Eulogy of Kulwinder Sandhu - Date of Birth: 11th August 1979 - Date of Death: 28th October 2008

Kulwinder Sandhu joined the City of London Police on the 4th
November 2002. We were very privileged that Kulwinder approached the
City of London as his chosen Force.
Being a graduate of business, finance and accountancy, and with
ambitions to become a fraud investigator- the City of London was his
natural choice.
Kulwinder was the first Sikh Police officer in the 179-year
history of the Force. He graciously became the face of the City of
London Police and appeared on many many publications, magazines and
posters about the service.
With over 1200 colleagues, not a single member of staff could say they didn’t know Kulwinder.
With over 1200 colleagues, not a single member of staff could say they didn’t know Kulwinder.
He joined the City Force specifically, owing to his desire to be a
financial investigator. Such was his determination to get on with his
detective career that within 2 weeks of joining, he applied for an
attachment to the fraud department!
This request would be an obvious move for a graduate of his
background however not until he had completed at least 2 years on the
beat would he be allowed to specialise.
Kulwinder was also keen on football, not only playing and
organising games after work for colleagues but also watching his
beloved Manchester United, lets pray that they beat Celtic tonight in
what would be a fitting tribute.
Kulwinder was keen to try everything and anything in his patient
wait for his detective career and as such he was prepared to help
anyone and every department in the Force.
His helpful and considerate manner saw him apply to be part of the
pilot scheme of a newly launched crime reporting bureau, dealing with
members of the public who had been the victim of crime. His
understanding and personable nature made him ideal for the role.
Kulwinder was very patient, tolerant, informative and charming
when staff and the public asked him about his religion. No doubt, they
asked the same questions over and over but his response was always
humorous and engaging. He clearly raised the awareness of the Sikh
religion amongst staff and also became an ambassador for us in the Sikh
community.
At 6’4” tall, he struck an imposing figure, but nothing was as
big as his heart, warm personality, generosity and beaming smile that
could melt ice.
There is a phrase ‘like father like son’. That would appear NOT to
be the case when it comes to working the nightshift. I understand that
Bahadur Kulwinder’s father was a shift worker, for over 35 years and
did so without effort. Kulwinder however would appear to be allergic to
night shift. Whilst his colleagues would spend their breaks playing
cards or watching TV, Kulwinder would always catch up on 40 winks by
stretching out on the leather sofa in the TV room.
On one occasion, such was Kulwinder’s deep sleep that he slept
through his break. The sergeant began asking if anyone had seen
Kulwinder and when the Sergeant entered the TV room, the first thing he
saw was a pair of size 12 boots sticking off the end of the settee.
Needless to say he was soon out patrolling with his colleagues.
As much as Kulwinder enjoyed his job, Kulwinder loved his family
dearly and spoke of them often with his colleagues. He was very proud
of his son Gorvan who was born in 2007.
One evening shift Kulwinder was delayed in booking off duty whilst
helping a victim of crime. By the time he finished his paperwork he
missed his lat train home. In these circumstances, the inspector agreed
for a colleague to drive Kulwinder home in an unmarked police car.
Kulwinder offered to drive, as he knew the best route to
Letchworth and then his colleague would drive back. In his haste to get
home to his family, he triggered two speed cameras, of which the
dreaded letters arrived at the police station the next week. Under
these circumstances the fine had to be paid and Kulwinder modestly dug
deep.
In September 2007 Kulwinder realised his dream of being a fraud investigator and began his attachment to his chosen department.
With a beaming smile and long strides, he carried his box of
personal possessions into the new office to meet his fraud colleagues.
The first thing he did on opening the box to unpack, was to proudly
place his family picture on his new desk which remained until his last
day of service.
His premature death is an enormous loss to the Force and he will be sadly missed.
Our thoughts today are with his wife Mandeep, his son Gorvan, his parents Karamjit and Bahadur and all the family and friends.