Alastair McWhirter

Who is Alastair McWhirter?

Alastair McWhirter QPM MA was a British senior police officer until April 2007. Born in 1953 in Lanarkshire, he was educated at Hamilton Academy and Aberdeen University where he studied for an MA in English and History; this was followed by a Post Graduate Certificate of Education at Aberdeen Teacher Training College.

Alastair McWhirter was the Chief Constable of Suffolk Constabulary. He came to public prominence during the police 2006 Suffolk serial killer investigation in Ipswich in December 2006, one of the most prolific killers in recent British criminal history.

He taught English and drama in Winchester and joined Hampshire Constabulary in 1977. He served in all ranks up to Chief Superintendent in Hampshire working in cities and more rural areas with diverse populations and policing challenges.

McWhirter was in 1996 appointed Assistant Chief Constable in the Wiltshire Constabulary, responsible for all operational policing. He was largely responsible for returning the policing of the summer Solstice at Stonehenge back to 'normality' after a decade of confrontation with new Age travellers and assorted Druid groups.