WEST Fife’s top cop has left the force after a “great” 30 years of service.

Chief Inspector Gordon Mitchell (49) finished up on Friday as west area commander and thanked colleagues and local communities for their support in helping to make the Kingdom safer.

He paid a big thank-you to the Press, especially for the success of Operation Facet, which asked readers to pass on information relating to drug crime and was commended in an HM Inspectorate of Constabulary inspection report on Fife.

Ch Insp Mitchell said, “We all have the same goal to make West Fife an even safer and prosperous place to live and of course look after and protect the most vulnerable people in our communities.

“We have seen the fantastic support from the community to the numerous appeals for information in the Press, which has successfully put numerous criminals to court.” In Operation Facet, we joined forces with the police asking for readers’ help to pass on information on criminals – and thanks to your response, drugs worth £280,000 were recovered in West Fife; £24,000 in cash was seized; and more than 50 properties were searched under warrant.

Speaking to the Press, Ch Insp Mitchell said it was a “weird feeling” to be retiring.

He added, “There have been happy times but in policing we deal with the realities of life and I have always had the belief that all the team here have the best interests of people at heart and genuinely want to make a difference.

“You learn as soon as you get promoted that it’s not all about yourself, despite the pips on your shoulder.

“It’s about serving the community. It’s about the guys and girls on the beat that just go out there and get on with their jobs, sometimes in the most harrowing of circumstances. For that I am very proud of each and every one of them.

“I’ve seen the tragedies that some people have gone through. You’re just a cog in the wheel to help people move on in life and I’ve always admired the humanity and character they show.” Ch Insp Mitchell worked at the Keavil House Hotel, Night Magic nightclub and Rosyth Dockyard before deciding to join the police.

While most of his service has been in CID, he’s also worked all over the UK in drugs enforcement and had a stint in Pittsburgh.

He said, “It’s been a great 30 years and even better to finish in my home town. I remember my first day like yesterday.

“It was a night shift and when I got home, I couldn’t sleep. I just thought, I’m gonna love this job. I still do today and that’s a thing that money just can’t buy.

“When I joined I was taken in by a superintendent who gave me the good advice to ‘treat everybody like they’re your mum’ and I’ve carried on that advice.

“The funny thing was that he was a grumpy old git who was probably younger than I am now!” Insp Mitchell said he was leaving “with a book of crazy stories and very happy memories” but he will certainly be resisting a rest.

He said, “I’ll be valuing my health, my friends and family and just see where the wind takes me.”