The Chief Constable of Northamptonshire Police has personally contacted his counterpart in Manchester to express his sympathy over the deaths of two officers on Tuesday.
Adrian Lee, who spent two decades working for Greater Manchester Police, got in touch with Sir Peter Fahy yesterday following the deaths of PCs Fiona Bone and Nicola Hughes.
He said: “I have contacted the Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police to offer my sincerest condolences on behalf of Northamptonshire Police following the deaths of two police officers on Tuesday morning.
“I joined the police service in Manchester where I served for almost 20 years and my thoughts are with my former colleagues at this sad time.
“This is a very difficult time for all of those within the wider policing family and as a mark of respect to PCs Fiona Bone and Nicola Hughes, I have requested that all flags across the force be flown at half mast.”
The pair, aged 32 and 23 respectively, were on a routine patrol in the Mottram district of Greater Manchester when they responded to reports of a house burglary on the Hattersley Estate.
As they approached the house, a man suddenly emerged and fired more than ten times at them before throwing a grenade in their direction.
Both women were fatally injured, one dying at the scene while paramedics were unable to save her colleague.
A short time later Dale Cregan, 29, who was wanted in connection with the murders of father and son David and Mark Short in separate gun and grenade attacks, walked into nearby Tameside police station and gave himself up.
Police said they believed Cregan or someone acting on his behalf had deliberately called the police to report a bogus burglary in a bid to lure officers into a deadly ambush.