A Police officer who turned scores of young people away from gangs and crime has died aged 37 from a suspected stroke.
Met Pc Andy Taylor became ill at work and was sent home last weekend from his role in the CID team in north-west London.
Pc Taylor was then rushed to Addenbrooke’s Hospital, in Cambridge, where he died on Tuesday.
He joined the Met in 2008 and became a popular figure on social media as well as in north-west London. The father-of-three was known as “Big Andy” and amassed almost 54,000 Instagram followers.
Using humour to talk to young people, he was credited with changing attitudes to the police and steering teenagers away from knife crime.
A JustGiving site has reached £12,000 after it was set up this week to benefit his young family — a son and two daughters.
His wife Holly Taylor, who is also a Met police officer, posted a tribute on the fundraising page.
She said: “You left me too early but you made an impact on everyone’s life you touched.”
Many young people also left tributes, with one saying Pc Taylor was “the only fed man I actually liked”.
