Penny Lancaster, 50, makes her first arrest as special constable after pulling over drug-driver while on patrol with City of London police
- Penny Lancaster, 50, has been working as a special constable for the past year
- She spends 200 hours a year on patrol with the City of London Police
- The driver of a car pulled provided a positive cannabis breath test sample
- One of Lancaster’s colleagues said she should make the arrest following the stop
Penny Lancaster has revealed she has made her first arrest as a police officer after pulling over a drug driving suspect.
The wife of Sir Rod Stewart started working as a special constable with the City of London Police last year after completing training.
She was recently on mobile patrol with colleagues when they stopped a car with two people inside.
After the driver tested positive for cannabis on a roadside breath test Lancaster made the arrest and took the suspect into custody.
Penny Lancaster, pictured here on patrol with the City of London Police in August 2021 has revealed that she has made her first arrest while on the beat after stopping a driver suspiected of driving under the influence. A breath test indicated the man had taken cannabis and was taken into custody
The Loose Women panellist admitted she had a bit of stage fright as she nearly forgot how to read the man his rights but said her training soon kicked in.
Lancaster, 50, took the suspect into custody and said she was pleased to achieve the milestone in her policing career.
She said: ‘My first arrest was a drug drive. There were a couple of suspects whose vehicle was pulled over and a test was taken on the side of the road which came back positive for cannabis so driving under the influence.
‘I was given the wink and the nod by the officers that were with me.
‘First of all I did get a bit of a stage struck moment where I felt all the words of the caution had left me but luckily they came into action and all my training proved important there.
‘I made the arrest and brought the suspect back to custody and I told them the necessity for the arrest and went through the usual procedures there.’
Lancaster applied to become a special constable after taking part in reality TV programme Famous and Fighting Crime where she joined officers on the beat.
During filming, she was at one point confronted by a drug dealer who threatened to stab her.
Penny Lancaster, pictured with her husband Rod Stewart outside Annabels in Mayfair on March 5, said she does approximately one day a week to complete her 200-hour-a-year commitment
The mother-of-two, who married Sir Rod in 2007, said the experience inspired her to become a police officer.
Speaking about her role on BBC One’s Crimewatch Live, she said: ‘It’s roughly about 200 hours a year which equates for myself to one duty a week in the City of London Square Mile including bridges there.
‘It’s predominantly foot patrol but I also get the opportunity to try other areas of policing out like working in vehicles, working with the sniffer dogs and operations like the London Marathon, the Lord Mayor’s Show and coming up the Jubilee.
‘I think being a mum and having the patience and the empathy to deal with teenagers in particular helps.
‘A lot of the time you think policing and you think crime but you’re dealing with victims.’
Lancaster said Sir Rod, 77, is supportive of her although he does worry about the dangers involved.
She added: ‘He’s always supportive in whatever I like to venture into and with this in particular he realised the amount of enthusiasm and joy and reward I got from it.
‘Of course, he worries about the natural risks involved but with the support I’ve got around me, and letting him know when I’m back at the station and safe to head home, he’s able to go back to sleep.’