Assistant Commissioner John Yates QPM, Specialist Operations
John Yates is an Assistant Commissioner in the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and was appointed the new head of the Specialist Operations on 9 April, 2009.
He is a member of the Metropolitan Police Management Board and the Assistant Commissioner in charge of Specialist Operations with responsibility for Counter Terrorism, Security and Protection, nationally as well as in London. He is also Chair of the Association of Chief Police Officers - Terrorism & Allied Matters (ACPO - TAM) Business Area. He is responsible for co-ordinating national counter terrorism and security policy and operational delivery through ACPO TAM.
Previously in his role as head of the Specialist Crime Directorate he was responsible for the management and oversight of reactive investigations into all homicide and serious crime, child protection, economic and specialist crime, as well as covert policing and intelligence-led operations into serious and organised criminality.
He has served as a senior Detective in north and west London and been the Senior Investigating Officer on over 20 murders. He led one of the most complex corruption inquiries of recent years that led to the imprisonment of six serving detectives for sentences totalling 46 years. He was Staff Officer to Sir Paul Condon, now Lord, throughout the period of the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry.
On appointment to ACPO, he was appointed to the role of Commander Crime, Territorial Policing, with responsibility, amongst other things, for street crime, burglary and rape investigations in the MPS.
He also led the UK policing response to the South East Asian Tsunami and the MPS response to the Stockwell Shooting. He is the ACPO lead for Rape and Serious Sexual Offences involving adults.
In January 2006, he was awarded the Queen's Police Medal for distinguished services to policing.
He is married with two children. His interests include long-distance cycle racing, cooking and he is an avid supporter of Liverpool Football Club.