The Isles of Scilly police sergeant who found global fame
Don’t step out of line in the Isles of Scilly or you might find yourself in someone’s memoirs – read on….
The Isles of Scilly are not known for their high crime rate, but the exploits of its head of police have made him a star of social media and secured him a book deal.
Over the past seven years, Sgt Colin Taylor has used a child’s bike to chase someone suspected of drinking and driving and kept the streets of Scilly free from anchor thieves and naked stag parties.
He has gained tens of thousands of social media followers, despite the islands only having a population of 2,200.
Now, as the 49-year-old prepares to resume his career on the mainland, BBC News looks back on some of his highlights fighting crime at the extremity of the British Isles, and how one police officer has gained such social media momentum.
“People said there’s no crime on Scilly, but I’ve managed to write about it for the last five years. Sometimes things happen and you just have to find the funny side,” Sgt Taylor said.
On this occasion Sgt Taylor had to travel across different islands and borrow a child’s bike while in pursuit of suspected drunk driver.
“It was lucky the little boy was there with his bike to help me out, sometimes you’ve just got to think on your feet and get the job done,” Sgt Taylor said.
The Isles of Scilly is not a big place, there’s a population of just 2,200 people over five inhabited islands, plus countless uninhabited islands.
Despite this, the Isles of Scilly Police Facebook page has attracted 60,000 likes – the same amount as the whole of the Devon and Cornwall Police force page.