former Governor Sir Richard Sharples has retired.

P.c. Brian Callaghan has stepped down from the Bermuda Police Service after 24 years.

Yesterday Police Commissioner Colin Coxall and other officers wished him well.

P.c. Callaghan came to Bermuda in July 1972 from Northumberland, England, where he had served nine years.

In Bermuda, he worked in the Criminal Records Office and Interpol, where he received training in France and Puerto Rico.

He also contributed to the Crimestoppers programme, serving as a director.

Early in his career, P.c. Callaghan had a brief spell in the Uniformed Division, serving on the then Murder Squad.

He helped in the investigation into the Sharples assassination in 1973 and the murder of Police Commissioner George Duckett.

A Police spokeswoman said P.c. Callaghan -- a married man who lives in Smith's Parish -- intended to work now in the private sector.