Weekend Writer

Most policemen hate paper­work but Bob Roach is an exception. The former Detec­tive Chief Inspector and now security officer at Hemel is very much at home with a pen in his hand.

He wrote a couple of short stories a few years back and a friend suggested that he sent one of them in to Weekend Magazine. Much to his surprise they decided to use it and it earned Bob £50.

The story, entitled 'Night a Big Softie Helped Me Collar Three Robbers', was pub­lished under the Reader's Own Story section.

It explained how the Roach's pet dog, Dirk, helped catch three men suspected of armed robbery. Although Dirk wouldn't hurt a fly, the robbers believed he was a trained police dog and sur­rendered quietly.

Mind you, Bob had to stand on Dirk's tail to get him to bark and snarl, otherwise the pet dog would probably have gone up to the men and licked their hands!

Bob spent 25 years in the Metropolitan Police before becoming a security officer and he has a wealth of stories to tell about his time on the Force.

He is keen to write a full-length book about his police experiences. "I'll get down to it one day, it's just a question of finding the time," says Bob.

Taken from BP Oil News - January 1983