Paddick campaign gathers pace

As Commander Brian Paddick ponders what sort of future he has in the Met, flyposters are popping up all over Lambeth bearing his picture under the slogan: "Wanted".

His removal from a frontline role as the area's most senior policeman - following allegations that he smoked cannabis - has prompted a national debate.

Among his high-profile backers are Ken Livingstone and the Dean of Lambeth, Canon Richard Truss.

But who are the people leading the poster campaign to put the suspended Paddick back in charge of policing Lambeth?

The group, who last week posed for the Evening Standard holding their campaign posters, are not, it is fair to say, the sort of people who would usually be found coming out in the support of a senior police officer.

Two of them are active in the squatters' parties scene, and three - all the men - are frank about being drug users.

They include "Mikee", a privately-educated middle-class drop-out who went into rehab after his drug habit got out of hand; "Offshore", who discovered drugs in the Army and then "ran away with the hippies", and "Hatboy", whose claim to fame is that he asked Paddick the question on an anarchist website which sparked off the initial furore.

"Mikee", also known as Mike Sheppard, 30, organises parties in derelict venues for up to 3,000 squatters at a time. Next month his pop group is staging a concert - in aid of the Legalise Cannabis Festival.

At the age of four, Sheppard moved with his family to Hong Kong, where he attended a feepaying international school. He first smoked cannabis at the age of 12.

At 16 he travelled around Asia and continued to experiment with drugs. By the age of 24 his experimentations had gone too far and he found himself in a rehab clinic in Portugal.

While he denied that smoking cannabis leads to more hardened drugs, he said: "I chose to do other drugs that were available. I have done all of them. Yes, crack as well. I have had quite major problems, I have been in rehab for 14 months without alcohol or drugs. It was my decision to sort myself out."

Referring to his parents, he added: "It was a really, really difficult time for them and they are massively supportive."

Despite his previous problems, he insists alcohol and tobacco are more dangerous than cannabis and believes the drug should be legalised.

Also supporting the campaign is Paul "Hatboy" Bakalite, who has lived in Brixton for the past 13 years.

He prides himself on the fact that it was his question to Commander Paddick about his views on guns and crack that received the response that the officer finds anarchy attractive and caused the initial controversy.

Hatboy is vociferously opposed to the crack dealers that line Coldharbour Lane, accusing them of ruining the "neighbourly" marijuana-induced atmosphere that reigned before their arrival.

But the 36-year-old admits that he has in fact tried crack and at least one of his close friends became an addict and stole his television.

Chris "Offshore" Hurley, 43, lives in Brixton with his wife and two children, aged 12 and 16. Born in Cardiff, he joined the army at the age of 18 - an experience which changed his life. "I discovered drugs in the army, cannabis and amphetamines," he said. According to his own account he then "ran away with the hippies".

In the Eighties he was given a conditional discharge after being charged with possession of marijuana at Old Street magistrates court.

Mr Hurley also admitted that he had tried crack cocaine - but said that he had disliked it and never tried it again.

Asked if he would be happy for his children to take drugs, he said: "I'm lucky because my son and my daughter have no real interest in that kind of thing."

The one girl in the line-up, Lucyna Kromska, 27, from Poland, who moved to London three years ago, works in a hospital and is a regular in Brixton pubs such as the Dogstar.

She said: "I feel safer on the streets when I know there is someone real at the top. I spoke to him (Paddick) and he was a 'real person'."

Commander Paddick was removed from his job last week as an inquiry was launched into allegations that he regularly smoked cannabis and allowed the drug to be kept in his home.

The claims were made by his former partner James Renolleau, an ex-male model, in an interview with the Mail on Sunday.

The 43-year-old commander, Britain's highest-ranking openly gay policeman, was swiftly switched to a low profile desk job away from Lambeth while the inquiry is carried out by an outside force. He has vehemently denied smoking cannabis and claims he is the victim of a homophobic witchhunt. Commander Paddick has received support from members of the community in Lambeth.