Murdered Scottish cop Gordon Semple devoted life to drug-infested estate

STANDING tall murdered Scots policeman Gordon Semple beams with pride in the first picture to emerge of him in his uniform.

The kind-hearted beat bobby had hoped to forge a career with the Met’s fraud squad but instead found unexpected happiness working one of Britain’s toughest neighbourhoods.

Gordon, from Inverness, who was murdered by drug addict Stefano Brizzi at the Italian’s flat in April, was based at Peckham police station in south-east London.

Peckham is the home of TV chancer Del Boy Trotter of Only Fools and Horses fame – but in real-life suffers from gang crime, muggings and murders.

Noisy, traffic-choked and home to a multitude of different races, creeds and colours, it is a far cry from the Highland world Gordon called home.

He had joined the Bank of Scotland straight from school in 1973 and worked in Inverness, Dundee and London before joining the Metropolitan Police in 1986 at the age of 29.

Gordon thought his banking background would result in a swift transfer to the fraud squad, but instead he found his calling patrolling the capital’s streets.

His taxi driver brother Ronnie, 65, was surprised by the move but said Gordon took to it straight away and never looked back.

“He loved it,” said Ronnie, who lives in Inverness. “He was in Peckham for years. He could tell some amount of stories when we went down to visit him. There were places you just had to avoid but he loved the community feel of it and never even wanted a promotion.

“When one of his sergeants met him for the first time, he said to Gordon later he initially thought he was a detective inspector rather than a constable because of the way he presented himself. Gordon knew his stuff and was a true professional.”

Although widely respected by his colleagues, a promotion would have taken him away from the daily contact he enjoyed with people on the street. Ronnie even described Gordon’s policing style as “more Dixon of Dock Green than The Sweeney,” a nod to the long-running TV series where petty crime was dealt with using common sense.

As youngsters, the Semple
brothers lived in the tight-knit Raigmore estate in Inverness.

Although he never showed much interest in the police back then, Ronnie remembers the teenage Gordon as a confident boy who was always organising functions in one way or another.

Before he was killed, after a hookup on a dating website, 59-year-old Gordon had just celebrated 30 years with the force and was working with the anti-social behaviour team within Westminster City Council. Prior to that, he worked closely with the licensing trade in the West End.

“We couldn’t walk past any big pub or club without them stopping him and shaking hands,” said Ronnie. “He was well-known and well respected.”

As the grisly details of Gordon’s death came to light, the disturbing case made headlines around the world.

Brizzi, 50, faces life behind bars after being found guilty. Jurors at London’s Old Bailey convicted the Italian national on a 10-2 majority after five days of deliberations.

The trial heard how police officers were called to Brizzi’s flat to investigate reports of a putrid smell emanating from his home.

Officers found Gordon’s partially-dissolved body parts in a bath.

Throughout the process, Ronnie and his family were kept informed of developments by Gordon’s colleagues.

Although he admitted what
happened to his only brother still keeps him awake at night, Ronnie said his memories of Gordon as a funny, generous and kind man will always be with him.

This was a man who led drives to raise thousands of pounds for cancer research at his local pub in Kent, a proud Highlander who followed the Scottish national football team home and away around the world and was a loving partner to Gary Meeks for 25 years.

When Ronnie’s wife Maureen underwent a life-saving heart transplant in 2005, Gordon dropped everything and flew to Inverness.

More than 400 people turned up for his funeral in June, with police colleagues serving as his pallbearers.

“Gordon was obviously involved in things we knew nothing about but to us, he will always be the Gordon we knew,” said Ronnie. “We were very proud of him. “London was his life but he still came back to Inverness a lot.”

As for Gordon’s killer, Ronnie said: “I wouldn’t want to ever speak to him, I am very angry. I hope he rots in jail, the guy is a monster. We as a family must move on, but Gordon will always be in our hearts and thoughts.”

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