Simon Levy, a 40-year-old from Tottenham, has been sentenced to a whole life term at the Old Bailey, ensuring he will never be released from prison. The sentencing follows his conviction for the murders of 53-year-old Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo in March 2025 and 39-year-old Sheryl Wilkins five months later, as well as the rape of a third woman.
Judge Mark Lucraft KC, in delivering the sentence on Wednesday, described Levy as an individual who ruthlessly exploited others for personal sexual gratification. The judge noted that Levy possessed a “morbid fascination” with sexual violence and crime, evidenced by his internet history and collection of press clippings. Given the aggravating factors, the judge concluded that a whole life order was the only appropriate outcome for such a series of attacks on vulnerable women.
Lucraft added he was “acutely aware that whole life terms are sentences that should be considered for rare cases.” However, he emphasized that in this specific case, “the starting point has to be a whole life order,” as the aggravating features significantly outweighed any mitigating factors, noting that “this cannot be described in any way as a borderline case.”
The sentencing follows admissions of failure from both the Metropolitan Police and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) regarding a series of disastrous decisions that left Levy free to roam the streets. At the time of his final crimes, Levy was on bail and under police monitoring. The Independent Office for Police Conduct is currently examining how he was managed over a four-year period, spanning from his first sexual assault conviction in September 2021 to his final arrest in September 2025.
Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley described the handling of Levy’s case as a “whole system failing.” Following the sentencing, Sir Mark stated that the Met had apologized for its part in the oversight. He noted the concerning reality that Levy had been caught and charged previously, with police repeatedly seeking to have him remanded in custody because he was too dangerous to be at large. Sir Mark argued that the criminal justice system is currently struggling and that it is “not acceptable” for dangerous offenders to be granted bail.
During the trial, the court heard that Levy suffocated both murder victims in sexually motivated attacks. Valencia-Trujillo was discovered in an abandoned block of flats on the Aylesbury estate in south-east London, while Wilkins was found behind a car park wall near Tottenham High Road. The woman Levy raped had previously provided police with his home address, but she was not formally interviewed by investigators until after Levy had already committed his murders.
The court also heard victim impact statements that highlighted the devastating personal toll of Levy’s actions. Lindsey Hicks, the sister of Sheryl Wilkins, addressed the defendant directly in court. “Sheryl was a beautiful soul who you cruelly took away in an evil act of crime,” she stated. “We should have been growing old together like sisters do and be there to support each other. Instead, I’m having to realise that one day in the near future I will be older than my big sister.”
Hicks told Levy that he had destroyed their lives and that they would never recover from the loss. She concluded her statement by telling him, “I hope you rot in prison for the rest of your life.” Mary Wilkins, the mother of the victim, expressed a “small measure of comfort” knowing that Levy is now permanently incarcerated and has been prevented from harming anyone else.
Jurors were presented with evidence of Levy’s extensive history of offending, which included a string of convictions for attacking women dating back to July 2018. Earlier in 2025, Levy was also convicted of sexually assaulting 11 other women, 10 of whom were targeted on trains and the London Underground. Despite the weight of evidence, Levy had declined to give evidence during his trial, though he had pleaded not guilty to the two murders and two counts of rape.
The case has drawn sharp criticism from political figures, including a Labour MP who remarked that “an idiot could have seen” that Levy posed a severe risk to the public. The systemic failures identified in this case have sparked a broader debate about how police and the courts handle registered sex offenders who continue to pose an active threat.
The sentencing process concluded with the judge reaffirming the finality of the punishment. “You will be in prison for life and there will be a whole life order,” Lucraft stated. This sentence ensures that the defendant, who had been monitored by police throughout his period of escalation, will remain behind bars for the remainder of his life.
As the legal proceedings conclude, the focus remains on the ongoing investigation by the police watchdog. The case of Simon Levy serves as a grim reminder of the consequences of procedural failures within the justice system, leaving families to grapple with the knowledge that their loved ones’ deaths might have been prevented had the existing safeguards been applied effectively.
During his trial, jurors heard Levy had a string of convictions for attacking women dating back to July 2018, including one carried out against a prison officer in 2022.
Earlier this year, Levy was also convicted of sexually assaulting 11 other women, 10 of them on trains and the Tube in London between 2023 and 2025.
He said the “multi-agency failings need a multi-agency review” and that lessons should be learned and acted on.
He added: “We are seeing far too many cases day in and day out – knife carrier sex offenders who have been bailed when a few years ago they had been remanded in custody.”
He added: “Time and time again, opportunities to stop him were missed.
“No woman or girl should be, or feel, unsafe in London,” the mayor added.
In a letter to the director of public prosecution, Nick Timothy, the shadow justice secretary, wrote: “Levy was free to do this partly because your organisation failed to make the case for this sexual predator to be put back behind bars, in spite of warnings from others.”
Former safeguarding minister Jess Phillips told the there had been a “litany of failures”.
“Of course it was Levy who undertook that action, but the state could definitely have prevented it so it has to bear that responsibility,” she told Radio 4.
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