To date, the Commissioner has been busy meeting staff and officers and getting a greater insight into the Square Mile following his move from Kent Police, where he had been deputy chief constable since 2007.
In the coming weeks, the Commissioner will be meeting a cross-section of representatives from the local community.
“I look forward to developing and nurturing close working relationships with residents, business leaders and elected members,” said Leppard.
“I will be listening carefully to any concerns or problems they may have, and will respond accordingly.”
Speaking about his officers and staff, the Commissioner added: “I’m proud to lead a force that comprises of good people who care about what they do and how they do it. Together, we will continue to provide top-class policing within The City.”
Early career at Surrey Police
Leppard joined Surrey Police back in 1984. He served as a BCU Commander at North West Surrey, but has spent most of his service as a detective investigating a broad range of criminality and gaining specialist experience in hostage negotiation, intelligence and covert operations.
As a senior investigating officer he has led investigations into homicides and other serious crimes, including a contract killing ‘Commatteo Murder’ which resulted in the largest covert investigation ever undertaken by Surrey Police.
More recently as assistant chief constable in Kent, Leppard led the investigation into the ‘world’s largest’ GB pound 53 million Securitas cash depot robbery, a story reported on SMT Online.
He has extensive experience of developing crime reduction strategies, and was also instrumental in formulating the Kent Police response to Neighbourhood Policing.
During his career, Leppard has received three chief constable’s commendations throughout and, in 2001, completed a Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA).
In December 2007, he was appointed to the post of deputy chief constable for Kent Police and, since that time, has led both the force re-structuring and collaboration programmes.
Leppard’s former command roles within Kent included assistant chief constable with responsibilities for specialist operations and, more recently, area operations.
