John Derek Radford (born John Worboys, June 1957) is a British convicted serial sex offender, known as the Black Cab Rapist. Worboys was convicted in 2009 for attacks on 12 women, committed between 2007 and 2008. In 2019, he was convicted for attacks on four more women, the earliest of which took place in 2000. Police say he may have had more than 100 victims.
Early life Born in Enfield, Middlesex, Worboys left school with few qualifications and was employed in jobs including milkman, junior dairy manager and security guard. He lived alone in Rotherhithe, south London, before marrying Kate Santos in 1991; the couple separated after four years. Santos stated that he sexually assaulted her daughter and that he confessed to following home and assaulting another woman. He was in a relationship at the time of his arrest in 2008.
From 1987 to 2000, Worboys worked as a stripper, using "Terry the Minder" as a pseudonym. As "Paul" and "Tony", Worboys directed and appeared in a pornographic film. He hired out his flat in Poole, Dorset, for making pornographic films.
In 1996, Worboys passed The Knowledge, an exam that allowed him to operate as a taxi driver within London. As well as working within London, Worboys worked as a taxi driver in Bournemouth while living at his holiday flat in Poole. He still continued to work as a stripper at night.
Offending Method Worboys was a London black cab driver who picked up women as fares late at night in central London. He would tell each woman he was celebrating coming into a large amount of money, usually by winning the lottery or at a casino, show her a carrier bag full of money to back up his story, and then suggest she drink a glass of champagne with him, which he had drugged with sedatives. After the drugs had taken effect, he would rape or sexually assault his victims. The women often had little memory of what had happened to them.
Police investigation The first reports to police concerning suspicious incidents experienced by women in black cabs dated from 2002. Over a period of six years, 14 women between 18 and 34 years of age went to the police to tell of the assault or other worrying experiences in a taxi, all of which had similarities. The police failed to link them.
2006 On 14 October, a 25-year-old woman met Worboys while attempting to return home from a night out in Fulham. After having a drink, she awoke to find Worboys assaulting her and attempting to put his hand inside her underwear. She had a limited memory of the incident, but reported it to the police.
On 10 November, a journalist boarded Worboys' taxi along Regent Street. She had a drink with him before falling unconscious. Hours later, the journalist woke up with no memory.
2007 On 5 April, a 22-year-old woman attempted to travel to Middlesex after attending a birthday party along Oxford Street. Worboys offered to transport her for £30. After she refused to take a drink that he had offered her, he became aggressive.
In the early morning of 29 June, Worboys picked up a young office worker along Regent Street, offering to take her to her home address in Tufnell Park. She could only recall during testimony that she drank 'champagne' that Worboys had given her and that he forcibly kissed her. However, the following day, she noticed bruises on her legs.
The fifth victim only recalled during testimony that she was drugged on an unknown date in July 2007.
A first-year student at Warwick University, Carrie Symonds (who later withdrew her right to anonymity), spent the night of 26 July 2007 out in Fulham. Whilst she was waiting for a bus home at a bus stop on King's Road, Worboys stopped and offered to take her home in his cab. She told him she only had £5 with her. He offered to accept this amount as payment, as he lived in the same area as her and was already heading that way. When offered alcohol, Symonds sensed danger and poured the 'champagne' on the floor of the taxi. After propositioning Symonds to perform a sex act on him for £350, which she refused, Worboys joined her in the back of the taxi. He then offered to give her £50 if she would drink a shot of vodka. Symonds drank the vodka. In her testimony, she stated she could not recall what happened further to this.
After Symonds alighted at her address, Worboys drove to Covent Garden in the West End of London. A 19-year-old Greenwich University student boarded Worboys' taxi, where he offered her a drink that she accepted. After she had the drink, he forced a pill into her mouth. She last remembered drinking in the back of the taxi, with no memory of anything else until the next day. It was found that Worboys had sexually assaulted her whilst she was unconscious. Police seized CCTV footage outside the student's halls of residence, which showed him carrying the unstable student out of his taxi at 0430 BST.
Worboys arrested for the first time
27 July From this incident, Worboys was identified, and police attended his address, with no reply. Worboys later attended a police station on 27 July, aware that police were looking to speak to him, accompanied by a solicitor. Worboys was arrested for the sexual assault of the 19-year-old student and held at a police station in Plumstead, southeast London, but was released on bail after police believed his protests that she had been drunk and kissed him as she left his cab, which was confirmed by CCTV footage. A search of Worboys' taxi and address were considered by police; however, they assumed that he would have disposed of anything by the time it was considered.
October In October, the case against Worboys in relation to the Greenwich University student was dropped. It would be another four months until the case was reopened.
Offending continues
Victim 8
21 December A victim reported to police that she was raped by Worboys during the journey from a nightclub in Tottenham Court Road to her home address in Putney. His DNA was located on a semen stain within her underwear.
2008
Victim 9
3 January A 29-year-old insurance broker was picked up by Worboys from a pub in the City, where he offered to take her home to Hornchurch, east London, for £20. Worboys asked the woman to perform a sex act, before he exposed himself. She reports this to police.
Victim 10
11 January A victim reported to police that she was drugged.
Victim 11
31 January A 31-year-old advertising director was collected by Worboys outside a nightclub in Soho, attempting to go to Herne Hill. She drank the 'champagne' that was offered and remembers Worboys assaulting her.
Victim 12
5 February After her first night out after her baby was born, a new mother was returning to her home address with a friend in Worboys' taxi, with the friend telling Worboys that she was on maternity leave. Worboys offered a drink, which was accepted by the mother, however, this left her feeling drowsy. She was discovered by her fiancé at their home address, slumped by the toilet, unable to move her legs. It is believed she was raped by Worboys.
Victim 13
14 February A 30-year-old journalist took Worboys' cab with a friend from outside a central London restaurant and was given a drink by him. She pretended to sip the drink, having noticed fizzing and a piece of foil in the glass. Worboys asked the woman if, for £5,000, she would perform a sex act. The woman contacted police after Worboys was later arrested.
Victim 14
15 February An 18-year-old woman and her friend took Worboys' cab from Oxford Street. Worboys dropped her friend off, before offering the woman a drink, which she initially refused. The woman lost consciousness, however when she came around, she was still in the taxi, with Worboys refusing to let her out.
Arrest and charge On 16 February 2008, Worboys was arrested. On 18 February 2008, Worboys was charged with one count of rape, four counts of sexual assault and six counts of administering a substance with intent [to commit a sexual offence]. The charges relate to an investigation into five attacks. Police launch an appeal for further information from the public. Total later rises to 14 as more victims come forward.
Physical evidence Police found a "rape kit" in the boot of Worboys' Fiat Punto, containing champagne miniatures, plastic gloves, a torch, vibrators, condoms, sleeping tablets, and an ashtray he used to crush drugs. In a safe in Worboys' garage, police found hand-written notes outlining his planned explanations if he was questioned again following his 2007 arrest. These papers were not used in court because he claimed to have written them for his solicitor.
Worboys' DNA was recovered from a semen stain in one woman's underwear, a wristband belonging to another woman was found in his house and a third woman's address was found in his notebook. Forensic evidence linked a vibrator found in his car to another survivor.
Other victims Worboys' arrest and charge was published in the media, with police appealing to the public for further information. As a result, Victim 13 contacted police.
Historic victims Victims that were unrelated to the original police investigation also emerged.
2002
Becki Houlston In 2002, Becki Houlston (who withdrew her right to anonymity) was walking to a taxi rank after a night out with friends in Bournemouth, Dorset, when she spotted a black cab, being driven by Worboys, which was unusual among the traditional yellow taxis in the town. Houlston flagged the taxi down as it drove towards her and got in. During the drive to her home address, Worboys told her that he had won at the casino, passing a drink through the glass partition of the taxi. Whilst she did not want to drink it, Worboys was insistent, so she took a sip.
Arriving outside her flat, Worboys wanted to top it up with more 'champagne', which Houlston stated tasted "absolutely vile and had a bitter taste to it". Houlston did not recall being sexually assaulted and the next morning, woke up with no ill effects, and went to work. She thought nothing more of the incident until 2009, when she saw the news that Worboys would give victims 'champagne', telling them he had won the lottery or at the casino. She saw his eyes and knew that the taxi driver who had done the same was Worboys, recalling how it sent a chill down her, knowing she was that close to him. This started flashbacks of the event and anxiety about getting into taxis. When Houlston learned Worboys was to be released, she was outraged and contacted a solicitor to make a statement. From this, the Metropolitan Police asked her to make a statement; however, the Crown Prosecution Service later told Houlston that there was not enough evidence to charge Worboys.
2003
'Deborah' 'Deborah' (not her real name) was picked up by Worboys after a work function. She later recalled Worboys claiming he had won the lottery, only having flashbacks of what occurred, with her next memory being waking up the following afternoon. Worboys had raped Deborah.
'Fiona'
'Fiona' (not her real name; described in court documentation as 'DSD') was picked up by Worboys, on her way home to her young baby, having been out celebrating a friend's birthday. Worboys told Fiona that he had won a lot of money and offered Fiona what she described as a "very strong orange liqueur". She later recalled that she remembered Worboys getting into the back of the taxi to have a cigarette with her, putting his arm around her, complimenting her. The next thing Fiona remembered was waking up in Whittington Hospital the following morning. She recalled that as soon as she woke up, she knew she had been raped, detailing that she discovered her tampon had fallen out and her vagina was covered with lubricant. On reporting it to police that morning, a urine sample was taken, indicating traces of the active ingredient within Nytol sleeping pills (however, at that time, the significance was not noted).
Trial