481: Smithy breaks up with Kezia

Birthday boy Sergeant Smithy is unimpressed to hear that Trainee DC Kezia Walker is planning a surprise for his birthday especially after being inflicted by chorus of ‘Happy Birthday’ from the troops. During the briefing, Inspector Gina Gold reminds the team that they must keep peace on the Aldbourne Estate – it’s being redeveloped and the residents won’t leave. Smithy pairs with PC Roger Valentine in the area car and as he tells Roger about the quiet birthday he is hoping for, a white car pulls out in front of them, through red lights and speeds away. Furious, Smithy questions the driver who admits to driving recklessly. He is arrested and brought back to the station. The man gives his name as Alan Jones and as he is questioned by Smithy, Roger visits the address he gave to see if he checks out. He speaks to Alan’s wife, Sarah and satisfied he is the owner of the car and lives at that address, they bail him.

Back at Sun Hill, it is Sam Nixon’s first day as DI and she enters her new office to find that DI Neil Manson, has chosen the best seating position, leaving her with a desk covered in paperwork. Neil tells her she can deal with the missing person files and Sam enthusiastically takes the opportunity to get involved with the Tennant case. Neil says that James Tennant has organised a family gathering to celebrate his daughter, Amy’s life a year after she went missing. He is unimpressed when Sam says it may be a chance to jog the publics’ memory. Sam invites James down to station and she sensitively suggests to him that they invite some press down and have a low-key police presence to survey any suspicious behaviour. James eventually agrees to Sam’s suggestion and a furious Neil tells her she shouldn’t have gone behind his back. Sam argues that their disagreement shouldn’t prevent them taking every opportunity to find Amy. Does Sam really know what she is getting herself in to?

Elsewhere, Smithy and Roger are stunned when the real Alan Jones along with his wife, Sarah enter the station to report their car stolen. Alan confesses to Roger, Smithy and Sarah that he responded to an advert on the internet advertising a Mercedes for sale for six grand. He took the money to a meeting place, where two men forced him to hand over the cash and his car keys driving off in his car and the Mercedes. Through further investigation, Smithy discovers that the man claiming to be Alan is called Darren Carew and talks to Sam and DS Stuart Turner who arrange a sting to catch him. Smithy is shot at by Carew during the sting and although his accomplice is arrested, Carew manages to escape. Another undercover operation is arranged and with the help of S019, Carew is made to strip down to his underpants to prove his is not armed and arrested outside a pub.

Meanwhile, out on the Aldbourne Estate, Sergeant June Ackland, announces to PC Tony Stamp and PC Reg Hollis that she is taking early retirement and will hand her notice into Gina later. They are shocked by the news but soon have to deal with a suspicious lad who has run out of a flat - refusing to give his name. Aldbourne resident, Frank Harris tells the officers that the boy is a thief called Devon Deeley. June is frustrated when Colin Duncan, the property developer refuses to press charges when Devon is found to have stolen piping from one of the properties. Outside, Reg calls June and Tony when he comes across a group of junkies found in a derelict flat. Duncan is shocked by the state of the flat and June gently threatens that it is his responsibility to get it cleaned up, or the press will be interested to hear of it. Later, the officers discover Deeley and Frank fighting. Deeley punches Frank, who falls to the floor, clutching his chest and June, suspecting he has had a heart attack, calls for an ambulance. In St Hugh’s, June is relieved to discover that Frank only suffered an angina attack and she is intrigued when Frank says that someone on the council is taking backhanders from the developers and is determined to prove it…

At the end of the shift, Kezia tracks Smithy down to the gun club and Smithy gently tells her he doesn’t want to be with her. It was meant to be a bit of fun and they’ve now slipped into a routine relationship which neither of them wanted. Is this the end for Sun Hill’s hottest couple?