Death of former GMP officer who was close to murdered colleagues classed as suicide.
Andrew Summerscales was one of the first on the scene of PCs Fiona Bone and Nicola Hughes's murder
Last updated 14th Feb 2017
A coroner has concluded a verdict of death by taking his own life in the case of a former Greater Manchester Police officer who was one of the first on the scene at the murder of PCs Nicola Hughes and Fiona Bone.
Andrew Summerscales was described as a hard-working, loyal man who loved his job as a police officer was a keen football fan -and fond of motorbikes but whose life was to change following the deaths of his two colleagues who were also his good friends.
South Manchester Coroner’s Court heard from Andrew’s son Joshua who confirmed his dad had been close to the two murdered officers.
Nicola Hughes and Fiona Bone were killed by Dale Cregan in September 2012, the court heard how Andrew was deeply affected by their death, being treated for post-traumatic stress disorder and spending several months on sick leave following the murders.
Andrew eventually quit Greater Manchester Police in 2015 as way of distancing himself from the tragedy and took a new job as delivery driver, his body was found in a park in Stalybridge in August 2016 hanging from a climbing frame- the same climbing frame he’d once found a man hanged in almost identical circumstances will off-duty as a police officer.
Concluding today’s verdict coroner Joanne Kearsley noted that Andrew had been the victim of several tragedies including being at Hillsborough as a young Liverpool fan.
She added that Andrew’s family, including his son Joshua who gave evidence, should be very proud of him.
Chief Superintendent Neil Evans, Territorial Commander for Tameside said: “Today’s inquest brings a conclusion to the investigation surrounding the tragic death of former GMP officer Andrew Summerscales.
“Andrew was a well-liked officer who left GMP in November 2015 and many former colleagues still hold fond memories of him.
“Like many people, Andrew was deeply affected by the murders of PCs Nicola Hughes and Fiona Bone and the impact of their deaths stayed with him until the day he died.
“At the time of that initial tragedy, GMP faced an unprecedented level of grief and trauma amongst staff and every effort was made to ensure that support was available and the wellbeing of the families, friends and colleagues was paramount to what followed.
“That included colleague to colleague support, opportunities to speak with professional councillors, referrals to occupational health services and also signposting to other professional services that specialise in helping people cope with grief.
“In more recent years, GMP has dedicated significant time and resources to developing its wellbeing programme to ensure that not just police officers, but staff across the force, are able to achieve a healthy work life balance.
“The wellbeing programme gives every employee of Greater Manchester Police the opportunity to seek support to help them cope with pressures they encounter every day in their work and professional lives.
“However, it is important to remember that people are individuals and will respond in different ways to offers of support.
“The wellbeing of our staff is crucial to the work that we do at every level and I would always encourage anybody who is struggling with daily stresses, whether they be personal or professional, to come forward and seek help.
“Finally, my thoughts today are very much with Andrew, his family, friends and former colleagues.”