A senior Metropolitan Police officer is leaving his London beat to replace the Highlands and Islands police chief, the Press and Journal can reveal.
Chief Superintendent Rob Shepherd will take over from Ch Supt Conrad Trickett, who is moving into a national role helping to shape policing in a digital world.
The newcomer, who lived and went to school in Kinloss, Moray more than 40 years ago, has described the “big decision” to return to Scotland as “very easy” to make.
And Assistant Chief Constable (ACC) for the north, Emma Bond welcomed the “wealth of diverse experience” that she said he will bring to the region.
“Maintaining public confidence in policing has never been so important and it is absolutely crucial that the right people are in place to ensure that local, community policing remains at the heart of what we do,” the ACC explained.
The new divisional commander announced his career move on Twitter, where he posted a picture of himself sitting on a bench next to a dog at Roseisle beach in Moray.
He tweeted: “It is official – good bye MPS, hello Police Scotland….Divisional Commander Highlands and Islands – My new dog walk”.
In response to replies to his tweet, the former Moray schoolboy explained that he’s been visiting the area since he was five years old.
He also said that he expects to start his new job on January 16 next year.
It is official – good bye MPS, hello Police Scotland…. Divisional Commander Highlands and Islands – My new dog walk: pic.twitter.com/yhFowtDIZM
— Chief Superintendent Rob Shepherd MPS (@RobGShepherd) November 19, 2022
It’s understood that the transferring Chief Superintendent may need to undergo up to three weeks of “conversion training”, potentially followed by “more targeted training” later on.
As part of his current role in policing the UK’s capital, he leads a team that coordinates and supports 20,000 front-line officers.
Counter-terrorism experience
On July 7 2005, four suicide bombers detonated four explosive devices on three of the London Underground’s trains and on a double-decker bus.
The atrocities, which came to be known as the 7/7 terror attacks, killed 52 people and remain the worst single act of terrorism against the UK, after the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 above Lockerbie.
In the aftermath of the 7/7 attacks, Chief Superintendent Shepherd joined Special Branch before spending more than a decade in counter-terrorism policing.
The high-ranking officer has also spent a year as Senior Staff Officer to the Met Police’s Assistant Commissioner for Professionalism.
He then took on a Superintendent role, overseeing response policing for the south of London.
At the time, the job involved leading a team of 700 uniformed officers who policed a population of around one million people.
Sarah Everard murder
During the posting, 33-year-old Sarah Everard was kidnapped, raped, and murdered by Metropolitan Police officer Wayne Couzens in the south London patch, on March 3 last year.
The Baroness Casey Review, which began in February of this year, was launched in response to “grave levels of public concern” following the shocking incident.
Baroness Louise Casey’s independent review of the force’s culture and standards of behaviour is expected to finish by February of next year.
Some of the findings of her interim report on misconduct included:
- Officers and staff do not believe that action will be taken when concerns around conduct are raised
- Misconduct allegations relating to sexual misconduct and other discriminatory behaviour are less likely to result in a ‘case to answer’ decision
- The misconduct process does not find and discipline officers with repeated or patterns of unacceptable behaviour
Chief Superintendent Shepherd played a key role in the Met Police’s response to the report’s conclusions.
His predecessor, the current Highland and Islands’ police boss, Chief Superintendent Conrad Trickett was appointed to the job in July 2020.
Most recently, the Ch Supt oversaw the local policing response to the fatal shooting on the Isle of Skye, leading a press conference in the wake of a series of alleged gun attacks.
ACC Bond has shared her “personal and sincere thanks” to the outgoing divisional commander.
“He has been of immense support to me since I started in post,” she said. “I know he is well-respected among our partners in the Highlands & Islands.
“I wish him all the best for when he starts in his new role next year, and know he will continue to be a strong advocate for the north.”
