Ex-Met Police inspector lied about wife's death in Barbados

A former Metropolitan Police detective, investigated for sexually exploiting vulnerable crime victims it was his job to protect, later lied about the death of his wife in a Barbados hotel room, BBC Panorama has learned. Warren Arter first met his wife Rebekah after she reported domestic abuse to the Met. He then abused her for more than a decade.

Her death two years ago has never been properly investigated. Panorama can reveal failures by Barbados authorities to preserve evidence and interview hotel staff about Arter's suspicious behaviour before and after Rebekah's death, aged 47. Rebekah's family, speaking publicly for the first time, have told Panorama the Met failed her.

The cause of her death is still not known with a coroner in the UK recording an open verdict. We have also spoken to hotel staff who were called to the room in June 2024 after Arter rang reception to say his wife had collapsed. Arter, 54, took his own life in HMP Wandsworth, days after he had returned from Barbados and been arrested for allegedly abusing another woman.