Suspended Chief Constable Kerr in shock retirement

Devon and Cornwall Police Chief Constable Will Kerr has announced that he is to retire

- By CARL EVE

DEVON and Cornwall Police’s Chief Constable has unexpectedly announced his retirement, two years after he was suspended by the Crime Commissioner who appointed him to the role.

Chief Constable Will Kerr OBE was suspended shortly before July 26, 2023 by Police and Crime Commissioner Alison Hernandez following a mandatory referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). He had been appointed to the role in late 2022 and effectively only served in that role for seven months before his suspension.

Mr Kerr was a former Assistant Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). He had worked for the PSNI for 27 years, later joining Police Scotland before he joined Devon and Cornwall Police in December 2022.

However, the Police Ombudsman of Northern Ireland (PONI) confirmed that it had begun a criminal investigation into “serious allegations of sexual offences” against Chief Constable Kerr “on June 16, 2023”.