A Met detective who led the murder investigation into the brutal strangling of a Deptford man and his daughter has been given a special award.
Detective Chief Inspector Simon Harding was the lead detective on the murder inquiry into Deptford sex offender Noel Brown and his daughter Marie in December 2017.
Mr Brown, a 69-year-old registered sex offender, had been throttled to death at his flat in Deptford’s New Butt Lane and his mutilated corpse was missing one of his legs and parts of both arms.
His daughter, Marie, a creche worker from Nunhead, was also strangled to death as she went to check up on her father.
READ MORE: Revealed: The full story of how cops solved brutal Deptford double murder
It is believed she disturbed suspected killer, Nathaniel Henry, a 37-year-old youth worker from Peckham, as he was dismembering her father’s body. Henry never stood trial for the crime, as later died by overdose in a locked electricals cupboard near his home.
DCI Harding described it at the time as the among the most unusual cases he had ever come across in his career.
Now the veteran detective has been awarded Senior Investigating Officer of the year for his work on that and other high-profile cases.
“To be recognised for my work is great, but this can only be achieved when you have a fantastic team behind you,” he said.
“I am so fortunate to have a hard working team of detectives and police staff who give everything to every investigation, all for the benefit of the families who have lost their loved ones.”
Among the other high-profile cases led by Harding include Operation Ridleypark, in which the bodies of Henriette Szucs and Mihrican Mustafa were found in a padlocked freezer in Canning Town.
Murderer Zahid Younis received a 38 year sentence for the sickening crime, even though no cause of death could be established.