trains - but is later bailed

"You can't help but conclude that certainly in the case of the second murder, I feel I can categorically say it could have been avoided had the state not failed", she says.

Phillips adds: "Of course it was Levy who undertook that action, but the state could definitely have prevented it so it has to bear that responsibility."

The Labour MP says "an idiot could have seen that [Levy was a risk]."

Cachella Smith
Reporting from court

Image source, Metropolitan Police

As my colleague Elliot just reported, family members of the two murder victims attended court today to listen as Simon Levy was sentenced.

Sheryl Wilkins' sister, Lindsey Hicks, addressed Levy directly - telling him he had "destroyed" lives.

She spoke emotionally of having to use public transport to travel to court to listen to proceedings - the same setting in which Levy is now known to have attacked other women.

In a prepared statement, Sheryl's mother called his not guilty plea "cowardly" and added she feels "completely broken" - while Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo's daughter's voice broke a number of times as she told the court her mum had been a "beautiful woman inside and out".

The surviving victim had written a statement that was read out by a member of the prosecution team. Explaining how she was working to get her life back on track, she said Levy had taken her "soul" and her "dignity" - she is now working to "try and forget this monster".

The family members in court were at times emotional but appeared determined to listen one final time to the horrible details of the attacks on their loved ones.

Elliot Burrin
Reporting from court

Serial sex offender Simon Levy showed no emotion as he was sentenced to life in prison for the murders of two women and the violent rape of a third.

Throughout proceedings, family members and those sat in the public gallery were visibly emotional, wiping their eyes with tears and covering their mouths. When the judge delivered the sentence, family members audibly gasped.

The distressing impact of Levy's crimes were evident throughout the hearing as statements were read out to the court.

Lindsey Hicks, the sister of victim Sheryl Wilkins, spoke through tears and deep breaths as she said Levy had "destroyed our lives".

Nazly Fuenmayor Valencia, the daughter of Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo, said there was an emptiness that couldn’t be filled after her mother’s life was “taken so cruelly”.

Killer Simon Levy showed no reaction, staring intently forward as the judge's sentencing remarks were delivered.

Image source, Julia Quenzler

Simon Levy has just been taken out of the courtroom, having been sentenced for the murders of Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo and Sheryl Wilkins, and the violent rape of a third surviving victim.

Here's what we heard in court.:

• Levy was sentenced to a whole life order, and concurrent life sentences for the other charges he was found guilty of - this means he will never leave prison
• In his sentencing remarks, Judge Mark Lucraft KC described Levy's "morbid fascination" with sex, crime and rape - and highlighted the "striking similarity" between the two murders, something he said was "deeply troubling"
• The judge told Levy that he was "clearly someone who ruthlessly exploits others", noting that he committed his attacks against vulnerable women

• Lucraft also praised the "considerable courage" of Levy's surviving victim in coming to court to give evidence against him
• We also heard moving impact statements from the victims' families. Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo's daughter remembered her mother as "a beautiful woman inside and out", while Sheryl Wilkins' sister told Levy that he had "destroyed our lives"

Delivering Levy's sentence, judge Mark Lucraft KC said he was "acutely aware that whole life terms are sentences that should be considered for rare cases".

But in this case "the starting point has to be a whole life order", he said.

In his judgement, the judge said aggravating features outweigh any mitigating features and "this cannot be described in any way as a borderline case".

The judge said: "You will be in prison for life and there will be a whole life order."

Returning briefly to the judge's sentencing remarks.

The judge talked about the victim impact statements read to court earlier.

Referencing the surviving victim, the judge said it takes "considerable courage" for her to come to court and give evidence as she did, adding that it is "far from easy".

He said there was a psychological, mental and physical and financial impact as a result of Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo's murder - adding that her daughter said her mother had come to the UK to give her children a better life.

The judge also referred to the sister of Sheryl Wilkins - who spoke of the "destruction" to their lives as a cause of Levy's actions - and that Sheryl will be kept alive through the "memories and stories of her".

Cachella Smith
Reporting from court

The judge has just finished sentencing Simon Levy - here's a recap of the sentence he just handed down:

For the two murders Levy received whole life orders,meaning he must spend the rest of his life in prison.

For the two rape charges he received life imprisonment with a minimum term of 12 years. These sentences will run concurrently.

The other charges - grievous bodily harm with intent, and non-fatal suffocation - were considered within the context of the sentences for the rapes, and therefore did not result in a separate sentence.

Elliot Burrin
Reporting from court

Simon Levy is escorted out of the court.

His face shows no visible emotion as he stands up and leaves the dock.

The judge then adjourns proceedings. Family members stand up and talk to one another before slowly filing out.

That marks the end of Levy's sentencing - we'll bring you the rest of the judge's comments shortly.

Amy Johnston
Reporting from court

Both families are gripping each others hands as they listen to the final sentence being read out.

Elliot Burrin
Reporting from court

A family member in the court gasps aloud, saying "yes", as the judge says the starting point for the sentence is a whole life order.

Upstairs in the public gallery, a woman is in tears and others are holding their hands as the judge continues to deliver the sentencing.

Simon Levy has been sentenced to a whole life order.

He is also sentenced to concurrent life sentences for the other charges he was found guilty of.

The judge is still going through the details of his sentence - you can watch live at the top of the page.

The "striking similarity" between the deaths of Valencia-Trujillo and Wilkins is "deeply troubling", says judge Mark Lucraft KC.

The concern is "more stark" when the three attacks are "seen alongside the material" that authorities found on Levy's phone and computer, Lucraft says.

This material revealed a "clear interest" in sex, and in particular rape and crime - with the judge telling Levy that he "appears to have a morbid fascination" with these things.

Levy has "significant convictions for sexual offences upon women", the judge adds.

The judge says Levy was arrested on 1 April 2025 and was interviewed about the murder of Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo, but that he made not comment in response to all questions.

He says he met with Sheryl Wilkins on 24 August that year, with the pair seen on CCTV going to the same car park that the attack in January took place.

He adds that Levy was seen leaving the area 50 minutes later, with Sheryl's body being found later by police.

The judge says Sheryl had "no fewer than 83" areas of injury or marks, including on her head and upper body.

He adds that the pathologist was unable to give her cause of death - and some injuries on her body were not caused on the night, while the toxicology report revealed a history of drug use.

Judge Mark Lucraft KC moves on to 16 March 2025, when he met the second victim, Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo.

There is CCTV footage of her walking in London, which are the last sightings of her alive.

Levy is seen several times on CCTV footage, later that day making his way to Elephant and Castle tube station.

About 24 hours later, on 17 March 2025, a 999 call was made and the police alerted to an unresponsive female who was found in a stairwell at Wendover House. Carmenza was found lying face down. She was wearing a jacket and several layers of clothing, "her trouser bottoms were not fully pulled up".

The post mortem could not give a cause of death, but the pathologist showed numerous injuries, some of which were recent and were to the head, neck, torso, upper and lower limbs.

There was also bruising to the neck. Toxicology revealed Carmenza had taken cocaine, he says.

Examination confirmed DNA from the blood matched Levy's DNA and forensic examination showed DNA from semen matching his, the judge adds.