Terrence Haines

Former Det Chief Insp Terrence Haines retired a day after the Independent Police Complaints Commission contacted him about Lee Balkwell‘s untimely death.

Mr Haines, who headed Essex Police’s Serious and Organised Crime Directorate in 2008, refused to answer questions about his involvement in inquiries into the death.

If an officer retires, there is no law forcing them to co-operate with a commission investigation, so it is powerless to force them to answer questions.

However Lee’s dad Les Balkwell, 64, believes Mr Haines should have got involved. He said: “I want to know why a senior detective would not co-operate in an inquiry concerning an unexplained death?”

Mr Haines, who received the Liam Brigginshaw Award in recognition of outstanding commitment to policing in October 2009, was one of 18 officers served “regulation nine” official notices by the commission, meaning they were under investigation.

This does not mean an officer is guilty of any wrongdoing. The force’s own professional standards department has thrown out similar complaints about Mr Haines in an internal investigation, sometimes carried out by police following unsolved cases or unexplained deaths.

Mr Haines, who was an investigator during a review from 2003 to 2006, received his notice in December 2008, but the commission did not formally approach him to respond until March 31, last year. He retired on April 1.