Sudden death of popular former officer
ONE of Huddersfield’s bestknown former detectives has died suddenly.
Russ Conlon, 54, collapsed late on Monday morning and died despite frantic efforts to save him.
Russ had been a beat bobby in the Holme Valley and was so good in the job he won the 999 Personality in the Examiner Community Awards in 2003 – and the same year he was named West Yorkshire Police’s top beat bobby.
He then joined CID in Huddersfield and was a field intelligence officer which involved collating all the reports on crimes and helping to draw up proactive ways to tackle them.
Russ wrote a weekly crimefighting column for the Examiner called Conlon on Crime and at the time he is thought to have been the only detective nationwide who was doing that.
After retirement, Russ and wife Clare moved to Flamborough on the east coast and Russ then worked for North Landing Boat Tours and Fishing Trips for more than three years.
He was helping owners Jo and Richard Emmerson to move a boat down on to Flamborough beach when he suddenly collapsed at 11.30am on Monday.
Jo said there were frantic efforts for about half an hour to save him but when the paramedics arrived they said he had probably passed away instantly.
She said: “No-one ever had a bad word to say about Russ – he was a smashing fella.”
North Landing own the last two cobbles to work out of Flamborough and Russ had been a fisherman, catching crab and lobster, and also took visitors out on trips.
The company put out a message on Facebook which stated: “Very sad day for all the North Landing crew. Our much-loved friend and colleague Russ sadly passed away unexpectedly.”
Former Det Sgt Tim O’Sullivan, who worked with Russ in the police for many years, said: “Russ had worked throughout the force and was highly respected wherever he was based. Tributes are coming in from all over – he was well respected and loved by everyone who knew him.”
Russ started his police career in the Holbeck area of Leeds and then became a community constable on the Canterbury estate in Bradford, also covering Odsal and both the Little and Great Horton areas.
He switched to the force’s former bomb search team and then joined the firearms team.
He became community constable in Holmfirth in 2000 and three years later became a crucial member of a crack anti-car crime unit.
During his time on the beat in the Holme Valley he was responsible for a number of crimereducing schemes including setting up a Farm Watch scheme and then Reservoir Watch which worked in partnership with water bailiffs, Yorkshire Water and local angling clubs to reduce fish poaching.
Russ was also the man behind Holmfirth’s Shop Watch scheme which included 30 shops and even helped organise the redesign of a Holmfirth supermarket car park to deter ‘boy racers.’