A CABBIE whose arrest was botched by bungling police officers may be Britain’s most prolific sex offender, police say.

John Worboys, 53, of Rotherhithe, was jailed indefinitely in April 2009 for drugging and sexually assaulting women passengers.

An Independent Police Complaints Commission report in January slammed Greenwich police officers who, following a previous arrest of Worboys, failed to properly follow up the case, leaving him free to assault more women.

Five officers were disciplined over the matter and borough commander Chief Superintendent Chris Jarratt was moved on by Scotland Yard soon after the blunders were made public.

At the time of his trial, detectives linked Worboys to at least 85 crimes.

But Scotland Yard has said that a number of women had come forward since he had been behind bars, and that his alleged victims now number more than 100.

It is thought there may be still more victims who have not come forward.

Not all the women claimed the former stripper and adult film star had raped them, but all accused him of sexually motivated offences. The attacks are believed to have been carried out over a period of about five years, between 2002 and 2007.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "There is a high possibility there are more victims out there. The difficulty is that a large number of the women do not know whether they were raped or not. The only person who knows is Worboys himself. We hope he might consider telling us in the future what went on."

In March 2009 Worboys was found guilty at Croydon Crown Court in south London of assaulting 12 women during an 18-month reign of terror in the capital.

The cabbie offered them Champagne spiked with powerful sedatives to celebrate a fictional lottery win, backed up with a carrier bag stuffed full of cash.

Worboys was told he must serve a minimum of eight years in prison for the attacks and would not be released until parole officials were convinced he did not pose a threat to women.