Bibaa Henry and Nicole Smallman: Ex-PCs lose appeal over murdered sisters photos

Two former Met Police constables jailed for taking and sharing photos of the bodies of murdered sisters Nicole Smallman and Bibaa Henry have lost their appeals against their sentences.

Deniz Jaffer, 48, and Jamie Lewis, 33, were guarding the crime scene in Fryent Country Park, north-west London, where the women were found in June 2020.

While at the park, the men left their posts to take photos of the sisters.

They were each jailed at the Old Bailey in December for 33 months.

The two former officers had both pleaded guilty to misconduct in a public office and were sacked by the Met Police in November.

Their Met Police tribunal heard the former PCs had described the sisters as "dead birds" in WhatsApp groups.

In an impact statement at their sentencing hearing, Mina Smallman, the mother of Ms Henry, 46, and Ms Smallman, 27, said what the men had done was a "betrayal of catastrophic proportions" and their behaviour amounted to a "sacrilegious act".

She and her husband Chris attended the Court of Appeal hearing on Wednesday, at which appeal judges Dame Victoria Sharp, Mrs Justice McGowan and Mrs Justice Farbey considered arguments. They said they would give their reasons for rejecting the men's appeal at a later date.

Barristers representing the former Met officers argued the sentences imposed by Judge Mark Lucraft QC were excessive.

Neil Saunders, who represented Jaffer, said the former officer had been attacked three times by three different inmates; while Lewis' barrister said he had been assaulted twice.

Barrister Joel Smith, for the Crown, said the men's appeals should be dismissed as their actions exacerbated the "unimaginable" bereavement the women's family had suffered.

Ms Henry and Ms Smallman had been celebrating Ms Henry's birthday at the park in Wembley when they were repeatedly stabbed by Danyal Hussein, then aged 19.

Hussain, from Blackheath, was found guilty of murdering them and jailed for a minimum of 35 years in October.

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