Roads policing officer Andy Clarke talks about his involvement in the Nottinghamshire Police documentary series ahead of second dramatic episode.
Constable Clarke is involved in one of the incidents which features on tonight’s show involving a van that was sighted being driven suspiciously.
It pulled over after initially failing to stop and the driver confessed to possession of cocaine and being uninsured. He also failed a roadside breath test and the vehicle was seized on suspicion of being stolen.
PC Clarke said himself and his colleague PC Phil Broughton had a ‘hunch’ that something wasn’t quite right: “It was about 2am on the 19 October 2019 and Phil and I were travelling down the high street at Mansfield Woodhouse when we noticed a van stationary at a junction.
“Something just didn’t feel right about the driver so as the van drove off we decided to follow it. After a short while we illuminated the blue lights but the driver didn’t stop and continued along a cut through to another street, but he realised we weren’t going anywhere and he pulled up.”
The hunch was right and the driver provided a positive roadside breath test and he was in possession of a bag of white powder. He was subsequently arrested. The van was also seized for further enquiries.
No further action was taken in relation to the van but the driver was reported for driving whilst over the specified drug limit, no insurance and possession of a cocaine. His court case has been delayed as aresult of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Constable Clarke or ‘Clarkie’ as he’s known has been on Nottinghamshire’s roads policing unit for just over two years. This is his second placement having served on the traffic department between 1997 and 2002.
He said: “I’m proud to serve on the roads policing team and enjoy the variety of what we do. It’s not just about pursuits and boxing cars in, although they are exciting parts of the job, it’s also about challenging driver behaviours and dealing with the fatal four: speeding, drink/drug driving, wearing seatbelts and using mobile phones.
“This is not to mention the work we do around heavy goods vehicles and making sure they are sticking to the rules.
“Ultimately it is about saving lives, reducing casualties and targeting criminals who use the roads. It is very varied and I love that you meet all kinds of people on a daily basis. I am also a pursuit tactical advisor and force debrief officer.”
“Away from his roads policing role there have been many highlights over the years, in particular being involved in the planning of the Olympic Torch coming through Nottinghamshire in 2012 and being responsible for the police planning of a couple of Tour of Britain cycle races coming through Nottinghamshire.
“He also particularly liked the opportunity to go up in the police helicopter.”
PC Clarke features on several of the Police Interceptors episodes which has three series worth of Nottinghamshire Police action lined up.
He said: “I just thought it would be fun. I tend to be quite light hearted and thought people would enjoy seeing the police in that way. My family and friends think it’s great, especially one of my sons, Finn, who currently has about 17 weeks service with the force and who I may be in trouble for mentioning now!”
In tonight’s episode, viewers can also see the force’s Operation Reacher team execute a dawn raid on a suspected drug dealer, officers dealing with a repeat drink driver desperate for the toilet and a suspected drug dealer found to have a car full of suspected cannabis cookies.
It will be aired at 8pm on Channel 5.
