Cop accused of rape who WON legal challenge to avoid being sacked by Met boss is pictured

THIS is the cop accused of being a rapist who won a legal challenge to avoid being sacked by Met boss Sir Mark Rowley.

Sgt Lino Di Maria was pictured with the commissioner in 2022 while working on a unit tackling violence against women and girls a year before having his warrant card taken from him a year later after failing his vetting.

A High Court judge ruled this week the Met breached the Human Rights Act by using a re-vetting programme to sack the married father, who denies any wrongdoing.

He was separately accused of multiple rapes, sexual assault and domestic violence but was never charged with any offence or had disciplinary misconduct proved against him.

The landmark court ruling by Mrs Justice Lang has paved the way for more than a hundred suspected rogue cops to return to the Met after being dismissed or forced to resign.

Di Maria, in his 40’s, was on the VAWG unit for more than a year and briefed Sir Mark when the Met chief visited the South London police office where he worked.

Sir Mark was unaware of Di Maria’s background at the time he met him or that he was under review by a Met investigation, code-named Operation Onyx, into more than 1,600 officers and staff with sex and domestic violence complaints against them.

It was set up after armed protection officer Wayne Couzens murdered Sarah Everard in March 2021.

Met boss Sir Mark later launched a scheme to purge his force of rogue cops by re-vetting and sacking them.

Sgt Di Maria, who joined the Met, in 2004 - was accused of two sexual assaults and rapes in cars in public car parks on December 3 and 9, 2018.

The following year he was further separately accused of a rape and indecent exposure back in 2015.

He faced an allegation of sending inappropriate messages to colleagues in 2019 and alleged inappropriate behaviour at work two years later, which included sending intimate messages to a vulnerable woman.

And an ex-partner accused him of domestic abuse in 2022.

Married father Sgt Di Maria denied all the allegations and was never charged with any criminal offences.

He was found to have no case to answer on the misconduct allegations.

However, some unspecified matters were recorded as “adverse information” and his vetting was removed under the Met’s Operation Assure re-vetting scheme in September 2023.

He lost an appeal against the decision last year.

Sgt Di Maria applied for a judicial review and was backed by the rank and file Met Police Federation branch.

Mrs Justice Lang ruled on Tuesday the Met was in breach of Article 6 of the Human Rights Act by denying Sgt Di Lino a fair hearing.

The judge branded the re-vetting procedure “not fit for purpose,” adding the force’s powers “do not extend to the dismissal of a police officer by reason of withdrawal of vetting clearance.”

Her decision means that 96 cops who have already been dismissed or forced to resign under the Operation Assure re-vetting programme, will now return to the Met.

They will be put on special leave along with another 29 suspect cops already on gardening leave.

Meanwhile, over 100 more cops are in the early stages of vetting reviews which will now be cancelled until the Met appeals against yesterday’s ruling.

The hard-up Met, already making massive cuts to front-line services, will be forced to pay the officers full salaries despite them being unable to work.

Sir Mark said it was a “ridiculous waste of money” and called on the Government to bring in new rules “as a matter of extreme urgency.”

He said it was “absolutely absurd” that the Met could not sack officers who could not be trusted to work with women.

Sir Mark added: “Being able to sack officers who fail vetting is absolutely critical.”

However, Met Fed General Secretary Matt Cane said: “This Judicial Review was about ensuring a fair, but more importantly, legal process was in place.

“The Metropolitan Police must recognise the law and - it goes without saying - operate within it.

“That’s what today’s ruling clearly emphasises.”

Mr Cane said he had first raised objections about the legality of Operation Assure two years ago – but was “ignored.”

He added: “I remain curious as to why those in Scotland Yard thought they could operate outside of the law when it comes to police officers.”

Mr Cane said the “good, brave and hard-working colleagues we represent are the first to say that the small minority of officers who are not fit to serve should not be in the police service.”

But he added, “Police officers - like all people - need to be treated within the law of the land and they have the right to representation and a fair process.”

The Home Office said the Government “is acting rapidly to introduce new, strengthened rules that will help forces dismiss officers who cannot maintain vetting clearance.”

A spokesperson said: “It is essential for public confidence in policing that the strictest standards are upheld and maintained. Individuals who fall below the high standards the public expects should not be police officers.”