Hi guys,
New member here. I've been dipping in and out of these threads, so sorry if I end up repeating anything that's already been stated..I've been scratching my head about how WC could have secured the trust of SE. It just doesn't make sense to me, the idea that someone as savvy and presumably street-wise as Sarah would have voluntarily entered the car of a stranger - even one who purported to be a police officer. I say this from the perspective of a street-savvy young woman who is of a similar age to Sarah and lives relatively close to Clapham. My initial thoughts were that there is no way in hell I would trust a lone man on a quiet street in pitch black dark, regardless of whether he had a police badge and looked like the real deal. I'm not sure I'm convinced by the theory that he approached her to question her about a potential Covid breach and what she was doing out on her own. It just seems too flimsy and unrealistic. This might have washed during the first lockdown, when rules were a lot more stringent, but not at this stage of a third lockdown. I reckon he was much more calculated than that and concocted a much more sinister plan to secure Sarah's trust. SE was clearly an intelligent young lady and I can only assume that she was paralysed with fear as a result of one of two possible scenarios. Naturally, when one's body goes into "fight or flight" mode, rational thinking will take a back seat as the instant need for self-preservation and safety takes over.
Here are my theories:
Scenario 1) he approached her with a seemingly innocuous query, e.g. maybe asking for directions, in a jovial and approachable manner. Looking at the pictures with his family, he definitely has the "big friendly giant" persona about him. The sort of friendly face you might see down the pub. He may have put her further at ease by telling a joke or two, to bide his time and further secure her trust. Or he may have shown his badge and claimed to have been looking for a missing person. Once she answered his query, I reckon he calmly took out a knife and told her to stay very quiet otherwise he would hurt her, before coaxing her into his car. Like any defenceless young woman in this situation, SE may have frozen in terror and acquiesced with his demand out of fear for her life.
Scenario 2) he approached her with his police badge, perhaps dressed in his London Met jacket or hat (do we have any confirmation of this yet?) to warn her that a dangerous man has been reported in the area, attempting to commit an attack on a lone woman. Naturally, like any young woman in this scenario, I probably wouldn't consider certain abnormalities of the situation e.g. no other police being present, as I'd be utterly terrified. He may have then lulled her into a false sense of security by reassuring her that his other colleagues were close by and looking for the offender, before offering to give her a lift home. Again, putting myself in the shoes of a petrified young woman on her own, the idea of a violent male on the prowl is the worst possible scenario I can conceive of, so being presented with the offer of a quick escape from the area by a police offer would offer me instant reassurance. Again, this is going on the theory that SE went into a state of panic, as anyone would on hearing this news, and her fight or flight defence had taken over her capacity to think rationally about the situation. This also has horrible echoes of the Libby/Reclowicz situation. A vulnerable and frightened young girl being approached by a seemingly friendly and trustworthy professional offering her a lift to safety.
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