On Monday, an officer at London's Metropolitan Police admitted that he has committed 49 crimes over 18 years, including 24 cases of rape, The Guardian reports.
"Absolutely sick"
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) - the British prosecution service - called the policeman's case one of the "most shocking" they had ever seen, according to CNN.
"The scale of the humiliation [the policeman] subjected his victims to is unlike anything I have ever encountered in my 34 years at the Crown Prosecution Service," CPS chief prosecutor Jaswant Narwal said, speaking outside court.
He praised the women who "bravely shared their traumatic experience" which has made it possible for the crimes to finally be discovered and brought to justice.
Several cases of police violence
The police authority has previously received a total of eight reports about the policeman's abusive behaviour.
The incident is one of a series of scandals involving serious police violence against women that have rocked the British police force in recent years.
Among other things, police officer Wayne Couzens was sentenced in 2021 to life imprisonment for the kidnapping, rape and murder of Sarah Everard.
The case sparked a national debate about violence against women.
Trust has been "broken"
After the latest case was discovered, Downing Street is now warning that confidence in the police force has been "shattered".
Sir Mark Rowley, head of London's police force since September, promises to reform the force "in a hurry".
- We have failed.
And I'm sorry.
He should not have been a police officer, he says in a statement.