POLICE officers old and new gathered in York to send off a man who dedicated his career to tackling crime and disorder in the city.

Hundreds of well-wishers met at York Racecourse to pay tribute to Chief Superintendent John Lacy who was retiring after 35 years with North Yorkshire Police.

Mr Lacy joined the force as a cadet in 1969 and went on to head CID before becoming area operations commander. In that role he co-ordinated the response to the flooding disaster of 2000 and to the Great Heck rail tragedy.

Inspector Jim Breen said Mr Lacy was a "true leader" who, as area commander, had led York and Selby through an unprecedented era of change.

Evening Press assistant editor Bill Hearld presented Mr Lacy with a specially-designed front page to mark the event.

Updated: 09:34 Saturday, March 27, 2004