Police chiefs among New Year's honours
TWO of the region’s most senior police officers have been recognised in the New Year Honours list.
Durham’s Chief Constable Jon Stoddart receives an OBE for his services to the police, while Jacqui Cheer, temporary chief constable of Cleveland Police, has been awarded the Queen’s Police Medal.
Mr Stoddart, 52, of Whitley Bay, who was deputy chief constable prior to getting the top job in 2005, already has the Queen’s Police Medal.
Married with a son, he recently led the independent review of Operation Weeting, the Metropolitan Police investigation into phone hacking by sections of the popular national press.
He said yesterday: “I’m surprised and delighted, and feel this honour is a reflection of the esteem with which Durham Constabulary is held at the highest level.
“This is more about the force than me, which is exactly how it should be.”
Ms Cheer, who led the investigation into the murders of five young women in the Ipswich area in 2006, was seconded to Cleveland Police from her role as deputy chief constable at Suffolk Police in the wake of Operation Sacristy, a criminal investigation which has resulted in the arrest of former chairman of Cleveland Police Authority, Dave McLuckie, and the force’s chief and deputy constables, Sean Price and Derek Bonnard.