SOUTH Cumbria’s new top police officer has 23 years of service under his belt and tackled terrorism, child exploitation and drugs. Superintendent Rob O’Connor was also in charge of the inquiry teams after the Derrick Bird gun rampage in west Cumbria. He spoke to Chief Reporter SUZANNE MURPHY

YOU can tell Superintendent Rob O’Connor is extremely proud to be back serving his local community because of the smile on his face.

He grew up in Askam, with both his parents working at the K Shoe factory. He attended Dowdales School in Dalton before heading into Barrow shipyard as an electrician.

Then in 1991, aged 21, he achieved his ambition of joining the force as a local bobby.

He has worked his way up through the ranks to become south Cumbria’s area commander and has a wealth of experience that makes him perfect for the top job.

The superintendent knows it’ll be tough but relishes the challenge and working in the area he loves, in and among the community he grew up in.

He said: “It offered job security, an opportunity to serve the public and to be able to work on a different thing each day.

“I started off working as a PC in Barrow. At that time there weren’t as many specialist departments as there are now, it was just uniform and CID.

“As things have moved on over the years it has been necessary to adapt so we can tackle offences such as cyber-crime, child sexual exploitation and public protection.

“I remember going out and walking my beat in all weathers with fewer cars.

“Computers were in their early days, which has changed significantly now with the advances in technology which now see officers recording their notes on a digital handheld device.

“A big difference is also the night-time economy in Barrow town centre. Every night used to be really busy when the pubs and clubs closed, but that’s no longer the case as people can’t afford to be out every night.

“I moved to work in Ulverston in 1995 as a PC then back to Barrow as a detective in the intelligence unit for four years in 1997. One of the biggest jobs I remember at that time is the Lady in the Lake and Gordon Park.

“I also worked on the teams investigating the murder of Barry Green in Barrow Park in 1999, and sadly the two double murders of Derek McKell and Lorraine Richardson at Trent Vale in 1999, and Jennifer Garratt and Anthony McIntee on Frome Road in 2000. “There were also a number of high profile drugs cases that I worked on with the drugs squad too.”

The officer added that in 2001, he went back into uniform as a patrol sergeant and then worked as a custody sergeant.

He said: “I worked in the cells for 18 months and found it really useful later on in my career when I was in charge of serious and complex crimes as I understood about detention times and when people needed to go to court.

“In 2006 I moved back to being a detective, and worked as a sergeant involved in covert policing and intelligence.”

Two years later he headed up to police headquarters in Penrith and became part of Cumbria’s Major Investigation Team before moving to the Serious and Organised Crime Unit in early 2009.

Supt O’Connor added: “In 2010 I was a temporary detective chief inspector for 15 months, and for four months I was in charge of the inquiry teams working on the Derrick Bird shootings

“Our job was to gather evidence for the coroner’s court to show that Derrick Bird was responsible for the shootings – and we were investigating 12 murders and 15 attempted murders.

“We captured CCTV, forensic and witness evidence as you would for a normal murder inquiry for a criminal court as I wanted the families to understand how their loved ones had died.”

The senior officer said he also spent a lot of time tackling organised crime groups who were involved in drug supply, and a lot of those caught at the time were locked up, with those in charge being sentenced from 12 to 14 years each.

In 2013 he was promoted to DCI, and became a senior investigating officer. He was involved in the investigation of a Carlisle killing in 2011 and the murder of Haverigg woman Stacey Mackie in Kendal in 2012.

From 2013 onwards, he led his officers in the fight against organised crime, counter terrorism and undercover work online, tackling child sexual exploitation. He took up the role of south Cumbria’s area commander last month.

Speaking about his new role he said: “I’m really pleased to be back here as the superintendent of policing in south Cumbria, but I’m also immensely proud to be in charge of the area in which I was born and bred.

“I see some exciting times ahead with the new build police station, which without doubt will be a fantastic facility for us. It is state of the art, and a really fit for purpose building which will allow for the delivery of policing services for many years to come.

“I aim to build on the success of my predecessors and ensure south Cumbria remains a safe place for people to live and work and for those coming into the area on holiday.

“The chief constable’s vision is to keep Cumbria safe and as a superintendent I aim to make sure people are safe and feel safe.

“People can rest assured that I will work hard with my staff to make sure we deliver results and are successful, with the public receiving the service they expect.”

Supt O’Connor lives locally with his wife and two daughters, who are both studying at university and aim to follow their father into public service, with one studying medicine and the other nursing.

Now that he is not commuting topolice headquarters in Penrith, he is hoping to have some spare time to play golf.