Two men took photos of the bodies of Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman instead of guarding the scene.
Image source, Henry/Smallman family
The mother of two murdered sisters whose bodies were photographed by police officers says she is willing to meet with one of them.
Deniz Jaffer and Jamie Lewis were jailed for taking and sharing photographs of the murder scene of Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman.
Their mother, Mina Smallman, told BBC Radio 4 she was “repulsed by them” but was willing to meet with Jaffer.
The Met said it was “working hard to raise standards”.
Ms Smallman also criticised the force’s culture of toxicity and said the “system is clearly broken”.
Ms Henry, 46, and Ms Smallman, 27, had been celebrating Ms Henry’s birthday at a park in Wembley, north-west London, when they were repeatedly stabbed by Danyal Hussein.
Image source, PA Media
As part of her role as a guest editor of BBC Radio 4’s Today programme Ms Smallman spoke about her feelings towards the two former officers who photographed her daughters.
“I’m repulsed by them if I’m honest, and can’t wait to meet Jaffer,” she said.
“He said he would like to meet with the family and I don’t believe he thought that that could happen but it will, because he said he wanted it to happen and I’m going to give him that invitation.”
Jaffer and Lewis were jailed for 33 months each in December for their actions.
“The system, clearly is broken. There are things being allowed to happen within the police force,” she added.
“There’s obviously a core that are abusing their powers and a culture that is toxic. Well we need to change that because the only people who benefit from that are the perpetrators.”
She has called on people to share their experiences with the force and says as more people do “good police officers will feel more empowered to speak up, that’s what we want”.
Moving forward, Ms Smallman says her family will now take the time to grieve while continuing to campaign.
Image source, Met Police/PA Media
She said: “If I told you I had a plan I wouldn’t be telling the truth but I feel there’s something I can offer in the future.
“We need to continue the progress we are making on behalf of women, women of colour and abuse and changing the underground toxicity of the police force.”
A spokesman for the Met said:” The actions of former PCs Jaffer and Lewis were utterly unprofessional, disrespectful and deeply insensitive.
“We’re working hard to raise standards in the Met and have commissioned an independent review by Baroness Louise Casey to examine our culture and standards of behaviour. ”
It said since their actions came to light, officers had been reminded of their responsibilities in using social media.
“The behaviour of Lewis and Jaffer initially came to light because someone had concerns and anonymously reported them. We encourage all our officers and staff, and members of the public, to report wrong-doing and we will act on those reports, ” the spokesman added.