A review has found a dangerous rapist who attacked a schoolgirl was not adequately monitored by police due to problems with a faulty computer system.

Kofi Taylor, 48, was recognized as high risk by Greater Manchester Police when he repeatedly raped the 15-year-old girl at her home in Trafford, Greater Manchester, in August 2021.

A serious case review found that Taylor’s effective monitoring was “undermined” by the introduction of the controversial GMP. iOP computer system and exacerbated by officers dealing with large caseloads.

Police said they “wholeheartedly apologized” to the victim and her family for “not protecting her.”

The review, carried out by the Trafford Strategic Safeguarding Partnership, revealed how in April 2021, four months before Taylor attacked the teenager, he had been accused of raping another woman in Greater Manchester.

He went on to breach his bail conditions four times while awaiting trial, but the report found that although the breaches had been recorded in iOPS, “system errors” meant they were attached to a duplicate record.

As a result, Sex Offender Management Unit officers were unable to view the registry entries and did not investigate or take action.

Taylor repeatedly raped the teenager in an attack that detectives later described as “shocking and deplorable.”

Former GMP detective Maggie Oliver said: “This man has clearly been a risk for many, many years, so why was he not dealt with appropriately?”

Oliver resigned in 2012 over the mishandling of widespread child sexual abuse cases in Rochdale and set up a foundation to support victims.

“I think this family will be very disappointed that this man – this rapist – was already recognized as a dangerous individual who posed a serial risk to the community,” he continued.

He said it was “well known” that police officers on duty at the time considered iOPS to be “not fit for purpose”.

“My understanding is that there are still risks and this case clearly shows a very serious risk,” he said.

Oliver also said he believed it was unlikely that Kofi Taylor’s case was a “unique or rare exception.”

“These failures could easily occur many more times and, in fact, could have already occurred,” he added.

The review said the large caseload within GMP’s Sex Offender Management Unit had contributed to a “lack of effective supervision” by officers.

Taylor had previously served a 10-year prison sentence for raping a man before moving to Greater Manchester in August 2019.

Despite being classed by a former police force as being at high risk of reoffending, he was never visited by his offender manager at GMP, the report said.

He also concluded that the relevant sergeant at the time would have been responsible for supervising about 1,000 offenders, while “a maximum of 200 would be reasonable.”

Lisa Longstaff, from the Women Against Rape campaign group, said the case was “appalling” and revealed how forces did not “properly prioritise” violence against women and children.

“It really tells the public that if you’re a woman or a child, your life and your safety aren’t worth much to them,” she said.

“It is no coincidence that when it comes to violence against women and children, we are often told that the police are overstretched.

“They don’t have the resources they need or there is some computer failure that prevents them from doing their job correctly.”

In March, Taylor pleaded guilty to four counts of rape of a female under 16 and breaking and entering with intent to commit a sexual offense. He was sentenced to life in prison and will serve a minimum sentence of 11 years and four months.

The safeguarding review concluded that it was not “certain that the breach would have been prevented” if appropriate checks had been carried out on Taylor, but found that opportunities had been missed to “take protective measures”.

GMP said the Sex Offender Management Unit had doubled in size since the failures and was “working tirelessly” to improve.

Deputy Chief Constable Steph Parker said: “We have made significant progress in eliminating the risk of this happening again with ongoing updates to our records management system to improve its effectiveness and usability.

“We have continued to offer support to the victim alongside specialist partners, but we know that nothing will reverse the trauma the girl and her family have suffered.

“We are committed to driving improvements and working with partners to ensure the public can have increasing confidence that we will protect them from dangerous criminals like Taylor.”

GMP announced in March 2022 that it would replace part of the £60 million iOPS system, but it is still unclear when that change will be completed.

An investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct found that the actions of two police officers involved in the case “fell below the expected standard” but stopped short of recommending disciplinary procedures.

The case has highlighted concerns about growing pressure on police teams responsible for policing registered sex offenders.

Figures showed there were 70,052 registered sex offenders in England and Wales at the end of March 2024, an increase of 52% since 2014.

Former Derbyshire Police Chief Constable Mick Creedon said the number of offenders needing to be supervised was “huge” and would “continue to grow”.

In 2023, Creedon published an independent review into how police monitored sex offenders in the community, calling for greater attention to the most dangerous offenders.

He said there was only a “small cohort” who were at very high risk and “it is on them that we should focus efforts and resources.”

“The volume (of criminals) and bureaucracy can overwhelm resources so much that they cannot focus on high-risk offenders,” he added.

The Home Office said violence against women and girls was a “national emergency” and that the government had made “a number of commitments to transform the criminal justice response to sexual violence”.