WELL-WISHERS have donated almost £70,000 in less than 24 hours to support the family and widow of PC Andrew Harper. Murder detectives have continued to question 10 males including a 13-year-old boy over his death.
The 28-year-old newlywed officer died of multiple injuries after he was dragged along by a vehicle while investigating a burglary reported in the village of Bradfield Southend, Berkshire, at around 11.30pm on Thursday night.
The 10 men were arrested at a nearby caravan park within an hour, according to Thames Valley Police.
Yesterday, Detective Superintendent Ailsa Kent told reporters that police have been granted an extra 36 hours to question the suspects.
Country roads near the Four Houses Corner caravan park were closed as police looked for evidence near the site where the suspects were arrested.
As officers continued their investigation, the fundraising page, set up by Thames Valley Police Federation to support Harper’s widow Lissie and his family, raised £59,000.
It reads: “We confront danger on a daily basis. We know there is a risk when we put on the uniform but we do so as we are proud to protect the public. Sadly on very rare and horrendous occasions a colleague makes the ultimate sacrifice. We will ensure that heroism is never forgotten.”
Harper’s father, Philip, said the family have been “absolutely devastated” by the death, telling Sky News: “We’re in a bad place.”
Harper, who married new wife Lissie just four weeks ago in what relatives have described as a “dream wedding”, was reportedly due to go on his honeymoon in a few days.
Grieving officers have laid floral tributes at the scene where their colleague was killed at the junction of Ufton Lane and Lambdens Hill.
Meanwhile, a fundraising page set up by Harper in aid of children suffering with cancer has been flooded with donations. He made the page with a £500 target for the 20-mile Dirty Weekend race in Peterborough in May next year.
But a deluge of donations has now taken the total raised to more than £16,000 in aid of Children with Cancer UK. He had written: “Even if only one child benefits then it will be well and truly worth it.”
Harper is the first officer to be killed on duty since 2017, when unarmed PC Keith Palmer was stabbed by Khalid Masood during the Westminster Bridge terror attack.
His death came after a police constable was run over by a suspected car thief in Birmingham last week.
The 42-year-old traffic officer is facing “potentially life-changing” injuries, a senior officer said.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here