Adrian Leppard
Retired senior British police officer and former Commissioner of the City of London Police
| Adrian Leppard | |
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| Nationality | British |
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| Occupation | Police officer, security adviser |
| Known for | Commissioner of the City of London Police (2011–2016); leadership in economic crime and cybercrime policing |
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Adrian Leppard CBE QPM is a retired senior British police officer who served as Commissioner of the City of London Police from January 2011 to January 2016.[1]
Early life and education
Adrian Leppard completed a Master's Degree in Business Administration at City University in 2000.[1]
Police career
Adrian Leppard served for 32 years as a police officer, retiring in January 2016.[1] He began his career in the 1980s and served with Kent Police and Surrey Police before joining the City of London Police.[2]
For much of his career he worked as a detective, developing specialist expertise in hostage negotiation, intelligence, and covert operations.[1] He held command experience in firearms and counter-terrorism.[1] He served ten years as a chief officer across three forces.[1]
As a Senior Investigating Officer, he investigated numerous homicides and other serious crimes, including contract killings and the world's largest cash robbery of £53 million.[1]
In counter-terrorism, he served as Counter Terrorism Commander and was instrumental in shaping the current British policing response, reflected in the national Counter Terrorism Command network.[1]
National Domestic Extremism Team (NDET)
Established by the National Coordinator for Domestic Extremism, Assistant Chief Constable Anton Setchell, the National Domestic Extremism Team (NDET), was the investigation wing of the National Domestic Extremism Unit. Based in London, it was overseen by the Association of Chief Police Officers' Terrorism and Allied Matters Committee. Its work was described at the time as:[3]
- responsible for co-ordinating police operations and investigations against domestic campaigns and extremists, as well as identifying possible linked crimes across the country.
A key focus of NDET was animal rights campaigns (which had motivated the creation of the national domestic extremism units in 2004). Particular targets were Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC) and SPEAK Campaigns. Named Forton, a significant intelligence gathering operation was launched, involving involved five forces: Sussex, Hampshire, Surrey, Kent and Thames Valley.[4]
A number of undercover police officers were deployed by the NDET's sister unit, the National Public Order Intelligence Unit, targeting animal rights groups, including SHAC. These undercovers included 'RC' (active 2002 to 2006). It appears that the police also employed private intelligence specialists such as Adrian Radford (active as 'Ian Farmer 2004 to 2007).[5]
The arrest and formal investigation phase began with the coordinated arrests of 32 animal rights activists associated with SHAC on 1 May 2007.[6] This phase was named Operation Achillies at this point, and at that point was overseen by ACC Adrian Leppard, the then head of Specialist Operations at Kent Police. It was the largest police operation of its time,[7] costing £3.5 million and incorporating 12 separate police forces as well as the FBI. It was lead by detectives experienced in organised crime investigations (which included Robbins[8]), who used covert surveillance to build their case.[9] Ultimately, a number of activists were convicted, with twelve being imprisoned in a number of trials that took place between 2008 and 2012.
Commissioner of the City of London Police
Adrian Leppard was appointed Commissioner of the City of London Police in January 2011, succeeding Mike Bowron, and served until January 2016.[1] He headed the UK's lead force in economic crime, overseeing policing of the Square Mile, London's historic and financial centre.[1]
Under his leadership, the force hosted the UK National Fraud and Cyber Intelligence Bureau, an International Fraud Academy, and a 400-strong specialist Economic Crime Directorate investigating the most serious fraud and cybercrime affecting the UK.[1] The force played a key role within the Government's Economic Crime Command in reducing the threat of fraud to the UK.[1]
He oversaw policing for major events including the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and the London 2012 Olympics, working in partnership with other forces.[2] He addressed significant budget cuts while maintaining operational capability and developed closer relationships with the security industry.[2]
As UK Policing lead for Fraud, he led the development of a national economic crime capability, including regionally based units.[2]
Awards and honours
Adrian Leppard was awarded the Queen's Police Medal (QPM) in the 2012 New Year’s Honours List for distinguished police service.[1][10]
He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2016 Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to policing and the prevention of economic crime.[11]
Post-retirement activities and advisory roles
Following retirement, Adrian Leppard has held several advisory and directorship positions in the private sector, focusing on cybersecurity, fraud prevention, and intelligence.
- Director of Templar Executives Ltd, a London-based cybersecurity company providing services to governments and corporations (January 2016 – January 2024).[12]
- Member of the international advisory board of Black Cube, a private intelligence agency (from early 2021).[13]
- Member of the Strategic Advisory Board for the International Fraud Group at Mishcon de Reya LLP (from February 2021).[12]
- Director of Waste2Energy Development Ltd.[14]
He has given evidence to the UK Government's Home Affairs Select Committee on the threat of cybercrime.[1] He has written articles on cybersecurity and fraud for New Statesman and spoken at Gresham College on policing and security topics.[15][16]
See also
Affiliations
Notes
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 ICT, Commissioner Adrian Leppard ict.org.il, accessed 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 City Security Magazine, Profile of former Commissioner of City of London Police: Adrian Leppard QPM citysecuritymagazine.com, 2 July 2018.
- ↑ National Co-ordinator Domestic Extremism, Frequently Asked Questions, Association of Chief Police Officers, ca. 2010-2011, archived by Undercover Research Group.
- ↑ Gordon Mills, The successes and failures of policing animal rights extremism in the UK 2004–2010, International Journal of Police Science & Management, Vol. 15, No.1, 18 February 2013.
- ↑ Jack Grimston, ALF infiltrator speaks on UK arrests, campaign, Sunday Times (paywall), 1 March 2009.
- ↑ Police quiz animal activists, The Express, 1 May 2007, accessed 31 August 2014.
- ↑ Police quiz animal activists, The Express, 1 May 2007, accessed 31 August 2014.
- ↑ Haroon Siddique, Animal rights activists guilty of blackmailing research lab suppliers, The Guardian, 23 December 2008 (accessed 5 November 2016).
- ↑ Sandra Laville, National: Anti-vivisection campaign: ALF plotters stuck to rigid code of secrecy. But police were listening: An unprecedented undercover operation by 12 forces with FBI help brought down network of animal rights extremists, The Guardian, 24 December 2008 (accessed via Nexis).
- ↑ The Gazette, Adrian Allen LEPPARD Q.P.M. thegazette.co.uk, accessed 2026.
- ↑ The Gazette, Adrian Allen LEPPARD Q.P.M. thegazette.co.uk, accessed 2026.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Grokipedia, Adrian Leppard grokipedia.com, accessed 2026.
- ↑ Intelligence Online, Adrian Leppard's business interests flourish as Black Cube's picks up too intelligenceonline.com, 14 December 2021.
- ↑ LinkedIn, Adrian Leppard CBE QPM linkedin.com, accessed 2026.
- ↑ New Statesman, Adrian Leppard newstatesman.com, accessed 2026.
- ↑ Gresham College, Adrian Leppard gresham.ac.uk, accessed 2026.