Hundreds attend funeral of former Bedfordshire Chief Constable Alf Hitchcock

The funeral for former Bedfordshire Chief Constable Alf Hitchcock has taken place.

Hundreds of people turned out to pay their respects to the 58-year-old who died following a short illness on 16 June.

Mr Hitchcock was Bedfordshire Chief Constable between 2011 and 2013 and was serving as Chief Constable of the Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) when he died.

He was also made a CBE for his services to policing.

A guard of honour was formed outside St Paul’s Church in Bedford and a salute by Chief Officers were carried out at the service.

Deputy Chief Constable Mike Colbourne said: “The sheer number of people who turned out for today’s events, and the flow of tributes which have been paid since his untimely death, is testament to how highly regarded Alf was by the policing family and indeed the wider communities he served.

“He built tremendously strong relationships when he was with Bedfordshire and will always hold a special place in our hearts. We are proud to have called him our chief constable and I cannot speak highly enough of him as a man; it is incredibly heart-breaking to lose him at such a young age but his legacy will live on with the force. While nothing can stop the sadness we all feel at this time, I hope the show of respect and affection we have seen today will be of some comfort to his family and friends."

Mr Hitchcock began his policing career with Lancashire Constabulary in 1977 and later joined the Metropolitan Police Service where he served as commander for specialist operations, progressing to deputy assistant commissioner and acting assistant commissioner.

He left the force in 2009 to become deputy chief constable at the National College of Police Leadership, before joining Bedfordshire Police as chief constable in 2011.