Tributes paid to Leicestershire Police officer
Tributes have been paid to an officer from Leicestershire Police who died in hospital.
Detective Constable Steve Ford, 58, died on April 2 just a few days after becoming unwell and being admitted to Leicester General Hospital. The cause of his death has yet to be confirmed and Leicestershire Police said in a statement it was “not known yet” whether Covid-19 was a contributing factor.
Det Con Ford was based at Wigston where he worked in the modern slavery investigation team.
Chief Constable Simon Cole said: “This is extremely sad and tragic news for Leicestershire Police and the policing family and our thoughts and condolences are with Steve’s family and friends at this devastating time.
“Steve was a talented officer who lived by the values we hold so tightly in this force. It is a loss and a shock to us all. We are in touch with Steve’s family to provide any support we can at this impossible time.
“Welfare and support is also being provided to Steve’s colleagues within force. We will continue to honour Steve through our determination and service to protect others from harm.”
Chair of Leicestershire Police Federation, Dave Stokes, said: “The thoughts of all Leicestershire Police officers and the police family across the UK are with Steve’s wife and children, his family, friends and close colleagues at this awful time.
“Steve was a real dedicated family man. He had been a police officer for more than 20 years and was a tenacious, career detective who was renowned for never letting a case go. He just wouldn’t stop and was always truly determined to achieve justice for victims.
“His colleagues and I are completely devastated by the news. Steve was just a really, really popular police officer – no one would have ever had a bad word to say about him.”
The death of Det Con Ford was announced just as Dorset Police released the name of a sergeant serving with the force who died on March 30.
Ian Woodward, 56, had been unwell since Christmas and had been off sick since Thursday March 19. He went into self-isolation following guidance from the NHS and was initially thought to have died as a result of coronavirus but subsequently tested negative.
Dorset Police Chief Constable James Vaughan said: “We are all devastated to have lost a member of our police family. Our thoughts remain with his family, friends and very many colleagues at this extremely difficult time.
“Ian had been a police officer for almost 28 years. He joined the Metropolitan Police Service in October 1992 and undertook a role as a response officer in Fulham before he joined the Territorial Support Group. He transferred to Dorset Police in September 2001 as a patrol officer. He was promoted to sergeant in 2004 before taking on the role of custody sergeant.
“As a person Ian was a consummate professional and very popular officer. He knew his work inside out and was always there for his colleagues, providing advice and support when needed. He had a fantastic sense of humour and will be sorely missed.”
